Cathedral City Municipal Code Art. 3 Rules and Regulations for Historic Sites

No person may undertake any of the following within or upon a historic site without a certificate of appropriateness from the historic preservation committee:

A. Construction of a new structure;

B. The moving, demolition or alteration of an existing structure in any manner which affects the exterior appearance of the structure;

C. A change in land use which affects the exterior appearance of a structure;

D. The erection, remodeling or replacing of a sign which affects the exterior appearance of a structure.

(Ord. 865 § 2, 2022)

The owner of a historic site who desires to undertake any of the activity listed in Section 8.62.200 shall file an application for a certificate of appropriateness upon a form prescribed by the city. The application shall include all necessary information required by the rules of the historic preservation committee. At a minimum, the application shall be accompanied with the following documentation and information:

A. A brief description of the proposed demolition, alteration or new construction;

B. Photographs of each exterior side of the structure or building to be demolished, altered or constructed;

C. Drawings for conceptual review of any demolition, alteration or new construction work;

D. Material samples and/or manufacturer's brochures which show and describe the materials to be used in the alteration or new construction;

E. A site plan showing the location of the proposed demolition, alteration or new construction work;

F. If signage is part of the proposed alteration work, drawings showing the specifications for the signage and demonstrating conformance to the city's sign ordinance or approved sign program; and

G. Any other information which the city staff deems necessary to accurately describe the scope of alteration or new construction work proposed.

(Ord. 865 § 2, 2022)

The historic preservation committee shall make the following findings, as applicable, prior to approving a certificate of appropriateness:

A. For Class 1 or Class 2 sites, that the proposed work does not significantly impact or materially impair a character-defining features of the historic site, or, where a character-defining feature may be impacted, the proposed work minimizes that impact as much as possible;

B. For Class 1 or Class 2 sites, that the proposed work will assist in restoring the historic site to its original appearance where applicable, or will substantially aid its preservation or enhancement as a historic resource;

C. For Class 1 or Class 2 sites, that any additions to the historic site are consistent with the massing, proportions, materials, and finishes of the existing historic resource, and: (1) can be distinguished from the existing historic site as may be appropriate; or (2) are indistinguishable from the historic site as may be appropriate, and where such alterations are clearly documented in the city's archival file for the historic site as being non-original to the historic site;

D. For Class 3 sites, there is no evidence that the historic site meets the criteria for designation as a Class 1 or Class 2 historic site;

E. If federal funds are to be utilized in financing the proposed alterations, the alterations are consistent with the Standards for the Treatment of Historic Properties, as put forth by the U.S. Secretary of the Interior;

F. If the applicable findings above cannot be made, a certificate of appropriateness may still be approved if one of the following findings is made:

1. The retention of the structure constitutes a hazard to public safety and the hazard cannot be eliminated by economic means available to the owner, or

2. The structure is a deterrent to a major improvement program which substantially benefits the city, or

3. Retention of the structure causes an undue hardship to the owner, or

4. Retention of the structure is not in the interest of the majority of the inhabitants of the city.

(Ord. 865 § 2, 2022)

The historic preservation committee shall consider and pass upon only the exterior features of a structure in determining whether to approve an application for a certificate of appropriateness and may not consider the interior arrangement of the structure. The committee may not disapprove applications except in regard to the considerations set forth in this chapter and in rules and regulations adopted by the committee pursuant to this chapter.

(Ord. 865 § 2, 2022)

A. Upon the filing of a complete application, city staff shall review the application and supporting materials and prepare a report and recommendation for review by the historic preservation committee.

B. The historic preservation committee shall consider the report and recommendation by city staff, along with any other testimony and evidence, at a public hearing noticed as provided in Section 8.62.140, and determine whether the findings required by Section 8.62.220 can be made. The historic preservation committee shall either approve, approve with modifications, or deny the requested certificate of appropriateness.

C. Any person aggrieved by an action of the historic preservation committee may appeal the decision to the city council in the manner provided in Section 2.04.100 of this code.

D. No person may do any work upon a structure which is a subject of an application until a certificate of appropriateness is approved.

(Ord. 865 § 2, 2022)

No application for the same or similar work may be filed within one year after the committee has rejected it.

(Ord. 865 § 2, 2022)

The regulations contained in this chapter do not apply to routine maintenance or repair to restore a structure as near as possible to its original condition after decay, injury, dilapidation or partial destruction of a structure upon an historic site, provided said maintenance or repair does not exceed one percent of the assessed value of the property.

(Ord. 865 § 2, 2022)

This chapter does not apply to construction, alteration, moving or demolition of a structure started under a building permit issued before the effective date of this chapter.

(Ord. 865 § 2, 2022)

Any person who violates a provision of this chapter is guilty of an infraction. The city may take action to enforce the provisions of this chapter as provided for in Title 13 of this code, including, but not limited to, the issuance of an administrative citation.

(Ord. 865 § 2, 2022)

In addition to the above, if the city manager or their designee determines, based upon substantial evidence, that a violation of this chapter has occurred, the city manager or designee shall issue their written notice of decision to the owner of the site upon which the violation occurred, as well as to all applicable city departments. Thereafter, the city shall not issue building, demolition or any other development permits for the site upon which the violation occurred for a period of three years from the date of the notice of determination. The notice of determination may be appealed pursuant to Section 2.04.100 of this code. This restriction shall not apply to permits that must be issued by the city to the owner of the site in order to comply with applicable federal, state or local law. Once a determination is final, the city manager or designee shall record a notice to this effect with the Riverside County recorder's office. A final and recorded determination pursuant to this section shall run with the land and be binding upon all owners, lessees, affiliates, agents, successors and assigns seeking a building, demolition or other development permit for the subject site.

(Ord. 865 § 2, 2022)

The provisions of this chapter are separate from and additional to all other requirements of law, including, but not limited to, compliance with other ordinances and codes of the city, conditions of approval of land use permits and architectural review and approval. Neither a recommendation of approval nor any other provisions of this chapter shall be deemed to relieve the owner or applicant from full compliance with any such laws, ordinances, codes or conditions.

(Ord. 865 § 2, 2022)

A. If at any time the city has reason to believe that any activity listed in Section 8.62.200 is occurring without the prior issuance of a certificate of appropriateness, the city's building official may issue an order staying all construction activity on the property until such time as a certificate of appropriateness is obtained or a determination is made by the city that no certificate of appropriateness is required for the work to be performed. The property owner shall have thirty days from the date the stay order is issued to either apply for a certificate of appropriateness or appeal the stay order on the grounds that no certificate of appropriateness is required. Any such appeal shall first be heard by the historic preservation committee and may be further appealed to the city council as provided for in Section 8.64.240.

B. Upon the issuance of a stay order, no permit shall be given for the demolition or exterior alteration of any structure on the subject site, and any such permit previously issued shall forthwith be revoked; provided, however, that a stay order shall not prevent the performance of any repairs, demolition, or removal necessary for the protection of public health or safety, and ordered by the building official of the city.

(Ord. 865 § 2, 2022)