Item 23 - Amendment Application (Zone Change) No. 2024-01 to Amend the Zoning Map

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AA No. 2024-01, CUP No. 2024-01, and CUP No. 2024-02 for McDonald's Restaurant at 2101 and 2109 E. Santa Clara Avenue February 26, 2024 Page 8 parking lot pole lights, interior building lights, streetlights, etc.) from the existing commercial/retail uses surrounding the site. The proposed project would involve new streetlights and additional exterior and interior building lighting associated with the operation of the proposed McDonald's. However, all lighting would be subject to the City's design guidelines, which outlines lighting standards for commercial projects and includes direction on minimizing glare onto adjoining properties. Moreover, all on -site lighting would be shielded and directed to minimize light intrusion onto the adjacent properties. The lighting levels for the site would not be altered and would be consistent with the ambient and night- time lighting at the commercial uses surrounding the site. Lastly, the site plan has been designed so that vehicle headlights would not create lighting concerns to the residential units to the south. Specifically, the building and drive -through have been offset so that the pick- up window is not aligned directly with any residential windows. In addition, the project will incorporate a landscape buffer with various mature landscaping (shrubs, trees, and groundcover) along Santa Clara Avenue. Staff is recommending a condition of approval that the mature landscaping be evergreen, be required to be maintained throughout the lifetime of the CUP, that it be maintained healthy, and that any unhealthy or dead plants be required to be removed and replaced in -kind. The 24-hour drive -through operations would also have minimal to no impacts to the adjacent residences as it relates to noise. The overall operations would not generate noise levels above the maximum acceptable noise levels outlined in the City's Noise Ordinance, as shown in Table 3 below. The daily operation of the proposed eating establishment has the potential to result in an increased ambient noise level in the immediate vicinity of the proposed site through the addition of stationary sources of noise as well as vehicular trips associated with the project. These stationary sources of noise include HVAC equipment, landscape maintenance equipment, parking lot activities, trash collection activities, and restaurant drive -through speakers. Noise associated with the parking lot activities consists of vehicle engines, door slams, engine starts, and people talking. However, the stationary sources during the times of 1:00 a.m. and 5:00 a.m. would be limited to just the drive -through operations as the indoor dining area would be closed during this time. These noise sources include the drive -through window and a menu board with an amplified speaker, in addition to non -amplified speech. Table 3: City Of Santa Ana Noise Ordinance Standards Time Period Noise Level dBA Exterior Interior Compliance 7:00 a.m. — 10:00 p.m. 55 55 Complies max 55dBA 10:00 p.m. — 7:00 am 50 45 Complies max 45dBa dBA: A -weighted decibels 'Applicable to property within a designated Noise Zone 1. The entire City of Santa Ana is designed as Noise Zone 1 per Sec. 18- 311 of the Municipal Code.