Article 20 — Mobile Home Park Development Zones

Because of their unusual characteristics, the large area required for operation, the congestion of persons and property customarily found in such activities, the traffic problems created thereby, and other conditions caused by their presence which might adversely affect the public safety, health, morals, and welfare unless adequate safeguards are imposed, trailer parks, trailer courts, mobile home parks, and public trailer camps shall require special consideration as to their proper location and character in relation to adjacent uses and to the development of the City and as to the conditions under which each such use may be permitted. Therefore, such uses shall be permitted only if a planned development permit is obtained in the manner set forth in Article 28 of this chapter and such use conforms to every term and condition of the permit. The Commission shall not grant a permit for any use when it finds that the use will be injurious or detrimental to the public health, safety, or welfare or to the property in the vicinity or zone in which the use will be situated, and, secondly, that the imposition of conditions upon the requested use will not prevent such effects.

(§ 8135, T.O.O.C., renumbered by § XIV, Ord. 173-NS, eff. November 5, 1970)

Only the uses identified in Article 21 of this chapter as being permitted in the Trailer Park Development (T-P-D) Zone shall be established or maintained on property located therein, subject to the permitting requirements and limitations set forth in said Article 21.

(§ 8135.1, T.O.O.C., renumbered by § XIV, Ord. 173-NS, eff. November 5, 1970, amended by § XXIX, Ord. 220-NS, eff. August 19, 1971, and § 36, Ord. 1620-NS, eff. August 12, 2016)

The purposes of this zone are:

(a) To recognize senior mobile home parks as walkable communities where seniors may live actively and independently among peers, the preservation of those qualities being central to residents' continued health, welfare, and financial stability.

(b) To recognize that senior mobile home parks provide one of the few housing options within Thousand Oaks available to seniors that are unsubsidized and allow for independent living in a detached dwelling.

(c) To preserve a significant source of unsubsidized, senior housing by ensuring that senior mobile home parks within the City's jurisdiction remain predominantly available to seniors and are not converted to allow occupancy by persons of all ages.

(d) To recognize mobile home parks as communities in which residents are substantially invested and to provide for the security of tenancy comparable to that of other residential communities less vulnerable to redevelopment.

(e) To meet the purpose of the federal Housing for Older Persons Act of 1995 (42 U.S.C. § 3607).

(f) To prevent senior mobile home parks from converting or becoming all-ages mobile home parks.

(g) To ensure a sufficient supply of land for this type of use remains in the City for seniors.

(§ 8135.5, T.O.O.C., renumbered by § XIV, Ord. 173-NS, eff. November 5, 1970, amended by § XXX, Ord. 220-NS, eff. August 19, 1971, § XV, Ord. 312-NS, eff. November 2, 1972, § 17, Ord. 1555-NS, eff. May 13, 2011, and repealed by § 37, Ord. 1620-NS, eff. August 12, 2016, amended by Part 3, Ord. 1718-NS, eff. September 12, 2023)

Unless otherwise stated in the development permit, such permit shall be subject to the following conditions and limitations:

(a) Permanent structures shall not exceed two (2) stories or thirty-two (32’) feet in height.

(b) A trailer park shall have a minimum gross site area of ten (10) acres. There shall be a minimum of two thousand five hundred (2,500) square feet of net lot area for each individual or combined trailer unit and an average of three thousand five hundred (3,500) square feet of net lot area for all trailer units, exclusive of roadways, recreational areas, or any other common facilities.

(c) If a trailer park site fronts or sides on a public street or highway, a setback area of at least twenty (20’) feet in depth, unencumbered by buildings, fences, or walls, shall be provided and permanently maintained in landscaping.

(d) All distances between trailers and related accessory buildings shall be required pursuant to State rules and regulations governing the construction of trailer parks; provided, however, no occupied portion of a trailer shall be closer than five (5’) feet to any of its boundary or lot lines.

(e) Each trailer unit shall be provided with two (2) on-site parking spaces meeting the requirements of Section 9- 4.2404 of Article 24 of this chapter; provided, however, the two (2) spaces may be located in tandem. In addition, one space for each five (5) trailer units shall be provided in guest parking areas located throughout the park.

(f) The roadways within the trailer park shall be private roadways having a paved width of not less than twentyeight (28’) feet. No parking shall be permitted upon such roadways. Whenever visitor parking is to be provided along such roadways, the paved width shall be increased to not less than thirty-three (33’) feet. The layout or design of such roadways shall provide an area for reversing the movement of trailers and automobiles, either by the roadways being connected with an intersecting roadway having an inside radius of not less than twenty (20’) feet or by providing a “tee” or short crossroad near the end farthest from the public road entrance. Such “tee” shall have a paved roadway not less than twenty-eight (28') feet in width and shall extend not less than sixty (60’) feet each way from the centerline of the roadway to which it is connected.

(g) Roadways shall be graded and constructed to provide adequate drainage facilities and lighting as required by the City Engineer.

(h) Each trailer park shall be entirely enclosed by a solid decorative masonry wall six (6’) feet in height, except for vehicular or pedestrian entrances and the required street yards. All storage yards and trash storage areas shall be separated from mobile home spaces by a six (6’) foot high masonry wall.

(i) Not less than three (3%) percent of the gross area of a trailer park shall be devoted to recreational areas.

