17.40.200 C-P or coastal development permit combining district

17.40.200 C-P or coastal development permit combining district.

1. The coastal development permit district is an overlay district to be combined with the districts designated in this chapter. In case of conflict between the coastal permit district and the underlying district with which it is combined, the coastal permit district regulations shall prevail.

2. The coastal development permit district regulations shall be applied to the area within Marina’s designated Coastal Zone except those areas and classes of development categorically excluded by actions of the California Coastal Commission.

3. The purpose of the coastal development permit is to allow proper consideration of the local coastal land use and implementation plans in order to implement said plans by achieving consistency between the plans and developments within the C-P district.

B. Uses Permitted. None.

C. Conditional Uses. Uses permitted subject to first securing a coastal development permit in each case: any uses on private land or land held by the city, other municipality or public agency, or on state lands other than tidelands, which are permitted or conditional uses in the zoning district with which the C-P district is combined and which are consistent with the Marina general plan and local coastal land use plan and coastal zoning ordinance, are conditional uses in the C-P district. Conditional uses may be authorized by planning commission approval of a coastal development permit.

D. Development Regulations. Development regulations for the C-P district shall be as specified in the district with which the C-P district is combined, with whatever additional regulations the planning commission may add as conditions of the coastal development permit in order for the application to be consistent with the local coastal land use and implementation plans. If necessary or desirable in order to achieve consistency with the LCLUP, the underlying district regulations, such as setbacks, may be modified.

a. Coastal development permits may be issued as provided in this section for any of the uses or purposes for which such permits are required or permitted by this title upon conditions designated by the planning commission.

b. The planning commission may impose such conditions as it deems necessary to secure the purpose of this title and may impose such requirements and conditions with respect to location, construction, maintenance and operation, site planning, traffic control and time limits for the coastal development permit as it deems necessary for the protection of adjacent properties, the public interest and the implementation of the LCLUP and coastal zoning ordinance. The commission may require tangible guarantees or evidence that such conditions are being, or will be, complied with.

c. A public hearing shall be held on each application for a coastal development permit; notices of such hearings shall be given to persons designated and in the manner prescribed in Section 65854 et seq. of the California Government Code.

2. Form of Application, Fee, Plans. Application for a coastal development permit shall be made in writing by the owner of the property, or by lessee, purchaser in escrow or optionee with the consent of the owner, on a form prescribed by the city. The application shall be accompanied by a fee, set by the city council, and plans showing the details of the proposed use.

3. Granting. In considering an application for a coastal development permit the planning commission shall consider and give due regard to the Marina general plan and local coastal land use and implementation plans. The planning commission shall determine whether or not the establishment, maintenance and operation of the use applied for will, under the circumstances of the particular case, be consistent with the general plan and local coastal land use and implementation plans, based upon the following findings that the project will:

a. Not impair major view corridors towards the sea from Highway 1 parallel to the sea, including the planning guidelines listed in the LCLUP;

b. Be subject to approval of the site and architectural design review board, including the planning guidelines listed in the LCLUP;

c. Guarantee that appropriate legal action is taken to insure vertical and lateral coastal access or fees paid in lieu thereof as required in the LCLUP and coastal zoning ordinance access components. Required improvements shall be completed, or a bond adequate to guarantee their completion shall be posted with the city, prior to issuance of a certificate of occupancy;

d. Be adequately set back from the shoreline to withstand erosion to the extent that the reasonable economic life of the use would be guaranteed without need for shoreline protection structures;

e. Protect least disturbed dune habitat areas, primary habitat areas and provide protection measures for secondary habitat areas consistent with the LCLUP and coastal zoning ordinance;

f. Be consistent with beach parking standards, as established in the LCLUP access component;

g. Included feasible mitigating measures which substantially reduce significant impacts of the project as prescribed in any applicable EIR;

h. Not interfere with public access along the beach;

i. Comply with the access, shoreline structure and habitat protection standards included in the local coastal land use and implementation plans;

j. Comply with the housing element and housing recommendations of the local coastal land use and implementation plans;

k. In the case of demolition of a residential structure, except to abate a nuisance, not detrimentally alter the character or housing mix of the neighborhood. The structure shall be moved, if capable of providing comparable housing opportunities at another location. The demolition and replacement structure shall comply with applicable local coastal land use plan policies;

l. In the case of new surf zone or beach sand mining operations, comply with all standards regarding such operations specified in the LCLUP including standards for significant adverse impacts on shoreline erosion, either individually or cumulatively.

