Visalia Municipal Code Art. 1 Relocation

A. Any person, firm or corporation, desiring to move any building in the city shall first obtain a relocation permit issued by the chief building official. The moving of any building shall include all buildings moved from one site to another within the city, from outside the city into the city, from a storage lot to another location within the city, but shall not include buildings moved from the city to a site outside the city or to storage lots.

B. No permit for the moving of any building or structure shall be issued until the chief building official has first issued to the owner of the premises to which the building is to be moved, a permit to relocate the particular building upon those premises. (Prior code § 7840(a))

Every application for a relocation permit shall be in writing and shall include or be accompanied by the following information:

A. The existing location of the building;

B. The proposed location and intended use or occupancy of the building;

C. A plot plan, and building plan, if required by the chief building official, of the building as it is proposed to be located upon the new site;

D. A plan and/or a statement of the remodeling, repairs and reconstruction proposed for the building;

E. A statement of a licensed structural pest control contractor stating the condition of the building as to the decay and pest infestation;

F. A photograph of the building, if required by the chief building official; and

G. Such other information as the chief building official may require. (Prior code § 7840(b))

An application fee shall be paid to the city before any application for a relocation permit is accepted. The fee shall be as established by the city council pursuant to Section 15.48.110. The fee shall be in addition to all other fees required by the Uniform Building Code or other ordinances of the city and shall not be refunded regardless of whether or not the relocation is approved. (Prior code § 7840(c))

When a relocation permit application is filed and the relocation permit fee paid to the city, a public notice shall be given of the proposed building relocation by posting in front of the property under consideration and adjacent thereto as hereinafter defined, notice of intention to move, printed in plain type with letters of not less than one inch in height and followed by a statement in six or eight point type. The notice shall: set forth the fact that a relocation permit has been applied for a building to be moved to the subject property; state the present location of the building to be moved thereto; and indicate the closing date by which protests must be filed with the chief building official in writing by adjacent property owners, if they desire to protest the relocation and have the planning commission hold a hearing thereon. The moving notice shall also be posted on the front of the building or structure to be moved, and notices shall be posted not more than one hundred (100) feet apart upon the street which said property fronts for a distance of not less than three hundred (300) feet in each direction from said property. The time of posting shall be seven continuous days, within which period protests may be filed. (Prior code § 7840(d))

A. Protests against the moving of said building or structure shall be signed by two or more individual property owners on the surrounding area, and filed with the chief building official within the dates prescribed by this chapter and indicated on the notice of intention to move.

B. Upon filing of a protest, the planning commission shall conduct a hearing within thirty (30) days upon receipt herein at which time the applicants for relocation and the protestants against such regulation shall be heard. The planning commission shall approve or deny such relocation and if approved, shall establish conditions as hereinafter enumerated. The chief building official shall thereafter issue or deny a relocation permit in accordance with the conditions set forth by the planning commission. (Prior code § 7840(c))

A. If no written protests are filed, the chief building official is authorized to approve or deny the relocation permit upon the conditions enumerated in this article, and/or to establish such conditions for the relocation permit, in accordance with the intent of this article, as are necessary to assure compliance herewith.

B. If the applicant for the relocation permit feels that denial of a permit or conditions imposed thereon by the chief building official are not in accordance with the intent of this article, he/she may appeal the chief building official's decision to the planning commission who will consider the matter at a public hearing, notice of which is given by posting as provided in Section 15.48.040. (Prior code § 7840(f))

A faithful performance bond shall be filed in the office of the chief building official before any relocation permit shall be issued. The bond shall be in an amount at least ten percent more than the chief building official's estimated cost of the work required under terms and conditions imposed upon the relocation permit. Said bond shall guarantee that the required work shall be completed within ninety (90) days of the date on which said building is moved to its new location; provided, however, that such time may be extended by the chief building official upon written application showing good cause therefore. In lieu of said faithful performance bond, a cash deposit in the required amount may be made with the chief building official. (Prior code § 7840(g))

A. No permit shall be issued to relocate a building or structure, if the building or structure has any of the following deficiencies or characteristics:

1. Constructed or in such a condition to be dangerous and unsanitary;

2. Unfit for human habitation;

3. Dilapidated, defective, unsightly, or in such condition of deterioration or disrepair that its relocation at the proposed site would cause appreciable harm to or be materially detrimental to the property or improvements in the district within a radius of one thousand (1,000) feet from the proposed site;

4. Prohibited in the zone in which it is to be relocated; or

5. Prohibited at the proposed location by any fire district ordinance, or any other law or ordinance.

B. If, in the judgment of the chief building official or planning commission, the structure admits the practical and effective repair, a relocation permit may be issued upon such conditions as the chief building official and planning commission may deem reasonable and proper. The conditions required prior to issuance of a relocation permit may include changes, alterations, additions or repairs to be made to the building or structure so that the relocation will not be materially detrimental or injurious to public health, safety or welfare, or to the surrounding property and improvements in the district to which it is to be moved.

C. The conditions upon which each permit is granted shall be written upon the permit or appended in writing thereto. (Prior code § 7840(h))

A. Each person making application for a moving permit must make separate arrangements with public utilities for necessary utility relocations and for payment of all costs associated herewith. The city assumes no liability for route approval with respect to utility relocation.

B. Signatures shall be required from Southern California Edison Company, Southern California Gas Company, Pacific Bell, California Water Service Company and Continental Cablevision acknowledging that all services have been disconnected from the structure to be moved. (Prior code § 7840(i))

A relocation permit shall be denied, if the unlawful, dangerous or defective condition of the building or structure proposed to be relocated is such that remedy or correction cannot practicably and effectively be made, or it is found that the structure will be materially detrimental to surrounding property. (Prior code § 7840(j))