HomeMy WebLinkAboutResolution 2020-020 N.C.S. 02/03/2020Resolution No. 2020-020 N.C.S.
of the City of Petaluma, California
A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PETALUMA
ACCEPTING THE ENGINEER'S REPORT ON THE FORMATION OF THE OAK AND
WATER STREET BENEFIT ASSESSMENT DISTRICT, DISTRICT NO. 2019-1, AND
SETTING THE TIME AND PLACE OF A PUBLIC HEARING ON FORMATION OF
THE DISTRICT AND DIRECTING THE CITY CLERK TO GIVE MAILED NOTICE
OF THE HEARING AND PROVIDE BALLOTS AS REQUIRED BY LAW
WHEREAS, the Spanos Corporation, as owner of real property located at 368 and 402
Petaluma Boulevard in the City of Petaluma, Assessor's Parcel Nos., 006-163-055 and 006-163-
041 submitted a Site Plan and Architectural Review application to the City to build the North
River Apartments Project; and
WHEREAS, the Spanos Corporation has transferred ownership of the North River
Apartments Project and APNs 006-163-055 and 006-163-041 to a successor entity referred to as
North River Apartments, LLC, and as used in this resolution, "North River Apartments" refers
to both the Spanos Corporation and North River Apartments, LLC, as the context may require;
and
WHEREAS, on August 5, 2019, the City Council adopted ordinances approving lot line
adjustments and conveyances involving adjacent parcels at Water Street owned by the City and
Water Street Properties LLC ("Water Street Properties"), vacating a sewer easement on property
owned by Water Street Properties, and rezoning property owned by Water Street Properties to
prepare for relocation of a sewer related to construction of the Water Street Public
Improvements, to prepare the Water Street Properties land for development, and obtain needed
right of way in the Water Street Plan Line for construction of Water Street, and as part of
obtaining the needed water Street right of way Water Street Properties, like North River
Apartments, obtained right of way from a third party, which acquisition cost will be included as a
cost of the Public Improvements subject to reimbursement pursuant to an assessment district and
reimbursement agreement; and
WHEREAS, the Petaluma Planning Commission, on January 23, 2018, adopted
Resolution No. 2018-02 certifying a Mitigated Negative Declaration ("MND")and adopting a
Mitigation Monitoring and Reporting Plan ("MMRP")for the North River Apartments Project,
and adopted Resolution No. 2018-03 approving the Site Plan and Architectural Review
("SPAR") for the North River Apartments Project; and
Resolution No. 2020-020 N.C.S. Page 1
WHEREAS, Conditions of Approval Nos. 40 and 51 of Resolution No. 2018-03 require
North River Apartments to construct certain public improvements within and along Water Street
North and Oak Street within the City including but not limited to the construction of public
streets including the acquisition of right-of-way, sidewalks, public parking spaces, water, sewer,
and electrical upgrades, including the undergrounding of existing overhead utilities, and
landscaping improvements described in Section 4 hereof (the "Public Improvements"); and
WHEREAS, Condition 95 of Resolution No. 2018-003 provides that the cost to
construct the Public Improvements will be funded by North River Apartments, and North River
Apartments will be reimbursed through a reimbursement agreement ("Reimbursement
Agreement") with the City, which will provide for reimbursement of North River Apartments
from the proceeds of an assessment district formed pursuant to Chapter 13.35 of the Petaluma
Municipal Code and other applicable law, and that the reimbursement for the cost of public
improvements that benefit other properties is subject to North River Apartments and the City
approving a reimbursement agreement and successful formation of an assessment district; and
WHEREAS, Water Street Properties incurred costs in the amount of $200,000.00 for
purchase of dedication rights for a portion of APN-006-163-022 to be transferred to the City for
Water Street right of way, and if the formation of an assessment district proceeds as described in
this resolution, Water Street Properties would also enter a reimbursement agreement with the
City, which will enable them to reimbursed for their contribution; and
WHEREAS, the City and North River Apartments and Water Street Properties intend to
enter into reimbursement agreements subject to the successful formation of a benefit assessment
district under and pursuant to the provisions of Chapter 13.35 of the Petaluma Municipal Code
and Article XIIID, section 4 of the California Constitution, part of Proposition 218; and
WHEREAS, the proposed benefit assessment district, if it is formed, is to be known as
