San Clemente Municipal Code Ch. 5.44 Filming Permits

As used in this chapter:

"City Manager" shall mean the City Manager of the City of San Clemente or his or her designee.

"Filming" or "filming activity" shall mean all activity attendant to staging and/or shooting commercial still or motion pictures, television shows or programs, and commercials or advertisements. For the purposes of this chapter, the term "filming" shall not include filming for the purpose of spontaneous, unplanned television news broadcasts by reporters, photographers or cameramen, the filming or videotaping of motion pictures solely for private use, filming on public property that does not (1) restrict the normal use of the public property, (2) involve the use of props, and (3) involve more than two (2) film crew members, or filming which occurs entirely within a filming studio.

"Filming studio" shall mean a building or portion thereof designed, equipped and used primarily for the production of still or motion pictures or videos.

(Ord. 1144 § 1 (part), 1994)

No person shall conduct filming activity within the City on any public property or right-of-way or in a manner which impacts any public property or right-of-way without having first obtained a San Clemente filming permit. For purposes of this chapter, a filming activity impacts public property or a public right-of-way in situations including but not limited to instances in which the filming activity restricts the use of any public property or public right-of-way by any member of the public.

(Ord. 1144 § 1 (part), 1994)

Any person wishing to obtain a San Clemente filming permit shall submit a completed San Clemente filming permit application form together with the applicable filming permit application fee as established by City Council resolution to the San Clemente Department of Beaches, Parks and Recreation no later than four (4) working days prior to the commencement of filming activity, unless such filming activity will require the closure or partial closure of either a public street, park, right-of-way or municipal pier, in which case the application must be submitted no later than ten (10) working days prior to the commencement of filming.

(Ord. 1144 § 1 (part), 1994)

The City Manager shall appoint a Filming Coordinator who shall be responsible for reviewing applications and making determinations on the issuance of filming permits. After receiving a completed filming permit application, the Filming Coordinator shall approve, conditionally approve or deny the filming permit in conjunction with the standards contained in Section 5.44.060 of this chapter. When the grounds for denial of an application for a filming permit specified in Section 5.44.060 can be corrected or mitigated by the imposition of conditions, the Filming Coordinator may conditionally approve the permit.

(Ord. 1144 § 1 (part), 1994)

A filming permit may be denied if it is determined, from consideration of the application and other pertinent information in the record, that one or more of the following circumstances exists:

A. Information contained in the application, or supplemental information supplied by the applicant, is found to be materially false or misleading;

B. The applicant either fails to complete the application form within four (4) working days after having been notified by the City of the need to do so, or fails to provide supplemental information or documents to the City within four (4) days of being requested to do so by the City;

C. The City has both issued a permit authorizing the proposed filming site to be used for a special event or other filming activity and the Filming Coordinator determines that the proposed filming activity is incompatible with the previously approved special event or filming activity;

D. The filming activity will substantially interrupt the safe and orderly movement of aerial or marine navigation, public transportation, or other vehicular and/or pedestrian movement at or near the proposed filming site, or unresolvably conflict with construction or development either in the public right-of-way or at a public facility, or block traffic lanes or close streets during peak commuter hours;

E. The concentration of persons, animals and vehicles at the proposed filming site is reasonably likely to either prevent proper police, fire or ambulance services from meeting the City's established emergency response time or pose a significant public health or safety risk;

F. The filming activity is reasonably likely to require the diversion of so many City personnel to enable the filming activity to occur that normal protection to the rest of the City will be unreasonably compromised;

G. The applicant has previously violated the conditions imposed upon a filming permit;

H. Non-City agencies having jurisdiction over the proposed filming site have denied permission to use the site for the filming activity;

I. The filming activity would constitute an "adult-oriented business" activity, as defined elsewhere in this code.

(Ord. 1144 § 1 (part), 1994)

Unless a cost and/or fee waiver is granted, applicants for a filming permit shall submit all the required costs and fees as identified in the City of San Clemente Commercial Filming Policy.

(Ord. 1144 § 1 (part), 1994)

Any person seeking a cost and/or fee waiver shall, in conjunction with the submittal of their filming permit application, file a completed cost and/or fee waiver application as provided in the City of San Clemente Commercial Filming Policy. Cost and/or fee waivers shall be approved or disapproved as provided in the adopted City of San Clemente Commercial Filming Policy.

(Ord. 1144 § 1 (part), 1994)

Prior to the issuance of a filming permit, the applicant shall satisfy the security and insurance requirement as provided in the filming permit application.

(Ord. 1144 § 1 (part), 1994)

Any person may appeal the approval, conditional approval or denial of a filming permit or cost or fee waiver by submitting a written appeal to the City Clerk no later than two (2) working days prior to the commencement of the filming activity. After reviewing the record, the City Manager shall sustain or overrule the decision of the Filming Coordinator.

(Ord. 1144 § 1 (part), 1994)

A. .....A filming permit may be suspended or revoked by the City Manager under any of the following circumstances:

1. The filming permit was issued in error or issued in reliance on information that was later found to be false or misleading;

2. Property or the health, safety and welfare of the general public would be endangered because of real or threatened disaster, public calamity, riot or other emergency;

3. The permit holder has failed to timely fulfill any condition of approval of the permit;

4. The permit holder has violated any City, state or federal law constituting a misdemeanor or greater classified offense.

B. .....A peace officer assigned to oversee the filming activity may revoke the filming permit if the officer finds either:

1. That participants in the filming activity are violating any City, state or federal law, or any permit condition;

2. An uncontrolled fire or other emergency requires the event to be terminated in order to protect the public health or safety;

3. The filming activity is being conducted in violation of permit conditions of approval.

(Ord. 1144 § 1 (part), 1994)