Staff updates commission on Miramar site visit, parking study and coastal‑hazards mapping for local coastal program

Planning staff provided an informational update on June 18 covering three items: a recent site visit to the Miramar redevelopment, progress on a downtown parking study, and geology and hazards mapping work supporting the city’s Local Coastal Program grant.

Commissioner Buchanan described a site visit to the Miramar project and shared progress photos from the interior and courtyard. Staff said extensive excavation and infrastructure work was required to retrofit the long‑vacant 1938 theater and adjacent food‑court area; the developer has installed refrigeration and grease‑trap infrastructure and is preparing tenant improvement pad space. Staff said the developer asked city staff to expedite a minor fence request prior to patio concrete pourings; the city will evaluate that request through the standard permit process.

Staff also summarized an ongoing parking study funded under the LCP grant. Consultants conducted license‑plate and visual counts across the coastal zone and downtown (Thursday and Saturday data collection in January) and will repeat a peak‑season survey at the end of July/early August. Early results show heavy occupancy on some blocks during daytime hours and that most on‑street vehicles observed in several downtown blocks stayed two hours or less (consistent with the city’s two‑hour limit). Public outreach to date includes on‑site surveys at city events and an online survey; common public preferences reported include expanded trolley service and other transportation‑demand management options. Staff said the study will return with recommended code changes and policy options later in the year (a study session is planned for August and a formal recommendation is targeted for November). Possible outcomes include modified parking tables, shared‑parking approaches, in‑lieu fees, or exemptions for certain uses.

Finally, staff and the city’s geology consultant described work under the Coastal Commission grant to build an evidence‑based hazards mapping tool for bluff and canyon areas. The consultant is compiling historical aerials, drone imagery and geologic reports and is producing GIS hazard layers, annotated photos and guidance for preparing site‑specific geologic hazard analyses. Staff said the tool will help define hazard zones, standardize required geotechnical analyses for coastal bluff projects, and support a future LCP implementation plan. The project team is also discussing how best to include other hazards (for example, fire or Cal Fire zones) and confirmed the output will be used to inform land‑use and permitting criteria if the city pursues permanent coastal permitting authority.

Staff said the LCP grant work is intended to reduce uncertainty and processing time for bluff‑edge projects and to help the city, if it becomes the coastal permitting authority, apply clear technical standards. Staff will return with more detailed presentations in August and further drafts later this year.