the Oak and Water Street Benefit Assessment District and designated as Benefit Assessment
District No. 2020-1 (the "District"); and
WHEREAS, in accordance with Section 13.35.050 of the Petaluma Municipal Code, the
City Council, when considering forming a special assessment district pursuant to that section,
may adopt its resolution of intention to form a benefit district related to the proposed assessment
district, and such resolution shall: (A), identify, by name or general description of improvements
Resolution No. 2020-020 N.C.S. Page 2
the proposed or existing assessment district to which the benefit district relates; (B), state that
certain parcels of land (which need not be identified in the resolution) benefit from the
assessment district improvements but are not assessed or proposed to be assessed; (C), state the
intention of the City Council to form a benefit district related to the assessment district and to
establish a special development assessment for the land therein; and (D), direct the city engineer
or other staff member or consultant to prepare a benefit district report; and
WHEREAS, in accordance with Petaluma Municipal Code Section 13.35.050, paragraph
A, the proposed boundaries of the District are shown on a map which indicates by a boundary
line the extent of the territory proposed to be included in the District, which map is designated
"Boundary of Proposed Benefit District No. 2020-1" (the "Map"), and which is on file in the
office of the City Clerk and a copy of which is attached to and made a part of this resolution as
Exhibit A; and
WHEREAS, in accordance with Petaluma Municipal Code Section 13.35.050, paragraph
B, the North River Apartments and Water Street Properties projects will benefit from the Public
Improvements and are proposed to be assessed, because although the North River Apartments is
responsible for constructing the Public Improvements and initially incurring all related Public
Improvement costs, except for the cost of property acquisition incurred by Water Street
Properties, subject to potential reimbursement from assessments resulting from formation of the
District pursuant to the contemplated Reimbursement Agreements of costs that are in excess of
the North River Apartments' and Water Street Properties' fair share of the cost of the Public
Improvements, and some fair share cost of the Public Improvements will be borne by North
River Apartments and Water Street Properties and not assessed to other properties within the
District, other Public Improvements costs will be assessed to the North River Apartments and
Water Street Properties through the proposed District; and
WHEREAS, Dennis Klingelhofer, PE, of Harris & Associates, has been retained by
North River Apartments to prepare a benefit district engineer's report ("Engineer's Report") for
the District in accordance with the requirements of Petaluma Municipal Code Section 13.35.060
and Article XIIID, Section 4 of the California Constitution; and
WHEREAS, Mr. Klingelhofer, on behalf of Harris & Associates, is competent to make
and file with the City Clerk subject to the approval of the City Engineer the Engineer's Report
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with regard to the Public Improvements, which report is required by Petaluma Municipal Code
Chapter 13.35 and Article XIIID, Section 4; and
WHEREAS, in accordance with Petaluma Municipal Code Section 13.35.060, the
Engineer's Report concerning the Public Improvements for the District shall contain the
following as specified in that section:
A. A description of each parcel of land proposed to be included in the benefit district.
Any parcel may be described by its county assessor's parcel number as listed on the
last equalized tax assessment roll or on current records of the county assessor.
B. The amount of the proposed special development assessment for each parcel. The
special development assessment shall be proportional to the estimated benefit to each
parcel from the assessment district improvements.
C. The development approval for which payment of the special development assessment
is a precondition.
D. The time period within which the special development assessment will be collected
shall not exceed fifteen years from the establishment of the fee as set by the benefit
district report, unless a longer period is specified in the report.
E. The formula or method by which benefits within the benefit district are estimated.
The method shall be based in proportion to estimated benefit to be received by each
of the parcels in the benefit district from the assessment district improvements.
