Eureka Municipal Code § 155.416 Appeals and Reviews

This § 155.416 establishes procedures for the appeal and review of decisions made on ministerial and discretionary actions.

(Ord. 885-C.S., passed 5-21-19)

(A) Appealable decisions.

(1) Table 404-1 in § 155.404 (Administrative Responsibilities) identifies decisions that may be appealed and the body that hears the appeal.

(2) In addition to the permits and decisions in Table 404-1, any discretionary decision made by the Director when administering the Zoning Code may be appealed to the Planning Commission, and any discretionary decision by the Planning Commission may be appealed to the City Council. For notices of pending Director action, the Zoning Code allows for a request for a hearing in lieu of an appeal of the Director's action.

(3) Ministerial actions of the Department, Director, and other city staff when administering the Zoning Code may be appealed to the Planning Commission.

(B) In addition to the permits and decisions in Table 404-1, any discretionary decision made by the Director when administering the Zoning Code may be appealed to the Planning Commission, and any discretionary decision by the Planning Commission may be appealed to the City Council.

(C) Ministerial actions of the Department, Director and other city staff when administering the Zoning Code may be appealed to the Planning Commission.

(Ord. 885-C.S., passed 5-21-19; Am. Ord. 951-C.S., passed 10-17-23)

(A) Eligibility.

(1) Any aggrieved person may submit an appeal of decisions shown in Table 404-1 in § 155.404 (Administrative Responsibilities).

(2) For decisions made at a public hearing, an appeal may only be filed by a person who:

(a) Submitted written concerns about specific aspects of the project for consideration by the review authority at the public hearing;

(b) Verbally expressed concerns about specific aspects of the project during the public comment period for the public hearing; or

(c) Submitted written comments to the Department prior to the public hearing expressing concerns about specific aspects of the project.

(3) The Director, the Chief Building Official, or two City Council members may appeal a decision made at a public hearing within ten days following the date of the decision by filing a written appeal with the Department or City Clerk pursuant to § 155.416.030(C)(1)(a) or (b).

(B) Timing of appeal. An appeal must be filed within ten days following the date of the decision, unless a longer appeal period is specified as part of the project approval.

(C) Form of appeal.

(1) An appeal must be submitted in writing on a form provided by the city with all required fees. Appeals must be submitted to:

(a) The Department for appeals of Director and Design Review Committee decisions; and

(b) The City Clerk for appeals of Planning Commission decisions.

(2) The appeal must state the pertinent facts and the basis for the appeal.

(3) The whole decision or part of the decision may be appealed. If an appellant chooses, an appeal may be taken solely from any finding, action or condition.

(4) For decisions made at a public hearing, an appeal is limited to:

(a) Issues raised at or prior to the hearing, either through public comment or in writing; or

(b) Information that was not known by the review authority when the decision was made.

(5) Decisions resulting from the review authority’s abuse of discretion.

(D) Effect of appeal. Once an appeal is filed, any action on the associated project is suspended until the appeal is processed and a final decision is rendered by the appeal body.

(E) Report and scheduling of hearing.

(1) When an appeal has been filed, the Department will prepare a report on the matter, including all of the application materials in question.

(2) The Department must schedule the matter for a public hearing by the appeal body within 60 days of the filing of the appeal.

(3) Notice of the hearing will be provided and the hearing must be conducted in compliance with § 155.408.100 (Public Hearings).

(4) Any interested person may appear and be heard regarding the appeal.

(5) All appeals on a single project must be considered together at the same hearing, including any continuation thereof.

(F) Hearing and decision.

(1) During the appeal hearing, the appeal body may take action on the subject of the appeal or any aspect of the appealed project (de novo review). The appeal body must make its own decision supported by findings.

(2) The appeal body’s decision may:

(a) Affirm, modify or reverse the action that is the subject of the appeal;

(b) Adopt additional conditions of approval that address the matter appealed;

(c) Remand the appeal for further review, recommendation or action to the previous review authority; or

(d) In the case of appeals heard by the Planning Commission, forward the appeal to the City Council for review and decision.

(3) The appeal body’s action must be based on findings of fact about the particular case. The findings must identify the reasons for the appeal body’s action and verify the compliance of the subject of the appeal with the Zoning Code.

(4) A matter being heard on appeal may be continued for good cause (e.g., additional California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) review is required).

(5) If the appeal body is unable to reach a decision on the matter appealed, the appeal is denied and the decision of the previous review authority remains in effect.

(G) Effective date of appeal decision.

(1) City Council decision. A decision of the City Council on an appeal is final and effective on the date the decision is rendered.

(2) Other decisions. A decision of the Planning Commission, Historic Preservation Commission, or Design Review Committee is final and effective ten days after the decision is made, unless an appeal has been filed in compliance with this section.

(Ord. 885-C.S., passed 5-21-19; Am. Ord. 902-C.S., passed 8-18-20)

No person has standing to seek judicial review of a city decision on a permit or other matter under the Zoning Code unless and until all appeals have been exhausted.

(Ord. 885-C.S., passed 5-21-19)