1. During the first visit to the planning department the applicant would be advised of the project’s relationship with the coastal land use plan and whether or not a coastal development permit is required. See sections on categorical exclusion (subsections C and G of this section) and if the development is located within the coastal permit appeal zone.

2. If a coastal development permit is required² the procedure would not take less than thirty days and would be integrated with other review and hearings before the planning commission. (See coastal development permit procedure section and coastal permit appeal procedure.)

3. After planning commission approval, the coastal development permit would be issued. (If the action is located within the permit appeal zone and appealed to the State Coastal Commission, the city would not issue the permit until the state has acted on the appeal.)

4. It should be noted that the planning procedure flow chart is only a basic graphic depiction of the planning process. These steps are subject to modification pursuant to changes in state and case law and administrative streamlining processes implemented pursuant to any such modifications in state and case law.

1. Permit-Issuing Responsibilities. The planning commission shall be responsible for issuing coastal development permits. When site development is determined by an overall plan, as in the combination of R-1/B-6 or planned commercial development, the coastal development permit shall be considered in conjunction with the other project review obligations of the planning commission.

2. It should be noted that the coastal development permit procedure flow chart is only a basic graphic depiction of the major steps in the coastal planning process. These steps are subject to modification pursuant to changes in state and case law and administrative streamlining processes implemented pursuant to any such modifications in state and case law.

1. Ten days prior to a public hearing on any coastal permit, the city shall provide public notice by publication in a newspaper of general circulation and by first class mail. The mailed notice shall be provided to all persons who submit a written request for such notice along with a stamped self-addressed envelope. The mailed notice shall also be provided to the State Coastal Commission, all property owners and tenants within one hundred feet of the project site.³

2. Within seven days of the planning commission action on any coastal permit, the city shall provide written notice to the State Coastal Commission and all persons who have submitted written request for such notice along with a stamped self-addressed envelope. The planning commission’s decision on any coastal permit may be appealed to the city council within seven days of the planning commission’s action.³

Ten days prior to any city council appeal hearing on a coastal permit decision the city shall provide notice of such hearing by first class mail to the State Coastal Commission and all persons who have submitted written request for such notice along with a stamped self-addressed envelope. In addition, notice of such hearing shall be published in a newspaper of general circulation at least ten days prior to the hearing.

3. Within five days of any final city council action on an appeal of a coastal permit the city shall notify, by first class mail, the State Coastal Commission and all persons who have submitted a written request for such notice along with a stamped self-addressed envelope.³

4. Within twenty-one days of final city council action on a coastal permit with the appeal zone, resulting in approval of a coastal permit, an appeal of such decision may be filed by an aggrieved party with the State Coastal Commission or an appeal may be filed by the State Coastal Commission. Therefore, within the appeal zone, twenty-one days must lapse from the date of an affirmative local decision on a coastal permit before such action can be deemed final. After this twenty-one-day period expires the coastal permit/notice of permit decision may be issued to the applicant.

5. The city of Marina may charge a fee for a coastal permit and appeal of such permit. This fee will be based on administrative costs and will be reviewed periodically by the city council. The fee shall be established in the same manner as other city fees. If the city council determines to charge a fee for a coastal permit appeal it will then become possible to appeal any affirmative planning commission decision on a coastal permit (within the appeal zone) directly to the Coastal Commission.

1. Any zoning or subdivision action within the Coastal Zone may be appealed to the city council. Only applications for property within the local coastal permit appeal zone may be appealed to the State Coastal Commission. Specific criteria exist in law to define this appeal zone:⁴

2. Development outside the specifically designated permit appeal zone may be appealed only if:

3. All applicable projects, including major public works projects or major energy facilities, may be appealed by an applicant, any two members of the State Coastal Commission or an “aggrieved person.” An “aggrieved person” is legally defined in the Public Resources Code Section 30801. The definition covers:

1. Not only do the Coastal Commission’s local coastal program regulations define the coastal permit appeal zone, they also clearly set out the grounds for appeal of local permit decisions within Area 1 of the coastal permit appeal zone.⁵ (Section 00192): Appeals “shall be limited to the following”:

2. Overriding these grounds for appeal is the consideration of whether or not the development is in conformity with the certified local coastal program.

3. Appeals to the Coastal Commission must follow at least one local action on the application. If Marina charges a local appeal fee, coastal development permits approved by the planning commission may be appealed directly to the state.

4. Whether an appeal and appellant meet these criteria will be determined by the executive director of the State Coastal Commission during the first two working days after the ten working days required for notification of the decision from the local jurisdiction to the state. After State Coastal Commission action the city will receive a notice of permit decision. If it is affirmative the city will be able to issue a coastal development permit consistent with the findings of the State Coastal Commission on the appeal.

1. The State Coastal Commission has the authority, on a jurisdiction-by-jurisdiction basis, to exempt certain kinds of development from coastal permit requirements. This action is called a categorical exclusion and must be requested by the jurisdiction. The city may seek a categorical exclusion for categories of existing development or types of actions within its Coastal Zone. In Marina’s case, there is little existing development since most of the land is undeveloped or subject to reuse. However, future structures may be subject to coastal permit regulation. Areas categorically excluded are also exempt from the coastal appeal process if located within the coastal permit appeal zone.

2. Although no categorical exclusions are recommended for the initial local coastal program, as areas of the city’s Coastal Zone become developed and established, the city may wish to apply to the State Coastal Commission for a categorical exclusion (for example, to exclude areas zoned and developed R-1). If the state takes such an action, then all properties in the designated area will remain exempt from the requirement of getting a coastal permit until or unless the use of the property is changed.

3. The city may find the categorical exclusion an efficient way to reduce the administrative workload associated with the Coastal Zone and its regulatory process. (Ord. 2020-07 § 2, 2020; Ord. 2007-11 § 3 (Exh. A), 2007)