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SR-8-E (31) 7-L CA:RMM:rmd1493/hpca1/pc city council Meeting 5-12-92 MAY 1 L iS~:' Santa Monica, California STAFF REPORT TO: Mayor and city council FROM: City Attorney SUBJECT: Ordinance Relating to Permitted Encroachment into Required Unexcavated Portions of Required Front and Side Yard Setbacks and Declaring the Presence of an Emergency The City Council directed the City Attorney to prepare an ordinance relating to the unexcavated areas of front yards of residential developments. In response to this direction, the accompanying ordinance has been prepared and is presented to the City Council for its consideration. Under the provisions of the Municipal code, only 50% of required front yard set back must be landscaped. The Code does not require that 50% must be unexcavated. In connection with the hearing a condominium project, the City Council indicated that 50% of the required front yard setback must remain unexcavated along the entire length of the front property line. This ordinance would confirm this policy. The accompanying ordinance does the following: 1. Municipal Code Section 9040.17 requires un excavated side yards in only the R2, R3, RVC, OP-2, OP-3, OP-4, and BCD Districts. This ordinance would require unexcavated front and side yards in all residential districts, the RVC District, the j-E - 1 - M,n" '" -- Hf - q~' - '_ f",.,L BCD District, and certain commercial and industrial districts currently regulated. This ordinance requires that the front 50% of a required front yard remain unexcavated in all regulated Districts. In lots narrower than 50 feet in width, this ordinance would continue to allow excavation to the side property line; however, 50% of the surface area of the side yards would be required to be landscaped as currently required by the Code. This provision remains subject to the provisions of Section 9044.8, which regulates parking access through the front and side yards for residential districts. 2. The ordinance adds the OP-Duplex District to the minimum landscaping requirements. 3. The ordinance amends the design standard for subterranean parking structures to prohibit them in a required unexcavated portion of a required front yard. 4. The ordinance modifies the design standards for semi-subterranean parking structures. In lots wider than 50 feet, such a structure may not extend into either the required unexcavated portion of a required front or side yard. This provision is an addition to the current Code. In lots narrower than 50 feet, a semi- subterranean structure may extend into the required side yard, but not the required front yard. RECOMMENDATION It is respectfully recommended that the accompanying ordinance be introduced and adopted. PREPARED BY: Robert M. Myers, City Attorney Cesar A. Bertaud, Deputy city Attorney - 2 - ~ CA:RMM:cbdoc007/hpcal/pc city council Meeting 5-12-92 Santa Monica, California ORDINANCE NUMBER 1627(CCS) (City council Series) AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SANTA MONICA RELATING TO PERMITTED ENCROACHMENT INTO REQUIRED UNEXCAVATED PORTIONS OF REQUIRED FRONT AND SIDE YARD SETBACKS AND DECLARING THE PRESENCE OF AN EMERGENCY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SANTA MONICA DOES ORDAIN AS FOLLOWS: SECTION 1. Findings and Purpose. The City Council finds and declares: (a) The landscaping standards contained in the City of Santa Monica Comprehensive Land Use and zoning Ordinance are intended to preserve and protect the public health, safety and welfare through the maintenance of adequate drainage and groundwater percolation capability, as well as to enhance the aesthetic appearance of development in all areas of the city by providing standards for quality, quantity, and functional aspects of landscaping and landscape screening consistent with Architectural Review Board Guidelines, and the goals, objectives, and policies of the General Plan. (b) In the recent past, the pace and density of development in the city has accelerated, and developers have increasingly excavated parcels and encumbered the soil with subterranean and semi -subterranean structures which lmpede - 1 - adequate drainage and percolation and detrimentally impact the long term success of landscaping required by the Zoning Ordinance. (c) Only un excavated and unencumbered soil can adequately provide for the water drainage and percolation and landscaping required to preserve and protect the public health, safety and welfare. (d) There exists an immediate threat to the public health, safety and welfare, through development which does not provide for adequate water drainage and percolation and successful landscaping, and approval of additional subdivisions, use permits, variances, building permits, or any other applicable entitlement for use which is required in order to comply with a zoning ordinance without providing with same, would result in a threat to public health, safety, and welfare. (e) An emergency measure to provide for unexcavated and unencumbered areas in required front and side yard setbacks is necessary to preserve and protect the public health, safety and welfare, because of the increasing number of developments that are being proposed which do not contain adequate unexcavated and unencumbered soil. SECTION 2. Unexcavated Area in Front and Side Yards. (a) On any lot in a residential or BCD District, or any commercial or industrial lot w~ich directly abuts a resldentially zoned lot not used for commercial parking purposes, having a width of 50 feet or greater, there shall be provided and maintained an un excavated area along the entire length of the - 2 - front property line equal in area to at least 50 percent of the front yard setback and equal to four (4) feet in width along the entire length of at least one of the side property lines, except to the extent necessary to provide parking access pursuant to Municipal Code Section 9044.8. For lots in excess of 70 feet in width, the unexcavated area of the side yards shall be provided and rnal.ntained along the entire length of both side property