Chapter 846.5 — DIRECTOR’S REVIEW AND APPROVAL

The purpose of this Chapter is to protect the integrity and character of the residential, commercial, and industrial areas of the County, through the application of provisions of this Chapter consistent with the General Plan. The application will be reviewed for conformance to established standards.

• A. Director’s Review and Approvals listed in Article 2. The land use activities listed in Article 2 (Zones, Allowable Land Uses, and Zone-Specific Standards) may be allowable subject to the approval of a Director’s Review and Approval.

• B. Unclassified Director’s Review and Approvals for specified uses. In addition, to those uses allowed subject to a “Classified” Director’s Review and Approval listed in Article 2, the following uses may be allowed by Unclassified Director’s Review and Approval, except where expressly prohibited:

  1. Ham radio towers which exceed the maximum structure height allowed in the zone.

  2. Billboards, limited to the C-3, C-4, C-6, C-M, M-1, M-2, and M-3 zones, with a sign face area exceeding 75 square feet and/or a height exceeding 18 feet, subject to the provisions of Chapter 830.3 (Signs).

• C. Class II Home Occupations. Class II Home Occupations may be allowed subject to the review and approval of a Director’s Review and Approval in compliance with this Chapter and Section 834.4.190 (Home Occupation Standards).

• A. Filing. An application for a Director’s Review and Approval, together with the required fee in compliance with the Master Schedule of Fees, shall be filed with the Department in compliance with Chapter 838.5 (Application Filing, Processing, and Fees).

• B. Contents. The application shall be accompanied by detailed and fully dimensioned plans, architectural drawings/sketches, elevations, floor plans, landscape plans, and/or any other data/materials specified in the most up-to-date Department handout for Director’s Review and Approval applications.

• C. Project review procedures. Following receipt of a completed application, the Director shall make an investigation of the facts bearing on the case to provide the information necessary for action consistent with the purpose of this Chapter.

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Chapter 846.5

• D. Review authority. The Director shall be the applicable review authority for reviewing Director’s Review and Approval applications.

E. Notice requirements.

1. Notice of application. Within 15 days of the acceptance of an application, owners of property located within a radius of 300 feet of the exterior boundaries of the subject property, shall be notified in writing of the application.

2. Opportunity to submit written comments. Notified persons shall be provided the opportunity to submit written comments within 15 days following the date of the notice.

3. Notice to owners. The notices shall be by mail; and the owners, for the purposes of the notices, shall be deemed to be the person(s) to whom the properties were assessed on the last assessment roll.

4. Address of owners. The address to which the written notice shall be mailed shall be that shown upon the latest assessment roll.

5. Notice of application. The notice of application shall not be required when an application is referred directly to the Commission for a decision.

Each Director’s Review and Approval application shall be analyzed to ensure that the application is consistent with the intent and purpose of this Chapter.

• A. Commission referral. When, in the opinion of the Director, the Director’s Review and Approval application submitted is of significant consequence or magnitude or involves potential public controversy, the Director may refer the application to the Commission for review and final decision.

• B. Next Commission agenda. Every attempt will be made to place the referral on the next available regular Commission meeting agenda following the Director’s referral.

• A. Director’s action.

  1. Following a hearing, the Director (or the Commission on a referral) shall record the decision in writing and shall recite the findings upon which the decision is based.

  2. The Director may approve or deny a Director’s Review and Approval in whole or in part and may impose specific development and operational conditions.

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• B. Required findings. The Director (or the Commission on a referral) may approve a Director’s Review and Approval application, with or without conditions, only if all the following findings are first made:

  1. The site for the proposed use is adequate in size and shape to accommodate the use and all yards, spaces, walls and fences, parking, loading, landscaping, and other features required by this Chapter, to adjust the use with land and uses in the neighborhood;

  2. The site for the proposed use relates to streets and highways adequate in width and pavement type to carry the quantity and kind of traffic generated by the proposed use;

  3. The proposed use will not be detrimental to the character of the development in the immediate neighborhood or the public health, safety, and general welfare; and

  4. The proposed development is consistent with the General Plan.

• C. Notice of approval.

