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HomeMy WebLinkAbout8.3 UrgenOrdHistoricalArea CITY CLERK File # 910-40 AGENDA STATEMENT CITY COUNCIL MEETING DATE: OCTOBER 7, 2003 SUBJECT: ATTACHMENTS: Consideration of Urgency Ordinance for the Historic Area generally located along Dublin Boulevard between Donlon Way and San Ramon Road. (Report Prepared by: Andy Byde, Senior Planner) I. Urgency Ordinance RECOMMENDATION: 1. Receive Staff presentation; 2. Take testimony from the Public; 3. Question Staff and the Public; 4. Deliberate; and 5. Waive the reading and adopt the urgency ordinance, Attachment 1, which enacts a moratorium on the issuance or approval any building permits or land use permits that would result in the construction or initiation of specific uses on any parcel located in the Historic Area. BACKGROUND: On March 19, 2001, during the Goals and Objectives session, the City Council requested Staff, as a high priority, to develop plans for a historical district designation for the Donlon Wa3' area. On June lst, 2001, the Community Development Department received an application for a Site Development Review, proposing to redevelop the property known as the Dublin Square within the Donton Way area, with a new, three-story, 89,000 square foot office building. At the City Council meeting of June 19, 2001, the Council voted 5-0 to table the consideration of an Urgency Ordinance to impose a moratorium within the Donlon Way Area pending consideration of the Historic District Designation. The Ordinance was being considered in light the application for the new office building. The propOsed office building application has since been withdrawn from review. At the July 3, 2001, City Council hearing, Staff presented two options to the City Council for further actions, option 1 was a Study Session to examine the scope and the desired direction of the proposed historical district designation for the Donlon Way area and the integration of the Dublin Square property into the designation area; option 2 included initiation of a Specific Plan for the Donlon Way area. Staff explained that the Specific Plan process would include: (1) economic analysis to examine financial constraints and financing options; (2) a public participation component to determine the needs of the property owners and wishes of the public; (3) design guidelines to determine appropriate design criteria for the area; and (4) a land use analysis to determine a compatible mix of appropriate land uses. The City Council voted to proceed with a study session to examine the Donlon Way area. At the conclusion of the COPIES TO: G:XPA#k2002\02-074 Historical Study\Moritorium\Mort Staff R!P5 do~c PROJECT PLANNER ITEM NO. ~ study session the Council voted to undertake a Specific Plan for the Donlon Way Area. In late 2001, the application for the new 3-story office building was withdrawn. The City Council at the 2003/2004 Goals and Objectives meeting, voted to carry over, as high priority, plans for Historical District designation of Donlon Way, specifically including Alamilla Springs and the Green Store, and complete a new Specific Plan and or Zoning for the area. As part of the 2002-2003 budget, the City Council provided funding' to prepare a Specific Plan/Historical District for the Donlon Way area. To provide the background information on the existing historical/archaeological resources, Staff determined that experts in historical/archaeological resources would be necessary t° assist in developing the base information of the Specific Plan/Historical District. At the May 20, 2003, City Council meeting, the Council authorized the selection of two consultants to assist City Staff in the preparation of the Specific Plan/Historical District. Specifically, the City selected Page and Tumbull for historic resources identification and the preparation of design guidelines and William Self and Associates for the archaeological assessment of the general area. Page and Turnbull's scope of work for their report includes a recommended boundary for the Specific Plan area. :Page and Turnbull is in the process of completing its assignment. William Self has completed a preliminary report. At the September 16, 2003, meeting, the City Council expressed its. strong desire to immediately move forward with a comprehensive Specific Plan for the Historic Area with the purpose of preserving, protecting, and Potentially unearthing the historical past in the Historic Area. Summary o£the Known Historical Setting Dublin's historic era begins around 1830 when Jose Maria Amador, the former Mayordomo of Mission San Jose arrived in the valley that would eventually bear his name. Throughout the Mexican period the Amador Valley was divided between two large ranchos: Amador's 16,517-acre Rancho San Ramon and Jose Pacheco's 8,885-acre Rancho Santa Rita. The boundary between the ranchos ran east-West, roughly