Los Gatos Municipal Code Div. 4 Post-Approval Actions

Any interested person as defined in section 29.10.020 may appeal to the Planning Commission any decision of the Planning Director:

(1) Determining an application for a horse permit, for an amateur horse event or animal permit, for a home occupation permit, for a tree removal permit, for a sign permit, for a minor residential development permit, or denying a certificate of use and occupancy on the ground that the use is not allowed in the zone.

(2) Granting or denying an extension of time related to one (1) of the foregoing transactions.

(3) Revoking or modifying one (1) of the foregoing approval of permits.

(4) Determination of an unlawful demolition and/or the penalty and the cost assessment for the unlawful demolition.

(5) Determining a request for reasonable accommodation.

(6) Determining matters pertaining to historic preservation.

(Ord. No. 1316, § 5.30.010, 6-7-76; Ord. No. 1375, 11-21-77; Ord. No. 1654, 4-22-85; Ord. No. 1741, 12-21-87; Ord. No. 2083, § I, 5-7-01; Ord. No. 2149, § I, 5-1-06; Ord. No. 2222, § II(Exh. A), 10-21-13; Ord. No. 2283, § I, 5-21-19; Ord. No. 2355, § I, 4-2-24)

Any interested person as defined in section 29.10.020 may appeal to the Planning Commission any Development Review Committee decision making a determination authorized by section 29.20.745.

(Ord. No. 1900, § I, 5-4-92; Ord. No. 2283, § I, 5-21-19)

Editor's note— Ord. No. 2355, § II, adopted April 2, 2024, repealed § 29.20.258, which pertained to appeals from decisions of the historic preservation committee and derived from Ord. No. 1915, § I, 10-19-92; Ord. No. 2283, § I, 5-21-19.

The appellant must file a written notice of appeal with the Planning Director not more than ten (10) days after the date of mailing of written notification of the Planning Director's decision and not more than ten (10) days after the decision is rendered by the Development Review Committee or the Historic Preservation Committee. The notice shall state clearly the reasons why the appeal ought to be granted. Once a written notice of appeal has been filed, it may be withdrawn by the appellant at anytime prior to the distribution of public hearing notices, but not thereafter.

(Ord. No. 1316, § 5.30.020, 6-7-76; Ord. No. 1900, § II, 5-4-92; Ord. No. 1915, § II, 10-19-92; Ord. No. 2149, § I, 5-1-06)

(a) Hearing of the appeal shall be set for the first regular meeting of the Planning Commission in which the business of the Planning Commission will permit, more than five (5) days after the date of filing the appeal. The Planning Commission may hear the matter anew and render a new decision in the matter.

(b) For hearings dealing with an appeal of an unlawful demolition and/or the penalty fee for the lawful demolition the Planning Commission shall do the following:

(1) The Planning Commission shall consider any written or oral evidence consistent with its rules and procedures regarding the violation, compliance by the violator or by the real property owner, and the amount of the penalty.

(2) The Planning Commission shall make the findings and issue its determination regarding:

a. The existence of the violation;

b. The appropriateness of the amount of the penalty fee.

(3) The Planning Commission shall issue written findings of each violation. The findings shall be supported by evidence received at the hearing.

(4) If the Planning Commission finds by the evidence provided that a violation has occurred, the Planning Commission shall affirm the decision of the Planning Director.

(5) If the Planning Commission finds that no violation has occurred, the Planning Commission shall state a finding of those facts.

(6) The Planning Commission may approve or reduce the amount of the penalty but not the application penalty fee which is established by resolution.

(Ord. No. 1316, § 5.30.030, 6-7-76; Ord. No. 1375, 11-21-77; Ord. No. 2083, § I, 5-7-01)

Editor's note— Section III of Ord. No. 1900, adopted May 4, 1992, repealed former § 29.20.270, relative to appeals from decisions by the Development Review Committee, which derived from Ord. No. 1316, § 5.30.040, adopted June 7, 1976; Ord. No. 1375, adopted Nov. 21, 1977; and Ord. No. 1630, enacted Nov. 19, 1984. See current § 29.20.257 for similar subject matter.

Any interested person as defined in section 29.10.020 may appeal to the Council any decision of the Planning Commission. The appellant must file a written notice of appeal in duplicate with the Clerk not more than ten (10) days after the decision is rendered. The notice of appeal shall state specifically wherein it is claimed there was an error or abuse of discretion by the Commission or wherein its decision is not supported by substantial evidence in the record. The Council shall only hear the appeal if the notice is filed and all required fees are paid within the ten-day appeal period. An appellant may submit a written request to withdraw their appeal any time before the scheduled hearing for the appeal.

