O2442City Council Meeting: 10 -22 -13
Santa Monica, California
ORDINANCE NUMBER 2442 (CCS)
(City Council Series)
AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF
SANTA MONICA AMENDING SECTION 9.04.10.08.030(m) OF THE SANTA
MONICA MUNICIPAL CODE AND
ADDING SECTION 9.04.10.08.230 ESTABLISHING A REVISED IN -LIEU
PARKING FEE PROGRAM WITHIN THE CITY'S DOWNTOWN PARKING
ASSESSMENT DISTRICT
WHEREAS, the City of Santa Monica established the Parking Developer Fee
Program in 1986 concurrently with the formation of the Downtown Mall Assessment
District as an incentive to encourage property owners to rely upon public parking and
support a longstanding "Park Once" approach within the area; and
WHEREAS, under the Parking Developer Fee Program, developers within the
Downtown Parking Assessment District — the area bounded by First Court to the west,
Fourth Court to the east, the north side of Broadway to the south, and the south side of
Wilshire Boulevard to the north — may choose to pay a fee in lieu of providing the code -
required parking onsite; and
WHEREAS, the Parking Developer Fee, which expires on June 30, 2016, levies
$1.50 annually for each new square foot of building space added after 1986 for which
parking is not provided; and
WHEREAS, the Parking Developer Fee formula, fee amount, and applicable area
have remained unchanged since 1986; and
WHEREAS, centrally located parking structures in the Downtown enable their
users to park once and then walk to multiple destinations, and this "Park Once"
philosophy contributes to the Downtown's pedestrian character and is a major
underpinning of its success; and
WHEREAS, the importance of the City's publically -owned parking infrastructure
and "Park Once" philosophy in the City's downtown is reflected in the numerous studies
and reports over the past thirteen years, including but not limited to the 2000 Downtown
Parking Management Program, the 2002 Downtown Parking Task Force strategic plan,
the 2006 Downtown Parking Program, and the 2009 Walker Parking Study; and
WHEREAS, the Walker Parking Study approved by the City Council on
September 8, 2009, evaluated parking operations in the City's Downtown and
recommended reevaluation of the Parking Developer Fee based on its finding that the
annual fee of $1.50 per square foot is insufficient to finance the current costs of new
parking spaces; and
WHEREAS, on June 14, 2011, Council authorized the consulting team of
Nelson \Nygaard and AECOM to review the existing Parking Developer Fee Program
and to make recommendations for a program to address current and future parking and
circulation dynamics in the downtown; and
VA
WHEREAS, in October 2012, Nelson \Nygaard and AECOM released the
"Downtown Parking In -Lieu Fee Final Report" which, among other things, defines the
purpose, rationale, and structure of a new voluntary parking in -lieu fee for Downtown
Santa Monica; identifies the purpose and need for the fee, how the fee was calculated,
and the potential projects and programs to be funded by fee revenues; and
demonstrates the reasonable relationship between the fee amount, revenue generated,
and proposed use of that revenue; and
WHEREAS, on August 21, 2013, the Planning Commission held a public hearing
at which it considered the "Downtown Parking In -Lieu Fee Final Report" and
recommended updating the Parking In -Lieu Fee Program within the existing boundaries
of the City's Parking Developer Fee Assessment District, with the initial voluntary in -lieu
fee amount to be set at $20,000 per parking space with annual adjustments based on
the Consumer Price Index to ensure the program is current with costs in the future; and
WHEREAS, the new Downtown Parking In -Lieu Fee Program provides a
voluntary option for project applicants having difficulty meeting on -site parking
requirements and is set at an in -lieu fee level below the typical private costs to develop
parking, thus providing an incentive for private participation; and
WHEREAS, the Land Use and Circulation Element (LUCE) calls for a parking
management approach which utilizes .a shared pool of parking resources in
emphasizing efficiency and finding the "right" amount of parking so that it can function
optimally and support larger sustainability goals; and
3
WHEREAS, the new Downtown Parking In -Lieu Fee Program allows for the
efficient and flexible use of program revenue to not only expand public parking supply
through the construction of new facilities and the leasing of existing and available
parking spaces from willing private property owners, but also allows for flexible
spending on projects that reduce vehicle trips and overall parking demand;
NOW, THEREFORE, THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SANTA
MONICA DOES HEREBY ORDAIN AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Santa Monica Municipal Code Section 9.04.10.08.030 is hereby
amended to read as follows:
No use permitted by this Chapter occupying all or part of a parcel or building site
shall be permitted unless off - street parking spaces are provided in an amount and under
the conditions designated by the provisions of this Part.
(a) In this Part, the word "use" shall refer to the type of use, the extent of the
use, and a change in use either in type or extent.
