R11127City Council Meeting: June 26, 2018
Santa Monica, California
RESOLUTION NUMBER I I I21 (CCS)
(City Council Series)
A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL
OF THE CITY OF SANTA MONICA SUBMITTING TO THE VOTERS A
MEASURE AMENDING CITY CHARTER SECTION 615 TO REQUIRE
THE AFFIRMATIVE VOTES OF AT LEAST FIVE MEMBERS OF THE
CITY COUNCIL IN ORDER TO INCREASE THE MAXIMUM HEIGHT
LIMIT OR FLOOR AREA RATIO SPECIFIED IN ANY LAND USE
DESIGNATION IN THE LAND USE AND CIRCULATION ELEMENT OF
THE GENERAL PLAN OR THE DOWNTOWN COMMUNITY PLAN
WHEREAS, at a regular meeting of the City Council on June 26, 2018, the City
Council recommended that Section 615 of the City Charter be amended to require the
affirmative votes of at least five members of the City Council and the presence of all
eligible City Council members in order to increase the maximum height limit or floor area
ratio specified in any land use designation in the Land Use and Circulation Element
(LUCE) of the General Plan or the Downtown Community Plan (DCP), except that the
requirement should not apply to 100% Affordable Housing Projects as defined in Section
9.52.020 of the Zoning Ordinance and development projects on property owned by the
Santa Monica -Malibu Unified School District; and
WHEREAS, California Elections Code Section 9255(b) requires that a proposal to
amend a city charter, proposed by the governing body of a city on its own motion, be
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submitted to the voters at an established statewide general election pursuant to California
Elections Code section 1200, provided there are at least 88 days before the election; and
WHEREAS, on June 12, 2018, the City Council adopted a Resolution calling for
and giving notice of a General Municipal Election on Tuesday, November 6, 2018; and
WHEREAS, pursuant to California Elections Code Section 10403, on June 12,
2018, the City Council adopted a Resolution requesting that the County of Los Angeles
consent and agree to the consolidation of all aspects of a General Municipal Election with
the Statewide General Election to be held on Tuesday, November 6, 2018, for the
purpose of electing members of the Santa Monica City Council, the Santa Monica Rent
Control Board, the Santa Monica -Malibu Unified School District Board of Education, and
the Santa Monica Community College District Board of Trustees.
NOW, THEREFORE, THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SANTA MONICA
DOES RESOLVE AND PROCLAIM AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. A General Municipal Election has been called for November 6, 2018,
for the purpose of, among other things, electing members of the City Council and
submitting measures and ballot propositions to the voters.
SECTION 2. At the General Municipal Election called for November 6, 2018, the
following measure to amend the City Charter shall be placed on the ballot and submitted
to the qualified electors of the City of Santa Monica:
E
MEASURE"
Shall City Charter Section 615 be amended to require, for a ( YES
period of ten years, the votes of five Council members to
amend (a) the Land Use and Circulation Element or (b)
Downtown Community Plan, where that amendment would —
increase the maximum height limit or floor area ratio in any
land use designation, with exceptions for 100% Affordable
Housing Projects and property owned by Santa Monica- NO
Malibu Unified School District?
SECTION 3. The City of Santa Monica recognizes that additional costs may be
incurred by the County by reason of the addition of this measure to the ballot and agrees
to reimburse the County for any additional costs performed upon presentation of a bill
pursuant to Elections Code Section 10002.
SECTION 4. The City Clerk shall transmit to the City Attorney, in accordance with
Elections Code Section 9280, a copy of this ballot measure. The City Attorney shall
prepare an impartial analysis of the ballot measure, which shall not exceed 500 words in
length. The impartial analysis shall be filed by the date set by the City Clerk for the filing
of primary arguments. In accordance with Santa Monica Municipal Code section
11.04.190 and California Elections Code Section 9295, not less than 10 calendar days
before the City Clerk submits the official election materials for printing, the City Clerk
shall make a copy of all applicable election materials available for public examination in
the City Clerk's office.
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SECTION 5. The City Council authorizes its members, as follows, to file written
arguments for or against the ballot measure:
FOR:
AGAINST:
Mayor Ted Winterer, Councilmember Tony Vazquez
All written arguments filed by any person in favor of or against the ballot measure,
including any rebuttal arguments, shall be accompanied by the names and signatures of
the persons submitting the arguments as required by applicable law, and any names,
signatures and arguments may be filed until the time and date fixed by the City Clerk in
accordance with applicable law, after which no change may be submitted to the City
Clerk unless permitted by law.
SECTION 6. The City Clerk shall cause the text of the ballot measure, which is
contained in Exhibit 1, together with the City Attorney's impartial analysis, and any
arguments for or against the measure, as well as any rebuttal, to be mailed to all qualified
voters with the sample ballot. In addition to other notices and publications required by
law, the City Clerk, not less than forty (40) days and not more than sixty (60) days before
the statewide general election, shall cause the text of the ballot measure to be published
once in the official newspaper and in each edition thereof during the day of publication.
The City Clerk is authorized to give such notices and to fix such times and dates as are
required by law or which are appropriate to conduct properly the election.