(Ord. No. 1316, § 5.30.050, 6-7-76; Ord. No. 1375, 11-21-77; Ord. No. 1523, 12-21-81; Ord. No. 1526, 3-15-82; Ord. No. 2149, § I, 5-1-06; Ord. No. 2283, § I, 5-21-19; Ord. No. 2298, § I, 12-17-19)

The appeal shall be heard by the Council within fifty-six (56) days after the date of the hearing at which the final decision by the Planning Commission was made. The Council may continue from time to time any hearing held by it.

(Ord. No. 1316, § 5.30.060, 6-7-76; Ord. No. 1967, § I, 1-18-94)

The Clerk shall set the hearing of the appeal and shall give notice of such hearing in the manner required for the hearing of the matter before the Planning Commission. In addition, the Council may give notice of the hearing in such other manner as it wishes.

(Ord. No. 1316, § 5.30.070, 6-7-76; Ord. No. 1375, 11-21-77)

The Planning Director shall transmit the entire record of any proceeding under this chapter to the Council.

(Ord. No. 1316, § 5.30.080, 6-7-76)

In the appeal, and based on the record, the appellant bears the burden to prove that there was an error or abuse of discretion by the Planning Commission as required by Section 29.20.275. If neither is proved, the appeal shall be denied. If the appellant meets the burden, the Council shall grant the appeal and may modify, in whole or in part, the determination from which the appeal was taken or, in its discretion, return the matter to the Planning Commission. If the basis for granting the appeal is, in whole or in part, information not presented to or considered by the Planning Commission, the matter shall be returned to the Planning Commission for review.

(Ord. No. 1316, § 5.30.090, 6-7-76; Ord. No. 1901, § I, 5-4-92; Ord. No. 1996, § I, 3-20-95; Ord. No. 2298, § I, 12-17-19)

Editor's note— Ord. No. 2298, § I, adopted Dec. 17, 2019, repealed § 29.20.300, which pertained to decision and derived from Ord. No. 1316, § 5.30.100, 6-7-76; Ord. No. 1375, 11-21-77; Ord. No. 1471, 5-19-80; Ord. No. 1901, § II, 5-4-92; Ord. No. 1996, § II, 3-20-95.

When zoning approval has been granted, development and use of land shall conform to the terms of the approval. Approvals may be modified. Applications for modifications are determined by the body having jurisdiction to grant the original application. Applications for modifications are heard anew and the deciding body may impose new conditions or modify previous conditions.

(Ord. No. 1316, § 5.30.110, 6-7-76; Ord. No. 1375, 11-21-77)

The Planning Commission on its own motion or on the recommendation of the Planning Director or the Chief of Police, may, and if requested by the Council shall, hold a hearing to consider modifying or revoking any zoning approval that has been granted pursuant to this chapter or any prior ordinance. Notice of the hearing shall be given in the same manner as for the hearing of an application for zoning approval. Written notice of the hearing shall also be mailed to any principals making use of, or relying upon, any such zoning approval not less than five (5) days prior to the date of the hearing.

(Ord. No. 1316, § 5.30.120, 6-7-76; Ord. No. 1375, 11-21-77; Ord. No. 1976, § II, 5-2-94; Ord. No. 2220, § I(Exh. A), 10-7-13)

(a) After the hearing the Planning Commission may revoke or modify a zoning approval if it finds that one (1) or more of the following grounds exist:

(1) That the zoning approval was obtained by fraud;

(2) That any person making use of, or relying upon the zoning approval is violating or has violated any conditions of such zoning approval or of section 29.10.095, or the use for which the zoning approval was granted is being, or has been, exercised contrary to the terms or conditions of such approval; or

(3) That the use for which the approval was granted is so exercised as to be detrimental to the public health or safety, or to be a nuisance.

(b) When the Council holds a hearing to consider revocation of a building permit under section 6.20.230 of this Code, it may at the same time itself exercise the powers of the Planning Commission under this section. In such case it shall comply with the notice requirements of both this section and section 6.20.235 of this Code.

