§ 8181-5

Applications may be filed as provided in the following sections:

a.

Who May Apply—An application for a permit or variance may be filed by the owner of the property or his/her authorized agent, a lessee who holds a lease whose terms permit the use applied for, or by any duly constituted government authority or agent thereof.

b.

Coapplicants—All holders or owners of any other interests of record in the affected property shall be notified in writing of the permit application and invited to join as coapplicant. In addition, prior to the issuance of a coastal development permit, the applicant shall demonstrate the authority to comply with all conditions of approval.

c.

Modification, Suspension and Revocation—An application for modification, suspension or revocation of any variance or permit may be filed by any person listed in the preceding section, or by any person or political entity aggrieved; or by an official department, board or commission of the county affected.

d.

Appeals—An appeal concerning any order, requirement, permit, determination or decision made in the administration or enforcement of this Chapter may be filed in accordance with Section 8181-9.

e.

Violations on Property—No application for any entitlement shall be accepted for filing if a violation of Chapter 1.1 or Chapter 2 exists on the property, provided that the violation was a result of the actions or inactions of the applicant or his predecessor(s) in interest, unless an application is concurrently filed that would abate the existing violation.

f.

Completeness of Application—Not later than 30 calendar days after the Planning Division has accepted an application under this Chapter, the applicant shall be notified in writing as to whether the application is complete or incomplete, except in the case of zone changes, which are legislative acts and thus are not subject to the 30-day limit. If the application is determined to be incomplete, the applicant shall be notified in writing of the reasons for such determination and of the information needed to make the application complete.

(1)

Review of Supplemental Information—If any application is deemed incomplete and the applicant subsequently submits the required information, the application is then treated as if it were a new filing, and the 30-day review period begins on the day that the supplemental information is submitted.

(2)

Termination of Incomplete Application—Upon written notification to the applicant, processing of an incomplete application may be terminated if no reasonable effort has been made by the applicant to complete the application for a period of six months from the date of notification of incompleteness. All unused fees shall be refunded to the applicant. An extension to this six-month period may be granted by the Planning Director on written request by the applicant showing good cause.

(Ord. No. 4451, § 9, 12-11-2012)

The form and content of all applications shall be determined by the Planning Division. Additional information may be required to be submitted with an application request, such as elevations, plot plans, and phasing, as deemed appropriate by the Planning Director for complete review of the request. For applications to develop oil or gas resources, see Section 8175-5.7.2 for additional requirements.

No person obtains any right or privilege to use land or structures for any manner described in an application request merely by virtue of the County's acceptance of an application or granting of the subject request. See also Section 8171-7.

(Ord. No. 4451, § 9, 12-11-2012)

Editor's note— Ord. No. 4451, § 9, adopted December 11, 2012, repealed § 8181-5.3, and §§ 7, 9, renumbered §§ 8181-5.4—8181-5.9 as §§ 8181-5.3—8181-5.8.

Each application request for any purpose subject to the regulations of this Chapter, except appeals of decisions regarding developments subject to appeal, shall be accompanied by payment of all outstanding fees and charges billed by and owed to the County under Division 8, Chapters 1, 1.1, and 2 by the applicant or by persons, partnerships, corporations or other entities owned or controlled by applicant or owning or controlling applicant. Furthermore, each application for any of the above, and for appeals of decisions regarding developments not subject to appeal, shall be accompanied by the fee specified by Resolution No. 222 of the Board of Supervisors. No application or appeal shall be accepted for filing or be processed unless the applicant complies with this Section.

(a)

Exemptions. No fee need accompany applications for activities sponsored by nonprofit organizations that are solely youth-oriented, including, but not limited to, Scouts, 4-H Clubs, and Little Leagues. No filing fee shall be charged or collected for any application or appeal filed by any County officer, employee, board, commission, or Board-governed Special District on behalf of the County.

(b)

Penalty Fees. Where a use is inaugurated, or construction to that end is commenced, prior to the granting of the required entitlement or amendment to the LCP, the fee for said entitlement or amendment shall be doubled. Payment of such double fee shall not relieve persons from fully complying with the requirements of this Code, nor from any other penalties prescribed herein. In no event shall such double fee exceed the application fee plus one thousand dollars ($1,000.00).

