Suisun City Municipal Code Ch. 15.16 School Facilities Fee and Dedication

The ordinance codified in this chapter shall be known and may be cited as the "School Facilities Fee and Dedication Ordinance."

(Ord. 424 § 101, 1978)

This chapter is adopted pursuant to the provisions of Ordinance 4.7 (commencing with Section 65970) of Division 1 of Title 7 of the Government Code.

(Ord. 424 § 102, 1978)

The purpose of this chapter is to provide a method for financing interim school facilities necessitated by new residential developments causing conditions of overcrowding.

(Ord. 424 § 103, 1978)

The city council may, from time to time, by resolution, issue regulations to provide for the administration and implementation of this chapter.

(Ord. 424 § 104, 1978)

The city general plan provides for the location of public schools. Where facilities are to be constructed from fees or land required to be dedicated under this chapter, or both, they shall be consistent with the general plan.

(Ord. 424 § 105, 1978)

As used in this chapter:

A. "Conditions of overcrowding" means that the total enrollment of an attendance area's school or schools, including enrollment from proposed development, exceeds the capacity of such school or schools within the attendance area, as determined by the governing body of the school district.

B. "Decisionmaking body" means the city council or their designee.

C. "Dwelling unit" means a building or portion thereof, or a mobile home, designed for residential occupation by one person or a group of two or more persons living together as a domestic unit.

D. "Reasonable methods for mitigating conditions of overcrowding" shall include, but are not limited to, concepts such as:

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

2. The use of relocatable structures, student transportation, and 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 governing body of affected school districts;

5. Agreements between a subdivider or other developer of residential developments in 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.

E. "Residential development" means a project containing residential dwellings, including mobile homes, of one or more units, or a division of land for the purpose of constructing one or more residential units. "Residential development" includes, but is not limited to, a preliminary or final development plan, a subdivision tentative or final map, a parcel map, conditional use permit, a building permit or any other discretionary permit for new residential use.

(Ord. 424 Art. 2, 1978)

A. Pursuant to Government Code Section 65970 et seq., the governing body of a school district may make a finding by clear and convincing evidence that:

1. Conditions of overcrowding exist in one or more attendance areas within the district which will impair the normal functioning of educational programs, including the reason for such conditions existing;

2. All reasonable methods of mitigating conditions of overcrowding have been evaluated;

3. No feasible method for reducing such conditions exist.

B. Upon making these findings, the school district must provide the city with written notice of its findings as provided in Section 15.16.080.

(Ord. 424 § 301, 1978)

Any notice of findings sent by a school district to the city shall specify:

A. The findings listed in Section 15.16.070;

B. Findings of facts and a summary of the evidence upon which the findings in Section 15.16.070 were based;

C. The mitigation measures and methods, including those listed in Section 15.16.060(D), considered by the school district in any determination made concerning them by the district;

D. The precise geographical boundaries of the overcrowded attendance area or areas;

E. Such other information as may be required by a council regulation.

(Ord. 424 § 302, 1978)

After receipt of any notice of findings complying with the requirements of Section 15.16.080, the council, if it concurs with such school district findings, shall do so by a resolution.

(Ord. 424 § 303, 1978)

Within an attendance area, where the council has concurred in a school district's finding that conditions of overcrowding exist, no decisionmaking body shall approve an application for a residential development within such area, unless such decisionmaking body makes one of the following findings:

A. That pursuant to this chapter, provision has been made for payment of fees, dedication of land, or both, or some other provision has been agreed upon by the applicant for a residential development in the school district to mitigate the conditions of overcrowding within that attendance area; or

B. That there are specific, overriding physical, economic, social or environmental factors which, in the judgment of the decisionmaking body, would benefit the city, thereby justifying the approval of a residential development otherwise subject to the provisions of this chapter without requiring the payment of fees or the dedication of land or other alternate provision required by Sections 15.16.100 through 15.16.160.

