Chapter 2.30 — PLANNING COMMISSION

A planning commission of the city is established pursuant to Article VIII, Section 15 of the Grass Valley City Charter.

(Ord. 580 § 2 (part), 1999)

A.

The planning commission shall consist of five adult members, all to be appointed by the city council. After complying with Government Code Section 54970, the city clerk shall submit a list of interested applicants for consideration to the council member(s) who will be recommending the appointment of a planning commissioner to city council. Each recommending council member shall submit the name of a city resident to the city council for consideration and appointment as a planning commissioner. If the majority of city council does not vote to appoint a recommended individual, the recommending council member shall

submit the name of another city resident for city council consideration and appointment. Any member appointed after March 1, 2004, shall be a resident of the City of Grass Valley.

B.

Members of the city council and city staff are ineligible for membership on the planning commission.

(Ord. 647 § 1, 2005: Ord. 637 § 1, 2004: Ord. 593 § 1, 2001: Ord. 580 § 2 (part), 1999)

The terms of the present members of the planning commission shall expire on the effective date of the ordinance codified in this chapter. The terms of the succeeding five members appointed by the council shall be staggered. Three members shall be appointed to serve until the first regular meeting of the council held in December 2008 at which time they or their successors shall be appointed by the city council to serve for a period of four years. Two members shall be appointed to serve until the first regular meeting of the city council in December 2006 at which time they or their successors shall be appointed by the city council to serve for a period of four years. The term of each planning commissioner shall expire at the same time as the term of council member who recommended his or her appointment.

The term of the commissioner shall continue for up to four years as long as the council member who recommended the appointment continues in office. If a council member shall not complete the term for which he or she was elected, a newly appointed council member shall recommend to city council whether to allow the commissioner to continue serving or be removed so that a new commissioner may be appointed.

Notwithstanding the term of service defined herein, all commissioners shall continue to serve until their successors are appointed and qualified.

(Ord. 647 § 2, 2005: Ord. 580 § 2 (part), 1999)

A.

The planning commission shall act as a consulting and advisory board to the city council and shall make investigations and recommendations in an advisory capacity, either upon its own initiative, or upon the request of the city staff, or the city council, of matters not relegated to other boards or commissions pertaining to growth, development and beautification of the city.

B.

Planning commission action shall be final or advisory to the city council based upon the following categories of actions taken:

Advisory. The following actions shall be advisory to the city council: general plan and specific plan adoption, street closures and street vacations, zoning text amendments, density bonus, annexation

proceedings, development agreements and capital improvement plans option;

Advisory if Approved—Final if Denied. General plan and specific plan amendments and zone changes are advisory to the city council if approved and final if denied, absent an appeal;

Final Action. The following actions shall be final absent an appeal: tentative maps; variances; conditional use permits; planned unit developments; parcel maps; zoning text interpretations; design and site review as provided in Grass Valley Zoning Ordinance No. 69 N.S., Article 16B and city council resolutions pertaining to same; other routine actions as directed by the city council are final, absent an appeal.

(Ord. 580 § 2 (part), 1999)

There is hereby established a development review committee whose membership shall be comprised of three city employees, specifically the community development director, the city engineer and the fire chief or their designees, a member of the planning commission with an alternate appointed by the city council to serve one-year terms beginning July 1, and a design professional under contract with the city. The alternate from the planning commission shall rotate in attendance and serve as the planning commission representative at least six times per year. After the completion of their one-year term, the primary representative from the planning commission shall not be reappointed for a minimum of two years unless there are no other commissioners who volunteer to fulfill this appointment. All reviews by the development review committee shall be subject to and in accordance with the city's design and development ordinances and guidelines then in effect. The development review committee shall:

A.

Be responsible for reviewing those projects which are of the nature, type and scale so as to make them subject to planning commission review and approval; the committee shall make formal its recommendations to the planning commission.

B.

Review and approve without further review by the planning commission those projects which are deemed to be routine, noncontroversial or of such a small scale as to not require planning commission approval.

(Ord. 580, § 2 (part), 1998; Ord. 623 § 1, 2003; Ord. No. 677 N.S. § 1, 7-31-2007)

Any member of the planning commission may be removed at any time by a majority vote of the city council without a hearing or cause.

(Ord. 580 § 2 (part), 1999)

A commissioner's seat will be deemed vacant whenever such commissioner, without excuse from the planning commission, misses three consecutive meetings or misses one-third or more of all regular meetings within any six-month period. Attendance of less than fifty percent of any meeting will be counted as an absence.

(Ord. 580 § 2 (part), 1999)

The planning commission shall elect at its first regular meeting following its formation a chairperson and vice-chairperson from among its members to serve until their successors are elected at the first regular meeting in January 2001. The chairperson and vice-chairpersons, so elected, shall thereafter serve for a term of one year. The community development director or his or her designee is designated ex officio secretary to the planning commission.

(Ord. 580 § 2 (part), 1999)

Three members of the planning commission shall constitute a quorum: a majority of a quorum is necessary to approve or disapprove an action.

(Ord. 580 § 2 (part), 1999)

The planning commission shall hold at least one regular meeting in each month and shall hold such other meetings as shall be called in the manner and form required by law.

(Ord. 580 § 2 (part), 1999)

The planning commission shall adopt its own rules for transaction of business and shall keep a record of its resolutions, transactions, findings, determinations and recommendations, which records shall be public records.

(Ord. 580 § 2 (part), 1999)

Members of the planning commission shall receive compensation as determined by the city council for up to two meetings per month. It shall be the duty of the members of such commission to inform themselves on matters affecting the functions and duties of the commission, and to that end, when authorized by the city council, may attend planning conferences, meetings of planning executives, hearings on planning legislation or matters affecting their work, and their reasonable expenses incidental to such attendance's shall be charges upon the funds allocated to the planning commission.

(Ord. 580 § 2 (part), 1999)