Morro Bay Municipal Code Ch. 17.43 Reasonable Accommodation (ip)

This chapter provides a procedure to request reasonable accommodation for persons with disabilities seeking equal access to housing under the Federal Fair Housing Act and the California Fair Employment and Housing Act (the Acts) in the application of zoning laws and other land use regulations, policies and procedures.

(Ord. No. 662, § 2, 12-13-23)

A. A request for reasonable accommodation may be made by any person with a disability, their representative or any entity, when the application of a requirement of this title or other city requirement, policy or practice acts as a barrier to fair housing opportunities. A person with a disability is a person who has a physical or developmental impairment that limits or substantially limits one or more major life activities, anyone who is regarded as having such impairment or anyone who has a record of such impairment. This chapter is intended to apply to those persons who are defined as disabled under the Acts.

B. A request for reasonable accommodation may include a change or exception to the rules, standards and practices for the siting, development and use of housing or housing-related facilities that would eliminate regulatory barriers and provide a person with a disability equal opportunity to housing of their choice.

C. A reasonable accommodation is granted to the household that needs the accommodation and does not apply to successors in interest to the property.

D. A reasonable accommodation may be granted in compliance with this chapter without the need for the approval of a variance.

E. Requests for reasonable accommodation shall be as described in the following section.

(Ord. No. 662, § 2, 12-13-23)

A. Community Development Director. Requests for reasonable accommodation shall be reviewed by the community development director if no approval is sought other than the request for reasonable accommodation. The written determination to grant, grant with changes, or deny the request for reasonable accommodation shall be made in accordance with the findings and decision as established below.

B. Other Review Authority. Requests for reasonable accommodation submitted for concurrent review with another discretionary land use application shall be reviewed by the authority responsible for reviewing the discretionary land use application. The written determination to grant, grant with changes, or deny the request for reasonable accommodation shall be made in accordance with the findings and decision as established below.

(Ord. No. 662, § 2, 12-13-23)

A. Application. Requests for reasonable accommodation shall be submitted in the form of a letter to the community development director and shall contain the following information:

1. The applicant's name, address and telephone number;

2. Address of the property for which the request is being made;

3. The current actual use of the property;

4. The basis for the claim that the individual is considered disabled under the Acts;

5. The zoning code provision, regulation or policy from which reasonable accommodation is being requested; and

6. Why the reasonable accommodation is necessary to make the specific property accessible to the individual.

B. Review with Other Land Use Applications. If the project for which the request for reasonable accommodation is being made also requires some other discretionary approval (e.g., conditional use permit, coastal development permit, etc.), then the applicant shall file the application for discretionary approval together with the information required by subsection A above for concurrent review.

(Ord. No. 662, § 2, 12-13-23)

The written decision to grant or deny a request for reasonable accommodation will be consistent with the Acts and shall be based on consideration of the following factors:

A. Whether the housing, which is the subject of the request, will be used by an individual disabled under the Acts;

B. Whether the request for reasonable accommodation is necessary to make specific housing available to an individual with a disability under the Acts;

C. Whether the requested reasonable accommodation would impose an undue financial or administrative burden on the city;

D. Whether the requested reasonable accommodation would require a fundamental alteration in the nature of a city program or law, including but not limited to land use, zoning, or the local coastal program;

E. Potential impact on surrounding uses;

F. Physical attributes of the property and structures; and

G. Alternative reasonable accommodations that may provide an equivalent level of benefit.

(Ord. No. 662, § 2, 12-13-23)

In granting a request for reasonable accommodation, the reviewing authority may impose any conditions of approval deemed reasonable and necessary to ensure that the reasonable accommodation would comply with the findings required herein. The conditions shall also state whether the accommodation granted shall be rescinded in the event that the person for whom the accommodation was requested no longer resides on the property.

(Ord. No. 662, § 2, 12-13-23)