TO:
Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
THROUGH:
Mark Danaj, City Manager
FROM:
Marisa Lundstedt, Community Development Director
Diaa Guirguis, Senior Plan Check Engineer
SUBJECT:Title
Construction Rules Designed to Mitigate Impacts of Construction (Community Development Director Lundstedt).
CONSIDER ADOPTING ADDITIONAL CONSTRUCTION RULES
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Recommended Action
RECOMMENDATION:
Staff recommends that the City Council review the additional data presented in connection with this report and consider adopting additional rules.
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FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
There are no fiscal implications associated with this action.
BACKGROUND:
On July 2 and August 6, 2013, staff provided presentations to the City Council on the rules and procedures to alleviate construction impacts in residential neighborhoods. Staff was then directed by Council to implement additional construction rules and meet with the Board of Building Appeals to discuss adding more construction rules. Staff conducted meetings with the Board of Building Appeals on September 11, 2013, November 14, 2013, and January 30, 2014.
On March 4, 2014 staff provided a follow up presentation to the City Council, and introduced additional rules and procedures to alleviate construction impacts in residential neighborhoods. City Council requested an update report showing statistical numbers in 6 months. Additionally, Council directed staff to explore the implementation of a “surety bond” requirement for all projects as a protective measure for properties adjacent to active construction sites.
On November 5, 2014 staff provided a status report and presentation on construction rules, surety bonds and construction parking permits (Attachments 1 and 2). After considerable discussion, the City Council adopted a motion directing staff to: (1) reach out to the California League of Cities and Southern California Government Cities to see if there are any cities that have a successful surety bond program; (2) explore the implementation of additional construction rules or procedures that might help reduce the impacts of construction; and (3) research mandatory mediation.
At the August 18, 2015 City Council meeting, the Council directed staff to address the Construction Rules at the September 1st meeting, and to gather additional information from other cities on surety bonds for damage to adjacent private property due to construction activities and mandatory mediation. Additional information will be provided to the Council at a later date, as well as information from other cities on restrictions placed upon the number of construction permits issued; tentatively scheduled for September 15, 2015. Mandatory mediation is proposed to be included in the revised and updated Construction Rules discussed in this report, and staff will continue to gather more information if requested by Council as to other city’s practices.
DISCUSSION:
Construction Rules and Procedures
1. Recently Adopted Rules and Procedures
Over the course of the last two years, as directed by Council, staff presented measures to mitigate construction concerns expressed by residents. As a result of numerous meetings, concerns were addressed and new construction rules and procedures were implemented (Attachment 3). In connection with the issuance of a building permit. Staff will require that the property owner/applicant/contractor sign the construction rules to acknowledge that they are aware of the rules and will comply with the requirements.
A summary of the current construction related Code Enforcement Procedures and Temporary Right-of-way Permit revisions implemented first quarter 2015, is also provided (Attachment 4). The procedure improvements include 1) expanding the hours of the construction enforcement team to provide 7:00 AM construction site and hot-spot inspections to improve enforcement, efficiency and alleviate noise and impacts of construction, 2) improved communications and coordination with various Departments to address construction parking enforcement, 3) tracking of violations, and 4) more streamlined and stringent requirements for temporary right-of-way permits to improved neighbor notification and efficiency. A matrix of daily construction inspections and violations, from January to July 2015, is included as (Attachment 5).
2. Additional Measures to Address Construction Impacts
To further reduce the impacts of construction, staff is proposing the following additions to the Construction Rules for Council consideration:
a. Construction Management and Parking Plan- (CMPP)
Contractors shall prepare a Construction Management and Parking Plan (CMPP) for all construction sites in Residential Districts III and IV (Beach Area), similar to larger commercial projects in the City. A CMPP would describe the manner in which the contractor (and owner) will mitigate potential construction traffic and parking impacts in the neighborhood. The CMPP would be submitted by the contractor or property owner, reviewed by appropriate staff, and approved by the Community Development Department prior to start of construction.
The objectives of a CMPP would be: to ensure that sufficient parking is provided for all phases of construction through on-site, off-site, carpooling, private shuttling, or other alternative parking methods; to designate certain delivery haul routes and times; to provide a jobsite construction loading/parking zone (if needed); to identify the applicable construction rules, terms, and conditions; to describe the major construction activity schedule; to state the contractor and emergency contact information; and include a signed commitment that the owner and contractor will comply with the CMPP terms, conditions, and penalties for non-compliance. A more detailed description of a CMPP is included (Attachment 6).
b. Progressive Disciplinary Program
Currently the City’s disciplinary program for violations of the Construction Rules begins with a warning, and the next available punishment is to issue a Notice to Appear which carries a misdemeanor fine of $500 to $1,000 and/or 6 months in jail. The current enforcement approach does not give staff latitude in applying incremental penalties for violations.
Council may consider a more detailed progressive disciplinary program that escalates in the following order:
Verbal and written warnings: 2 maximum per a specific time frame
Administrative citations - (for example, $100, $200 and $300 upon each re-inspection);
Stop work orders: Temporary stop on all work on a job site
Business license suspension
Traffic citations will continue to be issued at a construction site as before at the discretion of the enforcement officers. Cumulatively, this progressive program will give staff discretion and additional tools to enforcement of the applicable Construction Rules. A Resolution and possible Code amendments will need to be brought back to the City Council for review and action if direction is provided to proceed with these revisions.
c. Mandatory Mediation
In response to Council direction, the City has researched whether the City can require, perhaps as a condition to the building permit or as a requirement of the Construction Rules, requiring that the owner and/or contractor submit to mandatory mediation in the event the Building Official confirms that it an adjacent property has been damaged by the construction, or, it is likely that the adjacent property will be damaged. Keep in mind in our experience, most builders will step to the plate and voluntarily repair any damage to adjacent property caused by the construction. Based upon the comments on the City Attorney Listserve, we have not found any other cities that require mandatory mediation as part of a ministerial building permit. Some cities require mediation as a condition to a discretionary land use permit. One City Attorney indicated a practical problem: the City has no power to require an adjacent property owner to submit to mediation. Nonetheless, most agree that mediation can be an effective manner of dispute resolution. A third-part mandatory mediation requirement can be added to the construction rules (Attachment 3) so that, in the event construction damages adjacent property, and the builder or owner does not voluntarily repair the damage, the City can require the builder/owner to submit to mediation.
CONCLUSION:
Staff requests that the Council review the data and provide direction on the following items:
a. Requiring contractors to prepare a Construction Management and Parking Plan (CMPP) for all construction sites in Residential Districts III and IV, and other impacted areas, as needed;
b. Authorizing a more detailed progressive disciplinary program.
c. Requiring mandatory mediation to resolve disputes involving damage to adjacent private properties caused by construction.
Attachments:
1. Staff Report - November 5, 2014
2. Meeting Minutes- November 5, 2014
3. Current Construction Rules-January 2014
4. Revised Construction Procedures-First Quarter 2015
5. Matrix of Construction Inspections and Violations- January-July 2015
6. Construction Management and Parking Plan.