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O1897 f\atty\muru\1aws\barry\subd2 mar wpd City Council Meetmg 1-27-98 Santa Monica, Cahfornia ORDINANCE NUMBER 1897(CCS) (City Councll Senes) AN INTERIM ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SANTA MONICA EXTENDING THE MORATORIUM. ON SUBDIVISIONS IN THE AREA BOUNDED BY OCEAN AVENUE, SEVENTH STREET, ADELAIDE DRIVE, AND MONTANA AVENUE PENDING REVISIONS TO THE ZONING ORDINANCE CHANGING THE MINIMUM LOT WIDTH FROM FIFTY FEET TO ONE HUNDRED FEET FOR AN R-l LOT WITHIN THE ABOVE- DESCRIBED AREA, DECLARING THE PRESENCE OF AN EMERGENCY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SANTA MONICA DOES ORDAIN AS FOLLOWS SECTION 1 Fmdmgs and Purpose The City Counctl finds and declares (a) The area of the City bounded by Seventh Street, Ocean Avenue, Adelaide Dnve, and Montana Avenue IS located Within the Pahsades Tract whtch was ongmally subdivided in 1905 and is a unique and dlstmctIve neighborhood (b) Among the Pahsades Tract's speCial charactenstlcs are 100 foot wide streets, as opposed to the 60 foot to 80 foot Wide streets typical for other Rl zoned areas of the City, parcels With 100 feet of street frontage, as opposed to the typiCal Rl parcel street frontage of 50 feet, 200 foot parcel depths, as opposed to the tYPIcal 150 foot deep parcels found throughout most of the City, 40 foot front yard setbacks, as opposed to the 20 foot to 30 foot front yard setbacks in most of the other R1 areas ofthe Cuy, and parkways and Sidewalks which are on CiJ!; _ 5 average 25 feet In wtdth Each of these features has a d1rect and substantial impact on the character and scale of the neighborhood (c) The Pal1sades Tract was designed to accommodate large homes with large yards and 1t was developed consistent With th1S design Consequently, the Pahsades Tract presently contams large, old homes surrounded by substantial yards and gardens (d) As a result of 1tS broad streets and pathways, large lots, old homes, ample yards and gardens, and substantial setbacks, the PalIsades Tract proVldes more open space than any other residential neighborhood m the C1ty (e) The character and scale ofthe ongmal Pahsades Tract make 1t umque In the City The City Itself is extremely dense With a land area of Just 8 square mdes and a population of apprmamately 90,000 people Moreover, the combmatlon of an ocean Side location, fine climate, vigorous economy, and urban factlltles, sefVlces and entertamment venues make the C1ty an extremely deSirable place to work or VISit Consequently, on any weekday, approximately 200,000 persons are present m the City, and on weekends, thiS number frequently chmbs to 400,000 or more Population dens1ty and congestIOn both present threats to the quality of life in the City (t) GIVen the City's denSity, the Palisades Tract and the open space It prOVIdes are umque recreational and aesthetic assets City reSidents and Visitors frequently walk and bicycle m tlus neighborhood due to its special ambience (g) The Palisades Tract was subsequently expanded III 1912 eastward However, that portion of the Palisades Tract was not developed in the same scale and character as the original Palisades Tract and IS not tncluded m the moratonum iI. '- 6 (h) Between 1947 and the early 1970's, a number of subdivisIOns of the parcels occurred in the Palisades Tract These lot spins were approved admInistratively as a matter of right In 1976, the City Council adopted Ordinance 1024 WhiCh repealed the nght to subdivide lots as a matter of right and reqUired public notlce ofa vanance applicatIon to approve lot splits under certaIn conditions In 1984, the City Counell adopted OrdInance 1294 to Implement the State SubdiVIsIon Map Act and require PlannIng Commission approval of subdlvlslOn requests Since 1976, no lot split has been approved In the Palisades Tract Consequently, the majority ofthe origmall00 foot parcels in the Palisades Tract are st1l1 Intact and the ongmal character and scale of the tract has been mamtamed However, the loss of any addItIOnal 100 foot parcels would adversely and Irrevocably serve to change the character and scale of the Pahsades Tract Reducing lot WIdth from 100 feet to 50 feet would reduce the reqUIred sldeyard setback by 50%, resulting in less open space between homes and greater development denSIty RedUCIng lot