Mendocino County Municipal Code § 20.692.020 Special Considerations

The regulations specified in this Division and the uses governed thereby shall be subject to the general provisions, modifications and exceptions of this Chapter.

(Ord. No. 3915 (part), adopted 1995.)

When a legally created lot, in individual ownership, is subsequently zoned to a minimum parcel size larger than the legally created lot), said lot shall not be subject to requirements for variance regarding minimum lot size, lot width, or lot depth, but shall be considered to be a legal non-conforming lot, subject to all other regulations of this Division.

(Ord. No. 3915 (part), adopted 1995.)

(Ord. No. 4395, § 2, 11-17-2017)

The provisions of Section 20.692.015(D), (E), and (G) may be modified pursuant to the review process in Chapter 20.760 where strict compliance would have adverse impacts on community character, historical structures, public open space, or public views.

(A) No yard or other open space provided about any building, for the purpose of complying with the regulations of this Division, shall be considered as providing a yard or open space that is required for any other building or structure.

(B) In any case where a setback line and plan line have been established, the required yard on the street frontage of a lot shall be measured in accordance with such lines, and in no case shall the provisions of this Division be construed as permitting any structure to extend beyond such lines.

(C) If a roadway easement or access easement serves, or has the potential to serve, more than four (4) lots or parcels, said easement shall be considered a street solely for the purpose of establishing a front-yard setback or a corridor preservation setback.

(D) Eaves, canopies, and similar roof features may overhang into any required yard setback a distance not exceeding two (2) feet.

(E) Fences, in rear or side yards that do not have street frontage, may not exceed eight (8) feet in height. (Fences over six (6) feet in height require building permits). Fences and hedges in front yards and any rear or side yards that have street frontage may not exceed three and one-half (3½) feet in height. The above fence height limitations shall apply to view obstructing fences, such as board fences and picket fences. Fences for the containment of animals, such as barbed wire, chicken wire, hog wire, and similar loose-meshed wire fences, or non-view obscuring fences such as cyclone fences, shall not be subject to these fence height restrictions.

(F) Barns, stables, chicken houses, and similar accessory buildings shall be a minimum of fifty (50) feet from any property line of the parcel (lot) on which they are located, and a minimum of forty (40) feet from any dwelling.

(G) Front yard setbacks shall be maintained, in any Zoning District, from all lot lines that have street frontage. Side yard setbacks shall be maintained from all other lot lines that do not have street frontage.

(H) A detached garage, detached storage shed, or similar detached accessory building not exceeding fifteen (15) feet in height at the ridge and five hundred (500) square feet of floor area, and any uncovered decks or porch, shall be set back five (5) feet from any rear property lines that do not have street frontage. Setbacks from property lines that have street frontage shall be as otherwise required by this Division.

(Ord. No. 3915 (part), adopted 1995.)

(Ord. No. 4395, § 2, 11-17-2017)

(A) There is established a designated scenic corridor along both sides and parallel to Highway 1, a minimum of two hundred (200) feet or inland to the first line of trees nearest the road. In no case does the corridor extend more than three hundred fifty (350) feet from the road shoulder.

(B) Development that is located within three hundred fifty (350) feet of the Highway 1 right-of-way shall maximize protection of existing public views:

(1) Over publicly owned parcels and public rights-of-way from Highway 1;

(2) Within the designated scenic corridor identified in Subsection (A) above;

(3) To the sea; and,

(4) To landmark structures designated in the Inventory of Historic Structures in Appendix 1 of the certified Mendocino Town Plan.

(C) Construction of any structure on that portion of real property, conveyed by the California Department of Parks and Recreation to the Mendocino Presbyterian Church (Assessor's Parcel Number 119-250-40), shall be compatible with the character and use of Mendocino Headlands State Park, as determined in consultation with the State Historic Preservation Officer. Any improvements, including landscape screening, shall not obscure the visibility of any portion of the Church sanctuary from Highway 1. Other view protection standards contained in the certified Coastal Element of the Mendocino County General Plan for the coastal zone to the south of the Town also apply. Any improvements shall also conform to the requirements of all local ordinances pertaining to the Mendocino Historical Preservation District.

(D) Public pedestrian access on that part of Assessor's Parcel Number 119-250-40, conveyed by the California Department of Parks and Recreation to the Mendocino Presbyterian Church and designated MPF, from the southerly end of Church Street, shall be provided at all times to Mendocino Headlands State Park and the mouth of Big River. Any proposed development of said portion of real property shall identify an alternative public access-way. If that development includes a parking area, vehicular access and parking by the public shall be granted upon the property, except during regular church services and between dusk and sunrise.

(E) Development in the Town of Mendocino located outside the Mendocino Historical Preservation District identified in Section 20.760.010, shall be consistent with the standards of the Mendocino Historical Preservation District in Section 20.760.050 of this Division.

(F) Approvals for new development and redevelopment along streets with high levels of pedestrian activity shall require renovation of existing sidewalks, if needed, and where no sidewalks exist, provision of wheel-stops to protect existing walking paths or creation of new public walking paths, where feasible, and where the property has frontage on two (2) streets.

(G) The following types of retail establishments or activity, as defined herein, are prohibited within the Town of Mendocino:

1. Formula Restaurants.

2. Formula Lodging.

3. Formula Retail, except for vehicle (fueling) stations, which are allowed, provided they are otherwise compatible with the Town's design character.

(H) Any Formula Restaurant, Retail or Lodging establishment substantially identical to fewer than ten (10) establishments, regardless of ownership or location, shall modify its design, if necessary, to fit within the scale and design and character of the Town.

(I) All drive-thru facilities associated with commercial uses, where motorists can obtain services while their vehicle continues to operate, are prohibited in any zoning district with the exception of vehicle fueling stations.

(Ord. No. 3915 (part), adopted 1995.)

(Ord. No. 4395, § 2, 11-17-2017)

All development proposed in the Town of Mendocino also shall, as applicable, comply with the provisions of Chapter 20.420 (Coastal Flood Plain Combining Districts), Chapter 20.488 (Coastal Development General Review Criteria), Chapter 20.492 (Grading, Erosion and Runoff), Chapter 20.500 (Hazard Areas), Chapter 20.504 (Visual Resource and Special Treatment Areas), Section 20.532.060 (Environmentally Sensitive Habitat Area—Supplemental Application Procedures), Section 20.532.065 (Wetland Restoration Plan Procedures), Section 20.532.070 (Geologic Hazards—Evaluation and Supplemental Application Information), Section 20.532.075 (Supplemental Information Related to Application for Natural Gas Pipeline), Section 20.532.080 (Supplemental Information Related to Onshore Oil and Gas Development), Section 20.532.090 (Supplemental Application Information for Sand Removal, Mining and Gravel Extraction), Section 20.532.100 (Supplemental Findings) of Chapter 20.532 (Coastal Development Permit Regulations—General), except for part (A) — "Resource Protection Impact Findings," and Section 20.504.025(B) of Division II of this Title.

(Ord. No. 3915 (part), adopted 1995.)

(Ord. No. 4395, § 2, 11-17-2017)