Costa Mesa council to discuss Measure Z committee and rules for sober-living homes

The Costa Mesa City Council is looking to establish an advisory committee that would provide input on spending development fee dollars collected under voter-approved Measure Z — that much is known.

What’s yet to be determined, though, is how many members the committee will have, who its members will be, or whether it’ll even be a new committee at all. Council members will discuss their options during their meeting Tuesday.

Measure Z, approved by 55.8% of local voters in November’s election, establishes a fee of up to $1.50 per square foot for new development north of the 405 Freeway and west of Fairview Road.

Those fee dollars have to go toward increasing recreation, open space and public park facilities in the city.

The measure calls for creation of a seven-member committee to advise the council on spending the fee money. In March, though, the council voted to instead create a 17-member panel that would also be charged with enhancing and promoting local youth sports programs and facilities.

Earlier this month, city planning commissioners balked at that idea.

They suggested another option: not setting up the committee at all. Commissioners also said the city’s Parks and Recreation Commission could potentially fill the role.

Council members do have the option of transferring Measure Z’s fee advisory duties to an existing committee or commission, according to city staff.

Should they choose to move forward with the 17-member committee, council members would still have to adopt an ordinance officially expanding the size and scope of the panel called for in the measure.

Tuesday’s meeting starts at 6 p.m. in City Hall, 77 Fair Drive.

Group home changes

Council members are also scheduled to discuss officially approving revisions to local regulations governing group and sober-living homes.

The changes, hammered out during a council meeting earlier this month, include new rules aimed at preventing occupants who are involuntarily discharged from becoming homeless.

Also up for the council’s OK are new transparency guidelines requiring full disclosure of the ownership interests of group homes or sober-living facilities, which generally house recovering drug addicts and alcoholics who are considered disabled under state and federal law.

Those applying to open such facilities in Costa Mesa also would have to divulge whether they’ve held a similar license or permit elsewhere and whether it ever was suspended or revoked.

The proposed rule changes would also give the City Council and Planning Commission the ability to deviate from the city’s required minimum separation of 650 feet between group homes and licensed alcohol and drug treatment facilities in residential neighborhoods, so long as doing so would not create an over-concentration in a specific area.

luke.money@latimes.com

Twitter @LukeMMoney