Upland planning commission recommends council approve Via Serena plan for 65 homes after lengthy hearing

The Upland Planning Commission on a 6-0 vote recommended that the City Council certify an environmental impact report and approve entitlements for the Via Serena specific plan, a proposal to build 65 single‑family homes on about 9.2 acres of a former storm detention basin east of the Upland Hills Country Club.

The commission’s recommendation covers the final focused environmental impact report (EIR) and mitigation monitoring and reporting program, a general plan amendment to change the site’s designation from public utilities (flood control) to a specific plan, a zoning map amendment to the specific plan designation, and a tentative tract map and development plan review subdividing the parcel into 65 numbered lots and 12 lettered lots. Commissioners voted to forward all four items to council; each motion passed with six affirmative votes.

The project matters locally because it would remove roughly half of the basin’s existing footprint for homes while reconfiguring the remaining basin and adding mitigation and conservation measures. Staff and the applicant said the reconfiguration is designed to preserve flood control capacity, increase detention and dead storage, improve infiltration and provide an on-site public trail and pocket park; residents said the plan risks wildlife habitat loss, makes their properties more vulnerable to flooding and would alter neighborhood character.

Project components and city findings The Via Serena specific plan (applicant: Colonies Partners LP) would develop 65 single‑family detached homes across about 9.2 acres for an average density of 7.1 dwelling units per acre. The tentative tract map subdivides the site into lots ranging from roughly 3,300 to 5,800 square feet (most about 3,500 square feet). Each home is designed with a two‑car garage and driveway parking; staff said the development meets parking requirements without parallel stalls and that the project could provide about 40 parallel spaces subject to fire-department restrictions.

Staff described legislative and development components including a general plan amendment, a zoning map amendment, a specific plan containing design and landscape standards, a development plan review for site and architectural design, grading…