4. Effective Date Outside the Coastal Appeals Zone. The coastal permit shall be effective the seventh day after planning commission approval unless the commission action is appealed to the city council, in which case, the permit shall not be effective until the city council has acted upon the appeal.

5. Coastal Commission Appeal. Any coastal development permit decision of the city council within the local coastal appeal zone is subject to appeal to the State Coastal Commission within twenty-one days after the local decision, and will not become effective until after resolution of the appeal.

1. The director of planning shall have the authority to determine whether or not any development proposed in the Coastal Zone is exempt from a coastal development permit pursuant to subsection G of this section.

2. Any person wishing such determination shall submit to the planning department all plans, applications and information deemed necessary by the planning department to assess the development.

3. After review, the director of planning shall notify the applicant in writing that the development is:

a. Exempt and state the category of exemption; or

b. That a coastal development permit is required and, if so, whether or not it is appealable to the California Coastal Commission.

c. Notice of such decision shall also be submitted to the Coastal Commission.

4. If the determination of the city is challenged by the applicant or an interested person, or if the city wishes to have a Coastal Commission determination as to the appropriate designation, the city shall notify the Coastal Commission by telephone of the dispute/question and shall request an executive director’s opinion which shall be made pursuant to Section 13569 of the Coastal Commission’s regulations.

G. Exemptions. The types of projects listed below shall be exempt from the requirement for a coastal development permit. Requirements for any other permits are unaffected by this section.

1. Improvements to Existing Single-Family Residences. The maintenance, alteration or addition to existing single-family dwellings which comply with the underlying district regulations, including the establishment or expansion of nonhabitable accessory structures normally associated with residential uses such as garages, decks, workshops, landscaping, storage sheds, pools, fences, gazebos, patios, greenhouses, driveway paving and similar improvements but not including guest houses or self-contained residential units. However, the following classes of development shall require a permit because they involve a risk of adverse environmental impact:

a. Improvements to a single-family structure on a beach or wetland; seaward of the mean high tide line or where the residence or proposed improvement would encroach within fifty feet of the edge of a coastal bluff. Wetland is defined in Section 30121 of the Coastal Act as:

“Wetland” means lands within the Coastal Zone which may be covered periodically or permanently with shallow water and include saltwater marshes, freshwater marshes, open or closed brackish water marshes, swamps, mudflats, and fens.

Specific wetlands are mapped in the land use plan,

b. Any significant alteration of landforms including removal or placement of vegetation, on a beach, wetland or sand dune, or within fifty feet of the edge of a coastal bluff. “Coastal bluff” is defined in the California Administrative Code Section 13577(h),

c. The expansion or construction of water wells or septic systems,

d. On property located between the sea and the first public road paralleling the sea or within three hundred feet of the inland extent of any beach or of the mean high tide of the sea where there is no beach, whichever is the greater distance, or in the Highway 1 scenic road corridor, improvement that would result in an increase of ten percent or more of internal floor area of an existing structure, or an additional improvement of ten percent or less where an improvement to the structure has previously been undertaken pursuant to this section or a coastal permit, increase in height by more than ten percent of an existing structure, the construction of an additional story (including lofts) in an existing structure, and/or any significant nonattached structure such as garages, fences, shoreline protective works, docks, trees or satellite dishes,

e. In areas determined to have critically short water supply that must be maintained for the protection of coastal resources or public recreational use, the construction of any specified major water-using development not essential to residential use including but not limited to swimming pools, or construction or extension of any landscaping irrigation system,

f. Additions or expansions to developments which, by conditions of previous permit issued by the city or Coastal Commission, require development permits for such addition or expansion;

