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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1999-04-27 - AGENDA REPORTS - AMEND ZONING VEHICLE PARKING (2)AGENDA REPORT City Manager Approval Item to be presented by: PUBLIC HEARING DATE: April 27, 1999 SUBJECT: AMEND THE ZONING CODE PROHIBITING VEHICLES FROM PARKING ON THE REQUIRED FRONT YARD AND OTHER SPECIFIED AREAS OF A RESIDENTIAL LOT. RESOLUTION NO.99-37 ORDINANCE NO. 99-4 DEPARTMENT: Planning and Building Services RECOMMENDED ACTION Adopt Resolution 99-37, adopting a negative Development Code. Introduce Ordinance No. regulations for parking on residential lots. BACKGROUND declaration for the amendment to the Unified 99-4 and pass to a second reading establishing As a result of a written complaint by a citizen back in June of 1998, the City Council directed staff to research the possibility of prohibiting vehicles from being parked on front lawns and yards that are visible from the street. The complaint came about because several homeowners within the City were frequently using their front lawns as a place to store or park their cars. Currently, the City doesn't have any provisions in the Code that prohibits this other than the regulations that restrict commercial type vehicles or inoperative vehicles from being stored or parked in front of the house. The City Council felt that if this type of provision is legally feasible, it would help clean up some of the neighborhoods that don't belong to Homeowner's Associations in the City. Usually Homeowner's Associations prohibit any type of vehicles from parking on any area of their residential lot other than the driveway. After researching this issue, staff presented an amendment to the Planning Commission which would prohibit unpermitted vehicles from parking on the required front yard setback and any additional area of the lot that is visible from the street and not on the driveway. On February 16, 1999, the Planning Commission recommended approval to the City Council for the Item, 3'. amendment. The City Council met and continued the March 23, 1999 City Council meeting to the April 27' meeting and directed staff to straighten up the language within the amendment and address the following concerns: 1. Define the wording "plainly visible" 2. Address acreage and rural area exemptions 3. Address and research vehicle weight for driveways 4. Take pictures of possible violations throughout the City Staff and the City Attorney looked at the ordinance further and made minor changes in order to address all the Council's concerns. The following are staffs changes: . 1. Staff modified the section of the ordinance that specified "any additional area of a lot `plainly visible' from a public or private street" to "any additional area of a residential lot that is not predominantly screened from a public or private street by solid fencing, walls, or vegetation." The City Attorney felt comfortable with this change and staff felt this would take some of the "gray" out of this particular section of the ordinance. 2. Staff also added exemptions for lots over a quarter of an acre, and residential lots in the Special Standard Districts of Sand and Placerita Canyon. However, no exemptions were given for anyone requesting to park their vehicles on the required front yard with the exception of the driveway. 3. Staffs original requirement that vehicles parked on the driveway had to be under 15,000 gross pounds was taken out to allow more flexibility for those residents that had vehicles that exceeded 15,000 pounds such as horse trailers and trackers. 4. Pictures will be shown on the night of the April 27' City Council meeting. 5. Lastly, staff modified the original format to outline form to make the amendment more readable. PROJECT DESCRIPTION The amendment as written will not allow vehicles to be parked or stored in the required front yard with the exception of the driveway in any area of the City. In addition, residents will not be allowed to park or store their vehicles in any additional area of a residential lot that is not predominately screened from a public or private street by solid fencing, walls, or vegetation. This provision, however, does not apply to residential lots that are over a quarter of an acre and in the Special Standard Districts of Placerita and Sand Canyon. Lastly, if any of the provisions of this amendments are violated it will be considered an infraction and subject to the appropriate fees and consequences already established in the Unified Development Code. Each violation is punishable by a fine of $100 for the first violation. Subsequent violations of the same provision is punishable by a fine of $200 for the second violation and $500 for the third violation in a 12 month period as provided by applicable law. The fourth and any further violations of this provision within a 12 month period is deemed a misdemeanor. Each misdemeanor is punishable by a maximum fine of $1000 or six months in jail, or both. SPECIFIC LANGUAGE THAT WILL BE INCORPORATED INTO THE CODE The following would be incorporated into the Property Development Standards of the UDC: 2. Residential lots shall be kept free of vehicles With the exception of the driveway, a person shall not keep, store, park, maintain or otherwise permit any vehicle or any component thereof in the following: a. required front yard; and b. any additional area of a residential lot that is not predominantly screened from a public or private street by solid fencing, walls, or vegetation. This shall not apply to residential lots that are over a gross quarter acre (10,890 square feet) or in the Special Standard Districts of Placerita and Sand Canyon. In addition, this provision will be added into the infraction section of the UDC if it is violated. Lastly, the following definition will be add to the UDC: DRIVEWAY shall mean a paved or unpaved path of travel, connecting a public or private street to a garage, carport, accessory structure, side yard, or the same l adjacent public or private street. ALTERNATIVE ACTIONS Other actions as determined by Council. FISCAL IMPACT None ATTACHMENTS Ordinance 99-4 Negative Declaration Resolution 99-37 Planning Commission Resolution No. 99-01 (Available in City Clerk's reading file) Initial Study (Available in City Clerk's reading file) March 23, 1999 City Council Agenda Report (Available in City Clerk's reading file) JJL:VPB:JWH:lep council \ arlawn3 PUBLIC NOTICE NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that on April 27, 1999, the City Council of the City of Santa Clarita introduced Ordinance 99-4 entitled: AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SANTA CLARITA, CALIFORNIA, AMENDING THE SANTA CLARITA MUNICIPAL CODE, BY ADOPTING REGULATIONS PROHIBITING UNPERMITTED VEHICLES FROM PARKING ON RESIDENTIAL LOTS (UDC AMENDMENT 98-004) A certified copy of the complete text of the ordinance is posted and may be read in the City Clerk's Office, 23920 Valencia Boulevard, Suite 301, Santa Clarita, and/or a copy may be obtained from that office. Dated this 29th day of April, 1999. Sharon L. Dawson, CMC, City Clerk City of Santa Clarita STATE OF CALIFORNIA COUNTY OF LOS ANGELES CITY OF SANTA CLARITA Sharon L. Dawson, being first duly sworn, deposes and says that she is the duly appointed and qualified City Clerk of the City of Santa Clarita and that by Thursday, April 29, 1999, she caused a certified copy of the subject ordinance to be posted and made available for public review in the City Clerk's office and a copy of the ordinance summary to be published as required by law. Sharon L. Dawson, CMC, City Clerk City of Santa Clarita