ORDINANCE NO _____ N.S.
AN INTERIM ORDINANCE, ESTABLISHING A 10-MONTH AND 15-DAY EXTENSION OF URGENCY ORDINANCE NO. 01-22, IMPOSING A
TEMPORARY MORATORIUM ON THE ISSUANCE OF BUILDING PERMITS
REQUIRING NEW SEWER CONNECTIONS TO THE KELLER BEACH
SANITARY SEWER; AND DECLARING THE URGENCY THEREOF,
PURSUANT TO GOVERNMENT CODE SECTION 65858
WHEREAS, Government Code Section 65858 (hereinafter “GC Section 65858”) authorizes the City Council to adopt , as an urgency measure, an interim ordinance by a four -fifths vo te to temporarily prevent development and /or construction that threatens the public health, safety, and welfare of citizens residing in the Sewer Moratorium Area; and
WHEREAS, on January 18, 2022, in compliance with GC Section 65858, the City Council adop ted Urgency Ordinance No. 01-22 N.S. (hereinafter “Urgency Ord. No. 01-22”), wh ich established a 45-day moratorium on the issuance of building permits requiring new sewer connections to the Keller Beach Sanitary Sewer (hereinafter “KBSS”) and declaring the urgency ther eof, and which will expire on March 4, 2022; and
WHEREAS, Urgency Or d. No. 01-22 defined “sewer connection” as the connection of a building’s drainage system , which conveys the discharge from soil, waste, and other drainage pipes of a busine ss or residence to the City’s sewer main and/or other applicable sewer infrastructure; and
WHEREAS, GC Section 65858(a) authorizes the City Council to extend Urgency Ord. No. 01-22 for ten (10) months and fifteen (15) days following notice and a public hearing. Said extension shall require a four-fifths vote of the City Council for adoption, and t he City Council may subsequently extend for one (1) year; and
WHEREAS, pursuant to GC Section 65858(a) and GC Section 65090, the City Council provided notice by publication in the West County Times on February 19, 2022, as statutorily mandated and held a subsequent public hearing on March 1, 2022, where it took public comment; and
WHEREAS, pursuant to GC Section 65858(c), the City Council shall not extend an interim ordinance unless said ordinance contains legislative findings that there is a current and immediate threat to public health, safety, or welfare ; and that the a pproval of additional subdivisions, use permits, variances, building permits, or any other applicable entitlement for use that is required for zoning ordinance compliance would result in such threat to pub lic health, safety, or welfare; and
WHEREAS, on Ja nuary 18, 2022, the City Council adopte d Resolution No. 08-22, there by acc epting the findin gs of the Keller Beach Sanitary Sewer CCTV review and assessment report (hereinafter “KBSS Review and Assessment Report”) prepared by N CE-Coastland, dated Jan uary 3, 2022, and hereby incorporated within; and
WHEREAS, the KBSS Review and Assessment Report identified a severely compromised pipe and concluded that KBSS should undergo extensive repairs, which woul d a ddress critical issue s; or a pipe replacement and relocation, which would alleviat e the critical issue s but incur cost and time considerations; and
WHEREAS, the City will perform an in -depth study of alternatives and seek expert consultation ; hire contractors; and perform evaluative assessments to devise the best solution, while taking into consideration environmental and public health concerns. By necessity, the City needs time to coordinate its study efforts in a reasonable way with federal, state, and local agen cies; affected property owners; and other interested stakeholders to preserve public health, safety, and welfare; and
WHEREAS, the sanitary se wer issues presented by KBSS’ condition create an imminent threat to the public health, safety, and welfare as well as the environment in the Sewer Moratorium Area (incorporated herein by reference) ; and a moratorium on the issuance of building permits requiring a new connection to KBSS will prevent further deterioration and pipe destruction; and
WHEREAS, GC Section 65858(c) provides that the legi slative body shall not e xtend an ordinance unless it contains legislative findings of a cur rent and immediate t hreat to public health, safety, or welfare, and that the approval of additional subdivisions, use permits, variances, building permits, or an y o ther applicable entitlement for use which is re quired in order to comply with a zoning ordinance would result in that threat to public health, safety, or welfare; and
WHEREAS, GC Section 65858(d) requires the City Council to issue a written report (“Report”) describing measures taken to alleviate the condition that led to the adoption of the Urgency Ord. N o. 01-22 ten (10) days prior to its expiration or extension. The City Council’s Report is incorporated herein; and
WHEREAS, GC Section 66300 aut horizes a moratorium imp acting housing development only where such a moratorium would prote ct again st an imminent threat to the health and safety of person residing in, or within the immediate vicinity of, the area subject to the moratorium and after the California Department of Housing and Community Development (hereinafter “HCD”) has reviewed said moratorium; and
