Ths property report was prepared for the buyer. Subsequently, I was hired by the land owner to fix the defects and guide the re-zoning process from residential R1 to C3 commercial. Once completed, the property was sold to a different buyer and a two story office building was built on the site.
LOCATION - unique property surrounded by lawns and a park two blocks from South Coast Plaza that will contribute to the appearance, and value of the structure and land. There are no other properties this small and affordable size available close to SCP in private hands.
TITLE - I discovered a tile defect in that the plot map given in the deed for these two adjacent lots cross one another. The actual square footage of the combined lots is overstated and two triangles between the lots would not be included in the title. The combined properties and omissions have been fenced in for seven years thus establishing new lines. A new plot map needs to be filed.SOIL CONDITIONS - high sand content, formerly agricultural area, geologically unstable. Ths will affect the construction methods and cost of the building foundations.
DRAINAGE - park across the street is a drainage basin for area. The whole area was once a swamp as shown on an early map found at First American Title Insurance Company headquarters. There is no sewer access - this will require a pump sewer system at considerable expense.
LAND FEATURES - the entire lot must be razed, including the mature trees. A utility structure and hence an easement may be present as indicated by a jog in the boundary wall.
STRUCTURES - two small, occupied homes that may be of historical value, occupant could hold an estate other than tenancy from month to month.
NEIGHBORS and UTILIZATION - elementary school to south has a claxton and playground abutting the property. PTA may object to proposed re-zoning, Religious/convention facility to north will occasionally cause parking and traffic problems. Park across the street will give employees a place to exercise or lunch, Preschool on Paularine Street gives employed young mothers of the corporation access to their children.
FUTURE UTILIZATION - the elementary school facility my close in five to ten years and turned over to other uses, if commercial, would enhance the value of the property. ESCROW AGREEMENT - contingency for removal or one of the structures poses hidden costs; should be rewritten. LAND UTILIZATION - School Board should be approached about a land trade to reshape the lot for better utilization. In anticipation of the purchase of the above named lot, I have made an on site inspection of the property and neighborhood, and have spoken with the property neighbors about the nature of their activities, property use (present and anticipated) and solicited their general knowledge of the environment. UTILITIES aand EASEMENTS - There are agricultural water and well easements over the property and inadequacies in the service easements that will require correction.The green space surrounding the lot; school yard to south and west, Fellowship Hall to the north and Shiffer Park across the street, will contribute to the appearance of any structure we erect and will set it apart as a building of distinction, Its proximity to South Coast Plaza will enhance its appreciation over the years as will its green setting.
Employees will find the area accessible the park a convenient and attractive setting for lunch, which will reduce the congestion in your office area lunchroom.There is a Preschool facility only a block away, and the public school next door will provide employees and prospective employees the advantages of day care and the Corporation better access to a labor source of stable family units.
The traffic pattern in the area is compatible with your work hours as school starts at 8:45 am and recesses no later than 1:00 p.m. The Fellowship neighbor to the north opens for work at 7:00 am and all employees are out before 5:00 p.m. Since we open at 8:00 am and close at 5:00 p.m. there should be no traffic conflict with the neighbors. This is especially important with regard to School children leaving the area and cars exiting the Bear Street property.The area has a land title defect originiating from the shifting of Palarino Avenue's center line when the freeway overpass was installed. The lines of one lot were set before the move, and the other after the move. Because both desriptions originate with the "center line of Palarino" the whole neighborhood has title problems which are being addressed by the title company. The immediate effect on the two adjactent lots described herein is that the adjacent lot lines cross one another thus making the square footage shown on the plots incorrect. The actual title conveyed at auction is sufficient where both are owned by one party as the properties have been fenced in for more than seven years thus giving adverse possession title to the owner.
The zoning is residential; while the best use is commercial C3, which will require notice to the more than 75 residential neighbors and a hearing before the City Counsel to obtain the new designation.Mr. Bob Hopwood, the building Supervisor for the north neighbor advises that the property was formerly a swamp with a high sand content. His building is a three story structure built on steel reinforced concrete pylons. He says he was informed by the architect of the sand content of the soil in the context of inquiry about earthquakes. Mr. Hopwood stated that the building ''shook like a bowl of jelly, during a minor tremor and that no damage whatsoever was found. This statement is consistent with a structure supported by pylons on a sandy soil. A substantial tremor to this type of soil results in liquefaction and subsidence of any unsupported structure.
