Irvine Rezones Business District Next to Airport for Housing

Facing a February deadline to make zoning changes needed to fulfill its eight-year state-mandated plan to build new homes, the Irvine City Council has opened up a 2,700-acre business district next to John Wayne Airport for high-density housing.

The council voted 4-1 to rezone the Irvine Business Complex that is adjacent to the airport to permit up to 15,000 units to help meet the city’s eight-year housing element plan, which aims for 23,554 more homes by 2029.

The vote overrides an Orange County Airport Land Use Commission ruling, which cited concerns about aircraft noise and safety, deeming rezoning for housing “inconsistent” with the Airport Environs Land Use Plan for the areas surrounding John Wayne Airport (JWA).

Larry Agran, a council member who voted against the override and zoning change, argued that the city needs to commit to installing transportation infrastructure and affordable housing as top priorities, the Daily Pilot reported.

“Unless we are absolutely committed to installing transit first and unless we are absolutely committed to addressing and providing affordable housing first, development of this magnitude is just unconscionable,” Agran said at the council meeting. “The spillover effects will be dramatic. We’re asked here to override all kinds of environmental concerns that have been identified [and] cannot be properly mitigated.”

Irvine joins Newport Beach, Santa Ana and Costa Mesa in overriding the airport commission to plan new homes in proximity to JWA.

In January, the Airport Land Use Commission ruled that “aircraft noise” would be incompatible with residential use, saying the aircraft zones are set up to “support the continued use and operation of an airport by establishing compatibility and safety standards to promote navigational safety and reduce potential safety hazards for persons living, working or recreating near JWA.”

Since January, the Newport Beach City Council has approved three apartment projects in proximity to the airport. In July, the council approved a seven-story, 282-unit apartment building at 1600 Dove Street, a site currently occupied by an office building.

The Dove Street site sits within a noise contour area around JWA, according to a city staff report, a reference to the space in which residents and businesses near the airport should regularly expect to hear runway noise as loud as 60 decibels.

The report noted that the sound of planes taking off is much louder at higher elevations, meaning that people living on the top floor of the 100-foot-tall apartment building would hear more than 60 decibels.

In May, the Newport Beach council approved two projects, filed by separate developers, with each involving the demolition of aging office buildings near the airport.

A 23K SF office building will be torn down at 1401 Quail Street to make way for 67 condos that will be built by Vancouver-based Intracorp. Eight of the condos will be designated as affordable housing at the project, which will include a 146-space parking structure.

At 1400 Bristol Street, a 29K SF building will be demolished and replaced with a 229-unit apartment complex by Picerne Group, a local developer. The complex, which will include 23 affordable units, will connect via a pedestrian bridge to a property at 1300 Bristol Street that also is under development by Picerne, along with a 422-space parking structure.

The city has identified the opportunity for an additional 2,577 housing units in the area around John Wayne Airport. In August, Newport Beach cut its affordable requirement in half, to 15% from 30%, for a 145-acre area now occupied by industrial and office properties near the airport, to try to attract developers.

The airport zones are among several areas in Newport Beach designated for potential housing as part of the city’s state-mandated goal of building 4,845 new housing units by the end of the decade. The city has targeted areas for housing development including West Newport Mesa, Dover-Westcliff, Newport Center and Coyote Canyon, as well as the airport area.

In November, Newport Beach voters will have an opportunity to vote on the city’s housing plan under a city law that requires a vote if more than 100 units are added to an area, the report said.