HomeMy WebLinkAboutOrdinance 2267 N.C.S. 03/19/20071
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EFFECTIVE DATE
OF ORDINANCE
March 19, 2007
Introduced by
Teresa Barrett
ORDINANCE NO. 2267 N.C.S.
Seconded by
Mike Harris
AN INTERIM URGENCY ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PETALUMA
PURSUANT TO GOVERNMENT CODE SECTION 65858 EXTENDING FOR A PERIOD OF AN
ADDITIONAL TWELVE MONTHS A MORATORIUM PROHIBITING THE ISSUANCE OF BUILDING
PERMITS IN THE 100-YEAR FLOOD PLAIN DEPICTED IN THE 1989 FEDERAL EMERGENCY
MANAGEMENT AGENCY FLOOD INSURANCE RATE MAP AND UPSTREAM OF THE
CONSTRICTION WEIR OF THE ARMY CORPS OF ENGINEERS FLOOD CONTROL PROJECT
WHEREAS, the Federal Emergency Management Agency ("FEMA") issued in 1989 a Flood
Insurance Rate Map ("FIRM") depicting a 100 Year Flood Plain in the City of Petaluma ("City");
and,
WHEREAS, "100 Year Flood Plain," as that term is used by the FEMA National Flood
Insurance Program, refers to the area subject to flooding with a 1 percent chance of occurrence
each year; and,
WHEREAS, on December 31, 2005, a number of Sonoma County cities, and communities,
including the City, experienced flooding events; and,
WHEREAS, the estimated total cost of public and private damage due to flooding in
Petaluma on December 31, 2005 has been estimated at approximately $55 million, as reflected
in initial damages estimates submitted to the Sonoma County Office of Emergency Services;
and,
WHEREAS, flooding such as occurred in the City on December 31, 2005 threatens the
safety of residents and their real and personal property, commercial property and inventory,
continued operation of businesses, economic development, employment of City workers, the
availability of goods and services, tax revenue and other public and private revenue generation
and the City economy generally, public facilities, infrastructure and services, including
emergency services, safe transportation, and other critical and necessary aspects of life and
work in the City necessary to its continued health, vitality and growth; and,
WHEREAS, Article XI, Section 5 of the California Constitution provides that it shall be
competent in any city charter to provide that the city governed there under may make and
enforce all ordinances and regulation in respect to municipal affairs subject only to restrictions
and limitations provided in their several charters and in respect to other matters they shall be
subject to the general laws; and,
Ordinance No. 2267 N.C.S.
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WHEREAS, Section 54 of Article VIII of the Petaluma Charter provides that the City, by and
through its council and other officials shall have and may exercise all powers necessary or
appropriate to the municipal corporation and the general welfare of its inhabitants, which are
not prohibited by the constitution and which it would be competent for the charter to set forth
particularly or specifically, and the specification of any particular powers shall not be held to be
exclusive or any limitation on the general grant of powers; and,
WHEREAS, California Government Code Section 65858, subdivision (a) provides: that city
legislative bodies may, to protect public safety, health and welfare, adopt as an urgency
measure an interim ordinance prohibiting any uses that may be in conflict with a contemplated
general plan, specific plan, or zoning proposal that the legislative body is considering or studying
or intends to study within a reasonable time; that adoption of such urgency measures requires a
four -fifths vote of the legislative body; that such measures shall be of no effect 45 days from the
date of adoption, and may be extended a maximum of two times and have a maximum total
duration of 2 years; and,
WHEREAS, pursuant to California Government Code Section 65858, the City Council of
the City of Petaluma adopted on April 3, 2006, Ordinance 2239 N.C.S. imposing a moratorium on
the issuance of building permits for new development in the City of Petaluma in the 100-year
floodplain deposited in the 1989 Federal Emergency Management Agency flood insurance rate
maps and upstream of the constriction weir of the Army Corps of Engineers Flood Control Project
in the City of Petaluma; and,
WHEREAS, pursuant to California Government Code Section 65658, the City Council of
the City of Petaluma adopted on May 15, 2006, Ordinance 2244 N.C.S. extending the
moratorium established under Ordinance 2239 N.C.S. for an additional ten months and fifteen
days; and,
WHEREAS, California Government Code Section 65858, subdivision (c) provides: that
legislative bodies may not adopt or extend such interim ordinances unless they contain findings
that there is a current and immediate threat to the public health, safety, or welfare, and that the
approval of additional entitlements would result in that threat to the public health, safety or
welfare; and,
WHEREAS, in accordance with California Government Code Section 65858, subdivision
(c), which provides that such interim ordinances that have the effect of denying approvals
needed for the development of projects with a significant component of multifamily housing (as
defined in California Government Code Section 65858, subdivisions (g) and (h)) may not be
extended except upon written findings adopted by the legislative body as specified in the
subdivision, the City Council hereby finds that; although a portion of the Moratorium Area
established in this ordinance includes properties on which a significant component of multi-
family housing could be built in accordance with the 1987-2005 Petaluma General Plan,
nonetheless, based on the location of proposed multi -family development on such properties
and the present status of the related development application, the moratorium established
pursuant to this ordinance will not have the effect of denying approvals needed for the
development of projects with a significant component of multi -family housing; and that,
therefore, the findings specified in Section 65858, subdivision (c), need not be made; and,
WHEREAS, pursuant to Section 15001 of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA)
Guidelines, this ordinance is exempt from CEQA based on the following:
Ordinance No. 2267 N.C.S.
