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CounCll Mtg: August 9, 1994 Santa Monlca, Callfornla
AUG 0 9 1994
TO: Mayor and City Council
FROM: City Staff
SUBJECT: Recommendatlon to Adopt an Emergency Ordlnance Amending
Ordinance 1736 (CCS) Concerning the Processlng of
Certiflcate of Economic Hardshlp Appllcatlons for
Designated Landmark Structures.
INTRODUCTION
ThlS report recommends that the City Counell adopt an emergency
ordlnance amendlng the Eart~quake Recovery Act {Ordlnance 1736
(CCS)) to provide expedlted processlng of Certiflcate of EconomlC
Hardshlp applicatlons for deslgnated landmark structures that
suffered substantial damage from the Northridge Earthquake.
BACKGROUND
On August 2, 1994, the Clty Council directed that an amendment to
Ordlnance 1736 be prepared that modifies the tlmel1nes setforth
1n Santa Monica Mun1c1pal Code Section 9 36.170 regard1ng
Certificate of Economic Hardship appllcatlon procedures.
Under
the eX1stlng prOV1S1ons, the lnltial Certlflcate of Economic
Hardshlp public hearlng must occur withln 45 days of the date the
appl1cation lS deemed completed.
The Landmarks Comm1sslon then
has up to SlX months, or one year 1f the pro] ect requlres an
EnV1ronmental Impact Report (EIR) , to render a decision on the
appllcatlon.
If the CommlSSlon finds that all reasonable use or
economlc
return from a designated landmark will
be
deltfGdo 9 199't
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property owner, the appl1cat1on can be delayed for up to an
add1tional 120 days to provLde tiwe to 1nvest1gate other opt1ons
that may lead to the property's preservat1on. At the end of thlS
time per1od, 1f the Commission finds that the property cannot be
put to a reasonable economlC use I the application 1S approved.
Assuming an EIR is not requ1red, th1S process would take
approxlmately one year. If the appl1cation lS appealed to C1ty
Council, final disposition could take an add1t1onal 3 months.
The purpose of this amendment is to compress these tlmellnes for
red or yellow tagged earthquake damaged landmark structures In
addit1on, the Landmarks Commission's role would be mod1f1ed, w1th
the Comm1SS1on evaluating the evidence presented for eCCn0'111C
hardsh1p at the same time as the alternat1ves to enccurage
preservat1on. The amendment proposes that the appl1cat1on be
deemed complete wlth1n 7 worklng days of submlttal. The
Landmarks Corrmisslon publ1C hearlng would be held wlthin 45 days
after the appl1cat1on 1S deemed complete. The Landmarks
Comm1SS1on1s evaluat~on and determination on the Cert1f1cate of
Economic Hardshlp would occur no more than 60 days after the
application is deemed complete. If appealed, the Councll's
hearing on the matter would follow w1thin 30 days of the
Comm1SS1on I s recommendation Applicatlon processlng would be
reduced from over one year to no more than 95 days Appl1cat1ons
could be processed under the time limits set forth In the
ord1nance. In addition, to further exped1te the process, 1t is
recommended that the publ1C hear1ng not1f1cat1on occur not less
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than 7 days I rather than the standard 10 days I prlor to the
hearing.
The ordinance also speclfles that, except for any additional
eVldence or testimony requested by the City Council, the Council
rely on the eVldence presented to the Landmarks CommlSSlon.
Addltional eVldence may be suhmltted to the Councll only lf such
eVldence could not feaslbly have been presented to the Landmarks
CommlSSlan. This does not preclude the publlc I S ahlllty to
testlfy at the appeal hearlng, or prevent the suhmlttal of
rebuttal testimony, the necesslty of WhlCh would not have been
evident prior to the Landmarks CommlSSlon hearing.
The expedited process 18 necessary In llght of the fact that
damaged buildings tend to rapldly deterlorate and may eventually
become a threat to public safety Other -:::.han the process for
Certiflcate of Economic Hardship appl~catlons, no other
prOV1Slons or procedures ln the Lanamarks Ordlnance wlll change.
It 1S estlmated thlS ordinance will apply to less than SlX
properties.
BUDGET/FINANCIAL IMPACT
The recommendatlon presented in this report does not have any
budget or fiscal lmpact.
RECOMMENDATION
It lS respectfully recommended that the Cauncll adopt the
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attached emergency ordinance.
Prepared by:
Suzanne Frick, Dlrector
D. Kenyon Webster, Planning Manager
Amanda Schacter, Senlar Planner
Plannlng & Zoning D1V1Slon
Plannlng and Communlty Development Department
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City council Meeting 8-9-94
Santa Monica, California
ORDINANCE NUMBER (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 structurell). 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 Northridge earthquake ("Earthquakell) 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 Sect ion 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 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 subj ect to the provisions of
Chapter 9.36 of the Municipal code, except as amended
below:
(a) Timelines.
(1) Any application f1led 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 Certiflcate 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 applicat10n 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.
(?) 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.
(9) The time periods specified in subsections
(a) (1) through (a) (8) above may be extended upon mutual
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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
public health, safety, or welfare as set forth in the Findings and
Purpose section of this Ordinance.
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SECTION 5. If any section, subsection, sentence, clause, or
phrase of this Ordinance is for any reason held to be invalid or
unconsti tutional 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 counci 1 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:
~-(.~' laLL~
MARSHA JONES MOUTRIE ~
city Attorney
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