(Ord. No. 1316, § 5.30.130, 6-7-76; Ord. No. 1375, 11-21-77; Ord. No. 1509, 7-20-81; Ord. No. 1617, 5-21-84)

(a) Notwithstanding section 29.20.310, if the Town Manager determines that there is cause to believe that any establishment serving alcoholic beverages may be in violation of the approved Conditional Use Permit for the establishment, the Town Manager will cause a notice of violation to be mailed to the current owners of the property and establishment as disclosed in the most recent County assessor's roll and the Town business license files. This notice will describe the alleged violations.;

(b) If the Town Manager determines that the alleged violations have not been abated within the time frames set forth in the Manager's notice of violation, the Town Manager may cause a notice of hearing to be mailed to the current owners of the property and establishment as disclosed in the most recent County assessor's roll and the Town business license files. The notice of hearing will include a description of the violations and specify a time and place for an administrative hearing before the Manager or the Manager's designee. The hearing will occur no earlier than fifteen (15) days after the mailing of the notice of hearing. The owners shall be entitled to present evidence regarding the matter and to respond to the alleged violations. If the owners fail to appear at the hearing, the Manager or designee may proceed to decide the matter without their presence.

(c) If after the hearing, the Manager or the Manager's designee determines that the establishment is in violation of the approved Conditional Use Permit for the establishment, the Manager or the Manager's designee may limit the hours of operation of the establishment, up to and including closure no later than 10:00 p.m. until the Manager or the Manager's designee determines that the violations have been abated. Upon determination that the violations have been abated, the Manager will notify the owners of the property and the establishment that the establishment is in compliance and will increase the operating time limits as the Manager or designee determines is appropriate in light of the violations that occurred and the abatement steps taken. The decision of the manager shall be effective immediately and the establishment shall immediately conform its hours of operation to the Manager's order.

(d) Any interested person may appeal the decision of the Manager or the Manager's designee to the Council as if it were a decision of the Planning Commission pursuant to section 29.20.275 and following. During pendency of the appeal, the establishment shall conform to the hours set by the Manager's order.

(e) In no event will the Town Manager or the Manager's designee have authority to restrict the hours of operation to a time before 10:00 p.m. If the Manager determines that such a further restriction, modification of other elements of the establishment or use permit, or revocation are appropriate, the Manager will request the Planning Commission to consider the matter pursuant to section 29.20.310.

(Ord. No. 1976, § III, 5-2-94; Ord. No. 2304, § II, 2-18-20)

All approvals granted under the terms of this chapter expire two (2) years after the date of approval unless the approval is used before expiration, except that approvals embodied in an ordinance have no expiration date.

(Ord. No. 1316, § 5.30.140, 6-7-76; Ord. No. 1659, 7-15-85; Ord. No. 1776, § I, 12-5-88)

(a) Reasonable extensions of time not exceeding one (1) year may be granted by the body having jurisdiction to grant the original application. Extensions are valid only if approved before the pending expiration date and are measured from that date. Repeated extensions may be granted and new conditions imposed.

(b) Before granting an extension of time the deciding body must find from the evidence:

(1) There would be no legal impediment to granting a new application for the same approval.

(2) The conditions originally applied or new conditions to be applied as a part of the extension approval are adopted to any new facts concerning the proposed project.

(Ord. No. 1316, § 5.30.150, 6-7-76; Ord. No. 1375, 11-21-77)

Unless there is an appeal the date of approval is the date on which the deciding body votes on the motion or resolution of approval. When there is an appeal, the date of approval is the date of the administrative vote on the motion or resolution finally determining the appeal.

(Ord. No. 1316, § 5.30.160, 6-7-76; Ord. No. 1375, 11-21-77)

For the purpose of section 29.20.320 an approval is used if substantial construction work specifically for the project is lawfully performed after the approval is granted, in reliance on the approval and in reliance on validly issued building permits. (The term construction includes grading.) Or, when the project does not involve substantial construction work, an approval is acted on when the activity approved is commenced in a substantial, as distinguished from tentative or token, manner.

(Ord. No. 1316, § 5.30.170, 6-7-76)

If the activity for which an approval has been granted under the terms of this chapter (except an approval embodied in an ordinance) is discontinued for a period of one (1) year the approval lapses.

(Ord. No. 1316, § 5.30.190, 6-7-76)

When any discretionary approval is required by this chapter, no building permit, certificate of use and occupancy, or any similar evidence of entitlement to build upon or use land in any manner shall issue until the approval is granted and the time for appeal has expired.

(Ord. No. 1316, § 5.30.200, 6-7-76)