  1. Written notice of approval. When an application is approved by the Director, written notice of the decision shall be mailed in compliance with Section 868.6.050 (Notice of Approval).

  2. Mobilehome park services. When an application relating to mobilehome park services is approved by the Director, the following procedures shall apply.

  - a. The applicant (property owner or owner’s representative) shall provide a list of all of the tenants within the mobilehome park. 
  
  - b. Those tenants located within 300 feet of the site of the proposed use shall be notified in lieu of the property owners identified in Subsection 846.5.020 E. (Notice requirements), above.
  

• A. Reasonable and necessary conditions. In approving a Director’s Review and Approval application, the Director (or the Commission on a referral) may impose conditions deemed reasonable and necessary to ensure that the approval would be in compliance with the findings required by Section 846.5.060 (Findings and Decision), above.

• B. Carry out the purpose of the subject zone. These conditions shall relate to both on and off-site improvements that are necessary to accommodate property development, mitigate project related adverse effects, and to carry out the purpose and requirements of the subject zone.

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Chapter 846.5

Director’s Review and Approval

The following procedures shall apply to all large child day care facilities subject to review and approval by the Director. Locational, developmental, and operational standards for large child day care facilities are specified in Section 834.4.100 (Child Day Care Facility Standards).

• A. Content of application. Any person seeking approval of a Director’s Review and Approval for a large child day care facility shall submit an application for the permit to the Department specifying any reasonably required information which the Director shall request.

• B. Review procedures.

  1. It shall be the duty of the Director to review the proposed use to ascertain all facts pertinent to it, and in writing to state approval, approval with conditions, or denial of the proposed use, together with the Director’s reasons for the decision.

  2. If a hearing is requested in compliance with Subparagraph 3., below, the Director shall refer the proposed application directly to the Commission for a public hearing and decision.

  3. If the proposed use is referred to the Commission, the hearing and Board appeal procedures of Chapter 842.5 (Conditional Use Permits) shall be followed.

  4. Notice of the public hearing shall be given and the hearing shall be conducted in compliance with Chapter 874.6 (Public Hearings).

  5. Those applications which are referred directly to the Commission by the Director shall be appealable to the Board.

  6. Those applications which are filed and heard concurrently with any application requiring a Board hearing, shall after the Commission decision, be heard by the Board together with that concurrent application.

• C. Notice of application.

  1. Provision of written notice. Not less than 10 days before the date on which the decision will be made on the application, the Director shall give written notice of the proposed use by mail or personal delivery to all property owners shown on the last equalized assessment roll as owning real property located within a 100-foot radius of the exterior boundaries of the proposed large child day care facility.

  2. Opportunity to request a public hearing. Notified persons shall be provided the opportunity to submit a written request for a public hearing on the application within 15 days following the date of the notice.

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3. Approval notice. When an application is approved by the Director, written notice of the decision shall be mailed in compliance with Chapter 842.5 (Conditional Use Permits).

4. Appeals. The provisions of Chapter 876.6 (Appeals) shall apply.

5. Time limit for development. The provisions of Section 868.6.080 (Expiration) shall apply.

6. Revocation. The provisions of Section 878.6.060 (Revocation and Modifications) shall apply.

7. Reapplication. The provisions of Section 868.6.110 (Resubmittals) shall apply.

Permits (e.g., building, grading, etc.) shall not be issued for any use involved in an application for a Director’s Review and Approval until and unless the same shall have become final, in compliance with Section 868.6.040 (Effective Date of Permits).

Modifications to an approved Director’s Review and Approval may be approved by the Director in compliance with Section 868.6.100 (Changes to an Approved Project).

The procedures relating to changes, performance guarantees, and revocation that are identified in Article 6 (Zoning Ordinance Administration) and those identified in Chapter 868.6 (Permit Implementation, Time Limits, Extensions and Revocation) shall apply following the decision on a Director’s Review and Approval application.