parallel to what is now Dublin Boulevard. Following Statehood in I850, American and European immigrant settlers began to make their way to the Amador Valley, beginning in 1852 when Irish immigrants Michael Murray and Jeremiah Fallon arrived in the area, purchased: land from Amador and Pacheco and built homes for their families. They were soon joined by James W. Dougherty, a wealthy American-born former sheriff from Tennessee, who purchased 10,000 acres of Rancho San Ramon in 1853, and subsequently moved into the old Amador Adobe. Over the next two decades a compact village grew up around the crossroads formed by the intersection of the Benicia-Mission San Jose Road (now San Ramon Road) and the Oakland-Stockton Road (now Dublin Boulevard). As the junction of two of the most important stagecoach routes in the East Bay region, Dublin Village (also called Amador's and Dougherty's Station at various times)became an important stopover point for travelers. By 1878 when Thompson & West published The Illustrated Atlas of Alameda County, Dublin had two inns (Amador Inn and Dougherty station), two stores (Amador Store and Green's Store), St. Raymond's Church and the Old Murray School. In 1930 Dublin Canyon Road (now Dublin Boulevard), was designated as part of Route 50 or the "Lincoln Highway," the first federal Transcontinental Highway. Dublin's strategic location along this highway continued to make it a popular place to stop over for a meal, a drink or a stay over night on the way to or from the San Francisco Bay Region. By the mid-1920s, Dublin Canyon Road, especially its intersections with Foothill Road (now Donlon Way) and San Ramon Road, was punctuated by businesses catering to motorists, including four garages, two inns, several restaurants and lunch rooms and a handful of gas stations. Interspersed among these were the ranches and homes of the residents of Dublin, many of whom were descendents of the original pioneers. Between the end of the Second World War and the early 1960s, historic Dublin Village was clearly in danger of drying up and disappearing, mostly as a result of Highway 50 (later 1-580) being re-routed south of town. Nevertheless, l'arge forces were at play and by the early 1960s the astounding population growth that had hit the Bay Area after the War, finally caught up with DUblin, beginning with the construction of Volk-Mclain COmpany's San Ramon Village on farmland just north of Dublin. Over the next four decades, Dublin exploded in population as commuters working jobs on the west side of the East Bay Hills relocated to Dublin in search of inexpensive homes and a less hectic way of life. After defeating seyeral annexatiOn attempts by Pleasanton, Dublin finally incorporated as a city in 1982 with a population around 15,000. ISSUES: Following the discussion at the last City Council last meeting, Staff delineated the area (as shown on Exhibit A to Attachment 1) generally along Dublin Boulevard between Donlon and San Ramon Road for a potential boundaries of the specific plan area Alamilla Springs, the Green Store, Heritage Center, Bonde House, Brown Shingle house and Tank house, and the large Live Oak Heritage trees. The intersection of San Ramon Road and Dublin Boulevard is and long has been an important entry way into the City, and the inclusion of proPerty on the comers of that intersection in the Historic Area is being considered for the potential to provide an attractive, historic themed entry way into the historic district, in addition to the possibility that histodc Or prehistoric resources or sites may be associated with those properties. Development within the HistOric Area (See Exhibit A to Attachment 1) could further deteriorate the historic resources within the Historic Area and frustrate the City's goal of protecting, preserving, and unearthing historical resources in the Historic Area. Pending studies and potential future studies are necessary to catalog the existing historical resources in the Historic Area and to provide the City with information on the tools at its disposal to protect, preserve, and elucidate this histo .ry of the Historic Area. Staff is concerned that, during the period the Specific Plan Study, it would be destructive to the goals of the proposed Specific Plan if parties seek to evade the intent of contemplated Specific Plan. Moreover, development that occurs within the area, prior to the completion of the Specific Plan, may negatively impact the anticipated historical district designation within the area. If the City Council determines that development may, negatively impact the anticipated historical district designation, the Council should adopt the attached interim ordinance (Attachment 1) which would impose a moratorium on the issuance or approval any building permits or land use permits that would result in the construction or initiation of the following list of uses on any parcel located in the Historic Area: 2. 