TO:
Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
THROUGH:
Mark Danaj, City Manager
FROM:
Richard Thompson, Community Development Director
Laurie Jester, Planning Manager
Quinn Barrow, City Attorney
SUBJECT:Title
Adopt Interim Zoning Ordinance for regulation of commercial uses in the Downtown (Community Development Director Thompson).
DISCUSS AND ADOPT
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Recommended Action
RECOMMENDATION:
Staff recommends that the City Council discuss and approve an Interim Zoning Ordinance for the regulation of commercial uses, specifically offices and banks, in the Downtown. If approved tonight, it will become effective immediately, and the item will return on August 19th at a noticed public hearing.
Body
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
There are no fiscal implications associated with the recommended action.
BACKGROUND:
On October 8, 2013, the City Council directed staff to review the commercial regulations for offices, banks and other uses in the Downtown area due to a concern with the composition and mix of uses. A review of the Downtown is also one of the objectives in the City Council six month Strategic Plan (July 2013 - January 2014).
The Planning Commission discussed proposed code changes for Downtown on November 13, 2013. In general, the proposal was to restrict office and bank uses in the core, on the main streets in Downtown on the street front/sidewalk level, and allow these uses above or below the street level. The Planning Commission did not recommend approval of the proposed changes as they felt there was a need for more community input and a more comprehensive study of the Downtown to address maintaining and enhancing its unique character.
On May 20, 2014, the City Council approved a Request for Proposal (RFP) for a consultant to work with staff, the community (business owners, property owners, residents) and organizations to develop a Downtown Plan that will identify the needs and future development of Downtown Manhattan Beach. The contract for this consultant is on tonight's agenda as a separate item.
At the last Council meeting on July 1, 2014, the City Attorney provided a briefing on Interim Zoning regulations pending completion of the Downtown Plan. At that meeting the Council discussed the options and directed the City Attorney and staff to prepare a draft Interim Zoning Ordinance to regulate uses in the Downtown, as well as provide options, hardship exemptions and provisions to regulate projects that are "in the pipeline."
DISCUSSION:
The influx of non-retail uses such as real estate offices and banks has been on the rise in the Downtown, with a corresponding decrease in retail uses. The replacement and loss of retail space with office uses changes the overall character of the area and impacts the City's tax base. Additionally, the Chamber of Commerce, the Downtown Business Professional Association (DBPA), residents and business owners have expressed concerns that the unique character and pedestrian-orientation of the Downtown is changing and small local retail and service businesses are being lost.
Prior to 1991 any office use required a Use Permit in the Downtown Commercial (CD) Zone. In 1993, the regulation changed to require a Use Permit for office uses only over 2,500 square feet, but there is no prohibition of offices or banks on the ground floor level or street front. Although there is significant interest in new office and bank uses in the Downtown, staff is not aware of any plans in the pipeline in building plan check for new offices or banks on the ground level or other locations in the Downtown.
Interim regulations are generally enacted to call a "timeout" when a contemplated general plan, specific plan or zoning proposal which the city intends, or plans to study within a reasonable prior of time is being evaluated. Since the timeline for the development of a Downtown Plan is anticipated to be about nine months plus follow-up Code and other guideline amendments, staff feels there is a need to introduce an Interim Zoning Ordinance to clearly define the allowed or limitation on uses for the Downtown. The City has adopted Interim Ordinances in the recent past when considering new regulations for lot mergers, tattoo parlors, and medical marijuana. All of these resulted in permanent amendments to the Municipal Code.
Government Code Section 65858 permits an initial moratorium or interim regulations for 45 days, with a 4/5th's vote of the City Council. Interim Ordinances take effect immediately. Subsequently the regulations may be extended for an additional 10 months and 15 days, for a total of one year, after a noticed public hearing. A public hearing would be held on August 19, 2014 to comply with this requirement. The Government Code has an option of extending the Ordinance up another year after the initial 10 month and 15 days, with another public hearing. In any case, an Interim Ordinance would be valid for a maximum of 2 years.
The draft Interim Zoning Ordinance (attachment 1) proposes to prohibit new office and bank use on the ground level in the Downtown Plan area, as shown on attachment 2. The proposal allows existing offices to be replaced with offices and banks to be replaced with banks, but not office to bank or bank to office. The Ordinance will not affect any residential development, only commercial. Other options that the City Council may consider include:
· A prohibition on all new offices and bank uses on all levels, not limited to the ground level, throughout the Downtown area, or
· A Use Permit requirement for any new offices and banks.
The draft Ordinance also addresses projects that are in the pipeline. The draft Ordinance prohibits the issuance of entitlements to all projects except those projects that have been processed and have received valid building permits. Thus, the only projects that can proceed with construction or interior modification need to complete the entitlement process. As drafted, applicants who have submitted applications, or have a project that is in plan check, or has not yet been submitted to plan check but has a Planning approval, such as a Coastal Permit, will be subject to the new ordinance and cannot proceed with processing. If a Use Permit has already been approved for an office or bank use it is proposed to be exempt.
The Council also discussed providing a hardship exemption. The Interim Ordinance has a provision where the City Council could approve a hardship if denial of the exemption and enforcement of this Ordinance against an applicant's property would result in the applicant being deprived of all economically viable use of the property. The City Council may consider other factors in order to determine hardship. The business or property owner or tenant would need to provide evidence to support the exemption request.
CONCLUSION:
Staff recommends that the City Council adopt an Interim Zoning Ordinance to prohibit new office and bank uses on the ground level in the Downtown area. If the Interim Zoning Ordinance is approved tonight it will become effective immediately and the item will return on August 19th at a noticed City Council public hearing.
Attachments:
1. Draft Interim Zoning Ordinance- ORDU No. 14-0011
2. Exhibit A- ORDU 14-0011-Downtown Area Map- Interim Zoning Ordinance