An inspection of the squash ball court in Shiffer Park reveals that the tilt-up construction has been crazed throughout as have the light post pillars. Playground areas have separated and tilted as has the cement basketball courts. This is consistent with poor soil support.The size and shallowness of the lot would require building a two story structure to meet your space requirements. A soil test will be a critical determinant of the type of structure to be built; hence cost and budget allocation to this project. Escrow should be contingent upon findings to your satisfaction.
The Shiffer Park also indicates the area generally has drainage problems that should be taken into consideration. A canal running parallel to the freeway in the park appears to be an active water carrier during the rainy season. It is currently silted up and has been excavated in the past as the park has several piles of silt from a prior dredging.
The decorative bridge in the park disguises a large open storm drain which is the lowest point in the park, judging by eyesight, and appears to drain the whole neighborhood. The gutter which feeds the mouth of the drain currently contains water and aquatic insects. The park is filled with maple trees which is consistent with adequate natural water supply. Since the last rainfall was light and several weeks ago, the gutter indicates either a high water table or regular and large amounts of water drainage.Several mature trees stand on the lot; two on the edge of the road. Mr. Hopwood pointed out that this causes a road hazard as they block the view from his driveway exit and would do likewise to the exit, should it be placed in that area. The City would probably require their removal as they block the sidewalk near the school. The street pavement in front of the trees is marked as a sidewalk, further indicating that their removal would be desirable. This would entail an added expense.
A key shaped extension in the north boundary wall extending the lot north indicates an irregularity, the nature of which I have not yet been able to discern. There appears to be a hollow in the ground in this 2 square foot area that contains a pipe. This could be an artifact from when the area was agricultural or could also indicate the presence of a utility line and easement. Since the current tenant was home, I did not want to trespass to investigate at this time. This matter should be further investigated and resolved to your satisfaction.The two structures on the property are currently inhabited, one by a Jerry Shiffer. Since the park appears to be a dedication associated with a housing project and is of the same name, it would appear that the area was once under common ownership, and possibly Jerry is a descendent of the original owners. The nature and extent of his current estate should be discovered as title insurance will not cover your operating losses while looking for another location should the title be clouded by his interests.
Tenant eviction also presents a problem, the cost of which should be born by the seller and so stipulated in the escrow agreement. The Bear Street Elementary School borders to the south and west. It is a small school with 2/3ds of the children either walking or bicycling to school after employees should have arrived to work. The school yard is a multipurpose facility with physical education activities in the school yard during the day. To regulate this and recess activities, the school has a claxton alarm that can be heard inside the building of the neighbor to the north (to be discussed below). The loudness of the claxton is apparently to summon children from the park across the street which is used as an additional playground to the school Facility.
The playground directly behind the lot is used after school hours, but during business hours by the local fire department for the physical exercise of the firemen. They are accompanied by their Fire engines which park near the front of 3156 Bear Street, the far end of the proposed purchase lot, and at the point the playground abuts the street. Their emergency radios are turned on to the public speaker mode to summon from the exercise field. This would be audible inside the proposed building at the above named cite.
Noise and distractions from rear windows of the proposed structure appear to present problems that are surmountable and should be dealt with from a structural standpoint. The Full Gospel Business Men's Fellowship International founded by Mr. Demos Sharkarian has large and impressive facilities and grounds. Its driveway abuts the east property line. The organization is a conservative evangelical Christian organization supporting worldwide missionary activities. Its facilities contain a large auditorium and numerous meeting facilities for convention purposes. It has substantial parking of its own, but on occasion, convocations entertain as many as 700 people at the facility, clearly this would create a parking problem in the area. The streets are marked with a third lane and parking is not prohibited on the street. It would appear to be a bicycle lane that accommodates parking.
This neighbor's activities will influence your decision about the size of the on cite parking.
Shiffer Park has parking for about eight cars and is used by employees of South Coast Plaza and the Bear School for lunch hours. One of the entrances is directly across from the proposed lot and might create some congestion at and after the lunch hour.
The Agreement contains three contingencies; that which gives the seller the right to donate either of the structures to the historical society does not contain a time limitation; which could delay construction - historical societies are notorious for their desire for materials and their inability to acquire the funds in a timely fashion to pay for the acquisition - since the City must issue a permit to raze the structure, an appeal by the historical society to the City to delay the issuance of the permit might be entertained to accommodate the society; further delaying construction. The cost of delay includes inflation on building materials and labor, interest on outstanding loans, taxes on two properties, and lost business profits caused by the inadequacies of the current facilities. None of these costs will be covered by title insurance, nor does it appear that the price of the property reflects these hidden costs.