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Chapter 852.5

Reasonable Accommodations

– CHAPTER 852.5 REASONABLE ACCOMMODATIONS

This subsection provides a procedure to request Reasonable Accommodation for persons with disabilities seeking equal access to housing under the California Fair Employment and Housing Act, the Federal Fair Housing Act, and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) (also known as the Acts) in the application of zoning laws and other land use regulations, policies, and procedures in response to the needs of a person with a disability.

• A. Definitions. For the purposes of this subsection unless otherwise apparent from the context, certain words or phrases used in this subsection are defined as follows:

1. Person with a disability means: a person who has a physical or mental impairment that makes achievement of a major life activity difficult, as defined by state and federal disability laws; anyone who is regarded as having such impairment; or anyone with a record of such impairment.

2. RA Request means a request for a Reasonable Accommodation submitted by, or on behalf of, a person with a disability.

3. Reasonable Accommodation means providing persons with disabilities flexibility in the application of County programs, including County land-use, zoning and building regulations, policies, practices, and procedures, or waiving certain requirements when it is necessary to provide meaningful access to County programs or to eliminate barriers to housing opportunities for persons with disabilities.

4. Review Authority means the County employee who is the final authority on RA Requests as specified in subsection 825.5.020 below.

A. Review Authority.

Review Authority. The Director of Public Works and Planning (Director) is the final authority on a RA Request relating to a requirement of the Zoning Ordinance. The Director may designate an employee in the Department as the Review Authority, to make a final determination on such RA Requests. Denial of an RA Request may be appealed by the requestor to the County Hearing Officer as provided by subsection 852.5.060 below. The hearing officer’s decision is final.

B. Eligibility

1. An RA Request may be made by any person with a disability, his or her representative, or a developer or provider of housing or other services for persons with disabilities, when the application of a County land-use or building regulation, policy, practice, or

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procedure, acts as a barrier to meaningful access to County programs or to fair-housing opportunities for persons with disabilities.

2. The Acts afford no protection to persons with or without disabilities whose tenancy presents a direct threat to the persons or property of others. Determining whether someone’s tenancy poses such a direct threat must be made on an individualized basis, however, and may not be based on general assumptions or speculation about the nature of a disability.

C. Eligible request.

The subject matter of an RA Request may include a modification or exception to the practices, rules, or standards for a County program or for the development, siting, and use of housing or housing-related facilities that would eliminate regulatory barriers and provide a person with a disability with meaningful access to County programs and equal opportunity to housing of the person’s choice.

A. Requirements.

An RA Request may be initiated with the Department staff orally or in writing. The County will not require a requestor to use a particular form or medium to initiate an RA Request.

• B. Contents. An RA Request need not take any particular form or include particular information. Individuals submitting an RA Request are encouraged to provide information that will assist the Review Authority in making its determination. This information includes:

  1. Information necessary to establish the individual has a disability, unless the disability of the individual requesting an accommodation is readily apparent.

  2. A description of the needed accommodation or modification.

  3. A showing of the relationship between the disability and how the requested accommodation or modification is necessary to afford the person with a disability equal opportunity to use or enjoy a dwelling or housing opportunity.

C. Administration.

The Department may create any forms, documents, online portals, telephone hotlines, or other methods to facilitate the submittal of RA Requests.

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D. Development Proposals.

If a project involves both a request for Reasonable Accommodation and some other discretionary or ministerial approval, a requestor may submit the RA request for separate processing.

E. Initial Processing and Routing.

The law requires the Reasonable Accommodation process to be iterative and interactive. Department staff will assist requestors in completing their RA Request as needed to ensure that the process is accessible to persons with disabilities and will route all RA requests to the Review Authority.

• A. Application Review. The Review Authority will approve, approve with conditions, or deny an RA Request in accordance with the required findings in subsection 852.5.050 below.

C. Decision.

1. Request for Further Information. The Review Authority may request further information from the individual making an RA Request consistent with state and federal disability laws, including the Acts, and this subsection 855-O(4), specifying in detail the further information required.

2. Decision and Timing. The Review Authority will issue a written decision within 30 days of its receipt of a complete RA Request (including any additional information required under subsection 4.e.2.A. above). The written decision must: explain in detail the basis of the decision under the required findings in subsection 4.f., give notice of the applicant’s right to appeal the decision, and be sent to the applicant by first-class mail with return receipt requested.