width would also result in the removal of older homes In the neighborhood Addltlonally, reducmg an existing 100 foot Wide parcel into two 50 foot Wide parcels would be InCOnsistent WIth the original design and plan for the character and scale of the Pahsades Tract (1) WithIn the past eight months, real estate values in the City have risen slgruficantly, and the City has received two apphcatlons for subdIvISIons oflots m the PalIsades Tract The CIty anticipates other applicatIons wIll be forthcormng CD A text amendment has been filed to modify the rmrumum lot WIdth standards In thiS area from 50 feet to 100 feet Before the Zorung Ordmance IS amended, the potentIal for approval of lot sphts poses a current and Immediate threat to the publIc health, safety, and welfare of the resIdents The approval of permits for such development would result m a threat to pubhc health, safety, and welfare m that such approvals could irreversibly alter the essential character Will 7 and scale of the Palisades Tract and depnve the CIty ofa umque and essential resource, as detaIled above (k) In hght of the above-mentIoned concerns, the CIty Councll adopted Ordinance Number 1892 (CCS) on December 16, 1997, whIch ordmance estabhshed a 45 day moratorium (1) pendmg the study and possible amendment of the Zoning Ordmance, it IS necessary, on an interim basis, to estabhsh a moratonum on subdivisIOns m that portIOn of the Pahsades Tract described above SECTION 2 Moratonum (a) A moratonum IS hereby placed on the acceptance for processmg of any applIcation for approval of planning, building, engmeenng, or other City permits for subdivIsIOns in the area bounded by Ocean Avenue, Seventh Street, Adelaide Drive, and Montana Avenue (b) City StafflS hereby directed to dIsapprove all applicatIOns filed after November 25, 1997 for approval of planning, bUIldmg, engineenng, or other CIty permIts for subdiVisions in the area bounded by Ocean Avenue, Seventh Street, Adelaide Dnve, and Montana Avenue SECTION 3 Tins ordinance shall be of no further force and effect forty-eight (48) months from the date of ItS adoption, unless pnor to that date, after a pubhc heanng, noticed pursuant to Santa Monica Municipal Code Section 9 04 20 22 050, the City Council, by majonty vote, extends the moratonum SECTION 4 ThIS ordinance IS declared to be an urgency measure adopted pursuant to the provIsions of Section 90420 16060 of the Santa Monica Mumclpal Code and SectIOn 615 of .. 8 the Santa Monica City Charter As set forth In the findmgs above, this ordmance IS necessary for preserving the public health, safety, and welfare, and the approval of any additional subdiVISions would result in a threat to pubhc health, safety, or welfare SECTION 5 Any proViSIOn of the Santa Manica Municipal Code or appendices thereto mconSlstent With the proviSIOns of thiS Ordmance, to the extent of such mconSlstenCles and no further, is hereby repealed or modified to that extent necessary to effect the proVISions ofthis Ordmance SECTION 6 If any sectIon, subsection, sentence, clause, or phrase of this Ordmance is for any reason held to be mvahd or unconstitutIOnal by a deCISion of any court of competent jurisdiction, such deciSion shall not affect the validIty of the remalOmg portions of this Ordmance The City Councd hereby declares that It would have passed tills Ordinance and each and every section, subsection, sentence, clause, or phrase not declared mvahd or unconstitutIOnal without regard to whether any ponion of the ordlOance would be subsequently declared mvahd or unconstitutional .fA 9 SECTION 7 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 pubhshed once 10 the offiCial newspaper withm 15 days after its adoption Tills Ordinance shall become effective upon its adoption APPROVED AS TO FORM JuA ~~ SHA JONE~MOUTRIE City Attorney III. 10 ~/~~ Robert Holbrook, Mayor State of CalIfornIa ) County of Los Angeles) 5S. CIty of Santa Maruca ) I, Mana M Stewart, CIty Clerk of the CIty of Santa Moruca, do hereby certIfy that the foregomg Ordmance No. 1897 (CCS) was mtroduced for fIrst readmg and was adopted on January 27. 1998 by the followmg vote Ayes CouncIl members Ebner, Femstem, Greenberg, O'Connor. Rosenstem Noes Councll members None Abstam Councll members None Absent Council members Genser, Holbrook ATTEST ~_._~-~~ Mana M Stewart, CIty elerk