Fountain Valley to offer alternative development standards for quality hotels

Looking to become a more attractive option for quality hotel development, Fountain Valley is prepared to amend its standards for such projects to bring more developers to the table.

The Fountain Valley City Council on Feb. 1 unanimously approved a municipal code amendment that would increase the height limit from four stories and 50 feet to six stories and 70 feet for hotels that meet certain criteria.

The ordinance, which is set to be adopted with a second reading at the next council meeting on Tuesday, also increases the floor area ratio from 0.5 to 1.5 and would require additional parking to be provided for ancillary uses.

Fountain Valley’s alternative hotel development standards would only apply to projects that agree to provide what the city has outlined as quality features in the areas of design, landscape, amenities and services available on site, and unique offerings that enhance the experience for guests.

Developers must meet a minimum number of items in each of those four categories to be offered the alternative standards, and the city has provided a list of items it would accept.

Among the accepted amenities are pools, hot tubs, meeting rooms, fitness centers, sport courts, a shuttle service and more. A hotel would have to provide at least five.

At least one unique offering would be required, potentially a restaurant, spa, event space or rooftop deck, among other options.

City staff indicated transient occupancy tax accounts for 1.7% of the general fund budget and is the second highest producer of sales tax in Fountain Valley, which budgeted just over $1 million in TOT revenue for the fiscal year. The city currently has four hotels.

Sonesta ES Suites in Fountain Valley.

(Kevin Chang / Staff Photographer)

“What you’re trying to strike, and I think you do very well with these standards, is kind of hitting that sweet spot,” David Crabtree, interim planning and building director, said. “You want that predictable outcome for the community that you’re not going to adopt a standard that creates undue impacts unforeseeable to the community.

“What you’re setting out with these standards are maximums. They’re a hunting license, if you will, for a developer to come in, propose something within these standards, and then … the individual review would go before your planning commission.”

It would be possible for a project to come to the council on appeal, but Crabtree said the individual review process for prospective hotel developments provides the checks and balances that protect adjacent property owners.

Several members of the council expressed a desire to be selective in the placement of potential hotels, especially with respect to building next to residential areas.

“I live right next door to a hotel that is four stories high, and with my block wall, I know I’ve gone up there and checked and looked into my yard to see it, and it’s blocked off,” Councilman Glenn Grandis said. “It’s not visible. Six stories would be visible. Being next to a hotel with six stories and having somebody look in, I would not approve.

“Just rest assured, I totally support this. I think it’s smart, and I like the fact that it’s just not going to go willy-nilly anywhere automatically approved. I want to make sure residents understand that would have to come back before the planning commission, and then potentially council, and I guarantee you council would not approve a six-story hotel that overlooks people’s backyards.”

Councilman Ted Bui asked City Manager Rob Houston to explain the reasoning for bringing forth the hotel development standards amendment, to which he responded that “certainty” in the standards would drive more interest from hotel developers.

“It goes ahead and says, ‘We really mean it, and here’s the standards,’ versus, ‘We don’t have standards, but just trust us. It’ll all work out,’” Houston said. “They don’t want to put in the $100,000 or $200,000 worth of planning and the six months to get to the point of a design, coming here and find out that isn’t true.”

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