Chapter 12.50 — DEDICATIONS OF LAND AND FEES FOR SCHOOL DISTRICTS

This chapter is known as the "school facilities dedication and fee ordinance." (Ord. 565 § 3, 2019)

This chapter is adopted pursuant to the provisions of Chapter 4.7, commencing with Section 65970, of Division 1 of Title 7 of the Government Code. (Ord. 565 § 3, 2019)

This chapter is intended to implement the school facilities dedication and fees legislation in the City of Santee and to provide authority whereby the City, affected school districts and applicants for land development approvals may undertake such reasonable steps as are necessary to alleviate the overcrowding of school facilities. (Ord. 565 § 3, 2019)

The City Council may from time to time, by resolution, issue regulations to provide for the administration of this chapter. (Ord. 565 § 3, 2019)

The City Council finds and declares as follows:

• A. Adequate school facilities should be available for children residing in new residential developments.

• B. Public and private residential developments may require the expansion of existing public schools or the construction of new school facilities.

• C. In many areas of the City, the funds for the construction of new classroom facilities are not available when new development occurs, resulting in the overcrowding of existing schools.

• D. New housing developments frequently cause conditions of overcrowding in existing school facilities which cannot be alleviated in a reasonable period of time without City involvement as provided for under existing State law.

• E. That, for the above reasons, new and improved methods of financing for interim school facilities necessitated by new development are needed in the City of Santee. (Ord. 565 § 3, 2019)

The City of Santee General Plan provides for the location of public schools. Interim school facilities, whether temporary or permanent, to be constructed from fees paid or land dedicated, or both, must be consistent with the City General Plan. (Ord. 565 § 3, 2019)

Each decision-making body of the City will recognize any agreement existing prior to the operative date of this chapter between an applicant for a residential development and a school district and pertaining to the dedication of land and/or payment of fees for school facilities to serve the property which is the subject of the application, or any portion thereof, and consider that agreement as satisfying the requirements of this chapter. (Ord. 565 § 3, 2019)

In this chapter:

"Conditions of overcrowding" means that the total enrollment of a school, including enrollment from proposed development, exceeds the capacity of such school as determined by the governing body of the school district.

"Decision-making body" means the City Council or the Director.

"Director" means the Director of Planning and Building of the City of Santee and any subsequent title for this department head, the City Planner, or designee. In the event that this position is vacant or eliminated by the City, the Director shall be the City Manager or designee.

"Dwelling unit" means a single unit providing complete, independent living facilities for one or more persons.

"Interim facilities" means:

1. Temporary classrooms not constructed with permanent foundation and defined as a structure containing one or more rooms, each of which is designed, intended and equipped for use as a place for formal instruction of pupils by a teacher in a school.

2. Temporary classroom toilet facilities not constructed with permanent foundations.

• Reasonable site preparation and installation of temporary classrooms.

"Reasonable methods for mitigating conditions of overcrowding" include, but are not limited to, agreements between a subdivider or builder and the affected school district whereby temporary use buildings will be leased to or for the benefit of the school district or temporary use buildings owned by the school district will be used and agreements between the affected school district and other school districts where-by the affected school district agrees to lease or purchase surplus or underutilized school facilities from other school districts.

"Residential development" means:

1. A project containing residential dwellings, including mobilehomes, of one or more units or a subdivision of land for the purpose of constructing one or more residential dwelling units. Residential development includes, but is not limited to:

   • a. A privately proposed amendment to the City of Santee General Plan which would allow an increase in authorized residential density and where no further discretionary action for residential development need be taken by a decision-making body prior to application for a building permit;

   • b. A privately proposed specific plan or amendment to a specific plan which would allow an increase in authorized residential density;

   • c. A tentative or final subdivision map or parcel map or a time extension on such a tentative map;

   • d.

   • A conditional use permit;

• e. An ordinance rezoning property to a residential use or to a more intense residential use;

• f.

  • A building permit;

• g.

  • Any other discretionary permit for residential use.

2. Exemptions. A residential development is exempt from the requirements of this chapter when it consists only of any of the following:

• a. Any modification or remodel of an existing legally-established dwelling unit where no additional dwelling units are created;

  • b. A condominium project converting an existing apartment building into a condominium where no new dwelling units are created;

  • c. Any rebuilding of a legally-established dwelling unit destroyed or damaged by fire, flood, explosion, act of God or other accident or catastrophe;

  • d. Any rebuilding of an historical building recognized, acknowledged and designated as such by the City;

  • e. The installation, siting or relocation of mobilehomes in then existing mobilehome parks;

• f. Any dwelling constructed to replace a dwelling taken in an eminent domain proceeding, if both dwelling sites lie within the same school district.

• (Ord. 565 § 3, 2019; Ord. 612 § 2, 2023)

Article 2

Findings of Overcrowded Attendance Areas

The provisions of Section 12.50.220 are applicable to official actions taken on residential development applications by a decision-making body, if the governing body of a school district which has jurisdiction with-in the City of Santee makes a finding supported by clear and convincing evidence, and the City Council concurs in such finding, that:

• A. Conditions of overcrowding exist in one or more attendance areas within the district which will impair the normal functioning of educational programs, including the reasons for the existence of such conditions; and

• B. All reasonable methods, within established school district policies, of mitigating conditions of over-crowding have been evaluated and no feasible method, as determined by the school district, for reducing such conditions exist, the governing body of the school district must notify the City Council. The notice of findings sent to the City must specify the mitigation measures considered by the school district.

• (Ord. 565 § 3, 2019)

Any notice of findings sent by a school district to the City Council must specify:

• A. The findings listed in Section 12.50.200;

• B. The mitigation measures and methods, including those listed in Section 12.50.170, considered by the school district and any determination made concerning them by the district. Other mitigation measures may include, but are not limited to:

  1. Any other agreements entered into by the affected school district which would alleviate conditions of overcrowding caused by new residential development,

  2. The use of relocatable structures, student transportation and/or school boundary realignments,

  3. The use of available bond or state loan revenues, to the extent authorized by law,

  4. The use of funds which could be available from the sale of surplus school district real property and funds available from other appropriate sources, as determined by the respective governing bodies of affected school districts;

• C. The precise geographic boundaries of the overcrowded attendance area or areas;

• D. Such other information as may be required by City Council regulation. (Ord. 565 § 3, 2019)

Within any attendance area of a school district where it has been determined pursuant to Section 12.50.200 that conditions of overcrowding exist, no decision-making body may approve an application for a residential development within such area, unless such decision-making body makes one of the following findings:

• A. That action will be taken pursuant to this chapter to provide dedications of land and/or fees to mitigate the conditions of overcrowding within that attendance area; or

• B. That there are specific overriding fiscal, economic, social or environmental factors which in the judgment of the decision-making body would benefit the City, thereby justifying the approval of a residential development otherwise subject to the provision of this chapter. An agreement between the applicant for a residential development and the school district to mitigate conditions of overcrowding within that attendance area may be considered by a decision-making body as such an overriding factor.

• (Ord. 565 § 3, 2019)