WHEREAS, the City has consulted with HCD, and pursuant to GC Section 66300, and this Interim Ordinance shall not be enforceable un til HCD reviews and grants approval that the moratorium speci fically protects against the imminent threat to the health and safety of persons residing in, or within the immediate vicinity of, the Sewer Moratorium Area; and
WHEREAS, development requiring additional sewer connec tions to the KBSS would result in specif ic and quantifiable adverse impacts to sanitation infrastructure; the ability to safely and timely repair infrastructure failures ; environmental degradation; and pose an immediate threat to the public’s health, safety, and welfare for the above-stated reasons; and
WHEREAS, to protect the public’s health, safety, and welfare, it is necessary to extend Urgency Ordinance No . 01-22 to ensure that any fut ure development in the Sewer Moratorium Area does not further impact the community and the hea lth and safety of those residing in the Sewer Moratorium Area; and
WHEREAS, feasible alternatives to satisfactorily mitigate or avoid the specific, adverse impac ts with respect to public health and safety , sanitation infrastructure, ability to sa fely and timely repair infrastructure failure s, and environmental degradation, have yet to be fully identified; and
WHEREAS, the City has not yet been able to identify any less burdensome or restrictive actions other than the adoption of this moratorium extension; and
WHEREAS, the City Council has determined that a temporary moratorium on the issuance of building permits requiring a new s ewer connection to KBSS is necessary to preserve public health, safety, and welfare, and to protect ag ainst the imm inent threat to the health and safety of per son residing in the Sewer Moratorium Area, and the “Whereas” clauses above taken together constitute the City Council’s statements and reasons constituting such necessity and urgency.
NOW, THEREFOR E, THE CITY C OUNCIL OF THE CI TY OF
RICHMOND does ordain as follows:
SECTION 1. The City Council finds, and determines to be in full force and effect, the Recitals set forth in Urgency Ord. No. 01-22, and as above, and hereby incorporates them herein.
SECTION 2. The City Council finds and determines for the reasons stated in the Recitals, that the adoption of this Interim Ordinance is exempt from CEQA under Section(s) 15061(b)(3), 15307, and 15308 of the State CEQA Guidelines.
SECTION 3. The City Council finds that a Report was issued by the City on February 18, 2022, at least ten (10) days prior to the e xpiration of Urgency Ordinance No. 01-22 describing measures taken to alleviate the condition which led to the adoption of the urgency ordinance.
SECTION 4. The Cit y Council further finds that the extensio n of the Urgency Ord . No. 01-22 is nece ssary to mi tigate and /or avoid the specific adverse impact s identified herein, and that there is no feasible alternative to satisfactorily mitigate or avoid the specific, adver se impact identified herein as well or bet ter, with a less burdensome or restric tive effect, than the adoption of the extension of the urgency ordinance.
SECTION 5. Exceptions. The followin g development activities within the City limits requiring a sewer connection to Keller Beach Sanitary Sewer are exempt from the moratorium:
a. All projects (if any) that have vested rights to a new s ewer connection because of previously submitted and fully complete applications and issued building permits;
b. Projects ordinarily requiring a connection to the Keller Beach Sanitary Sewer for which the owner/developer submits a design for the extension of a sewer main to an alternative segment, the design which is approved by the City Engineer and/or Public Works Director, and the property owner/developer agrees to be solely responsible for all costs and expense s of installing and maintaining said sewer main, among other terms and conditions provided by the City in an executed and recorded written agreement between the City and property owner/developer to this effect.
SECTION 6. Except subject to procedures provided in Section 8 hereof, a development applicat ion for which a sewer connection to the Keller Beach Sanitary Sewer is required may be processed during the moratorium and any extension of the moratorium. However, the appli cation shall be processed at the applicant’s sole cost and expense and with the un derstanding that no building permit shall be issued until the moratorium, including any extension of the moratorium, has expired and that, such permit may not be issued if it is inconsistent with any amendmen ts to the municipal code, ordinances, or regulations that are amended by reason of the review that occurs during the moratorium.
