Orange Planning Commission recommends approval of 71‑home North Tustin small‑lot project, 4–2

The City of Orange Planning Commission voted 4–2 April 6 to recommend that the City Council approve a proposal to redevelop the vacant commercial site at 2375 North Tustin Street with 71 small‑lot single‑family homes and related approvals, including a general plan amendment, zone change and a tentative tract map.

Monique Schwartz, the city’s principal planner, told commissioners the project seeks to reclassify the parcel from general commercial to medium‑density residential and to apply the city’s small‑lot subdivision standards. She said a mitigated negative declaration prepared under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) concluded potential environmental impacts could be reduced to less‑than‑significant levels through proposed conditions and mitigation monitoring. “The item before you this evening is the North Tustin Street residential project located at 2375 North Tustin Street,” Schwartz said in her presentation.

Chad Brown, vice president of planning and development for Malia Homes, presented the developer’s design and…