O1764
CA:f:\atty\muni\laws\mhs\echard.1
city council Meeting 8-9-94
Santa Monica, California
ORDINANCE NUMBER 1764(CCS)
(City Council Series)
AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE
CITY OF SANTA MONICA AMENDING
THE EARTHQUAKE RECOVERY ACT CONCERNING PROCESSING
OF CERTIFICATES OF ECONOMIC HARDSHIP
FOR RED AND YELLOW TAGGED STRUCTURES
WHEREAS, on April 19, 1994 the City Council adopted
Ordinance
Number
1736(CCS) ,
the
Earthquake Recovery Act,
establishing procedures and standards for repair and reconstruction
of earthquake damaged structures; and
WHEREAS, it is necessary to amend the Earthquake Recovery
Act to add provisions expediting the review of certificates of
economic hardship for historic structures which have been yellow or
red tagged;
NOW, THEREFORE, THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SANTA
MONICA DOES ORDAIN AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1.
Findings and Purpose.
(a) With limited exceptions, the provisions of the Landmarks
Ordinance, Municipal Code Chapter 9.36 require the issuance of a
certificate of Economic Hardship before the demolition of any
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structure of Merit, Landmark or Landmark Parcel, or building or
structure within a Historic District ("Historic structure"). The
process for obtaining a certificate of Economic Hardship entails at
least two hearings before the Landmarks Commission, and a possible
appeal to the City Council. The time estimated to complete such
process is six months to one year, because, among other things, the
Landmarks Commission is authorized to take up to six months, or one
year if the project requires an Environmental Impact Report, to
render a decision on the certificate application.
(b) Numerous Historic structures have been damaged by the
January 17, 1994 Northr idge earthquake (" Earthquake") and its
aftershocks, and owners seek to obtain Certificates of Economic
Hardship as a preliminary step to demolition. In some cases, the
initial damage suffered by the structure has become progressively
worse since the Earthquake due to aftershocks and other effects of
the passage of time.
(c) The City wishes to expeditiously determine whether such
structures are eligible for demolition while at the same time not
sacrificing the city's goal of safeguarding its historic heritage
and other goals set forth in Section 9.36.020 of the Landmarks
Ordinance.
(d) The purpose of this Ordinance is to streamline and
expedite the processing of applications for a certificate of
Economic Hardship for red- and yellow- tagged buildings, but not to
change the standards which apply to the approval or disapproval of
such applications.
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SECTION 2. section 22 is hereby added to Ordinance Number
1736 (CCS), the Earthquake Recovery Act, to read as follows:
SECTION 22. certificate of Economic Hardship. An
application for a certificate of Economic Hardship for
any Landmark, or building or structure within a Historic
District, which is filed in connection with an
application for a demolition permit for a structure which
has been posted with a no-entry (red-tagged) or limited
entry (yellow-tagged) notice as a result of damage caused
by the January 17, 1994 Northridge Earthquake or its
aftershocks ("Earthquake") shall be subject to the
provisions of Chapter 9.36 of the Municipal Code, except
as amended below:
(a) Timelines.
(1) Any application filed pursuant to section
9.36.170 shall be deemed complete or incomplete within
seven (7) working days after the Planning Division
receives a substantially complete application together
with all information, plans, specifications, statements
of work, and any other materials and documents required
by the application form supplied by the city.
(2) The public hearing required by section
9.36.170(c) shall be held within forty-five (45) days of
the date on which an application for a certificate of
Economic Hardship was deemed complete.
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(3) The notice of public hearing required by
section 9.36.170(c) shall be given not less than seven
(7) days before the date scheduled for the hearing.
(4) The time in which the Commission must
render a decision on the application pursuant to Section
9.36.170(d) shall be not later than sixty (60) days after
the application was deemed complete.
(5) Any notice of appeal filed pursuant to
Section 9.36.180(b) concerning commission determination
on an application for a certificate of Economic Hardship
must be filed within five (5) working days of the date
that such determination was made or deemed approved or
disapproved.
(6) The hearing required by Section
9.36.180(c) shall be held within thirty (30) days after
the notice of appeal is properly filed with the Director
of Planning and the City Clerk.
(7) The notice of public hearing required by
section 9.36.180(d) shall be given not less than seven
(7) days before the date scheduled for the hearing.
(8) The investigation, recommendation, and
other actions required by section 9.36.160(d) shall not
cause a delay in the application, but shall be completed
within the time specified in Subsection (a) (4) above.
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(9) The time periods specified in subsections
(a) (1) through (a) (8) above may be extended upon mutual
agreement of the Commission and applicant.
(b) Evidence on Appeal. Except for additional
evidence or testimony specifically requested by the City
Council, the City Council on appeal shall rely on the
evidence presented to the Landmarks Commission.
Additional evidence may be submitted to the city Council
only if such evidence could not feasibly have been
presented to the Landmarks Commission. Nothing in this
Section is intended to affect the ability of the public
to testify at the public hearing on the appeal, or to
prevent the submittal of rebuttal testimony the necessity
of which would not have been evident prior to the
Landmarks Commission hearing.
SECTION 3. Any provision or provisions of the Santa Monica
Municipal Code or appendices thereto, inconsistent with the
provisions of this Ordinance, to the extent of such inconsistencies
and no further, are hereby repealed or modified to that extent
necessary to effect the provisions of this Ordinance.
SECTION 4. This Ordinance is declared to be an urgency
measure adopted pursuant to the provisions of section 615 of the
Santa Monica city Charter. It is necessary for preserving the
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public health, safety, or welfare as set forth in the Findings and
Purpose section of this Ordinance.
SECTION 5. If any section, subsection, sentence, clause, or
phrase of this Ordinance is for any reason held to be invalid or
unconstitutional by a decision of any court of any competent
jurisdiction, such decision shall not affect the validity of all
remaining portions of this Ordinance.
The City Council hereby
declares that it would not have passed this Ordinance if any
portion, section, subsection, sentence, clause, or phrase would
subsequently' be declared invalid or unconstitutional.
SECTION 6.
The Mayor shall sign and the City Clerk shall
attest to the passage of this Ordinance.
The City Clerk shall
cause the same to be published once in the official newspaper
within 15 days after its adoption.
This ordinance shall be
effective upon its adoption.
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
~~10
city Attorney
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Adopted and approved this 9th day of August, 1994.
~JL
or
I hereby certify that the foregoing Ordinance No. 1764 (CCS) was duly and regularly
adopted at a meeting of The City Council on the 9th day of August, 1994; by the following
Council vote:
Ayes:
Councilmembers:
Abdo, Genser, Holbrook, Olsen, Rosenstein, Vazquez
Noes:
Councilmembers:
None
Abstain: Councilmembers : None
Absent: Councilmembers:
Greenberg
ATTEST:
-A/~~
City Clerk