Pismo Beach Municipal Code Ch. 17.54 Appeals

Determinations or actions of the director, commission, or council may be appealed as provided by this chapter.

Determinations and actions that may be appealed, and the authority to act upon an appeal shall be as follows.

A. Code Administration and Interpretation. The following determinations and actions of the director and department staff may be appealed to the commission and then to the council:

1. Determinations on the meaning or applicability of the provisions of this Zoning Code that are believed to be in error, and cannot be resolved with staff;

2. Any determination that a permit application or information submitted with the application is incomplete, in compliance with State law (Government Code Section 65943); and

3. Any enforcement action in compliance with Chapter 17.60 (Enforcement of Zoning Code Provisions).

B. Land Use Permit and Hearing Decisions. Decisions of the director on zoning clearances, site plan and architectural review, and minor use permits may be appealed to the planning commission, except that zoning clearances for accessory dwelling units may not be appealed. (Ord. O-2018-011 § 8, 2018: Ord. 03-03 § 2 (Exh. B (part)), 2003)

A. Eligibility. An appeal may be filed by:

1. Any person affected by an administrative determination or action by the director, as described in Section 17.54.020(A), above;

2. In the case of a land use permit or hearing decision described in Section 17.54.020(B), above by anyone who, in person or through a representative, appeared at a public hearing in connection with the decision being appealed, or who otherwise informed the city in writing of the nature of their concerns before the hearing.

B. Timing and Form of Appeal. All appeals shall be submitted in writing on a city application form, and shall specifically state the pertinent facts of the case and the basis for the appeal.

1. Appeals shall be filed in the office of the city clerk within ten days following the final date of the determination or action being appealed.

2. An appeal to a city decision on an appealable development within the coastal zone by two Coastal Commissioners shall be filed within ten days of the Central Coast office of the Coastal Commission receiving the notice of final city action required by Section 17.44.030 (Notice of Final City Action on Land Use Permits).

C. Fee. Appeals shall be accompanied by the filing fee set by the council's fee resolution.

D. Scope of Land Use Permit Appeals. An appeal of a decision by the director or commission on a land use permit shall be limited to issues raised at the public hearing, or in writing before the hearing, or information that was not known at the time of the decision that is being appealed.

A. Scheduling of Hearing. After an appeal has been received in compliance with the procedures listed in subsection B, above the appeal shall be transmitted to the director who shall place the item on the next available commission agenda, or the city clerk shall schedule the matter for the next available council agenda, as applicable to the appeal.

B. Report. After the appeal hearing has been scheduled, the director shall prepare a report on the matter, and forward the report to the appropriate appeal body.

C. Joining an Appeal. Only those persons who file an appeal within the ten-day appeal period in compliance with subsection A, above, shall be considered the appellants of the subject permit. Any person who wishes to join an appeal shall follow the same procedures for an appellant in compliance with subsection A, above. No person shall be allowed to join an appeal after the end of the ten-day appeal period.

D. Action and Findings.

1. General Procedure. The appeal body shall conduct a public hearing in compliance with Chapter 17.58 (Public Hearings). At the hearing, the appeal body may consider any issue involving the matter that is the subject of the appeal, in addition to the specific grounds for the appeal.

a. The appeal body may affirm, affirm in part, or reverse the action, decision, or determination that is the subject of the appeal, based upon findings of fact about the particular case. The findings shall identify the reasons for the action on the appeal, and verify the compliance or non-compliance of the subject of the appeal with the provisions of this Zoning Code.

b. When reviewing a decision on a land use permit, the appeal body may adopt additional conditions of approval, that may address other issues or concerns than the subject of the appeal.

2. Appeals to the Council.

a. By an Appellant. A decision by the commission may be appealed to the council as provided by Section 17.54.030 (Filing of Appeals), above.

b. Council's Decision is Final. The decision of the council on an appeal shall be final.

