There was a presentation on noise abatement, a public hearing on a zoning ordinance amendment on transitional housing, and discussion request for installing 4-way stop signs along “apartment row” at the Los Alamitos City Council meeting on Aug. 19.
There was a presentation on noise abatement, a public hearing on a zoning ordinance amendment on transitional housing, and discussion request for installing 4-way stop signs along “apartment row” at the Los Alamitos City Council meeting on Aug. 19.
“We take our noise abatement very seriously,” said Maj. Jeff Sibley, Airfield Manager of Los Alamitos Army Airfield. “We discuss it three to four times a week to make it better and for enforcement with our pilots. We have the strictest noise abatement in Orange County.”
He presented and discussed how both the northern and southern flight patterns are both over the Joint Forces Training Base along with outside traffic patterns, and how inbound traffic comes in at 1000 feet where outbound traffic is at 700 feet, in trying to keep air traffic lower than inbound flights arriving at Long Beach Airport.
He also showed how northern arrival and departure are now over Cerritos Avenue, and how air traffic circumnavigates the airfield.
Sibley said the actual operation of the airfield being open is Saturday, Sunday and Monday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., with it also being open Tuesday through Friday from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. Late night helicopters are in support of the Department of Defense, and any other flights coming through are not a part of the training base after 10 p.m. They are due to other traffic patterns not under the airfield’s jurisdiction.
“We have no jurisdiction after the air space is closed,” said Sibley.
Area residents concerned with noise abatement issues can call the Noise Abatement Hotlines at 562-795-2571 or 562-755-1351, and give their address along with a description of the aircraft that flew over. Mayor Pro Tem Gerri Graham-Mejia said she also would field noise abatement concerns as well.
The city council held a public hearing on a zoning ordinance amendment with regards to transitional housing in Los Alamitos. Los Alamitos already allows for zoning for transitional housing, residential care facilities, emergency shelters and single room occupancy dwellings but had to amend the zoning ordinance to comply Senate Bill 2 prior to the next round of Housing Element submittals.
“It’s a state mandate saying that Los Alamitos has to allow for this kind of housing to be permitted in areas of the city,” said Mayor Pro Tem Gerri Graham-Mejia. “It was mostly a language change to bring us in alignment with what the mandate is. It was already in the zoning.”
“It’s a requirement by the state to allow for 121 beds for the homeless population, which is one percent of the total homeless population in Orange County (for the city of Los Alamitos),” she continued. “Based on the size of Los Alamitos, our one percent is for 121 beds. We have already allowed for transitional housing with Casa Youth Shelter and the Precious Life Shelter.”
According to Los Alamitos Community Development Director, Steven Mendoza, there are currently 12 beds at Casa Youth Shelter, and 27 beds at the Precious Life Shelter.
“The requirement is that we remove impediments that would block zoning, and that’s what we did in the city council meeting,” he said. “There is no penalty if we come up with less than 121 beds.”
The city council then moved on to discuss a request to install 4-way stop signs at five intersections in “apartment row.” The multi-way stops would be at the intersections of Howard and Reagan Street, Bloomfield and Green Street, Boomfield and Howard Street, Noel and Green Street, and Noel and Howard Street.
Council member Richard Murphy said he sees it as more of a safety issue than more of an issue to slow traffic down in the area.
“There is already many near misses in pulling out into traffic,” Murphy said.
He continued that red curbs in the area would not be reasonable, but feels that anything that can be done in the area would help. The city council moved to recommend the 4-way stop signs, with all in attendance for them.