A major development next to Marbella Plaza considered by the Planning Commission on Tuesday night brought with it an unusual caveat: The city has until October to close a land sale with the developer, and that sale depends on the project’s approval.
That left commissioners to decide how to address concerns about how the project will fit with the historic town’s stringent design plans while adhering to a strict deadline that left them no time to spare.
Their solution? Commissioners Roy Nunn and Tim Neely will meet as an ad hoc committee to address the concerns, and the commission will vote on the project at its meeting Sept. 24.
The vote is crucial to a $3.6 million sale involving the 4.8-acre property, which had been entangled in a legal dispute after Marbella Development Co. sued the city, saying it violated a 1988 agreement that gave the land from Marbella to the city on condition that it be used for civic purposes.
City officials considered building a new fire station or City Hall there, but they agreed to sell it to development company Centra Realty in 2005. Marbella sued, and a settlement allowed the city to sell the land but calls for Marbella to receive 25 percent of the proceeds. Centra, which abandoned plans for a medical building and asked for its $150,000 deposit back, is to get 15 percent.
So far, no one has seen a dime. The City Council in March approved the land sale to Accretive Realty Advisors of Irvine, but the project must pass the planning process for the sale to be finalized. That deadline is Oct. 16, and Tom LeBeau, Accretive’s chief executive officer, said Tuesday that there’s no wiggle room because his client, MemorialCare, needs new space as soon as possible.
“It’s absolutely time-critical for me from a business standpoint to get this project moved along,” LeBeau said.
MemorialCare is to occupy most of a proposed two-story, 38,599-square-foot building. Developers are negotiating with a potential occupant for the first floor. If that falls through, they’ll consider renting the space to two or more businesses, LeBeau said.
The medical office would offer emergency services and include ambulance services and specialty medical care but no surgery center or clinic. A lower parking area would be accessible through the existing entrance at Rancho Viejo Road and Golf Club Drive that’s used by Marbella Plaza. An upper-level parking garage would have an entrance along Rancho Viejo.
The parking is to accommodate what LeBeau said will be an influx of employees staffing the center. “They’re trying to cycle in as many patients as they possibly can, and that requires a heavy load of employees,” LeBeau said.
LeBeau said MemorialCare’s current location in San Juan on the east side of Rancho Viejo Road, which is divided into two buildings, is “substandard from an optimization standpoint.”
Neely said he isn’t sure he’ll support the project. The other commissioners said their concerns about the design aren’t serious enough to hold the project back, prompting Neely to agree to re-examine the project at the next meeting after working with Nunn on design concerns.
The discussion comes about three months after the City Council dismantled the Design Review Committee and bestowed its powers to the Planning Commission in hopes of streamlining the approval process.
LeBeau called the project “a heck of a benefit to the community” that would bring top-notch health care. Activity there also could help boost sales at Marbella Plaza. “It’s quite complementary,” LeBeau said.
Plaza owner Richard Bracamonte supports the medical center.