(j) Advertising signs, structures, or devices of any character placed or maintained on any land used as a trailer park shall be used only for the purpose of identifying or advertising the trailer park and the accommodations offered. Before being erected, the size, character, location, and number of all such advertising signs, structures, or devices shall be approved by the Commission. Any proposed freestanding sign shall not exceed twenty (20’) feet in height or fifty (50) square feet in area, and any proposed wall sign shall not extend above the top of the wall nor exceed one hundred (100) square feet in area. A freestanding sign may be softly illuminated from the interior, but any wall sign shall be only indirectly lighted. Small directional or traffic control signs, lighted or unlighted, may be erected and maintained within the limits of the trailer park or on adjoining property when approved by the Community Development Director as to location and character. No other advertising sign, structure, or device shall be permitted in the T-P-D Zone, except one unlighted sign not exceeding one hundred (100) square feet in area pertaining to the sale or lease of the lot upon which it is displayed.

(k) Minor modifications of conditions imposed in permits may be made by the Community Development Director whenever such modifications will not alter the character of the uses permitted.

(l) The provisions of Article 26 of this chapter relating to the dedication of land, payment of fees, or both for park and recreational purposes shall be applicable to land for which T-P-D permits are required.

(§ 8135.2, as amended by Ord. 221, as renumbered by § XIV, Ord. 173-NS, eff. November 5, 1970, as amended by § VI, Ord. 376-NS, eff. May 31, 1973)

At least 80 percent of the occupied units in a Senior Mobile Home Park must be occupied by at least one person 55 years of age or older. Senior Mobile Home Park occupancy satisfies the requirements of this section even if: (a) There are unoccupied mobile homes, provided that at least 80 percent of the occupied mobile homes are occupied by at least one person 55 years of age or older.

(b) To the extent permitted by applicable law, for a period of no more than two consecutive years fewer than 80 percent of the occupied units are occupied by at least one person 55 years of age or older, provided the Senior Mobile Home Park has reserved all unoccupied mobile homes for occupancy by at least one person 55 years of age or older. (§ 11, Ord. 757-NS, eff. September 4, 1980, as amended by § 4, Ord. 867-NS, eff. September 4, 1984 and repealed by § 35, Ord. 1555-NS, eff. May 13, 2011, reinstated by Part 5, Ord. 1718-NS, eff. September 12, 23)

(a) The City shall determine, and maintain summary documentation establishing, that at least 80 percent of the mobile homes in a Senior Mobile Home Park are occupied by at least one resident who is 55 years of age or older. The occupancy verification documentation shall be made available by park owners for inspection by the City upon reasonable notice and request.

(b) At least once every two years owners and operators of Senior Mobile Home Parks shall submit documentation confirming that at least 80 percent of all occupied mobile homes are occupied by at least one resident 55 years of age or older to the Planning Division of the City.

(c) Upon the operative date of this Section 9-4.2006, and no later than 30 days after the request for age verification by a mobile home park owner, operator, or employee of the owner or operator, all owners and residents of all mobile homes units located, or proposed to be located, within the Senior Mobile Home Park Overlay Zone shall provide to the park owner or operator, and the Planning Division of the City's Community Development Department the requested age verification documents or information.

(d) The City shall consider government-issued identification to be reliable documentation of the age of the residents of the mobile home park, provided that it contains specific information about current age or date of birth (e.g., driver's license).

(e) Reliable documentation shall also include a certification in a lease, application, affidavit, or other document signed by any member of the household age 18 or older asserting that at least one person in the unit is 55 years of age or older.

(f) If the occupant(s) of a particular mobile home refuses or is unable to comply with these age verification procedures, the City may, if it has sufficient evidence, consider the unit to be occupied by at least one person 55 years of age or older. Such evidence may include:

• (1) Government records or documents;

• (2) Prior forms or applications; or

(3) A statement from an individual who has personal knowledge of the age of the occupants. The individual's statement must set forth the basis for such knowledge and be signed under penalty of perjury.

(g) Failure to submit the verification required by this chapter or failure of the verification to confirm.a mobile home park with the Senior Mobile Home Park Overlay Zone (SMHP) meets the definition in Section 9-4.202 shall constitute a violation of the zoning ordinance, subject to enforcement in the manner provided in Municipal Code Section 1-2.01. (Part 5, Ord. 1718-NS, eff. September 12, 2023)

Upon the operative date of this Section 9-4.2007, and no later than 30 days after the request for age verification by a mobile home park owner or operator or an employee or agent of the City, all owners and residents of all mobile homes located, or proposed to be located, within the Senior Mobile Home Park Overlay Zone shall provide to the mobile home park operator and the Planning Division of the City the requested age verification documents. (Part 5, Ord. 1718-NS, eff. September 12, 2023)

(a) Within 90 days of the passage of this Section 9-4.2008, and then every two years thereafter, the owner or operator of each Senior Mobile Home Park shall report to the Planning Director of the City confirmation that at least 80 percent of all occupied mobile homes are occupied by at least one resident 55 years of age or older. The owners or operators of each senior mobile home park shall maintain procedures for verifying the age of park residents. (b) The senior mobile home park owner or operator shall provide to the City a certification substantially in the following form:

"I [name] hereby certify that there is a least one occupant 55 years of age or older living in _ [number of such mobile homes] mobile homes out of a total number of _ [total number] mobile homes located in this mobile home park. This certification is based on my personal knowledge of the residents, evidence provided to me in the form of official government documents containing specific information about the current age of the residents, resident affidavits, or age certifications made by residents."

(Part 5, Ord. 1718-NS, eff. September 12, 2023)