Mountain House Municipal Code Ch. 2 Agricultural Preserves

The intent of this Chapter is to provide a method for establishing, disestablishing, or altering the boundaries of agricultural preserves, as provided in the Williamson Act as set forth in the California Government Code.

(Ord. 2024-18, § 1(Exh. A), 2024)

Agricultural Preserve applications may be initiated by the City Council, Planning Commission, Director of Community Development, or the property owner or his designated agent. Applications shall be filed with the Community Development Department. Agricultural Preserve applications which request the establishment or alteration of an Agricultural Preserve shall be subject to the following additional requirements:

(a) Minimum Size. The minimum size necessary for the establishment, or resulting alteration of, an Agricultural Preserve shall be one hundred (100) acres of contiguous land.

(b) Zoning. All land for which Agricultural Preserve status is being sought, or which currently is in an Agricultural Preserve, shall be zoned for agricultural use.

(c) Zoning Reclassification. If the subject property does not have the required zoning, an application for Zone Reclassification shall be made and processed concurrently with the Agricultural Preserve application. However, such Zone Reclassification application shall be approved prior to establishing or altering an Agricultural Preserve.

(Ord. 2024-18, § 1(Exh. A), 2024)

The review procedure for Agricultural Preserve applications shall be the Public Hearing Review Procedure in Chapter 5 of Division 2 and shall be subject to all of the following additional requirements:

(a) Community Development Department Report. Within thirty (30) days after the Community Development Department has received a completed Agricultural Preserve application, the Community Development Department shall submit a report to the City Council as to whether the Agricultural Preserve application is consistent with the General Plan.

(b) Planning Commission Review. The Planning Commission shall only make recommendations for approving or denying the Agricultural Preserve application. The Planning Commission shall forward its recommendations to the City Council.

(c) City Council Hearing. The City Council shall conduct a public hearing on the Agricultural Preserve application. At the conclusion of the hearing, the City Council shall take final action to establish, disestablish, or alter the boundary of the subject preserve.

(d) Notification. In the event any proposal to disestablish or to alter the boundary of an Agricultural Preserve will remove land under contract from said preserve, notice of the proposed alteration or disestablishment and the date of the hearing shall be furnished by the City Council by certified mail to the owner(s) of the land. Such notice also shall be published once in a newspaper of general circulation and shall be furnished by first-class mail to each owner of land under contract, any portion of which is situated within one (1) mile of the exterior boundary of the land to be removed from the preserve.

(Ord. 2024-18, § 1(Exh. A), 2024)

Prior to approving an Agricultural Preserve application, the City Council shall find that all of the following are true:

(a) Consistency. The establishment, disestablishment, or alteration of an Agricultural Preserve is consistent with the General Plan; and

(b) Establishment or Enlargement. The area specified in the Agricultural Preserve application for establishing or enlarging an Agricultural Preserve is designated as General Agriculture, Limited Agriculture, or Agriculture-Urban Reserve on the General Plan Map, or it is shown for other uses on the General Plan and development is not expected and is not warranted within ten (10) years; or

(c) Disestablishment. The area specified in the Agricultural Preserve application for disestablishing the Agricultural Preserve is designated residential, commercial, or industrial on the General Plan Map and development is expected to occur within ten (10) years.

(Ord. 2024-18, § 1(Exh. A), 2024)