(b) Any existing lawful use may continue so long as the number of off - street
parking spaces provided for the use is not reduced below the requirements of this Part
or below the number of off - street parking spaces required at the time the use was
legally established, whichever is less.
(c) No building or structure shall be constructed or moved onto a site unless
off - street parking spaces in an amount and under the conditions set forth in this Part are
provided for the use proposed for the building or structure.
n
(d) Additional parking spaces in the number specified in Section
9.04.10.08.040 shall be provided for any new floor area added to an existing structure
which results in a greater parking requirement.
(e) Every change of use in an existing building or structure shall conform to
the following requirements:
(1) For any new use of an existing non - residential building or structure such
that the new use will require a greater number of parking spaces as compared to the
previous use, parking spaces in the number specified in Section 9.04.10.08.040 shall be
provided for the new use. If there has been no legal use of the existing commercial or
industrial building or structure for over twelve months, no additional parking shall be
required for any permitted new use which requires a parking standard no more intense
than one space per three hundred square feet in commercial districts, or one space per
four hundred square feet in industrial districts;
(2) For any new commercial, cultural, health, industrial, or commercial
entertainment and recreation use of an existing residential building or structure, parking
spaces in the number specified in Section 9.04.10.08.040 shall be provided for the
entire parcel;
(3) For any new residential or educational use of an existing residential
building or structure such that the new residential or educational use will require a
greater number of parking spaces as compared to the previous use, parking spaces in
the number specified in Section 9.04.10.08.040 shall be provided for the new use. If
5
there has been no legal use of the existing residential building or structure for over six
months, no additional parking shall be required for any permitted new residential or
educational use provided that the number of required parking spaces does not exceed
the number of spaces required for the last legal use.
(f) Requirements for uses not specifically listed in this Part shall be
determined by the Zoning Administrator and the City Parking and Traffic Engineer
based upon the requirements for comparable uses and upon the particular
characteristics of the use.
(g) Required guest parking in residential districts shall be designated as such
and restricted to the use of guests.
(h) Walls, hedges, fences, and landscaping within parking areas shall comply
with the provisions of Part 9.04.10.04.
(i) Fractional space requirements totaling 0.5 or above shall be rounded up to
the next whole space.
(j) For purposes of calculating off - street parking requirements for dwelling
units, all private living spaces including but not limited to dens, studios, family rooms,
studies and lofts shall be considered as "bedrooms" except that a maximum of one such
room per unit shall not count as a bedroom if it is less than one hundred square feet in
area. Kitchens, bathrooms and one living room per unit shall not be considered
bedrooms. Semiprivate rooms shall not count as bedrooms if they have no doors and a
minimum seven -foot opening to adjacent living space. A loft or mezzanine shall not
0
count as a bedroom if the maximum width of the loft or mezzanine is less than seven
feet.
(k) Unless otherwise specified, the floor areas used to calculate the number
of off - street parking spaces required for non - residential uses pursuant to the provisions
of Section 9.04.10.08.040 shall include:
(1) All floor area located below grade devoted to office, retail, service, or other
activities and uses, storage areas, restrooms, lounges, lobbies, kitchens, and interior
hallways and corridors, unless exempted by the Chapter;
(2) All outdoor patio, deck, balcony, terrace, or other outdoor area that will
accommodate a permanent activity that will generate a demand for parking facilities in
addition to that which is provided for principal activities and uses within the building or
structure;
(3) Floor area devoted to parking shall not be included when determining
required parking;
(1) A parking demand analysis may be required if it is deemed necessary by
the Parking and Traffic Engineer and Zoning Administrator. The analysis shall be paid
for by the developer. In the event the analysis shows parking requirements greater than
required by this Part, the Parking and Traffic Engineer and Zoning Administrator shall
require such additional parking as is required by the analysis.
(m) The provisions of Section 9.04.10.08.230 of this Chapter shall apply if
the subject property is located within the City's Parking Assessment District.
(n) If a project contains more than one use, the parking requirement for each
use shall be calculated separately based on the standards contained in Section
9.04.10.08.040 of this Chapter, unless otherwise permitted by this Chapter.
SECTION 2. Section 9.04.10.08.230 is hereby added to Article 9 of the Santa
Monica Municipal Code, to read as follows:
9.04.10.08.230 Parking In -Lieu Fees within the City's Downtown Parking
Assessment District.
a) Parking requirements for uses, as established by Section 9.04.10.08.040 or as
otherwise established by procedures under this Zoning Ordinance, within the
City's Parking Assessment District may be met by payment of an in -lieu parking
fee as provided by this section.
b) The parking in -lieu fee shall be a per parking space fee and strictly voluntary in
nature.
c) The amount per parking space of the parking in -lieu fee shall be Twenty
Thousand Dollars ($20,000).
