Camarillo City Council
AGENDA REPORT
Date: November 8, 2023
To: Honorable Mayor and City Councilmembers
From: Greg Ramirez, City Manager
Submitted by: Georg Winkler, Economic Development Manager Subject: Zoning Ordinance Amendment to CMC Chapter 19.65 Home Occupations
BACKGROUND
Chapter 19.65 of the Camarillo Municipal Code (CMC) establishes a comprehensive set of regulations to determine if business activities occurring in residential structures are appropriate and provides the required procedures for issuing a Home Occupation Permit.
Current procedures include an onsite inspection of the premises for which the application was filed.
To increase business friendliness, equity, and the efficient operations of the City, staff propose a Zoning Ordinance Text Amendment (ZOA) to remove inspection requirements and the requirement for multifamily property owner permission in the permitting of home office-based businesses.
In June 2023, staff presented their findings and recommendations to the Economic Development and Land Use Committee and received favorable support to move forward with the recommended actions.
At a Public Hearing of the Planning Commission on the October 3, 2023, the Planning Commission found that the proposed Ordinance is exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (“CEQA”) under the State CEQA Guidelines and adopted PC Resolution 2023-26 recommending the City Council adopt the proposed Zoning Ordinance Amendment to CMC Chapter 19.65 Home Occupations.
Public Notice
A Notice of Public Hearing for the City Council meeting of November 8, 2023 was posted at Camarillo City Hall, as well as on the City’s website (www.cityofcamarillo.org) and published in a newspaper of general circulation for the area (Camarillo Acorn).
ZOA to CMC Chapter 19.65
November 8, 2023
1 5
9 2
DISCUSSION
Last updated in 1990, CMC Chapter 19.65 established regulations for home-based businesses in a world without the internet. Advanced technology and equipment has made home offices the new normal. The equipment required to carry out business is low- impact and includes cell phones, tablets, laptops, and desktops.
CMC Chapter 19.65 requires that staff conduct an inspection prior to the issuance of any Home Occupation Permit and Business Tax Certificate, which reads “Upon filing a complete application, the director will cause to be conducted an inspection of the premises for which the application was filed.” It has been found that this requirement is unnecessary for an exclusively home office-based business in current times.
City staff conduct an average of 122 home occupation inspections each year. Each inspection takes approximately 95 minutes and includes administration, driving, inspections, and reporting. This equates to staff allocating 192 hours each year, or approximately 5 work weeks per year, to complete this procedure. It is anticipated that through the proposed ZOA, home occupation inspections can be reduced by roughly 80%, or by 4 weeks of staff time each year.
The proposed ZOA maintains the right of staff to inspect properties on a case-by-case basis but does not require inspections as part of the approval process. If the proposed ZOA is adopted by the City Council, staff will create a self-certification procedure in the application for Home Occupation Permits. If appliable, the applicant will be required to certify that their home occupation is exclusively office-based, eliminating the requirement of an inspection for permit issuance.
Inspections will still be required for potentially impactful uses that have the potential to affect neighbors, including uses that utilize machinery, chemicals, or construction materials and equipment. Additionally, the City will retain the right to revoke a permit if it is found that an applicant provided inaccurate information on their application, or if complaints are received for a home-based business and an inspection verifies the violation.
Economic Development Strategic Plan
Home-based business environments may be ideal for business services. Those services include legal, accounting, design, engineering, e-commerce, marketing, financial services, and communications. Business services are important to support because they provide a high average wage, have strong projected growth, and are important in supporting the growth of other industries.
Enhancing business friendliness and positioning Camarillo as a startup-friendly city are priority action strategies in the EDSP. Reducing the burdens on small business owners by making business easier to conduct for this targeted business cluster is important in ZOA to CMC Chapter 19.65
November 8, 2023
1 5
9 2
achieving those goals. Currently, the inspection of an applicant’s home to issue the permit is not considered to be “business friendly”.
Nearby Communities
Staff investigated other cities in Ventura County and found Camarillo is unique in inspecting homes through the home occupation permitting procedure. Other cities, like Moorpark, Thousand Oaks, Oxnard, and Ventura do not require an inspection for home occupation permit issuance. Instead, they require applicants to go through zoning approval to ensure the business type is approved to operate in the home. If approved for zoning, the applicant is provided with the municipal code at permit issuance. If violations are discovered through a complaint, a citation is issued by code compliance. If not corrected, code compliance may revoke the permit.
FISCAL IMPACT
There is no budget impact as a result of this action.
CEQA DETERMINATIONS
City staff has determined, in accordance with Section 15061(b)(3) of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Guidelines, that the zoning ordinance text amendment to CMC Chapter 19.65 is not subject to CEQA review because it can be seen with certainty that there is no possibility that the zoning ordinance text amendment to CMC Chapter 19.65 may have a significant effect on the environment. Staff determined this zoning ordinance amendment is exempt because it modifies only the administrative procedures in the permit review process.
RECOMMENDATION
1. Introduce an Ordinance of the City Council of the City of Camarillo, California, Amending the Camarillo Municipal Code Chapter 19.65 for Home Occupations.
ATTACHMENTS
1. Redline CMC
2. Ordinance
3. Public Hearing Notice
REFERENCE MATERIALS – AVAILABLE FOR REVIEW AT CITY HALL None