Chapter 838.5 — APPLICATION FILING, PROCESSING, AND FEES

The purpose of this Chapter is to identify the procedures for the filing and processing of the different land use permit or approval applications contained within this Article.

An applicant for a development project, which requires the filing of more than one application, shall file all related applications, except for Site Plan Reviews, concurrently and submit appropriate processing deposits/fees in compliance with Section 838.5.060 (Application Fees), below, unless this concurrent filing requirement is waived by the Director.

• A. Permit required before work. Before commencing any work pertaining to the alteration, construction, conversion, erection, moving, or reconstruction of any structure, or any addition to any structure, a permit shall be secured from the Department by any owner or owner’s agent for the work, and it shall be unlawful to commence any work until and unless the permit shall have been obtained.

• B. Certificate of Occupancy required. No structure shall be occupied or used unless a Certificate of Occupancy, and a license for the use, where required, is first obtained from the Department or person vested with the duty or authority to issue same.

• A. Building Permit application requirements.

  1. Each application for a Building Permit shall be made on a printed form to be obtained from the Department and shall be accompanied by accurate information and dimensions as to the size and location of the parcel; the size and location of the structures on the parcel; the dimensions of all yards and open spaces; and other information as may be necessary for the enforcement of those regulations.

  2. Where complete and accurate information is not readily available from existing records, the Division of Building and Safety may require the applicant to furnish a survey of the parcel prepared by a licensed surveyor.

  3. A copy of the original of the application shall be kept in the office of the Division of Building and Safety.

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FRESNO COUNTY ORDINANCE CODE - DIVISION 6, ZONING ORDINANCE

Application Filing, Processing, and Fees

Chapter 838.5

B. Review of application.

1. Each application shall be reviewed for compliance with the requirements of this Chapter.

2. No permit shall be granted unless the proposal meets all applicable requirements of this Chapter.

C. Completion of all improvements required.

1. Before a Certificate of Occupancy Permit shall be issued, all required on-site (outside the County right-of-way) and off-site (within the County right-of-way) improvements shall have either been completed or, if not completed, the permittee shall have entered into an agreement with the County to complete the work within 180 days from the date of the issuance of the permit.

2. The Director may extend the completion date for one additional 180-day period upon written request of the permittee upon a showing of good cause therefore.

3. The agreement shall be secured either by cash deposited with the County, a cash deposit in an irrevocable escrow approved by the Director, or other financial security approved by the Director as the equivalent thereof in compliance with Chapter 868.6.070 (Performance Guarantees).

4. The security shall be in the amount of 100 percent of the estimated cost of completion to be determined by the Director.

5. In the event the work is not completed within the period provided or any extension, the County shall be authorized to take all necessary action to enforce the agreement including the use of the security to cause the completion of all required improvements.

6. Monies deposited with the County or in escrow may be partially released to the depositor by the Director during the progress of the work so long as the same ratio of security is maintained on deposit to secure all uncompleted work.

6.

A. Applicability.

1. The provisions of this Section shall not apply to structures or uses exempted by this Chapter.

2. No Building Permit shall be issued or Conditional Use Permit, Director’s Review and Approval, Minor Deviation, Site Plan Review, or a Variance approved for any use which would be forbidden by a proposed change in the subject zone or zoning regulation(s).

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3. In addition, all Building Permits, Conditional Use Permits, Director’s Review and Approvals, Minor Deviations, Site Plan Reviews, Variances, parcel maps, or final maps shall meet the property development standards of the existing zone or zoning regulation(s), or the proposed zone or zoning regulation(s), whichever is the more restrictive.

4. A change of zone or zoning regulation(s) shall be construed as initiated by the filing of an application of a Zone Map amendment, by the adoption of a resolution of intention by the Commission or Board, or by Board direction to staff in compliance with Chapter 872.6 (Amendments).

• B. Director may validate the issuance of a permit.

  1. Despite any other provision of this Chapter to the contrary, the Director may validate the issuance of a permit authorizing construction in compliance with the impending zoning regulation(s) on property being rezoned after the Board has taken affirmative action adopting an ordinance rezoning the property, provided the permittee and owner of the land and owner of the property being constructed shall have entered into a written agreement with the Director to the effect that should the zoning for any reason whatsoever not be effective, the permittee or owner shall remove from the property, within 30 days following written notice from the Director, any improvements or construction authorized by the permit and in conflict with existing zoning regulations and restore the property as nearly as practicable to its prior condition.

2. The written agreement may include provisions dealing with a bond, cash deposit, covenants running with the land, entry permission, hold harmless clause, lien clause, and similar provisions to ensure that should the permittee or owner fail to so remove the improvements or construction that the County could accomplish the removal without cost to the County.

Table 5-1 (Review Authority) identifies the County official or authority responsible for reviewing and making decisions on each type of application or land use entitlement required by this Zoning Ordinance.

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Notes:

• (1) The Director may defer action and refer any permit or approval application to the Commission for final determination except in the case of a Reasonable Accommodation.

• (2) Commission recommends to Board for final determination.

• (3) Specific conditionally permitted uses may be allowed subject to recommendation by the Commission and approval by the Board.

• (4) The Director’s decision on a Reasonable Accommodations request may be appealed to the County Hearing Officer.

A. Filing fees required.

1. The Board shall, by resolution, establish a schedule of fees for amendments, permits and approvals, and other matters pertaining to this Zoning Ordinance, referred to in this Zoning Ordinance as the Master Schedule of Fees. The purpose of the fee is to defray the costs incidental to the proceedings.

2. The Master Schedule of Fees may be changed only by resolution of the Board.

3. County processing fees are cumulative. For example, if an application for a Conditional Use Permit also requires a Minor Deviation, both fees shall be charged.

4. Processing shall not commence on an application until all required fees/deposits have been paid.

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5. Without the application fee/deposit, the application shall not be deemed complete.

6. The County is not required to continue processing any application unless all fees/deposits are paid in full.

B. Refunds and withdrawals.

1. Recognizing that filing fees are used to cover County costs of public hearings, mailing, posting, transcripts, and staff time involved in processing applications, no refunds for denied projects are allowed.

2. In the case of a withdrawal, the Director may authorize a complete or partial refund based upon the prorated costs to-date and determination of the status of the application at the time of withdrawal.

All applications filed with the Department shall be initially reviewed and processed as follows.

• A. Notification of applicant. As required by Government Code Section 65943, within 30 calendar days of application filing, the applicant shall be informed in writing, either that the application is complete and has been accepted for processing, or that the application is incomplete and that additional information, specified in the Director’s letter, shall be provided.

• B. Submittal of additional information.

  1. When an application is incomplete, the time used by the applicant to submit the required additional information shall not be considered part of the time within which the determination of completeness shall occur.

  2. The additional specified information shall be submitted in writing or electronically, as required.

  3. The review of the any information resubmitted by the applicant shall be accomplished in compliance with this Section, along with another 30-day period of review for completeness.

• C. Available for public review. After an application, has been accepted as complete, in compliance with the Freedom of Information Act the application may be made available for public review as requested.

• D. Environmental Information. After an application has been accepted as complete, additional information may be needed for the environmental review of the project in compliance with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and the County’s CEQA guidelines.

• E. Routing of application. An application will be routed to any public agency that may be affected by or have an interest in the proposed land use activity.

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