SECTION 7. Term of Moratorium . In accordance with Government Code Section 65858, this Interim Ordinance shall be in full forc e and effect for a period of ten (10) months and fifteen (15) days from the date of its adoption; or when the Department of Housing and Community Development approves this moratorium, whichever occurs lat er. The City Coun cil may extend this Interim Ordinan ce
subsequently for one (1) year, pursuant to Section 65858 . Any extension shall also require a public hearing and a four-fifths vote for adoption.
SECTION 8. Petition for Relief from Moratorium.
A. Any person (“Applicant”) who has applied for a permit from the City to construct a project requiring a KBSS sewer connection, on or before January 18, 2022, may submit to the Planning Commission a written applic ation requesting relief from the Moratorium (“Request for Relief” or “Request”). The Request for Relief shall identify the Applicant’s name, address, and affected permit application number ; and it shall state how the Moratorium , as applied to Applicant, would affect Applicant’s project (“Project”).
B. In deciding the question of whether relief shall b e provided from the Moratorium, the Planning Commission shall make findings as to the Applicant’s:
1. Reasonable, investment-backed expectation;
2. Reasonable, economic use of subject property;
3. The timing and the impact of adding the KBSS connection; and
4. If the impacts to the Project are reasonable under the circumstances.
C. Public Hearing.
1. In deciding Applicant’s Request for Relief, the City Planning Commission shall conduct a public hearing on the Request and shall set a time and place for such hearing to be held within thirty (30) days of the City’s receipt of a complete Request.
2. At leas t ten (10) days before the public hearing, the City shall make available to the public copies of the Request for Relief in the office of the City Clerk.
3. Notice of the public hearing shall be pro vided in accordance with Richmond Municipal Code Chapter, Article 15.04.803.
4. After receiving public comment, the Planning Commission shall approve, deny, or modify the Request for Relief based on the required findings of Section 8(B)(1-4) above within thirty (30) days following the hearing.
5. The City shall promptly notify Applicant in writing of the Planning Commission’s decision on the Request for Relief and shall state the reasons and grounds therefore. The City shall also m ail notice of its decision to members of the public who have requested notice.
D. Appeal.
1. Any person aggrieved by the Planning Commission ’s decision on Applicant’s Request for Relief may appeal to the City Council by submittin g a written appeal to the City Clerk within ten (10) days of the date of decision date.
The appellant shall remit the appeal fee listed in the City's Master Fee Schedule when submitting the appeal.
SECTION 9. The City Clerk shall certify to the passage a nd adoption of this Interim Ordinance, ca using it to be posted as required by l aw; thereafter, it
shall be in full force and effect. As an urgency measure, the Interim Ordinance shall become effective immediately to ensure protection of the public’s health , safety, and welfare.
SECTION 10. For the term of t his Interim Ordinance, as s et fo rth in Section 7 hereof, the provisions herein shall govern. To the extent any conflict exists between the provision s o f t his I nterim Ordinance and those of any City Code or any o ther ordinance, res olution, or policy , then all such conflicting provisions shall be suspended with respect hereto.
SECTION 11. This Interim Ordinance is enacted pursuant to the City of Richmond’s general police powers; Article II for the C ity’s Charter; Article XI o f the California Constitution; and Government Code Section 65858.
SECTION 12. Severability. If any section, subsection, sentence, clause, or phrase of this Interim Ordinance is, for any reason, held by a court of competent jurisdiction to be invalid, such decision shall n ot affect t he validity of the Interim Ordinance’s remaining portions. The City Council declares that i t would have adopted this Interim Ordinance, and each section, subsection, sentence, clause, and phrase thereof , irr espective of the fact that any one or more sectio n(s), subsection(s), sentence(s), clause(s), or phrase(s) be declared invalid.
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I hereby certify that the foregoing Interim Ordinance was passed and adopted by the C ity Council of the City of Ric hmond at a regular meeting thereof held March 1, 2022, by the following vote:
AYES:
NOES:
ABSTENTIONS:
ABSENT:
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CLERK OF THE CITY OF RICHMOND
Approved:
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Mayor
Approved as to form:
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City Attorney