Planning Commission Agenda Item TO: THRU: FROM: Chair Glasgow and Members of the Planning Commission Anna Pehoushek Assistant Community Development Director Robert Garcia Senior Planner SUBJECT PUBLIC HEARING: CONDITIONAL USE PERMIT NO. 3009-16 AMC Theaters, located at 20 City Boulevard West. SUMMARY The applicant is requesting an Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) Type 47 (On-Sale General - Eating Place) License to have on-site consumption of alcohol for the movie guests at the theater at The Outlets at Orange. RECOMMENDED ACTION Staff recommends that the Planning Commission review the proposal and take the appropriate action. The Planning Commission can take one of the following actions: Approve with required findings. Deny with required findings. AUTHORIZATION/GUIDELINES Orange Municipal Code (OMC) Section 17.10.030 authorizes the Planning Commission to review and take action on Conditional Use Permits. A Conditional Use Permit is required for an ABC license in the Urban Mixed Use (UMU) zone. OMC Section 17.30.030 establishes standards for any on-sale establishment license subject to an approved Business Establishment Alcohol Management and Education Program. The final determination by the Planning Commission on these applications may be appealed to the City Council pursuant to the time periods and requirements established in the OMC for appeals.
PUBLIC NOTICE Planning Commission Staff Report Page 2 On February 23, 2017, the City sent a Public Hearing Notice to a total of 693 property owners/tenants within a 300-foot radius of the project site and persons specifically requesting notice. The project site was also posted in four locations with the notification on that same date. ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW Categorical Exemption: The proposed project is categorically exempt from the provisions of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) per State CEQA Guidelines 15301 (Class 1 Existing Facilities) because the project consists of the operation and licensing of an existing private structure. There is no public review required. PROJECT BACKGROUND Applicant: Property Owner: Property Location: Existing General Plan Land Use Element designation: Existing Zoning Classification: Old Towne: Redevelopment Project Area: Specific Plan/PC: Site Size: Circulation: Existing conditions: Surrounding land uses and Zoning: American Multi-Cinema, Inc. (AMC) Orange City Mills Limited Partnership 20 City Boulevard West Urban Mixed Use 30-60 DU/AC 1.5-3.0 FAR (UMIX) Urban Mixed Use (UMU) No Yes None 73 acres Vehicular access to the subject site is via Chapman Avenue, The City Drive, Lewis Street, and Metropolitan Drive. The City s Master Plan of Arterial Highways designates Chapman Avenue as an Augmented Primary Highway with a minimum right-of-way width of 100 feet, The City Drive is designated as an Augmented Major Arterial highway with an ultimate right-of-way width of 120 feet, and both Lewis Street and Metropolitan Drive are designated as secondary arterials with ultimate right-of-way widths of 80 feet. The subject site is developed with The Block at Orange shopping and entertainment center and The City Plaza Tower. The Block at Orange is presently developed with 889,198 sq. ft. of building, which includes approximately 79,000 sq. ft. of communal space. North High-rise and mid-rise office towers and a high rise hotel zoned C-2. South An office building zoned C-2 and the Garden Grove (State Route 22) Freeway. East County of Orange jail and court facilities,
Page 3 Previous Applications/Entitlements: Orangewood Home, and UCI Hospital zoned C-2 and R-1-6 (Residential, single-family, minimum lot size 6,000 sq. ft.) West Mid-rise office towers and multi-family housing zoned C-2. Conditional Use Permit No. 2820-11, was approved by the Planning Commission on October 17, 2011 for an ABC Type 47 License to have on-site consumption of alcohol for the movie guests at the theater. However, AMC Theatres did not utilized the CUP, which subsequently expired. There have been multiple entitlements not related to this use granted on the subject site since the site was initially developed in 1970 with The City Shopping Center and Office Tower. PROJECT DESCRIPTION The applicant, AMC Theatres is requesting the sale of alcoholic beverages, (Type 47 On-Sale General - Eating Place), to have on-site consumption of alcohol for the movie guests of the theater. AMC is proposing to expand the food offerings at the AMC 30 theatre's primary concession area and to incorporate the sale of alcoholic beverages to adult patrons. Expanded food offerings include mozzarella sticks, french fries, jalapeno poppers, chicken tenders, sliders, hot dogs, and pizza along with the typical movie fare. A separate area, identified as "MacGuffins," will be located apart from the theatre's general concession area where adult moviegoers will be able to order beer, wine, or spirits from MacGuffins. The applicant is proposing to sell alcoholic beverages from a concession stand separate from the food concessions, which will be located in the main lobby of the theater immediately visible upon entering the theater. Patrons will then be able to take their purchased meals and drinks to their seats in any of the theatre's auditoriums. Employees staffing the stand would be specially trained to recognize potential abuse of the available alcoholic beverage service. The applicant s letter of justification, operational plan, alcohol policy, and tenant space photographs are included as attachments for a more comprehensive business description (Attachment 3). Also attached as Exhibit A is a basic site plan and floor plan. Development Standards Required Proposed Code Section Building Height Existing Building N/A N/A Landscaping (non-residential) Existing Uses N/A N/A Loading area (non-residential) Existing Uses N/A N/A Lot frontage N/A N/A N/A Lot depth N/A N/A N/A Parking (non-residential) 4,727 spaces 3,674 spaces on-site (6,201 available via shared parking) Setback, Front Existing Building N/A N/A Setback, Rear Existing Building N/A N/A 17.34.060 17.34.100