• D. Compliance with other Regulations. An approved accommodation does not affect any person’s obligations to comply with all other applicable regulations not at issue in the requested accommodation.

• E. Confidentiality. All information concerning an RA Request will be kept confidential and will not be shared with other persons who are not directly involved in the interactive process or decision making about the RA Request unless disclosure is:

  1. Required to make or assess the decision to grant or deny the request for accommodation or modification.

  2. Required to administer or implement the requested accommodation or modification.

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3. Authorized by the individual with the disability in writing; or

4. Required by law.

• F. Finality . The decision of the Review Authority is final.

• A. Required Findings. Prior to approval of an RA Request, the following findings must be made consistent with the Acts:

  1. The housing which is the subject of the RA Request will be used by a person with disabilities protected under the Acts.

  2. As applicable, the requested accommodation is necessary to afford a person with disabilities protected under the Acts with equal opportunities to use or enjoy a dwelling or housing opportunity.

  3. The requested accommodation would not impose an undue financial or administrative burden on the County.

  4. The requested accommodation would not require a fundamental alteration in the nature of the County’s policies, practices, or procedures, including consideration of alternatives which may provide an equal level of benefit.

  5. The requested accommodation will not result in a direct and significant threat to the health or safety of other persons or substantial physical damage to the property of others.

• A. Notice of Appeal. The action of the Review Authority is final unless appealed within fifteen (15) business days of the date of mailing of the Review Authority’s written decision. The notice of appeal must be in writing.

• B. Appeal Procedure . The Review Authority will schedule the appeal to be heard by the County Hearing Officer (established by section 2.81.010 of the Fresno County Code of Ordinances) within thirty (30) calendar days from the date that the Review Authority receives the notice of appeal. The appeal hearing shall be confidential and be held in a manner with the Acts. Where the Acts are inconsistent with the procedural and evidentiary requirements of Chapter 2.81 of the Fresno County Code of Ordinances, the Hearing Officer shall comply with the requirements of the Acts. The decision of the Hearing Officer is final and shall be mailed by first-class mail to the applicant with return receipt requested.

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• C. Assistance with Appeal. Upon request, Department staff will provide assistance to a Requestor needing assistance in filing an appeal to ensure that the appeals process is accessible to persons with disabilities. However, Department staff is prohibited from providing legal advice or legal representation.

• A. Modifications Initiated by the Applicant. The individual(s) making the RA Request may apply for a modification to an accommodation. Any proposed modification will be treated by the Department as a new RA Request and will be subject to the procedures set forth in subsections above.

• B. Recission or Modification Initiated by the County.

  1. An approval or conditional approval of an RA Request may be conditioned to provide for its rescission or automatic expiration under appropriate circumstances (e.g., the individual(s) defined as disabled under the Acts vacates the subject site or the disability is temporary), unless allowed to remain under subsection 2 below.

  2. If the person(s) initially occupying the housing which is the subject of the RA Request vacates, the accommodation shall remain in effect only if the Review Authority first determines that:

     • i. The modification is physically integrated into the housing and cannot easily be removed or altered to comply with this Zoning Ordinance; or

     • ii. The accommodation is to be used by another qualifying person with a disability.

  3. Where an accommodation is to be used by another qualifying person with a disability, the Review Authority may request the individual making the RA Request, the successor-in-interest to the property, or the then-current property owner as appropriate to provide information allowed under the Acts that subsequent occupants are qualifying persons with disabilities.

  4. The Review Authority may make changes or revoke the approval of an RA Request when conditions of approval are violated, it is necessary to resolve a direct and significant threat to the health or safety of other persons or substantial physical damage to the property of others, or when the individual(s) making the RA Request provided incorrect, false, or misleading information.

  5. The Review Authority will notify the applicant of the change or revocation of the approval by first-class mail with return receipt requested no later than the next business day after the Review Authority’s decision.

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Chapter 854.5

Site Plan Review