Bakersfield Municipal Code Ch. 15.70 School Facilities

Sections: 15.70.010 Purpose. 15.70.020 Definitions. 15.70.030 Adoption of findings of overcrowding by governing board. 15.70.040 Hearing, notice, findings and fee setting. 15.70.050 Conditions for approval of residential development in overcrowded attendance areas. 15.70.060 Dedication of land in lieu of payment of fees procedure. 15.70.070 Use of fees or land for interim facilities. 15.70.080 Provision of interim facilities in lieu of fees. 15.70.090 Report by school district. 15.70.100 Amendments to fee schedules. 15.70.110 Agreement between overlapping school districts. 15.70.120 Termination of dedication or fee requirements.

The purpose of this chapter is to implement the provisions of Government Code Section 65970 and following, as they exist at the time of the adoption of this chapter and as they may be amended or added to in the future, and to provide a method for financing interim school facilities necessitated by new residential development causing overcrowding of existing school facilities. (Ord. 2780 § 1, 1982)

As used in this chapter:

A. Approval of a residential development means any or all of the following:

1. Adoption of an ordinance rezoning a property to residential use.

2. Granting a building permit or any discretionary permit for residential use.

3. Approval of a tentative subdivision map for residential purposes.

B. Attendance area means the area established by a governing board within which pupils must reside to attend a particular school.

C. Conditions of overcrowding means that the total enrollment of a school or schools serving a particular attendance area, including enrollment from proposed development, exceeds the capacity of such school or schools as determined by the governing board.

D. Dwelling unit means a building, or portion thereof, or a mobile home, designed for residential occupancy by one person or a group of two or more persons living together as a domestic unit.

E. Governing board means the governing board of any school district which operates a high school or elementary school and whose territory lies in whole or in part within the city limits.

F. Reasonable methods for mitigating conditions of overcrowding shall include, but are not limited to, agreements between a subdivider and the governing board whereby temporary-use buildings will be leased to the school district or temporary-use buildings owned by the school district will be used.

G. Residential development means a project containing residential dwellings, including mobile homes, of one or more units or a subdivision of land for the purpose of constructing one or more residential dwelling units.

Residential development does not include the following:

1. Any modification or remodel of an existing dwelling unit where no additional dwelling unit is created.

2. The conversion of an existing apartment building into a condominium or stock cooperative where no

new dwelling unit is created.

3. Rebuilding of a dwelling unit destroyed or damaged by fire, flood, explosion, act of God or other accident
or catastrophe.

4. Any residential complex which is maintained as exclusively senior citizens housing. (Ord. 2780 § 1, 1982)

If a governing board makes findings supported by clear and convincing evidence that: (a) conditions of overcrowding exist in one or more attendance areas within the district which will impair the normal functioning of education programs including the reason for such conditions existing; and (b) that all reasonable methods of mitigating conditions of overcrowding have been evaluated and no feasible method for reducing such conditions exist, the governing board shall notify the city council. The notice of findings shall specify the mitigation measures considered by the governing board. The notice shall include a map showing the overcrowded attendance area or areas and shall specify the fees which the governing board requests be imposed upon applicants for approval of residential developments within the overcrowded attendance area or areas and the method(s) used to calculate the amounts thereof. (Ord. 2780 § 1, 1982)

Within sixty days of receipt of notice of the findings of the governing board, complete with supporting documentation, the city council shall hold a public hearing on the findings and the requested fees and land dedications.

A. Notice of the time and place of the public hearing referred to in subsection B of this section shall be given at least ten days before the hearing in the manner following:

1. Such notice shall be given by publication once in a newspaper of general circulation, published in the city and circulated in the school district, or if there is none, then in a newspaper of general circulation published and circulated in the city;

2. By mailing a copy of such notice to the governing board of the school district;

3. By mailing a copy of the notice to the planning director;

4. By mailing a copy of such notice to any person who may file a request in writing therefor with the planning director or the city clerk and who shall furnish therewith an envelope addressed for such purpose with postage prepaid;

5. Any notice required to be mailed may be given by personal delivery, in lieu of mailing.

B. Such notice shall also identify the school district, and generally describe the boundaries of the attendance area or areas in question, and shall refer to the notice of findings of the governing board of the school district and state when and where the same may be examined by any interested person.

C. If, at the conclusion of the public hearing the city council determines that:

1. It concurs in the governing board’s findings of overcrowding; and

2. The general plan provides for the location of public schools; and

3. The proposed fees and land dedication requirements bear a reasonable relationship to and will be
limited to the needs of the community for interim school facilities and are reasonably related and limited to
the need for school facilities caused by the residential developments on which they will be imposed, then the
remaining provisions of this chapter shall apply to the approval of residential development within the attendance areas in which there are conditions of overcrowding. The city council shall, by resolution, establish
the fees and land dedication requirements which shall thereafter be imposed as a condition of approval of
residential development.

D. If the city council does not concur with the amount of fees to be paid or land to be dedicated requested by the governing board, it shall, by resolution, adopt such amount of fees or amount (or location) of land as it may deem proper in lieu of that requested.

E. Within ten days after conclusion of the hearing, the city council shall declare its decision and any findings in such matter. The city clerk shall mail a copy of the resolution or order of the city council and findings to each person to whom notice of the hearing was required to be mailed under this section. (Ord. 2780 § 1, 1982)

overcrowded attendance areas.