The contingency should be modified to simply reserve a right in the Seller to severe either of the structures and remove them from the land within a Specified period of time. By eliminating the reference to usage the full burden of any intended use, implications or references are placed on the seller .
Additionally, a liquidated damages clause for failure to remove the structures within the time limit should also be included to cover at least the additional interest payments on the land for the delay, and the cost of removal, permits and renting of a lot to store the structure should the city refuse a permit to raze the structure. There is a vacant lot suitable for this purpose, if fenced in, at the corner of Paularino and Bear, just down the block.
The shape of the lot is long on the street side and shallow. Any single use structure built will be at a disadvantage from a utilization standpoint since there will be a greater proportion of corridors and Shell Surface area. Parking presents a problem as the proposed 10,000 sq. ft. building will require four car stalls per thousand and use may require at least five per thousand. The City of Costa Mesa requires a five foot setback. Serious consideration should be given to ground floor parking under an overhanging second floor to maximize space and parking spaces.
Serious consideration should be given to approaching the School Board about a land trade for playground area to reshape the lot to a more square shape. This could result in less lot used for the setback requirement and will advantage the school district by reducing the amount of their back lot which is interior to the entire block and inaccessible should the land be sold for commercial or residential uses at some future date.
In preparation for entry onto the property by the soil engineers to take samples with a drilling rig, a map of features, landmarks and utilities has been prepared, in accordance with their requests, for their guidance.
ELECTRICAL: overhead lines only; no underground service. Both 110 and 220 volt service is available for Southern California Edison at this location, but not three phase used for building air conditioning. A power pole is visible at the curb, and has a box at its base in the ground.
GAS: mains are located in the center of the street and feed straight in and up to the above ground meters visible on the sides of the structures, the 3144 Bear Street address feeds gas to that rear by means of an exterior service line on the north wall of the structure.
WATER: mains are on the opposite Side of the street - Service lines run straight in to the meter boxes near the curb in the sidewalk area, lines thence run underground to visible above ground free standing shut-off valves; then drop underground again running parallel to the structures and branching off into the structures.
The 3144 Bear Street structure has its meter to the north. The 3156 Bear Street house has its meter located near the south wall at the cinderblock wall terminus.
A hand dug water well may be found behind the 3144 Bear Street structure next to the garage. The well head is still visible on the concrete well cover, supported by bricks. It is possible that there is a second well to the rear of 3156 Bear Street. These will need to be filled in to Department of Health standards by professionals and subject to inspection.
WATER EASEMENTS: there are water easments for agricultural access to the water wells on the properties which probably can not be accessed since the adjoining properties are no longer used for the specific purpose described in the easements.
STORM DRAIN: the entrance to a storm drain which does not enter the property, but feeds under the street into the park across the street may be found at the curb, near its manhole, just north of the 3144 Bear Street address. Building roof drainage could be fed directly into this facility.
TELEPHONE: an underground trunk cable servicing the north neighbor turns parallel to the property in the street about three feet from the curb, except where it deviates inward to the sidewalk and the pole to avoid the storm sewer and provide Service to the pole, and at the north terminus of the line where it joins a telephone utility box of the north neighbor it crosses under the curb and driveway where the lot narrows at the northern most point.
SEWAGE: both structures are currently serviced by cesspools, that are now unlawful and certainly not suitable for an office building. The pool for 3144 Sear Street is located at the northwest corner, to north about six feet, and has a drainage structure ten feet to its east/northeast, and it receives a line due north from the visible cast iron stack attached to the north wall of the structure.
The pool for the 3156 Bear street house; lot 47, visibly feeds out of the house's south rear wall at the foundation into the ground, under the cinderblock wall to the cesspool on lot 41 about seventy feet from the east property line and just south of the cinderblock wall.
All are easily spotted by the green, grassy growth the feeds off them on an otherwise dry lot. There are no green lawns on the property aside from these three locations. These tanks and leaching field pipes will need to be removed. The high water table and the low hydrographic location of the lot relative to the sewer system make a gravity fed sewer impossible; it will be necessary to install a pump powered sewer system, the cost of which will be in excess of $40,000.
CISTERN: and its feed may be located at the rear of 3156 Bear Street. The only indication of its presence is a piece of broken and discarded 4" pipe found near the ditch in the north boundary wall build by the northerly neighbor. This will need to be removed and filled in.