3. 4. 5. Adult Business Establishment Animal Sales and Services Automobile/Vehicle Brokerage Community Care Facility / Large Dance Floor 7. 8. 9. 14. 15. Drive-in/Drive-through Business Eating and Drinking Establishment Formnetelling Health Services/Clinics Massage Establishment Plant Nursery Recreational Facility / Indoor Recreational Facility / Outdoor Retail - Outdoor Storage Service Station ShOpping Center The interim ordinance would take effect immediately if adopted by a four-fifths vote by the City Council. State law limits the initial term of the ordinance to 45 days. State law also requires the ordinance to include a finding that there is a current and immediate threat to the public health, safety or welfare, and that the issuance or approval any building permits or land use permits that results in the construction or initiation of any use on any parcel located in the Historic Area would result in a threat to public health, safety or welfare. State law allows the City Council to extend the ordinance by 10 months and 15 days, and again by one year (for a total of two years), following a noticed public hearing. Any subsequent 'extension shall require a four-fifths vote for adoption. No more than twO extensions may be adopted. Ten days prior to the expiration of an interim ordinance or any extension, the City Council shall issue a written report describing the measures taken to alleviate the condition, which led to the adoption of the ordinance. Should the City Council establish a moratorium through the adoption of this urgency ordinance, the above mentioned written report would be brought back to the Council as a consent item on November 4, 2003. RECOMMENDATION: Staff recommends the City Council receive Staff presentation; take testimony from the Public; question Staff and the Public; deliberate; and waive the reading and adopt the urgency ordinance (Attachment 1), which enacts a moratorium on the issuance or approval any building permits or land use permits that would result in the construction or initiation of specific uses on any parcel located in the Historic Area. ORDINANCE NO.xx-03 AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF DUBLIN AN URGENCY ORDINANCE MAKING FINDINGS AND ESTABLISHING A MORATORIUM ON THE APPROVAL OF PERMITS FOR DEVELOPMENT IN THE DUBLIN HERITAGE HISTORICAL DISTRICT AREA PENDING THE COMPLETION OF A SPECIFIC PLAN WHEREAS, the area generally surrounding the present intersection of Donlon Way and Dublin Boulevard, and diagrammed on Exhibit A attached hereto ("the Historic Area"), is the crossroads of two stagecoach routes and the location of the community of Dublin's founding. WHEREAS, in 1993, the City of Dublin acknowledged the area's historical nature by acquiring several historical structures and properties in the Historic Area--the Old St. Raymond's Church, the Old Murray School House, and the Dublin Pioneer Cemetery--and establishing the Dublin Heritage Center. WHEREAS, the Dublin Heritage Center and the Green Store--the community's general store during the late 19th and early 20th century, now a privately owned building presently used as a church-- are located near the south of the intersection of Donlon Way and Dublin Boulevard. WHEREAS, the Green Family Mansion, owned by Dublin's most prominent businessman during the late t 9th century, formerly stood near the southwest corner of the present intersection of San Ramon Road and Dublin Boulevard. WHEREAS, Alamilla Springs and the site of the Jose Maria Amador home (constructed in 1834) are located northwest of the intersection of San Ramon Road and Dublin Boulevard. WltEREAS, a massive and distinctive heritage Valley Oak tree, likely associated with early settlement of the Historic Area, is located near the northeast corner of San Ramon Road and Dublin Boulevard. WHEREAS, in March of 2001, the City Council, as part of its annual Goals and Objectives program, made a high staff priority the development of plans for a historical district designation in the Historic Area, specifically including the Alamilla Springs and the Green Store. WHEREAS, several property owners have proposed development projects in the Historic Area in the last several years, and the City Council has expressed concerns over those proposed projects' effect on the historic nature of the area. For instance, the City Council considered adopting a moratorium when the demolition of the existing Dublin Square shopping center and the construction of an office building in its place was proposed, again to ensure that development was consistent with the City's plans to preserve and highlight the historic nature of the Historic Area. The application for that project was later withdrawn. Similarly, the City issued a conditional use permit of a limited term for the church occupying a building within the Dublin Square property, because