Page 4 Setback, Side Existing Building N/A N/A Setback, Side Existing Building N/A N/A APPLICATION(S) REQUESTED/ REQUIRED FINDINGS Conditional Use Permit: The applicant is requesting a Conditional Use Permit to for the sale of alcoholic beverages, (Type 47 On-Sale General - Eating Place) to have on-site consumption of alcohol for the movie guests of the theater. Required Findings: 1. A Conditional Use Permit shall be granted upon sound principles of land use and in response to services required by the community. 2. A Conditional Use Permit shall not be granted if it will cause deterioration of bordering land uses or create special problems for the area in which it is located. 3. A Conditional Use Permit must be considered in relationship to its effect on the community or neighborhood plan for the area in which it is located. 4. A Conditional Use Permit, if granted, shall be made subject to those conditions necessary to preserve the general welfare, not the individual welfare of any particular applicant. ANALYSIS/STATEMENT OF THE ISSUES Issue 1: Existing Licenses within 600 feet of the Site For information purposes, staff identified the following facilities with alcoholic beverage licenses that are located within a 600-foot proximity to the restaurant s entrance (See Attachment 5). Existing Licenses Establishment Name License Type Address Buffalo Wild Wings Type 47 (On-Sale General Eating Place) 20 City Boulevard West Dave & Busters Type 47 (On-Sale General Eating Place) 20 City Boulevard West Café Tu Tu Tango Type 47 (On-Sale General Eating Place) 20 City Boulevard West Lucky Strike Type 47 (On-Sale General Eating Place) 20 City Boulevard West Saddle Ranch Restaurant Type 47 (On-Sale General Eating Place) 20 City Boulevard West Twin Dragon Type 41 (On-Sale Beer and Wine- Eating Place) 20 City Boulevard West Rubios Fresh Mexican Grill Type 41 (On-Sale Beer and Wine- Eating Place) 20 City Boulevard West Market Broiler Type 47 (On-Sale General Eating Place) 20 City Boulevard West Issue 2: Sensitive Receptors The OMC requires a Conditional Use Permit for the sale of alcoholic beverages to ensure there will be no adverse impact on surrounding land uses or allow the availability of alcoholic beverages to minors. When reviewing alcohol permits, the Zoning Ordinance details specific land uses that are sensitive to alcohol activities, but does not establish any specific distances for these uses. The State
Page 5 Alcoholic Beverage Control Board investigation requires applicants to identify the sensitive land uses within 600 feet of the site. There are no sensitive receptors in the vicinity of the subject property. Issue 3: Census Tract Alcohol and Crime Statistics Information The Orange Police Department s Vice Unit reviewed the proposal and opposes the request for a CUP to allow alcoholic beverage service within the theater. In the Police Department s view, the AMC concept is like putting a bar in the lobby of the theater. The Police department has concluded that the operator does not demonstrate any real or effective control measures for limiting the amount of alcohol a patron can purchase. The AMC plan on its face appears to be an effort to increase profits through alcohol sales rather than increasing patronage by offering an enhanced movie-going experience. While the statistics provided below indicate that the subject establishment is in a high crime area that is over concentrated with on-sale alcohol licenses, much of this may be attributed to AMC s location at the Outlets at Orange, a major shopping and dining destination in the City. These types of destinations may result in an over concentration of alcohol licenses by definition, however, other factors should be considered as location, purpose of proposed uses, goal of the destination place, etc. The high crime rate in this reporting district is attributed to a number of issues as petty thefts, burglary, curfew violations, etc. Alcohol Licenses Existing Allowed On Sale Licenses 19 9 Off Sale Licenses 3 4 Census tracts are defined as small geographical areas established by local committees and approved by the Census Bureau, which contain a population segment with relatively uniform economic and social characteristics and clearly identifiable boundaries averaging approximately 1,200 households. The applicant is applying for an ABC license in a Reporting District (RD 071) that is considered a high crime area. The current crime figures show 256 crimes in this reporting district. The average reported crimes per district is 73, therefore, the crime statistics indicate this district had 253 more crimes than the average district, 251% above the average reported crimes per district (See Attachment 4). A review of calls for service at The AMC 30 revealed 128 calls for service in the last year. Six of the one hundred and twenty eight (128) calls for service were calls regarding subjects under the influence of alcohol (Attachment 7). Crime Statistics Census Tract Arrests Citywide Average Arrests Percent Difference 256 73 251 % above
