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HomeMy WebLinkAbout96-33 - Prohibiting for Forty-Five Days the Approval of Residential Condominium Conversions in the R1.5 Zoning District (Balboa Island)ORDINANCE NO., 96 -33, AN INTERIM URGENCY ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF NEWPORT BEACH PROHIBITING FOR FORTY -FIVE DAYS THE APPROVAL OF RESIDENTIAL CONDOMINIUM CONVERSIONS IN THE R1.5 ZONING DISTRICT (BAILBOA ISLAND) The City Council of the City of Newport Beach does hereby ordain as follows: . SECTION 1: Findings. The City Council finds and declares as follows: A. The City Council is authorized, pursuant to provisions of City Charter and Section 65858 of the Government Code, to adopt a temporary prohibition on the issuance of permits for, or the establishment of, land uses which may be in conflict with contemplated zoning ordinances which the legislative body, planning commission or planning department intends to study within a reasonable time. B. Pursuant to Sections 65858 (b) and 65090 of the Government Code, notice was published in the Daily Pilot on July 31, 1996, advising the public of a City Council public hearing to consider this Ordinance at its regular meeting of August 12, 1996. C. The City has concern that the conversion of existing duplexes in the R1.5 Zoning District to condominiums is not consistent with the lot sizes and historic pattern of development in the district. For the most part, development has consisted of one primary dwelling unit on a parcel, with the addition of a small apartment unit on some parcels. This pattern is well suited to the lot sizes in the R1.5 District, which are smaller than in other areas of the City. In this environment, the conversion of residential units to condominiums has the potential to increase the intensity of use in the district by converting units designed for accessory or occasional use to primary units under separate ownership. This intensity of use is beyond that anticipated by the historic pattern of development and may be beyond that which the district can accommodate without adverse impacts. Of particular concern is the ability to convert properties that do not have the number of parking spaces required for new residential development under current regulations, and the resulting impact on the surrounding neighborhood when residential use is intensified through conversion to condominium ownership. Balboa Island, on which all of the R1.5 District is located, is an isolated area of the City, which is Ord. No. 96 -33 unique in its lack of any off - street public parking, and increased parking demand to support intensified residential use must be carefully considered. D. This Ordinance is deemed necessary as an emergency measure for preserving the public safety, health and welfare in that: 1. Failure to study the potential impacts of condominium conversions on the surrounding neighborhood could result in the approval of conversions that, individually or cumulatively, intensify residential use beyond that which the area can accommodate, thereby reducing the desirability of the neighborhood for single family residential uses and adversely impacting both property values and commercial operations in the vicinity. 2. The conversion of property to condominium ownership is not reversible by City action, and any adverse impacts resulting therefrom are likely to be long- term. SECTION 2: Prohibitions. No residential condominium conversions shall be approved in the R1.5 Zoning District during the term of this Ordinance. SECTION 3: Planning Study. The Planning Department is hereby directed to work with a committee of Balboa Island property owners and residents to study the impacts of residential condominium conversions on surrounding neighborhoods in the R1.5 Zoning District, to evaluate whether such conversions intensify residential use beyond that which the area can accommodate, and to report its findings to the City Council as soon as possible but in no event more than forty -five days after the date of this Ordinance. SECTION 4: CEOA Compliance. The City Council determines that this Ordinance is "categorically exempt' from the California Environmental Quality Act as a Class 5 project as defined in the CEQA Guidelines. 2 • 0 Ord. No. 96 -33 SECTION 5• Term. This Ordinance shall become effective immediately upon its adoption, and shall remain in effect for a period of forty -five (45) days thereafter unless earlier terminated or repealed, or extended, by ordinance of the City Council. SECTION 6: Severability. The City Council hereby declares that if any section, subsection, sentence, clause or phrase of this Ordinance is, for any reason, held to be invalid or unconstitutional, such decision shall not affect the validity or constitutionality of the remaining portions of this Ordinance. The City Council hereby declares that it would have passed this Ordinance, and each section, subsection, sentence, clause or phrase hereof, irrespective of the fact that any one or more sections, subsections, sentences, clauses or phrases may be declared unconstitutional. SECTION 7: The Mayor shall sign and the City Clerk shall attest to the passage of this Ordinance. The City Clerk shall cause the same to be published once in the official newspaper of the City within fifteen (15) days after its adoption. This Ordinance was adopted as an urgency measure at a regular meeting of the City Council of the City of Newport Beach held on the 12thday of August , 1996, by the following vote: ATTEST: CI e� /1). J l a'4 �. CITY CLERK AYES, COUNCILMEMBERS: HEDGES, DEBAY, GLOVER, EDWARDS, WATT, O'NEIL, COX NOES, COUNCILMEMBERS: NONE ABSENT COUNCILMEMBERS: NONE MAYOR �jj 3