(Ord. 424 § 304, 1978)

In an attendance area where the council has concurred as provided in Section 15.16.090 that overcrowding exists, the applicant of a proposed residential development, as a condition of approval, or the obtaining of a building permit, shall pay fees, make an equivalent arrangement in lieu thereof, dedicate land, or do a combination thereof unless excepted as provided in Section 15.16.100(B), as determined by the decisionmaking body during the hearings and other proceedings on specific residential development applications falling within their respective jurisdictions. Prior to the imposition of the fees, or the dedication of land, or both, it shall be necessary for the decisionmaking body acting on the application to make the following determination: That the facilities to be constructed, purchased, leased or rented from such fees or the land to be dedicated, or both, are inconsistent with the general plan.

(Ord. 424 § 401, 1978)

Only the payment of fees shall be required in subdivisions containing fifty parcels or less, or other developments containing fifty units or less.

(Ord. 424 § 402, 1978)

Any requirement imposed pursuant to this chapter shall bear reasonable relationship and will be limited to the needs of the community for interim, elementary or high school facilities, and shall be reasonably related and limited to the need for the schools caused by the development.

(Ord. 424 § 403, 1978)

When fees are required by this chapter to be paid in lieu of land dedication or as a combination, or both, such fees shall be and paid as follows:

(Ord. 424 § 404(a), 1978)

The total land area required by this chapter to be dedicated shall be at least equal in monetary value as to the fees which would be otherwise required by Section 15.16.140. The city administrator shall determine and establish the monetary value of land area for the purpose of this chapter.

(Ord. 424 § 404 (b), 1978)

On July 1, 1979, and on each July 1st thereafter, the fees specified in Section 15.16.140 shall automatically increase or decrease from the amount then applicable by the same percentage as the percentage of increase or decrease in construction costs between the two March 1st's immediately preceding, for which purpose construction costs and the increase or decrease therein shall be based on the Engineering News-Record Construction Cost Index.

(Ord. 424 § 405, 1978)

If the payment of a fee is required, such payment shall be made at the time the building permit is approved and issued. Fees shall be held in trust by the city until transferred to the affected school district or districts.

(Ord. 424 § 501, 1978)

When land is to be dedicated, it shall be offered for dedication in substantially the same manner as prescribed in the city subdivision ordinance. Land shall be deeded to the school district or districts under procedures adopted by the city.

(Ord. 424 § 502, 1978)

A. If a final subdivision map, or conditional use permit, is vacated or voided, and the city still retains the land, and if the applicant so requests, the council shall order such land returned.

B. If a residential development approval is vacated or voided, and if the city still retains the fees collected therefor, and if the applicant so requests, the council shall order the fees returned to the applicant.

(Ord. 424 § 503, 1978)

Following concurrence by the council pursuant to Section 15.16.090, the city administrator shall notify each school district affected thereby. The governing body of the school district shall then submit a schedule specifying how it will use the fees or land, or both, to solve the conditions of overcrowding. The schedule shall include the school sites to be used, the classroom facilities to be made available, and the time when such facilities will be available. In the event the governing body of the school district cannot meet the schedule, it shall submit modifications to the city council and the reasons for the modifications.

(Ord. 424 § 504, 1978)

All fees or land, or both, collected pursuant to this chapter and transferred to a school district, shall be used only by the district for the purpose of providing interim elementary or high school classroom and related facilities.

(Ord. 424 § 601, 1978)

Any school district receiving funds or land pursuant to this chapter shall maintain a separate account for any fees paid and disposition of land received, and shall file a report with the council on the balance and account at the end of the previous fiscal year and the facilities leased, purchased or constructed during the previous fiscal year. In addition, the report shall specify which attendance areas will continue to be overcrowded when the fall term begins and where the conditions of overcrowding will no longer exist. Such report shall be filed by August 1st of each year, and shall be filed more frequently at the request of the council.

(Ord. 424 § 602, 1978)

When it is determined by the city council that conditions of overcrowding no longer exist in an attendance area, decisionmaking bodies shall cease imposition of any requirements under this chapter.

(Ord. 424 § 603, 1978)