Commission approves five-year deferral for Reset Hotel undergrounding, with conditions

The Planning Commission approved a deferral allowing the Reset Hotel project to delay undergrounding three existing utility poles along the project frontage for up to five years or until the completion of phase 2, subject to a formal deferral agreement and the commission's four required findings.

Planning staff explained the development code requires undergrounding but provides for a deferral when meeting specific findings: the request must be supported by cost estimates, the cost of undergrounding would exceed a reasonable cost for the property, the property owner must enter a deferral agreement, and eventual undergrounding must be completed in a manner consistent with adjacent improvements. Staff also noted the commission had received correspondence opposing the deferral.

Applicant developer Ben Ueda said his team has already paid about $220,000 to trench and install conduit and boxes on the site and that the remaining work requires a SCE (SoCal Edison) tie-in that only the utility can perform. He said a contractor estimated roughly $70,000 for the pole tie-ins but that SCE controls timing and pricing for the final design and connection. "We want time to be able to negotiate with a monopoly that is the only one to do that because that allows us to work out an agreement with them that's over time," Ueda said. Planner and project engineer Vicky Bridgestine told the commission that the project originally applied to SCE for undergrounding in October 2022 and that SCE provided an estimate only after a multi-year delay.

Public commenters submitted letters and spoke about environmental concerns. A letter from Pat Flanagan urged the commission to add a specific finding about raven predation on desert tortoise young, citing the recent listing of the California desert tortoise as endangered and noting that aboveground poles provide perches that can increase raven predation; the letter recommended anti-perching spikes, native drought-tolerant landscaping and guest education about food waste. Several residents said SCE's long lead times and price increases on past projects supported allowing the deferment so the applicant could achieve better pricing and use local contractors for the work.

Commissioners discussed the appropriate term for a deferral, the timing tied to phase 2 construction, and accountability measures to ensure the work is completed either during phase 2 or within the five-year window. On a roll-call vote the commission approved the deferment with direction to memorialize in the deferral agreement that undergrounding must be completed before the completion of phase 2 or within five years, and to include the cost findings and replacement terms for future owners.

The decision allows the developer time to negotiate SCE's tie-in and to complete undergrounding while protecting the city's ability to require the work within a defined timeframe and to secure compliance through a deferral agreement.