2. Improvements to Existing Structures Other than Single-Family Residences or a Public Works Facility. The maintenance, alteration or addition to existing structures other than single-family dwellings and public works facilities including all fixtures and structures directly attached to the structure and landscaping on the lot; however, the following classes of development shall require a permit because they involve a risk of adverse environmental effect, adversely affect public access or involve a change in use contrary to the certified LCP:

a. Improvements to any structure on a beach, wetland, stream or lake, seaward of the mean high tide line or where the structure or proposed improvement would encroach within fifty feet of the edge of a coastal bluff. (For the purposes of this chapter, “beach” shall be as defined in California Administrative Code Section 13577(g); “wetland” shall be as defined in Coastal Act Section 30121; and “stream” shall be as defined in California Administrative Code Section 13577(a)),

b. Any significant alteration of landforms including removal or placement of vegetation, on a beach, wetland or sand dune, or within one hundred feet of the edge of a coastal bluff, vernal pond or stream or in areas of natural vegetation designated as a sensitive habitat,

c. The expansion or construction of water wells or septic systems,

d. On property located between the sea and the first public road paralleling the sea or within three hundred feet of the inland extent of any beach or of the mean high tide of the sea where there is no beach, whichever is the greater distance, or in the Highway 1 scenic road corridors an improvement that would result in an increase of ten percent or more of internal floor area of the existing structure, or constitute an additional improvement of ten percent or less where an improvement to the structure has previously been undertaken pursuant to this section or a coastal permit, and/or the increase in height by more than ten percent or construction of an additional story (including lofts) in an existing structure, or satellite dishes,

e. In areas determined to have critically short water supply that must be maintained for the protection of coastal recreation or public recreational use, the construction of any specified major water-using development including but not limited to swimming pools or the construction or extension of any landscaping irrigation system,

f. Any improvement to a structure which changes the intensity of use of the structure,

g. Any improvement made pursuant to a conversion of an existing structure from a multiple-unit rental use or visitor-serving commercial use to a use involving a fee ownership or long-term leasehold including but not limited to a condominium conversion, stock cooperative conversion or motel/hotel time-sharing conversion,

h. Additions or expansions to developments which by conditions of a previous permit issued by the city or Coastal Commission require development permits for such addition or expansion;

3. Maintenance dredging of existing navigation channels or moving dredged material from such channels to a disposal area outside the Coastal Zone, pursuant to a permit from the United States Army Corps of Engineers;

4. Repair or maintenance activities and safety improvements that do not result in an addition to, or enlargement or expansion of, the object of such repair or maintenance activities; however, the following classes of repair and maintenance shall require a permit because they involve a risk of adverse environmental impact:

a. Any method of repair or maintenance of a seawall, revetment, bluff retaining wall, breakwater, groin, culvert, outfall or similar shoreline work that involves:

i. Repair or maintenance involving substantial alteration of the foundation of the protective work including pilings and other surface or subsurface structures,

ii. The placement, whether temporary or permanent, of riprap, artificial berms or sand or other beach materials, or any other forms of solid materials, on a beach or in coastal waters, waters, streams, wetlands, estuaries and lakes or on a shoreline protective work,

iii. The replacement of twenty percent or more of the materials of an existing structure with materials of a different kind, or

iv. The presence, whether temporary or permanent, of mechanized construction equipment or construction materials on any sand area or bluff or within twenty feet of coastal water or streams,

b. Any repair or maintenance to facilities or structures or work located in an environmentally sensitive habitat area as defined by Coastal Act Section 30107.5, any sand area, within fifty feet of the edge of a coastal bluff or environmentally sensitive habitat area, or within twenty feet of coastal waters or streams that includes:

i. The placement or removal, whether temporary or permanent, of riprap, rocks, sand or other beach materials or any other forms of solid materials,

ii. The presence, whether temporary or permanent, of mechanized equipment or construction materials;

5. Any category of development requested by the city as a categorical exclusion pursuant to Section 13241 of the Coastal Commission’s regulations and approved by the Coastal Commission pursuant to Coastal Act Section 13241 of the Regulations;