d) The parking in -lieu fee shall be adjusted automatically on July 1 of each
fiscal year, beginning on July 1, 2014, by the percentage change in the
Consumer Price Index ( "CPI ") for the preceding twelve months. For
purposes of this Section, CPI shall mean the Consumer Price Index for All
N
Urban Consumers (CPI -U), Los Angeles Area, as published by the United
States Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics.
e) The parking in -lieu fee shall be paid prior to the issuance of building permits.
f) Within the City's existing Parking Assessment District established by the City in
1986 (the area bounded by First Court to the west, Fourth Court to the east,
north side of Broadway to the south, and south side of Wilshire Boulevard to the
north), up to one - hundred percent (100 %) of the parking requirement generated
by new development, change of use, additions or renovations may be satisfied
by the payment of in -lieu fees.
g) The parking in -lieu fee may be applied to all development projects within the
Parking Assessment District that are in the development review process, but
have not received a building permit.
h) Until June 30, 2016, for each new square foot of building space provided in the
City's existing Parking Assessment District for which parking is not provided, an
9
assessment fee of $1.50 per square foot per year is collected by the Los Angeles
County Tax Assessor's Office. This amount shall be credited to and deducted
from the total in -lieu fee amount paid. Upon the expiration of the parking
assessment fee of $1.50 per square foot per year on June 30, 2016, any new
development, change of use, additions or renovations within the City's existing
Parking Assessment District shall be subject to the parking in -lieu fee established
by this section 9.04.10.08.230.
i) Funds collected by the City from in -lieu fee payment shall be deposited into a
dedicated Downtown Parking Fund and used only by the City to finance one or
more of the following activities:
1) Expansion of public parking supply through construction of new facilities.
2) Expansion of public parking supply by leasing existing and available
spaces from private property owners.
3) Expansion of public parking supply by coordinating valet parking
operations with private property owners.
4) Trip reduction strategies including, but not limited to, improvement to
parking utilization rates by means of improved wayfinding, signage,
information systems, management, and circulation and access.
j) Payment of the parking in -lieu fee shall be subject to the following City and payer
rights and obligations:
10
1) In combination with the spaces provided on -site, payment of the fee shall
be considered full satisfaction of the off - street parking requirement, as
determined by Chapter 9.04.10.08.
2) The fee shall be non - refundable and payment of the fee does not carry
any other guarantees, rights, or privileges to the payer.
3) Payment of the fee does not represent an obligation of the City to provide
parking spaces through the construction of a new garage or any other
particular means.
4) Payment of the fee does not represent an obligation of the City to provide
Downtown area parking spaces within any particular proximity to the
project for which the payment was made.
5) Payment of the fee does not represent an obligation of the City to make
available parking spaces within any particular amount of time.
6) Payment of the fee does not entitle the applicant, his /her tenants, or
his /her clients to free use of any public parking spaces.
7) Payment of the fee does not entitle the applicant, his /her tenants, or
his /her clients to exclusive or private use of any public parking spaces.
SECTION 3. This Ordinance shall apply to all development applications
meeting the criteria for applicability as defined herein determined complete after
the effective date of this Ordinance.
11
SECTION 4. 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, is hereby repealed or modified to
that extent necessary to effect the provisions 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 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 6. The Council finds that the adoption of this ordinance is not a project
pursuant to CEQA Guideline section 15378(b)(4), which excludes from the definition of
Project "the creation of government funding mechanisms or other government fiscal
activities, which do not involve any commitment to any specific project which may result
in a potentially significant physical impact on the environment." Alternatively, the
proposed ordinance is exempt from the provisions of the California Environmental
Quality Act (CEQA) pursuant to Section 15061(b)(3) in that it can been seen with
certainty that the proposed ordinance does not have the potential to significantly impact
the environment, since the proposed ordinance amendment is a fee that will be levied
on projects that will be evaluated in compliance with CEQA on their own merits, and any
12
future activity funded by the fee would be subject to appropriate review in compliance
with CEQA before it could be approved.
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 become effective
60 days after its adoption.
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
o S MOUT
13
Approved and adopted this 22nd day of October, 2013.
6IA"
am O'Connor, Mayor
State of California )
County of Los Angeles ) ss.
City of Santa Monica )
I, Sarah P. Gorman, City Clerk of the City of Santa Monica, do hereby certify that
the foregoing Ordinance No. 2442 (CCS) had its introduction on October 8, 2013,
and was adopted at the Santa Monica City Council meeting held on October 22,
2013, by the following vote:
Ayes: Councilmembers: Davis, Holbrook, McKeown, Vazquez, Winterer
Mayor O'Connor
Noes: Councilmembers: None
Absent: Councilmembers: Mayor Pro Tern O'Day
A summary of Ordinance No. 2442 (CCS) was duly published pursuant to
California Government Code Section 40806.
ATTEST:
sa�&j&6-
Sarah P. Gorman, City Clerk