Historic Town Center Master Plan for San Juan Capistrano, CA Dec 2011

1. HISTORIC TOWN CENTER
MASTER PLAN
CHAMBER OF COMMERCE
P R E S E N TAT I O N
D E C E M B E R 7 , 2 0 11

2. BACKGROUND
 In early 2008, the City retained the Urban Land Institute (ULI)
to prepare recommendations and identify opportunities for
improving the downtown business climate.
 In June 2009, as a result of the findings of the ULI Report, the
City Council decided that the 1995 Historic Town Center
Master Plan should be comprehensively updated.
 In January 2010, the City Council retained Studio 111 to
prepare a comprehensive update of the Historic Town Center
Master Plan and they began the update process with a series
of community workshops and design charrettes.
2

3. MASTER PLAN OBJECTIVES
 Preserve and enhance the role of the Town Center District as the
civic and commercial heart of the City.
 Encourage an expanded mix of retail, commercial, civic and
residential uses to create a lively 18-hour mixed-use environment.
 Preserve and honor the historic buildings and other resources of the
Town Center as integral and generative elements of its urban and
architectural character.
 Enhance the design of all open spaces, including streets, parks,
plazas, courts, paseos, as a well-connected network of a comfortable
pedestrian-oriented public realm, the “outdoor rooms” in which the
life of the town may thrive.
 Support a village-scaled density with building massing that
strengthens the pedestrian realm and historic character.
3

4. MASTER PLAN OBJECTIVES (cont.)
 Develop an interconnected street network to encourage a pedestrian
supportive block structure.
 Rebalance transportation modes and parking arrangements to
emphasize comfortable and safe pedestrian, bicycle, transit and
equestrian access and circulation, while enabling convenient
automobile access at speeds that complement these modes.
 Implement a shared parking system to manage an adequate pool of
on-street and off-street parking as a critical element of community
infrastructure.
 Encourage new buildings and renovations of existing buildings to
provide welcoming frontages scaled to the pedestrian and attractive
facades that extend and complete the historic town pattern, defining
the public realm of the district.
 Make the Town Center the local and regional focal point for
celebration of the history and culture of South Orange County.
4

5. Historic & Cultural
Landmarks
1. Mission San Juan
Capistrano.
2. Blas Aguilar Adobe.
3. Esslinger Building.
4. Manuel Garcia Adobe.
5. Domingo Yorba Adobe.
6. Montanez Adobe.
7. Stroschein House.
8. Los Rios Historic District.
5

6. HTC MASTER PLAN
Existing New Development Build-out
Retail 559,089 -27,385 531,704
Commercial/Office 103,434 113,665 217,099
Civic 49,872 20,661 70,533
Religious 107,490 1,116 108,606
Education 77,617 0 77,617
Other 19,385 -4,478 14,907
Subtotal 916,887 103,579 1,020,466 11.3%
Residential (239 at 1,150 gsf @) 0 274,850 274,850
Hotel (214 at 858 gsf @) 0 183,566 183,566
Subtotal 916,887 561,995 1,478,882 61.3%
Parking 3,419 58 3,477
Residential 40 239 279
Hotel 0 214 214
6

7. HTC
MASTER
PLAN
CONCEPT
7

8. HISTORIC TOWN CENTER
MASTER PLAN
ILLUSTRATIVE PLAN:
DOWNTOWN CORE
8

9. 9

10. PHASING PLAN:
SHORT-TERM
YEAR 2011-2015
a. Plaza Banderas Hotel.
b. Mission Grille/Pedro’s Tacos.
c. Mission Gift Shop & Ortega
Hwy. frontage.
d. Camino Capistrano (Ortega-
Forster.
e. El Camino Real improvements.
f. Verdugo Street improvements.
10

11. PHASING PLAN:
MEDIUM TERM
YEAR 2015-2025
a. Forster Street extension.
b. I-5/Ortega Highway
Interchange improvements.
c. Camino Capistrano
improvements (Forster-Del
Obispo Street.
11

12. PHASING PLAN:
LONG TERM
BEYOND 2025
a. Park-Once (Ortega) Structure
and Yorba extension.
b. Gateway retail.
c. Del Obispo Street North.
d. Historic Town Center Park
/City Hall
12

13. EMINENT DOMAIN:
Proposed HTC Master Plan policy language:
For planned street extensions in the Historic Town Center
planning area, the City's intent is that eminent domain will only
be used to address critical public health and safety issues and
will not be used to achieve design or economic objectives of the
Master Plan. Moreover, the City will pursue the recommended
street extensions only in cases where the affected property
owner(s), whose property(ies) the street right-of-way would
cross, support and/or initiate the street extension.
13

14. IMPLEMENTATION:
 Through City capital improvement projects within the planning area to
implement streetscape and parking improvements.
 Through the investment and business decisions of individual property
owners and the City’s review of private development projects under the
Form-Based Code.
 Through Community Redevelopment Agency and/or City financial
assistance to new development.
 Through continued implementation of the City’s façade improvement
program.
 Through potential creation of a “business improvement district” (BID)
which would be subject to approval by 75% of district landowners to fund
parking structure improvements.
 Through public-private partnerships between the City and the Chamber
of Commerce as wells as individual business/property owners.

15. CHAMBER OF COMMERCE ROLE:
 Continue to support and advocate for the adoption of a new Master
Plan for the Historic Town Center that will balance historic
preservation and business/economic objectives.
 Provide testimony as part of the public review process highlighting
the importance of the Master Plan in creating a unified vision of the
Historic Town Center for the community.
 Encourage member businesses and business property owners to get
involved in the public review process on the Master Plan.
 Following the adoption of the Master Plan, create a Historic Town
Center Sub-committee to encourage private investment in the
Historic Town Center and provide input to the City on planned capital
improvement projects (streetscape, lighting, parking).
15

16. Questions & Answers
16