SECTION 7. The provisions of Resolutions 11118 (CCS) and 11119 (CCS) are
referred to and incorporated into this Resolution. Those Resolutions provide necessary
particulars concerning the General Municipal Election to be held on November 6, 2018,
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and among other things, deal with the placing on the ballot of this and other measures
as well as the conduct, consolidation and coordination of the General Municipal Election
with the General Statewide Election, which will also be conducted on November 6, 2018.
In all respects, the election shall be held and conducted as provided for by applicable
law, including but not limited to the above referenced Resolutions. The City Clerk is
authorized and directed to procure and furnish any official ballots, notices, printed
materials and all supplies or equipment that may be necessary in order to conduct the
election properly and lawfully.
SECTION 8. This resolution is exempt from the provisions of the California
Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) pursuant to 15061(b)(3) (common sense exception)
of the State Implementation Guidelines. Based on the evidence in the record, it can be
seen with certainty that there is no possibility that the proposed resolution may have a
significant effect on the environment. The resolution to place a measure on the
November 6, 2018, ballot proposes a procedural change to Council actions necessary
to enact future amendments that would increase maximum height and FAR in the LUCE
or DCP. Any future proposed amendments would require their own environmental
analysis. The proposed procedural change to require five affirmative votes instead of a
simple majority for such amendments would not allow more mass or floor area within the
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LUCE or DCP than existing regulations. Therefore, no further environmental review
under CEQA is required.
SECTION 9. The City Clerk shall certify to the adoption of this Resolution, and
thenceforth and thereafter the same shall be in full force and effect.
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
LANE DILG
City Attorney
C
Exhibit 1
CITY COUNCIL PROPOSED MEASURE TO AMEND CITY CHARTER
SECTION 615 TO REQUIRE THE AFFIRMATIVE VOTES OF AT LEAST
FIVE MEMBERS OF THE CITY COUNCIL IN ORDER TO INCREASE A
MAXIMUM HEIGHT LIMIT OR FLOOR AREA RATIO SPECIFIED IN ANY
LAND USE DESIGNATION IN THE LAND USE AND CIRCULATION
ELEMENT OF THE GENERAL PLAN OR THE DOWNTOWN
COMMUNITY PLAN
WHEREAS, the City Council wishes to place before the voters a measure that
would amend City Charter Section 615 to require the affirmative votes of at least five
members of the City Council in order to increase a maximum height limit or floor area
ratio specified in the Land Use and Circulation Element of the General Plan or the
Downtown Community Plan.
NOW, THEREFORE,
Section 1. Section 615 of the Santa Monica City Charter is amended as follows:
615. Adoption of ordinances and resolutions.
With the sole exception of ordinances which take effect upon adoption, hereinafter
referred to, no ordinance shall be adopted by the City Council on the day of its
introduction, nor within five days thereafter, nor at any time other than at a regular or
adjourned regular meeting. At the time of adoption of an ordinance or resolution it shall
be read in full, unless, after the reading of the title thereof, the further reading thereof is
waived by unanimous consent of the City Councilmembers present. In the event that any
ordinance is altered after its introduction, the same shall not be finally adopted except at
a regular or adjourned regular meeting, held not less than five days after the date upon
which such ordinance was so altered. The correction of typographical or clerical errors
shall not constitute the making of an alteration within the meaning of the foregoing
sentence.
No order for the payment of money shall be adopted or made at any other than a
regular or adjourned regular meeting.
The affirmative votes of at least four members of the City Council shall be required
for the enactment of any ordinance or resolution, or for the making or approving of any
order for the payment of money.
The affirmative votes of at least five members of the City Council shall be required
for the adoption of an amendment to U the Land Use and Circulation Element (LUCE)
or (b) the Downtown Community Plan (DCP), where that amendment would increase the
maximum height limit or floor area ratio specified in any land use designation in the LUCE
or the DCP except that this requirement shall not apply to 100% Affordable Housing
Projects as defined in Section 9.52.020 of the Zoning Ordinance and development
projects on property owned by the Santa Monica -Malibu Unified School District or
successor school district in the City of Santa Monica. A vote on an amendment covered
by this provision may only be taken when all members of the City Council eligible to vote
are present. This requirement shall terminate on November 6, 2028.
Emergency Ordinances. Any ordinance declared by the City Council to be
necessary as an emergency measure for preserving the public peace, health or safety
and containing a statement of the reasons for its urgency, may be introduced and adopted
at one and the same meeting if passed by at least five affirmative votes.
Adopted and approved this 26th day of June, 2018.
Ted Winterer, Mayor
I, Denise Anderson -Warren, City Clerk of the City of Santa Monica, do hereby
certify that Resolution No. 11127 (CCS) was duly adopted at a meeting of the Santa
Monica City Council held on the 26th day of June, 2018, by the following vote:
AYES: Councilmembers Himmelrich, McKeown, O'Day, Vazquez
Mayor Pro Tem Davis, Mayor Winterer
NOES: None
ABSENT: Councilmember O'Connor
ATTEST:
Denise Anderson -Warren, City Clerk