Chapter 17.140 — APPEALS

This Chapter provides procedures for appealing determinations and actions made by the City Planner, Site Plan Review Committee, or Commission.

Determinations and actions that may be appealed, and the authority to act upon an appeal shall be as follows.

• A. City Planner decisions. Any decision by the City Planner including zoning clearances, may be appealed to the Commission.

• B. Site Plan Review Committee decisions. Any decision by the Site Plan Review Committee may be appealed to the Planning Commission.

• C. Planning Commission decisions. Any decision by the Planning Commission may be appealed to the City Council.

• D. City Manager's appeal of Site Plan Review Committee or Planning Commission decisions. Any decision by the Site Plan Review Committee or Planning Commission may be appealed to the Council by the City Manager.

• E. Council review/appeal.

  1. Any member of the Council within 10 calendar days from the date of the review authority's action may request the opportunity to review/discuss any decision rendered by the City Planner, Site Plan Review Committee, or Planning Commission.

  2. The Council may appeal any decision by the City Planner, Site Plan Review Committee, or Planning Commission at the next available council meeting if a member of the Council has requested the opportunity to review the decision within 10 calendar days from the date of the review authority's action. A majority vote of the Council is required to initiate the appeal.

• F. Statute of limitations. The decision of the Council shall be final on all matters unless an appeal is filed with the Superior Court of the County of Amador within 30 days after the decision of the Council.

• A. Timing and form of appeal.

  1. Appeals shall be submitted in writing, and filed with the City Clerk within 10 days from the date of the review authority's action except as allowed by Section 17.140.020(D) .

  2. The appeal shall state the pertinent facts of the case and the basis for the appeal.

  3. Appeals shall be accompanied by the filing fee set by the Council's Fee Resolution.

• B. Scheduling of hearing and City Planner's report. When an appeal has been filed, the City Planner shall schedule the matter for consideration by the appropriate appeal body identified in Section 17.140.020 (Allowable Appeals) and prepare a report on the matter. If the matter originally required a noticed public hearing, the City Clerk shall give notice in the same manner followed for the original hearing, in compliance with Chapter 17.180 (Public Hearings).

• C. Review by City Planner.

  1. The City Planner shall determine if the appeal was filed within the applicable time limits and shall summarily reject any appeal which was filed beyond the time limits. Further, the City Planner shall determine if the appeal contains sufficient information as required by subsection A (Timing and form of appeal) above.

  2. If the City Planner determines that the information in the appeal is incomplete, the City Planner shall immediately notify the appellant of the insufficiency and allow the appellant an additional seven days in which to correct the deficiency.

  3. If upon the expiration of any additional time, the City Planner determines that the statement on appeal is still insufficient, the City Planner shall summarily reject the appeal.

• D. City attorney's authority to summarily reject appeal. Upon presentation of the Notice of Appeal, together with the required statement on appeal, the City Attorney may summarily reject the appeal if the City Attorney finds that the matter being appealed is a requirement of law.

• E. Action. At the hearing, the appeal body may consider any issue involving the matter being appealed, in addition to the specific grounds for the appeal.

  1. The appeal body may, by resolution, affirm, affirm in part, or reverse the action, the decision, or determination of the original review authority.

  2. When reviewing an appeal, the appeal body may:

     • a. Deny the permit or entitlement, even though the appeal only requested relaxation or elimination of one or more of the conditions imposed on the permit or entitlement: or

     • b. Impose additional conditions that may address other issues or concerns than the original subject of the appeal.

  3. The appellant and other interested parties shall not present new evidence and testimony at the appeal hearing unless the party can demonstrate, to the satisfaction of the appeal body, that new information:

     • a. Was not previously available to the party, or

     • b. The party could not have participated in the review process because they could not have known about the review process.

4. If new or different evidence is presented on appeal, the Commission or council, may, but shall not be required to, refer the matter to the original review authority for further consideration.

• F. Refund of appeal fees. Appeal fees may be refunded in only the following situations:

  1. Upon the conclusion of any appeal, where the Council upholds the appeal and overturns the decision of the review authority, the Council may also authorize the return of all, or a portion, of the appeal fees; or

  2. Upon the conclusion of any appeal, where the Council denies the appeal but finds that the appellant(s) raised issues of substantial merit, the Council may authorize the return of any portion of the appeal fees deemed just.