F. The terms by which the special development assessment will be escalated over time,
if escalation of the assessment is proposed. The assessment may be escalated in one
of the following ways:
1. An annual increment of interest may be added to the assessment, at an
uncompounded rate not exceeding the net effective rate on bonds of the assessment
district for the same year.
2. The assessment may be increased annually in proportion to a published index
of construction costs applicable to improvements such as those in the assessment
district.
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G. The manner in which the special development assessment will be disbursed when
collected. The assessment may be disbursed in one or more of the following ways,
and may change over time:
1. Disbursement to the general fund or a designated special fund of the city.
2. Disbursement to the assessment district improvement fund, for use or
distribution as provided by law.
3. Disbursement to owners within the assessment district in accordance with
reimbursement or development agreements; and
WHEREAS, in accordance with Section 4 of Article XIIID of the California
Constitution, all assessments shall be supported by a detailed engineer's report prepared by a
registered professional engineer certified by the State of California, and agencies that propose to
levy an assessment shall identify all parcels which will have a special benefit conferred upon
them and upon which an assessment will be imposed; the proportionate special benefit derived
by each identified parcel shall be determined in relationship to the entirety of the capital cost of a
public improvement, the maintenance and operation expenses of a public improvement, or the
cost of the property related service being provided; no assessment shall be imposed on any parcel
which exceeds the reasonable cost of the proportional special benefit conferred on that parcel;
only special benefits are assessable; an agency shall separate the general benefits from the
special benefits conferred on a parcel; and parcels within a district that are owned or used by any
agency, the State of California or the United States shall not be exempt from assessment unless
the agency can demonstrate by clear and convincing evidence that those publicly owned parcels
in fact receive no special benefit; and
WHEREAS, in accordance with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), the
Planning Commission adopted Resolution 2018-02 on January 23, 2018, certifying a Final MND
and MMRP concerning the North River Apartments Project, and analysis of the Public
Improvements, including extension of Water Street North from the North River Apartment
Project's southern boundary to Washington Street and the physical Improvements related to and
required for the North River Apartments Project, including Oak and Water Street and related
improvements, potential environmental impacts of which were previously studied and addressed
in the FMND;
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WHEREAS, by adoption on February 3, 2020 of Resolution No. 2020-019 N.C.S. (the
"Resolution of Intention") initiating the proceedings for the formation of the District the City
Council ordered the Engineer's Report prepared by the Assessment Engineer under and pursuant
to the provisions of the Chapter 13.35 of the Petaluma Municipal Code and Section 4 of Article
XII1D of the California Constitution; and
WHEREAS, the Assessment Engineer has prepared the Engineer's Report subject to the
approval of the City Engineer and filed the same with the City Clerk, and the City Clerk has
presented the Engineer's Report to the City Council for consideration and acceptance of the
Engineer's Report and setting of a public hearing on the Engineer's Report and formation of the
District; and
WHEREAS, Petaluma Municipal Code Chapter 13.35, and in particular, Sections
13.35.080 and 13.35.090, require that not less than 15 days before a public hearing on an
engineer's report concerning formation of a benefit assessment district pursuant Chapter 13.35,
the City Clerk shall mail notice of the hearing to each owner of land with the proposed District,
which notice shall specify that the City Council has received a report proposing a special
development assessment for the owner's land, a general description of the assessment district
improvements from which the owner's land benefits, the amount of the proposed special
development assessment, the conditions under which the assessment will be payable, the time
and place of the hearing, that any owner or owner's representative may appear at the hearing to
protest or comment on the report orally or in writing or both, that the report is on file with the
City Clerk and is open for public inspection, and the name and telephone number of a staff
contact or contacts where the owner may address questions; and
WHEREAS, in accordance with the requirements of Article XIIID, Section 4 of the
California Constitution, the notice required to be provided landowners within a proposed benefit
assessment district must be provided by mail not less than 45 days before a public hearing on the
engineer's report and formation of the district, and must include the amount of the proposed
assessment for each identified parcel, the total amount of the assessment chargeable to the entire
assessment district, the amount chargeable to the owner's particular parcel, the duration of the
payments, the reason for the assessment and the basis upon which the amount of the proposed
assessment was calculated, a summary of the procedures applicable to the completion, return and
tabulation of ballots on the formation of the benefit assessment district, and a statement that the
existence of a majority protest will result in the assessment not being imposed;
Resolution No. 2020-020 N.C.S. Page 6
NOW, THEREFORE, be it resolved by the City Council of the City of Petaluma as
follows:
1. Recitals. The above recitals are hereby declared to be true and correct and incorporated
into this resolution as findings of the City Council.