(c)

Billing Method. Once a decision is rendered and becomes final regarding an entitlement, the applicant shall be billed for the balance of fees and charges up to the ceiling amount as specified by the fee schedule (Resolution No. 222). Should final costs be less than the deposit fee, the unused portion of the deposit shall be refunded to the applicant. Upon request, an accounting of all fees and charges billed to the applicant shall be made

available. An applicant may request, or the County may require, incremental billing for processing costs of an application request. All fees and charges shall be due and payable within thirty (30) days of the date of any billing invoice. If billed fees and charges are not paid within thirty (30) days of the invoice date, a penalty charge of two (2) percent of the unpaid balance will be added to the balance due, and each month thereafter an interest charge of two (2) percent of the unpaid balance shall be added and compounded until the bill is paid in full.

(d)

Failure to Pay. While the County may choose not to stop processing an application for which the applicable billed fees and charges have not been paid, the County may, after a hearing, deny such application based on the applicant's failure to pay said fees and charges.

(Ord. No. 4451, §§ 7, 9, 12-11-2012)

Editor's note— See editor's note at § 8181-5.3.

8181-5.5.1 - The Planning Director may defer any decision on a Planned Development Permit or modification, suspension, or revocation thereto, to the Planning Commission at any time prior to thirty (30) days after the close of the public hearing if the project:

(a)

May result in significant environmental impacts that cannot be mitigated to insignificant levels.

(b)

Involves significant public controversy.

(c)

May be in conflict with County policies, or would necessitate the establishment of new policies.

(d)

May be precedent-setting.

(e)

Should be deferred for any other cause deemed justifiable by the Planning Director.

8181-5.5.2 - The Planning Commission may defer a decision on an entitlement to the Board of Supervisors in cases where two (2) entitlements regarding the same property or site are being processed concurrently, and the Board is the decision-making authority for one (1) of the entitlements.

(Ord. No. 4451, § 9, 12-11-2012)

Editor's note— See editor's note at § 8181-5.3.

8181-5.6 - Continuance of permit during renewal process.

If an application for renewal of permit has been filed prior to the expiration date of that permit, and is being diligently pursued, the activities for which the permit was granted may continue during the renewal process, unless otherwise provided for in the conditions of the permit. All the terms and conditions of the original permit must be followed at all times.

(Ord. No. 4451, § 9, 12-11-2012)

Editor's note— See editor's note at § 8181-5.3.

It shall be the responsibility of the property owner, and the permittee when the property owner is not the applicant, to ensure that all conditions placed on a permit are met.

(Ord. No. 4451, § 9, 12-11-2012)

Editor's note— See editor's note at § 8181-5.3.

Except as otherwise specified in this Chapter, the decision-making authority may impose a penal and/or performance security on any discretionary entitlement as a condition of such entitlement. The security(s) shall be filed in a form acceptable to the County Counsel and certified by the County Clerk.

(a)

The required amount of the security(s) may be increased periodically by the Planning Director in order to compensate for inflation (based on the applicable regional Consumer Price Index) or other factors, so that the same relative value of the security is maintained over the life of the permit, and to assure that performance securities continue to reflect the actual anticipated costs for completing a required task. No security shall be released until after all of the applicable conditions of the permit have been met.

(b)

In the event of any failure by the permittee to perform or comply with any term or condition of a discretionary entitlement, the decision-making authority may, after notice to the permittee and after a public hearing, determine by resolution the amount of the penalty, and declare all or part of the security forfeited. The sureties and principal will be jointly and severally obligated to pay forthwith the full amount of the forfeiture to the County. The forfeiture of any security shall not insulate the permittee from liability in excess of the sum of the security for damages or injury, nor from expense or liability suffered by the County from any breach by the permittee of any term or condition of the permit or of any applicable ordinance or of the security.

(c)

The permittee shall maintain the minimum specified amount of a penal security throughout the life of the entitlement. Within thirty (30) days of any forfeiture of a penal security, the permittee shall restore the security to the required level.

(Ord. No. 4451, § 9, 12-11-2012)

Editor's note— See editor's note at § 8181-5.3.

8181-6 - Hearing procedures.[[10]]

Footnotes:

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Editor's note— Ord. No. 4451, § 7, adopted December 11, 2012, repealed and replaced §§ 8181-6—8181-6.3. Former §§ 8181-6—8181-6.3 pertained to notice and hearing procedures and were derived from original Code.