The city council shall not approve any residential development to which its above findings apply, unless either:

A. The city council, upon application by a developer of residential property and after notice and public hearing, has determined that there are specific overriding fiscal, economic, social or environmental factors which, in its judgment, would benefit the city and justify the approval of a particular residential development without the mitigation of the impact of that development upon overcrowded schools; or

B. The applicant for rezoning or subdivision approval has furnished a signed written agreement with the governing board promising to pay the required fees prior to issuance of a building permit (which fees shall be those in effect, if any, as of the date of issuance of the building permit), and an applicant for a building permit has furnished evidence of payment of the required fees to the governing board; or

C. An applicant for approval of a residential development has furnished evidence, in the form of a signed written agreement with the governing board, that the applicant has paid or promised to pay, and the governing board has accepted or promised to accept, fees, to be used exclusively for capital expenditures, in mitigation of the impact of proposed residential development on the school district in lieu of fees otherwise required under this chapter or Section 65970 et seq. of the California Government Code. Fees paid or promised under the alternate provisions of this subsection shall not exceed the fees which would otherwise be required pursuant to the resolution of the city council. (Ord. 2780 § 1, 1982)

A. Upon request of the governing board, the city council shall impose as a condition of approval of a residential development containing more than fifty parcels that the applicant dedicate to the governing board a parcel of land to be used as a site for classroom facilities, whose location is consistent with the city general plan. Except as may otherwise be agreed between the school district and the subdivider, the fair market value of land so dedicated shall not exceed the amount of fees which would otherwise be paid for approval of residential development of the dedicated parcel to the high density of any other portion of the applicant’s residential development.

B. In case land is dedicated in connection with approval of a subdivision, the fair market value of the land at the time of such approval shall be established by agreement between the governing board of the school district and the subdivider, and the amount thereof shall be reported to the planning director; and if they cannot agree, they shall report that fact to the city council, which shall establish such fair market value after a public hearing, noticed as provided in Section 15.70.040.

C. The planning director shall ascertain the amount of fees which are, or would be, payable as a condition to approval of the subdivision under the standards adopted by the city council.

D. Except as may otherwise be agreed between the school district and the subdivider, if the fair market value of the land, as determined under subsection B of this section, exceeds the amount of fees ascertained under subsection C, at such time as approval of the tentative map and the acceptance of the dedication have both been completed, the school district shall pay the subdivider the amount by which such fair market value exceeds the amount of such fees so ascertained.

E. If the school district pays the subdivider the amount of the excess mentioned in subsection D of this section, the amount to be credited to each lot in the subdivision shall be based on the amount ascertained under subsection C of this section, instead of the fair market value of the land.

F. If the fair market value of the land, as determined under this section, is equal to or less than the amount ascertained under subsection C of this section, the amount of such value shall be credited to the respective lots in the subdivision.

G. The provisions of this section shall also apply in case land is dedicated in connection with approval of a mobile home park, in which case references to subdivision shall mean mobile home park and references to lots shall mean mobile home sites.

H. If land is dedicated to a school district for a fixed or ascertainable term, there shall be established under this section the fair rental value of a lease of such land for such term, and the amount so established shall be applied in lieu of fair market value wherever mentioned in this section.

I. At any city council hearing for the purpose of establishing fair market value of land, as mentioned in subsection C, the city council shall consider the reports of three appraisers, one to be selected by the school district, one to be selected by the subdivider, and one to be selected by the two selected by the district and the subdivider. The fees and expenses of such appraisers shall be divided equally between and paid by the school district and the subdivider, and in any case the city shall not be liable therefor. (Ord. 2780 § 1, 1982)

Fees or land provided pursuant to Section 15.70.040 of this chapter shall be used only for the purpose of providing interim classroom facilities. The fees established by resolution of the city council shall not exceed the amount necessary to enable the district to make five annual lease payments for temporary classroom and toilet facilities, including related expenses to make them ready for the instruction of children. (Ord. 2780 § 1, 1982)

A builder of a residential development who would otherwise be required to pay fees to a school district pursuant to Section 15.70.040 of this chapter may, at his or her option and sole expense, provide interim facilities owned or controlled by the builder at a place designated by the governing board. These facilities shall be installed prior to or, at the governing board’s option, within ninety days of the issuance of building permits to the developer and shall remain in place for five complete school years. After the fifth year, the facilities shall be removed, and the school district’s property restored, at the builder’s sole expense. (Ord. 2780 § 1, 1982)

The governing board shall file with the city council not later than October 15th of each year an account of the following:

A. The amount of fees received by the governing board in the preceding fiscal year (July 1st through June 30th).

B. The facilities leased, purchased or constructed during the previous fiscal year and the amount expended for the facilities.

C. The attendance areas which will continue to be overcrowded in the current school year, and those which are no longer overcrowded.

D. A schedule specifying how the governing board will use fees or land acquired pursuant to this chapter to relieve overcrowding, the sites to be used, the facilities to be acquired and the times when the facilities will be available. (Ord. 2780 § 1, 1982)

On request of a governing board, and following a public hearing held within sixty days of the receipt of that request, the city council shall consider adjusting the fee schedule applicable in any attendance area to reflect new information provided by the governing board on the fees necessary to alleviate overcrowding caused by new residential development in that attendance area. (Ord. 2780 § 1, 1982)

Where two separate school districts operate schools in an attendance area where overcrowding conditions exist for both school districts, the city council shall enter into an agreement with the governing board of each school district for the purpose of determining the distribution of revenues from the fees. (Ord. 2780 § 1, 1982)

A. If overcrowding conditions cease to exist in any attendance area of a school district as to which fee or land dedication requirements have been imposed pursuant to this chapter, the governing board of the district shall promptly adopt a resolution so finding and send a certified copy of it to the city council.

B. When it is determined by the city council that conditions of overcrowding no longer exist in an attendance area, whether or not such determination follows a resolution by the governing board as provided in subsection A of this section, the requirements of this chapter shall cease to apply therein. (Ord. 2780 § 1, 1982)