Mountain View Municipal Code § 36.58 Urgency interim ordinances

An urgency interim ordinance allows the city to respond to an immediate threat to the community's health, safety or welfare that may be presented by proposed modification or establishment of uses or structures through the adoption of temporary regulations or prohibitions of such uses or structures. Such urgency interim ordinances provide the opportunity for the community to more closely evaluate such uses or structures and to determine through the regular zoning ordinance amendment procedures appropriate new regulations, if any, that may be needed to control such uses or structures to ensure proper protection of the community without such consideration being preempted by the affected development. For purposes of this chapter, an urgency interim ordinance shall mean the same as an emergency ordinance as provided for in City Charter Section 514.

(Ord. No. 18.13, § 1, 12/10/13.)

An urgency interim ordinance may be adopted to temporarily modify or suspend any land use or development regulation of this chapter. This section is adopted as an alternate to the procedure provided for in the California Government Code § 65858, et seq., and shall be implemented consistent with state law to the extent specifically applicable to charter cities. Such urgency interim ordinance may be initiated by the city council, the environmental planning commission or the community development director. Such urgency interim ordinance shall regulate or prohibit the issuance of permits for uses or structures which may be in conflict with a contemplated general plan, specific plan, precise plan or zoning ordinance proposal which the city council, environmental planning commission or community development director has initiated or which has been identified to be studied within a maximum of twenty-four (24) months.

(Ord. No. 18.13, § 1, 12/10/13.)

a. Votes required. Urgency interim ordinances shall require five (5) affirmative votes of the city council for adoption or extension.

b. Urgency adoption. Without following the procedures otherwise required for the adoption of amendment of the zoning ordinance, and without separate noticing, the city council may adopt, as an urgency measure, an interim ordinance regulating or prohibiting establishment or modification of any specified uses or structures for a period of time as needed to protect the public health, safety or welfare. Said urgency interim ordinance shall be of no further force and effect ninety (90) days from the date of its adoption.

c. Extensions. The urgency interim ordinance adopted pursuant to Section 36.58.15.b above may be extended from the date of original adoption for twelve (12) months and subsequently extended for an additional twelve (12) months, or for one (1) single aggregate twenty-four (24) month period, after notice pursuant to this section. The notice shall be published in at least one (1) newspaper of general circulation within the city at least ten (10) days prior to the city council hearing. The notice shall indicate the date, time and place of the public hearing, identify the city council as the hearing body, and include a general description of the matter to be considered, and a general description, in text or by diagram, of the location of the real property, if any, that is the subject of the hearing. However, any such extensions of an interim ordinance that has the effect of denying approvals for development of projects with a significant component of multi-family housing shall further comply with the provisions of Government Code Section 65858, et seq. regarding specified city council findings required prior to such interim ordinance extension.

d. Alternate procedure. As an alternate to the procedure outlined in Section 36.58.15 "b." and "c." above, the initial urgency interim ordinance may be adopted, after notice of a public hearing as set forth in Section 36.58.15.c, for an initial period not to exceed two (2) years. An urgency interim ordinance adopted under this alternative procedure shall not be extended.

(Ord. No. 18.13, § 1, 12/10/13.)

The city council shall not adopt nor extend an urgency interim ordinance pursuant to this section unless the ordinance contains legislative findings that there is a current and immediate threat to the public health, safety or welfare and that the approval of additional subdivisions, use permits, conditional use permits, variances, planned community permits, building permits or other applicable entitlements for use or construction would result in creating or extending that threat to public health, safety or welfare.

(Ord. No. 18.13, § 1, 12/10/13.)

In enacting the urgency interim ordinance, the city council may determine the scope of permits or entitlements regulated or prohibited by the ordinance and may determine that some uses or structures or components of uses or structures may proceed to seek entitlements during the period of the urgency interim controls as set forth in the ordinance. This provision provides the city council with a mechanism for alleviating, as may be appropriate undue hardships that could result from the strict application of the interim controls.

(Ord. No. 18.13, § 1, 12/10/13.)