Page 6 Issue 4: Operations of MacGuffins MacGuffins is a restaurant/lounge where adult moviegoers can go before or after viewing their movie. MacGuffins is in a separate area located apart from the primary concession area in the main lobby of the theater complex. Expanded food offerings are sold at the primary concession area and not at MacGuffins. Seating around MacGuffins is at bar stools surrounding the service area similar to a bar or pub and not a restaurant. The proposed alcohol sales from MacGuffins will be entirely separate from any food sales which is inconsistent with a type 47 license. Normally, alcohol should be offered at an area that offers food sales in conjunction with alcohol beverage offerings. The Planning Commission is accustomed to reviewing CUPs for applications requesting to serve alcoholic beverages at restaurants and to sell alcoholic beverages from grocery and convenience stores. However, this proposed request is a different type of service in that the theater does not have a fixed location for consumption on-site. Patrons may wander from seat to seat or theater to theater. Given the wide age range of theater goers, the ability to blend with a crowd in low light situations and hide or disguise alcoholic beverages, the potential for unauthorized or unlawful alcoholic beverage consumption is heightened. Century Theatre - Conditional Use Permit No. 2960-14 As a point of comparison, on June 9, 2015 the City Council approved Conditional Use Permit No. 2960-14 for a Type 41 (Beer & wine) license for the Century Theater at the Stadium Promenade Center on Katella Avenue. That theater does not have a bar and does not have bar stools. Further, Century Theatres' plan limits the number of drinks a patron can purchase by using wristbands. If AMC desired to implement a model more consistent with what was approved at Century Theatres there would be no opposition from the Police Department (Attachment 8). Planning Staff would also support this scenario. AMC Theatre - Conditional Use Permit No. 2820-11 On October 17, 2011 the Planning Commission approved an ABC Type 47 License to have on-site consumption of alcohol for the movie guests at the AMC theatre. At that time, AMC was proposing to introduce its in-theater dining in some of the viewing auditoriums. Under that proposal 17 auditoriums would have remained for traditional viewing with no alcohol, and the remaining 13 auditoriums would have been renovated to accommodate the new dining concept, which would include the consumption of alcohol. The in-theater dining concept would have featured two different types of experiences a Fork & Screen and a Cinema Suites. In addition AMC would have added a full service restaurant and lounge where movie guests could have enjoy a meal and beverage before or after their movie. However, AMC Theatres did not utilized the CUP, which subsequently expired. Issue 4: Potential Conditions of Approval Should the Planning Commission wish to approve the request by the applicant, staff has included draft potential conditions of approval as Attachment 1. The applicant has indicated a concern with the following conditions in the list. Condition #21- There should be no time when alcoholic beverages are sold at a ratio of two for one; no "stacking" of beverages, which means the serving of two alcoholic beverages at one time to
Page 7 the same customer; and no sales to an "empty chair", which means that each customer must be physically present at the time of the order of any alcoholic beverage. AMC is requesting the serving of two alcoholic beverages at one time to the same customer per the ABC conditions for movie theatres. This is consistent with the Century Theatres conditions, which allowed the purchase of two alcoholic beverages per patron. Condition #35- Exterior doors and windows, as well as the interior of the business, shall be protected by an approved alarm system, which shall detect an attempted entry or presence of people within the business during closing hours. AMC does not have alarms covering their doors because of the 24 hour security presence at the Outlets at Orange. The police department opposes this modification. Alarms are required of all ABC license applicants. Should the Planning Commission act to approve the requested Conditional Use Permit, staff will prepare a resolution of approval with the conditions deemed necessary and appropriate for the requested use. ADVISORY BOARD RECOMMENDATION None required. ATTACHMENTS/EXHIBITS Attachments to Report: 1. Potential List of Conditions of Approval 2. Vicinity Map 3. Letter of Justification/Explanation with Attachments 4. Orange Police Department Vice Unit s Memorandum regarding in Opposition of CUP 3009-16 dated April 18, 2016 5. ABC License Map 6. Census Tract Map 7. AMC Calls for Service in 2015 8. City Council Resolution No. 10876 Exhibits provided to the Planning Commission: A. Submitted Plans date labeled cc: Victor De La Cruz Kristen Elfring, General Manager Phelps & Philips, LLP The Outlets at Orange 11355 West Olympic Boulevard The Mills, a Simon Company Los Angeles, CA 90064 20 City Blvd. West, Suite C-5 Orange, CA 92868 n:\cdd\plng\applications\conditional use permits\cup 3009-16 amc 20 - abc type 47 license\final staff report.doc