lines. subterranean, semi-subterranean parking structures, basements, and other subterranean facilities may not project into any portion of the required unexcavated areas. At least 50 percent of the surface areas of the unexcavated areas shall be landscaped pursuant to the provisions of Subchapter 5B. (b) On any lot in a residential District that has a width of less than 50 feet, and which is developed with at least three (3) units, there shall be provided and maintained an unexcavated area along the entire length of the front property line equal in area to at least 50 percent of the front yard setback, except to the extent necessary to provide parking access pursuant to Municl.pal Code Section 9044. B. Subterranean, semi-subterranean parking structures, basements, and other subterranean facilities may not project into any portion of the required unexcavated area. The front yard setback shall be landscaped pursuant to the provisions of Subchapter 5B. No side yard setback for subterranean or semi-subterranean parking structures or basements is required; however, at least 50 percent of the surface area of the excavated sideyard area shall be landscaped. At least 50 percent of the surface areas of the unexcavated areas shall be landscaped pursuant to the provisions of Subchapter SB. - 3 - SECTION 3. Required Landscape Area for Building sites. In all residential Districts, including in Rl and R2R Districts, but excluding the OP-l, OP-Duplex, OP-2, OP-3, and OP-4 Districts, a minimum of 50% of the required front yard setback shall be landscaped. In the OP-l, OP-Duplex, OP-2, OP-3, and OP-4 Districts, all areas not covered by sidewalks, driveways, porches, garages, or buildings, shall be treated as landscaped area, as defined in this Chapter. SECTION 4. Subterranean Parking shall be structures. All subterranean parking structures maintained as follows: (a) All openings for ingress and egress facing the front parcel line shall be situated at or behind the front building line of the main building. There shall be no more than two (2) openings facing the front parcel line for each main building. (b) A subterranean parking structure may be constructed and maintained in any required yard area except in the required unexcavated areas of the front and side yards. (c) Exits from any subterranean parking structure shall provide sight distance which comply with standards established by the Parking and Traffic Engineer. constructed and SECTION 5. Semi-subterranean Parking structures. A parking structure shall be considered to be semi-subterranean if the structure is partially underground and if the finished floor of the first level of the building or structure above the parking structure does not exceed three (3) feet above the average natural or existing grade of the lot, except for openings for - 4 - ingress and egress. A semi-subterranean parking structure shall not be counted as a floor or story for calculating building height. All semi-subterranean parking structures shall be constructed and maintained as follows: (a) All openings for ingress and egress facing the front lot line shall be situated at or behind the front building line of the main building, except for the OP-i, OP-Duplex, OP-2, OP-3, and OP-4 Districts where front yard setback standards apply. There shall be no more than two (2) open1ngs facing the front lot line for each main building. (b) On lots having a width greater than 50 feet, a semi-subterranean parking structure may be maintained in any required yard area except unexcavated area of a front or side yard. (c) On lots less than 50 feet in width, a semi-subterranean parking structure may extend to both side property lines, but may not extend into a required unexcavated area of a required front yard. (d) Exits from any semi-subterranean parking structure shall provide sight distance which comply with standards established by the Parking and Traffic Engineer. constructed and in a required SECTION 6. Applicability. The City council adopted the policy set forth in this Ordinance on June 4, 1991. Any development applied for after June 4, 1991, and not approved on the effective date of this Ordinance, shall be conditioned to comply with this Ordinance. - 5 - SECTION 7. This ordinance is declared to be an urgency ordinance adopted to the provisions of section 9120.6 of the Santa Monica Municipal Code and Section 615 of the Santa Monica City Charter. It is necessary for preserving the public peace, health and safety, and the urgency for its adoption is set forth in the findings above. SECTION 8. This ordinance shall be of no further force and effect 45 days from its effective date, unless extended pursuant to section 9120.6. SECTION 9. Any provision 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 affect the provisions of this Ordinance. SECTION 10. 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 the remaining portions of this Ordinance. The City council hereby declares that it would have passed this Ordinance, and each and every section, subsection, sentence, clause, or phrase not declared invalid or unconstitutional without regard to whether any portion of the Ordinance would be subsequently declared invalid or unconstitutional. SECTION 11. The Mayor shall sign and the City Clerk shall attest to the passage of this Ordinance. The city Clerk shall - 6 - cause the same to be published once in the officJ.al newspaper within 15 days after its adoption. This Ordinance shall become effective immediately upon its adoptipn. APPROVED AS TO FORM: ~ ~ v-o-- ROBERT M. MYERS ' City Attorney - 7 - Adopted and approved this 12th day of May, 1992. I hereby certify that the foregoing Ordinance No. 1627(CCS) was duly and regularly introduced at a meeting of the City council on the 12th day of May 1992; that the said Ordinance was thereafter duly adopted at a meeting of the City council on the 12th day of May 1992 by the following council vote: Ayes: Councilmembers: Abdo, Genser, Holbrook, Katz, Olsen, Vazquez, Zane Noes: Councilmembers: None Abstain: councilmembers: None Absent: Councilmembers: None ATTEST: /~lI;L / L;/~ ------ City clerk {