Self-storage bldg. approved

GARDEN GROVE Planning Commission on Thursday voted to approve a request to build a six-story self-storage building in West Garden Grove (Shutterstock).

A proposed six-story self-storage unit got approval from the Garden Grove Planning Commission at its meeting Thursday.

In a reversal of earlier action by the panel, the commission voted 5-1 in favor of the construction of the project at the northwest corner of Chapman and Western avenues, a spot now occupied by a two-story Spectrum office building.

Earlier this month a short-handed quorum voted 3-1 (with three members absent) to deny site plan approval, citing issues of scale and high crime rates associated with self-storage operations.

City staff was directed to return on Aug. 19 with a resolution to deny, but a new lineup of planners voted 4-2 against it. What was finally approved was to permit the project to be built but to consult with the police department about anti-crime measures, including possibly employing security staff.