6. The installation, testing and placement in service or the replacement of any necessary utility connection between an existing service facility and any development approved pursuant to this chapter or previously granted a permit by the Coastal Commission; provided, that the city may, where necessary, require reasonable conditions to mitigate any adverse impact on coastal resources, including scenic resources;

7. The replacement of any structure, other than a public works facility, destroyed by natural disaster. Such replacement structure shall conform to applicable existing zoning requirements, shall be for the same use as the destroyed structure, shall not exceed either the floor area, height, or bulk of the destroyed structure by more than ten percent and shall be sited in the same location on the affected property as the destroyed structure.

a. As used in this subsection, “natural disaster” means any situation in which the force or forces which destroyed the structure to be replaced were beyond the control of its owner.

b. As used in this subsection, “bulk” means total interior cubic volume as measured from the exterior surface of the structure.

c. As used in this subsection, “structure” means and includes landscaping and any erosion control structure or device which is similar to that which existed prior to the occurrence of the disaster;

8. Harvesting of agricultural crops;

9. Land division brought about in connection with the purchase of land by a public agency for public recreational use;

10. Any project undertaken by a federal agency;

11. Any project which has a valid permit from the Coastal Commission;

12. Tree removal (which is not major vegetation), except as precluded by other sections of this chapter;

13. Abatement of dangerous buildings;

14. Repair and maintenance activities, and safety improvements on public roads and traffic-control devices that do not result in an addition to, or enlargement or expansion of the object of such repair or maintenance activities;

15. Routine maintenance of existing public parks is exempt including repair or modification of existing public facilities where the level or type of public use or the size of structures will not be altered;

16. All interior remodeling, residential and nonresidential, except where use is being converted to a more intensive use;

17. Any activity anywhere in the Coastal Zone that involves the conversion of any existing multiple-unit residential structure to a timeshare project, estate or use, as defined in Section 11003.5 of the Business and Professions Code. If any improvement to an existing structure is otherwise exempt from the permit requirements of this division, no coastal development permit shall be required for that improvement on the basis that it is to be made in connection with any conversion exempt pursuant to this subdivision. The division of a multiple-unit residential structure into condominiums, as defined in Section 783 of the Civil Code, shall not be considered a timeshare project, estate or use for purposes of this subsection.

H. Determination of Excluded Projects. (Section not effective until action by California Coastal Commission.)

I. Excluded Projects. (Section not effective until action by California Coastal Commission.)

1. Definition. An administrative coastal development permit is a coastal permit issued by the director of planning which does not become effective until its issuance is reported to the city council. If one-third of the members of the city council so request, issuance of the administrative permit shall not become effective and, at the applicant’s request, the application shall be considered as a regular coastal development permit at the next regularly scheduled meeting of the city council.

a. Following the review of a coastal permit application by the director of planning, said official shall have the authority to issue a coastal permit by virtue of Section 30624 of the California Coastal Act for the following nonemergency developments:

i. Improvements to any existing structure;

ii. Any single-family dwelling;

iii. Any other developments not in excess of one hundred thousand dollars, other than any division of land;

iv. Any development of four dwelling units or less that does not require demolition.

However, said authority of the director of planning shall not apply to that development which is within the Coastal Commission’s continuing permit jurisdiction pursuant to Coastal Act Section 30519 or appealable to the Coastal Commission pursuant to Coastal Act Section 30603 or any division of land. Such permit for nonemergency development shall not be effective until after reasonable public notice and adequate time for the review of such issuance has been provided, as specified in subsection K of this section.

b. If the planning director receives an application that is asserted to be for improvements or other development within the criteria established in subsection (J)(2)(a) of this section and if the planning director finds that the application does not qualify as such, he or she shall notify the applicant that the permit application cannot be processed administratively and must comply with procedures for coastal development permits provided in subsection E of this section. The planning director, with the concurrence of the applicant, may accept the application for filing as a regular permit and shall adjust the application fees accordingly.

c. In the case of any development involving a structure or similarly integrated physical construction which lies partly within and partly outside the Coastal Commission’s appeal area, the entire structure or similar integrated physical construction must be subject to at least one public hearing and may not be processed as an administrative permit.