2. CEQA. Potential environmental impacts of the Public Improvements were previously
analyzed and addressed in the FMND and MMRP adopted by the Planning Commission
concerning the North River Apartments Project and the Public Improvements pursuant to
Resolution No. 2018-02 adopted January 23, 2018.
3. Acceptance of the Report, Including the Map. In accordance with Section 13.35.070
of the Petaluma Municipal Code, the Engineer's Report as approved by the City Engineer
and filed with the City Cleric is hereby accepted, and the City Clerk is directed to endorse
the fact and date of such acceptance on the Engineer's Report and to file the Engineer's
Report in her office. The Map filed along with the Engineer's Report is hereby accepted
and declared to describe the boundaries of the proposed District; and it shall govern for
all details as to the extent of the proposed District. The City Clerk is hereby directed to
endorse her certificate on the original of the Map evidencing the date and acceptance of
said Map and to file the Map in her office along with the Engineer's Report.
4. Public Hearing. A public hearing shall be held on March 23rd, 2020 at 6:45 p.m. or as
soon thereafter as the matter may be heard at the regular meeting place of the City
Council at City Hall Council Chambers, 11 English Street, Petaluma California, to hear
and consider protests and objections to the proposed District and the Engineer's Report
and to receive and count the ballots for and against the proposed District.
5. Notice. At least 45 days prior to the public hearing referred to in Section 4 hereof, the
City Clerk shall cause a notice of the adoption of the Resolution of Intention, the filing of
the Engineer's Report and the setting of time and place for the public hearing on the
Engineer's Report and the formation of the proposed District referred to in Section 4
hereof to be mailed, postage prepaid, to all persons owning real property proposed to be
assessed and whose names and addresses appear on the last equalized County of Sonoma
assessment roll or the State Board of Equalization assessment roll, as the case may be, or
who are known to the City Clerk. Such notice shall conform in all respects to the
provisions of Section 13.35.090, Section 53753 of the California Government Code and
Article XIIID, Section 4 of the California Constitution as applicable.
Resolution No. 2020-020 N.C.S. Page 7
6. Severability. If any section, subsection, sentence, clause, phrase or word of this
resolution is for any reason held to be unconstitutional, unlawful or otherwise invalid by
a court of competent jurisdiction or preempted by state legislation, such decision or
legislation 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 resolution and each and all provisions thereof irrespective of the fact that any
one or more of said provisions be declared unconstitutional, unlawful or otherwise
invalid.
7. Resolution Effective Immediately. This Resolution shall take effect immediately upon
its adoption.
Under the power and authority conferred upon this Council by the Charter of said City.
REFERENCE: I hereby certify the foregoing Resolution was introduced and adopted by the rA pa`v'ed as to
Council of the City of Petaluma at a Regular meeting on the 3,d day of February tolm:
2020, by the following vote: I
City ` ttorney
AYES: Vice Mayor Fischer; Kearney; King; McDonnell; Miller
NOES: None
ABSENT: None
ABSTAIN: Mayor Barrett; Healy
t
ATTEST:
City Clerk Vice Mayor
Resolution No. 2020-020 N.C.S. Page 8