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(1) This ordinance is not a project within the meaning of Section 15378 of the State
CEQA Guidelines, because it has no potential for resulting in physical change in the
environment, directly or ultimately.
(2) This ordinance is categorically exempt from CEQA under Section 15308 of the
CEQA Guidelines as a regulatory action taken by the City pursuant to its police power and in
accordance with Government Code Section 65858 to assure maintenance and protection of
the environment pending the evaluation and adoption of contemplated local legislation,
regulation and policies.
(3) This ordinance is not subject to CEQA under the general rule that CEQA applies
only to projects which have the potential for causing a significant effect on the environment.
For the reasons set forth in subparagraphs (1) and (2), above, it can be seen with certainty that
there is no possibility that this ordinance will have a significant effect on the environment.
NOW THEREFORE, the City Council of the City of Petaluma does ordain as follows:
Section 1. Recitals Made Findings. The above recitals are hereby declared to be true and
correct and findings of the City Council of the City of Petaluma.
Section 2. Moratorium Extended. A moratorium is hereby extended for an additional and
final period of twelve months on certain specified development in the City of Petaluma in the
1989 FEMA FIRM 100 Year Floodplain in accordance with the City's powers under Article XI,
Section 5 of the California Constitution, Article VII, Section 54, of the City Charter, and California
Government Code Section 65858, as follows:
A. Scope
No application for the issuance of permits for the construction of a building located on
any part of a parcel in the City of Petaluma located in the floodplain as depicted in the 1989
FEMA FIRM 100 Year Floodplain Map, as amended by an approved Letter of Map Amendment
("LOMA") or Letters of Map Revision ("LOMR") on file with the City of Petaluma and upstream of
the constriction weir of the Corps of Engineers Payran Flood Control Project ("Moratorium Area")
shall be approved during the moratorium period.
B. Statutory Findings and Purpose.
This ordinance is declared to be an interim ordinance as defined under California
Government Code section 65858. This ordinance is deemed necessary for the following reasons:
1. The purpose of this Ordinance is to protect the public safety, health, and
welfare from a current and immediate threat posed by the issuance of development
entitlements that could result in development in the Moratorium Area that may result in negative
safety and economic impacts on or of such proposed new development on other or existing
development.
2. New development projects have been and/or may be proposed for
construction in the Moratorium Area, and unless a moratorium is imposed on the issuance of
permits for the construction of buildings located in the Moratorium Area, development in the
Moratorium Area may result in negative safety and economic impacts on or of such proposed
new development on other or existing development, thus increasing the potential damage to
Ordinance No. 2267 N.C.S.
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the public health, safety, welfare of Petalumans from events such as the flooding event of
December 31, 2005.
3. It is, therefore, necessary to extend a moratorium on issuance of permits
for the construction of buildings located in the Moratorium Area to provide time to evaluate and
adopt legislation, guidelines and/or policies as required to avert negative safety and economic
impacts on or of such proposed new development on other or existing development.
C. Applicability.
This ordinance shall apply to all applications for the issuance of permits for the
construction of any building located in the Moratorium Area that have not received final
approval as of the effective date of this ordinance.
D. Exceptions.
This ordinance shall not apply to the following:
1. Tenant improvements and/or any other construction, repair or
maintenance work on a building existing as of the effective date of this ordinance; provided
that, such work does not result in any increase in the square footage of the existing footprint of
the building.
2. Development projects that are subject to City Council approval, and that
have been approved by the City Council prior to the effective date of this ordinance, and that
are not subject to further approval of the City Council, whether or not such projects are subject
to further approval by subordinate City bodies or officials.
3. Modifications of projects approved by the City Council in accordance
with provision D(2), above, provided that such modifications do not result in any increase in the
square footage of the existing footprint of the project.
Section 3. In accordance with California Government Code Section 65858, subdivision (a),
this interim urgency zoning ordinance shall by operation of law be of no further force and effect
twelve months from and after the date of its adoption.
Section 4. If any section, subsection, sentence, clause or phrase or word of this ordinance is
for any reason held to be unconstitutional, unlawful or otherwise invalid by a court of competent
jurisdiction, such decision shall not affect the validity of the remaining portions of this ordinance.
The City Council of the City of Petaluma hereby declares that it would have passed and
adopted this ordinance and each and all sections, subsections, sentences, clauses, phrases or
words thereof irrespective of the fact that any one or more of said sections, subsections,
sentences, clauses, phrases or words be declared unconstitutional, unlawful or otherwise invalid.
Section 5. This ordinance is hereby declared to be an urgency ordinance and shall be in full
force and effect immediately upon its adoption. Within fifteen days after adoption, this
ordinance shall be published with the names of the members voting for and against the same at
least once in a newspaper of general circulation published in the City of Petaluma.
Ordinance No. 2267 N.C.S. Page 4
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Section 6. The City Clerk is hereby further directed to post and publish this ordinance or a
synopsis of this ordinance for the period and in the manner required by the City Charter.
Introduced, Adopted, and Ordered Published this 19'" day of March, 2007.
AYES:
Barrett, Freitas, Harris, Vice Mayor Nau, Rabbitt, Mayor Torliatt
NOES:
O'Brien
ABSENT:
None
ABSTAIN:
None
ATTEST:
Deborah Paclovan, Deputy City Clerk
Pamela Torliatt, Mayor
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
Ordinance No. 2267 N.C.S.
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