3. Action. The planning director may deny, approve or conditionally approve applications for administrative coastal development permits on the same grounds as contained in subsection E of this section for an ordinary CDP application and may include reasonable terms and conditions necessary to bring the project into consistency with the certified LCP.

4. Administrative Permit Deemed Final. A decision on an administrative permit shall not be deemed final and effective until:

a. The decision on the application has been made, the city council review of the permit is complete, and all required findings have been adopted, including specific factual findings supporting the legal conclusions that the proposed development is or is not in conformity with the certified LCP and, when applicable, the public access and recreation policies of Chapter 3 of the Coastal Act; and

b. When all rights of appeal under city ordinances have been exhausted.

K. Effective Date of Short Form Permits. Any administrative permit or waiver authorization issued by the director of planning pursuant to the provisions of this section shall be scheduled on the agenda of the city council at its first scheduled meeting after that permit has been issued. The planning director shall prepare a report in writing with sufficient description of the work authorized to allow the city council to understand the development to be undertaken. Such report shall be available at the meeting and for administrative permits shall be mailed to all persons wishing to receive such notification at the time of the regular mailing of notice for the meeting and any person who requested to be on the mailing list for the project meeting and any person who requested to be on the mailing list for the project as in subsection L of this section. If, at the meeting, one-third of the appointed members of that governing body so request, the permit or authorization issued by the director of planning shall not go into effect and, if the applicant wishes to pursue the application, the application for a coastal development permit shall be processed by the city pursuant to standard coastal permit procedures listed in this chapter. Unless the city council indicates otherwise, the failure to object to issuance of any waiver or administrative permit shall be presumed to be based upon the findings set forth and adopted.

L. Public Notice. Prior to scheduling any short form permit for city council review, with the exception of categorically excluded projects, the director of planning shall comply with the following public notice procedures:

1. At the time the permit application is submitted the applicant must post, at a conspicuous place, easily read by the public and on the site, or as close as possible to the site, of the proposed development, notice that an application for the proposed development has been submitted to the city using a standardized form(s) provided by the planning director. The notice shall contain a general description of the nature of the proposed development. If the applicant fails to post and keep posted the completed notice form until the waiver or administrative permit becomes effective, the planning director shall refuse to file the application or shall withdraw the application from filing if it has already been filed when he or she learns of such failure. The city shall enforce the administrative permit or waiver authorization pursuant to procedures set forth in Chapter 17.74 if it determines that the administrative permit or waiver authorization was granted without proper notice having been given, and the failure of the noticing may have caused the planning director to act differently in issuing said permit.

2. Within ten calendar days of filing an application for a coastal development permit or at least ten calendar days prior to the first public hearing or to city council review of the planning director’s action on the development proposal, the local government shall provide notice by first class mail of pending application for development.

3. This notice shall be provided to each applicant, to all persons who have requested to be on the mailing list for that development project or for coastal decisions within the local jurisdiction, to all property owners and residents within one hundred feet of the perimeter of the parcel on which the development is proposed, to the Coastal Commission; and in cases where public hearings are required under other provisions of Marina’s ordinances to property owners within three hundred feet of the perimeter of the parcel on which the development is proposed, and shall also be published in a newspaper of general circulation. The notice shall contain the following information:

a. A statement that the development is within the Coastal Zone;

b. The date of filing of the application and the name of the applicant;

c. The number assigned to the application;

d. A description of the development and its proposed location;

e. The date, time and place at which the application will be heard by the local governing body or hearing officer;

f. A brief description of the general procedure of local government concerning the conduct of hearing and local actions, including the general procedure concerning the submission of public comments either in writing or orally prior to the decision;

g. A statement that a public comment period of sufficient time to allow for the submission of comments by mail will be held prior to the decision;

h. The system for local approvals and appeals, including any local fees required;

i. A description of the general procedures concerning administrative permits and/or waiver authorizations. (Ord. 2020-07 § 2, 2020; Ord. 2007-11 § 3 (Exh. A), 2007)