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Item 4.1 - Reso Requiring Additional Public Noticing of Public HearingsG`t OF P0 W91 City of Poway COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT C�pY IN THE C�VC APPROVED 0 APPROVED AS AMENDED O (SEE MINUTES) DENIED O REMOVED O CONTINUED RESOLUTIONNO. _02-0 DATE: April 15, 2014 TO: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council FROM: Tina M. White, Interim City Manager INITIATED BY: Robert J. Manis, Director of Development Services A " SUBJECT: Adoption of a Resolution Requiring Additional Public Noticing for Public Hearings Summary: On October 15, 2013, the City Council considered a policy to include all residents, tenants, and occupants of a property within 500 feet of a proposed project site when public notice is required, where the Poway Municipal Code only requires notice to be sent to the property owners. On February 4, 2014, a City Council workshop was held to evaluate options for implementing such an expanded public notice. At the workshop, the City Council provided direction to staff to return with a resolution that requires notice to be sent to all residents, tenants, and occupants within 500 feet of a project site whenever public noticing is required, in addition to the property owners as currently required by the Poway Municipal Code. Recommended Action: It is recommended that the City Council adopt a resolution (Attached) requiring additional public noticing for public hearings. Background: The Poway Municipal Code (PMC) requires public notice for certain types of planning and zoning actions. For those actions requiring public notice, the PMC requires that a notice be sent to all property owners within 500 feet of a proposed project site. At their October 15, 2013, meeting the City Council discussed expanding the public notice to also include all residents, tenants, and occupants, herein after referred to as occupants. This would include notice to those living in apartments or non -owner occupied residences and tenants of commercial and industrial developments. This would not add a requirement for public noticing for a project that does not already require public noticing per the PMC. 1 of 5 April 15, 2014 Item # 4.1 Adoption of a Resolution Requiring Additional Public Noticing for Public Hearings April 15, 2014 Page 2 At the February 4, 2014, workshop the City Council considered options for how to provide the expanded public notice. Staff has access to property owner information on every parcel in the City, but does not have occupant data. Certain vendors have access to occupant information and can provide delivery to every address on every parcel within the 500 -foot radius of the project site. The City Council directed staff to prepare a resolution that would require noticing to all occupants (in addition to the property owners) and to utilize an outside company to provide the additional noticing. Findings: The attached resolution requires that a notice of public hearing be sent to all addresses within 500 feet of a proposed project site. City staff will continue to provide the notice of public hearing to the property owners and arrange for the newspaper notice as required by the PMC. Staff will seek proposals from vendors qualified to provide the additional mailed notice to all occupants within the same 500 -foot radius. Staff research done to date indicates that vendors will provide the City with a certification of the mailing. The certification would include a list of the addresses that received a notice. After paying for the initial mailing, the list could be reused by the City for future mailings on the project. When a project includes a neighborhood meeting as an early step in the review process, the City would use the mailing company to provide notice of the neighborhood meeting. The City would then use the same mailing list to send the notice of the public hearing and only pay once for the list. As discussed at the February workshop, some property owners will receive two notices. If the owner of a property within 500 feet of a project site lives at that property they will receive one notice (as the property owner) from the City and one notice (as the occupant) from the mailing company. Because of the time involved with an RFP process, the expanded notice will begin next fiscal year (July 2014). The estimated cost of the additional noticing will be reflected in the Development Services Department FY 14/15 budget. The City will continue to collect the $225 fee from applicants with projects that require a public hearing to cover the costs of the public noticing required by the PMC (mailed notice to the property owners and a posting in the newspaper). There will be no additional fee for the added notice to occupants. It was suggested at the February workshop that if the additional public notice is implemented, it should be revisited in one year to assess the cost and effectiveness. This is included in the attached resolution. 2 of 5 April 15, 2014 Item # 4.1 Adoption of a Resolution Requiring Additional Public Noticing for Public Hearings April 15, 2014 Page 3 Fiscal Impact: The cost of the additional noticing for a project will vary depending on the size of the mailing, but is anticipated to average approximately $300. It is estimated that based on an average of 25 public hearings per year, the annual cost will be approximately $7,500, which will be paid by the General Fund. The appropriation to implement the additional noticing requirement is to be included in the FY 14/15 proposed budget. Environmental Review: This item is not subject to CEQA review Public Notification: None Attachment: Resolution 3 of 5 April 15, 2014 Item # 4.1 RESOLUTION NO. 14- A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF POWAY, CALIFORNIA, ESTABLISHING A POLICY TO INCREASE PUBLIC NOTICING FOR PUBLIC HEARINGS WHEREAS, the Poway Municipal Code requires public noticing for certain classes of land use and zoning actions through the mailing of notices to owners of real property; and WHEREAS, the Poway City Council recognizes that certain residents residing and working in the City do not own the property where they reside or conduct business, the result of which is that notices of land use and zoning actions might not reach them; and WHEREAS, the Poway City Council believes it is important that the City undertake reasonable efforts to notify its residents and business owners of important land use and zoning actions that might affect them; and WHEREAS, the Poway City Council has determined that it is appropriate to establish a policy to increase the public noticing required for public hearings by making reasonable efforts to include the occupants of every address within 500 feet of a proposed project site; and WHEREAS, the Poway City Council considered public noticing requirements on October 15, 2013, and directed staff to research the matter; and WHEREAS, on February 4, 2014, the Poway City Council held a public workshop to discuss options for implementing additional public notice for public hearings; and WHEREAS, a public hearing was held on April 15, 2014, allowing public comment on the proposed additional public noticing policy. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the City Council of the City of Poway as follows: Section 1: The foregoing recitals are true and correct and the City Council so finds and determines. Section 2: This item is not subject to review under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). Section 3: For projects that require a public hearing, every reasonable effort consistent with this Resolution shall be used in an effort to mail public notices to the occupants of every address within 500 feet of the proposed project site. This shall be in addition to the notice provided to all property owners within 500 feet of the project site, which is required by state laws and Poway ordinances. Section 4: The provision of public notices to occupants within 500 feet of a project site shall be provided by a private company to be determined through a Request For Proposals. 4 of 5 April 15, 2014 Item # 4.1 Resolution No. Page 2 Section 5: The cost of providing notice to occupants within 500 feet of a project site will be borne by the City. Section 6: The City Council hereby declares that this policy is intended to encourage greater awareness of proposed land use and zoning actions, but not to establish new legal requirements; therefore neither the failure of any occupant of any property within 500 feet of a project to actually receive notice, nor the failure of City staff to include an address in the listing of addresses of occupants to receive notice contemplated by this Resolution, shall be grounds for the delay, continuance, or denial of the application, permit, or other action, which is the subject of the notice. Section 7: The public noticing requirement discussed herein shall be reviewed one year after implementation. PASSED, ADOPTED AND APPROVED by the City Council of the City of Poway, California, at a regular meeting this 15th day of April, 2014. Don Higginson, Mayor ATTEST: Sheila R. Cobian, CMC, City Clerk STATE OF CALIFORNIA ) ) SS COUNTY OF SAN DIEGO ) I, Sheila R. Cobian, City Clerk, of the City of Poway, do hereby certify under penalty of perjury that the foregoing Resolution No. 14 - * ** was duly adopted by the City Council at a meeting of said City Council held on the 15th day of April 2014, and that it was so adopted by the following vote: AYES: NOES: ABSENT: DISQUALIFIED: Sheila R. Cobian, CMC, City Clerk City of Poway 5 of 5 April 15, 2014 Item # 4.1