E. Effective Date of Appeal Decision. A decision by the commission is effective on the eleventh day after the decision, when no appeal to the decision has been filed with the council. A decision by the council is effective as of the date of the decision, except in the case of a development that is appealable to the Coastal Commission in compliance with Section 17.54.050 (Appeals to the Coastal Commission).

F. Notice of Final Action on Appeals within the Coastal Zone. Where an appeal has been filed and decided on a project that is appealable to the Coastal Commission in compliance with Section 17.54.050 (Appeals to the Coastal Commission), the city shall provide notice of final action in compliance with Section 17.44.030 (Final City Action on Land Use Permits).

Decisions by the director, commission, and council on developments within the coastal zone may be appealed to the California Coastal Commission in compliance with this section.

A. Status of Appellant:

1. Who May Appeal. An appeal may be filed by an applicant, any aggrieved person, or two members of the Coastal Commission in compliance with Public Resources Code Section 30625.

2. Aggrieved Person Defined. In compliance with Public Resources Code Section 30801, an aggrieved person is: anyone who, either in person or through a representative who was explicitly identified as such, appeared at a public hearing before the director, commission or council in connection with the decision or appeal of any development, or who by other appropriate means prior to a hearing, informed the city of the nature of his or her concerns, unless for good cause was unable to do either. Aggrieved person also includes the applicant for a permit.

B. Exhaustion of City Appeals Required. For developments that may be appealed to the Coastal Commission in compliance with subsection C below, an applicant or aggrieved party may appeal a city decision on a land use permit to the Coastal Commission only after all appeals to the Commission and Council have been exhausted in compliance with this chapter. This limitation shall not apply to any circumstance identified in California Code of Regulations Section 13573, including:

1. A situation where an appellant was denied the right of appeal in compliance with this chapter because city notice and hearing procedures the development did not comply with the provisions of Title 14, Division 5.5, Chapter 8, Subchapter 2 of the California Code of Regulations; or

2. An appeal of a city decision by two members of the Coastal Commission in compliance with Public Resources Code Section 30625. Provided, however, that notice of a Coastal Commissioners' appeal shall be transmitted to the council in compliance with California Code of Regulations Section 13573(b). The appeal to the Coastal Commission by two commissioners shall be suspended where the city decision has been appealed to the council. If the decision on the appeal by the council modifies or reverses the previous decision, the Coastal Commissioners shall be required to file a new appeal of that decision.

C. Appealable Development. In compliance with Public Resources Code Section 30603(a), a decision by the city on a permit application for any of the following projects may be appealed to the Coastal Commission:

1. Between the Sea and the First Public Road. Developments between the sea and the first public road paralleling the sea or within three hundred feet of the inland extent of any beach or the mean high tide line of the sea where there is no beach, whichever is the greater distance;

2. Public Trust Lands, Submerged Lands, or Tidelands. Developments not included within subsection (C)(1), above, located on public trust lands, submerged lands, tidelands, or within one hundred feet of any estuary, stream, or wetland;

3. Sensitive Coastal Resource Area. Developments not included within subsection (C)(2), above, located in a sensitive coastal resource area; or

4. Public Works/Energy Facility. Any development which constitutes a major public works project or energy facility.

D. Grounds for Appeal to Coastal Commission. As required by Public Resources Code Section 30603, the grounds for an appeal to the Coastal Commission of a city decision to either approve a land use permit, or to deny a land use permit for a major public works project or a major energy facility, shall be limited to an allegation that the development does not conform to the standards of the city's certified local coastal program or the public access policies of the Coastal Act.

E. Time for Appeal to Coastal Commission. An appeal of a council decision on an appealable development shall be filed with the Coastal Commission within ten working days of the date of the council decision, in compliance with this chapter and the Coastal Act.

F. Notice to City of Appeal to Coastal Commission. An appellant shall notify the city when appealing to the Coastal Commission by providing the city a copy of the information required in California Code of Regulations Section 13111.