of the City's pending planning to protect and potentially unearth the historic nature of the Historic Area. G:~PA#L2002\02-074 Historical Study~MoritoriumB3lort reso. DOC Attachment WHEREAS, on June 3, 2003, the City retained the architectural firm of Page and Turnbull to complete an historical inventory of and design guidelines for the Historic Area ("the Report"). While not yet complete, the scope of work for the Report includes a recommended boundary for the proposed specific plan area. WHEREAS, a preliminary study prepared by the City's archeological consultant, William Self Associates, Inc., details the historic and prehistoric settlement of the Historic Area and notes that the "archaeological high probability area" extends easterly across San Ramon Road and westerly beyond the Dublin Square Shopping Center. WHEREAS, in reviewing its Goals and Objectives at the September 16, 2003, meeting, the City Council expressed its strong desire to immediately move forward with a comprehensive Specific Plan for the Historic Area with the purpose of preserving, protecting, and exposing the historical past in the Historic Area. WHEREAS, the City anticipates that among the tools that the specific plan may recommend are (a) varioUs means to preServe, protect, and highlight existing historic structures and Sites, (b) architeCtural guidelines, which would apply to all structures and filtUre development in the area, that would serve to promote a theme related to the history of the Historic Area; and (c) the placement of signage and monuments at the location of historic sites. WHEREAS, the City has not yet received a recommended boundary for the Specific Plan-area from Page and Tumbutl, and, therefore, the boundaries of the Historic Area depicted in Exhibit A are based on the information presently known to the City, and detailed in the recitals above, regarding the historic center of the City of Dublin. WltEREAS, the intersection of Dublin Boulevard and San Ramon Road is and long has been an important entry way into the City, and the inclusion of property on the comers of that intersection in the Historic Area is being considered for the potential to provide an attractive, historic themed entry way into the historic district, in addition to the pos.sibility that historic or prehistoric resources or sites may be associated with those properties. WHEREAS, untimely changes of uses within the Historic Area during the time that the City completes the Specific Plan could ultimately frustrate the City's long term efforts to ensure the area is developed consistently with the City's goals for the Historic Area, either by allowing the initiation of uses and construction incompatible with that recommended by the Specific Plan study or by directly preventing the use of properties as recommended in the study. WHEREAS, based on the foregoing, the City Council finds that allowing development to continue to occur, pending the adoption of the specific plan, poses a current and immediate threat to the public health, safety and welfare because it will likely result in further deterioration of the historical character of the Historic Area and its historical resources. WHEREAS, the City Council finds that the approval of additional subdivisions, use permits, variances, building permits, or any other applicable discretionary permits that would allow the modification of the prOPerties Within the Historic Area therefore woUld result in that threat to public health, safety and welfare. NOW THEREFORE, THE CITY COUNCIL ORDAINS AS FOLLOWS, ADOPTED AS AN INTERIM ORDINANCE UNDER THE PROVISIONS OF GOVERNMENT CODE SECTION 65858: 1) Moratorium Imposed. From and after the date of this ordinance, no building permit shall be approved or issued and no land use permit shall be approved that would result in the construction or initiation of any use on any parcel located in the Historic Area (shown on Exhibit A hereto). So long as this ordinance is in effect the City shall, nevertheless, accept and process applications for such entitlements. So long as this ordinance is in effect, the City shall, nevertheless; accept and process applications for such entitlements. ,Except as modified herein, all other requirement of the Zoning Ordinance shall remain in effect during the term of this ordinance. This ordinance is an interim ordinance adopted as an urgency measure pursuant to Government Code Section 65858 and is for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health and welfare. The facts constituting the urgency are these: Development within the Historic Area could further deteriorate the historic resources within the Historic Area and frustrate the City's goal of protecting, preserving, and unearthing historical resources in the Historic Area. Pending studies and potential future studies are necessary to catalog the existing historical resources in the Historic Area and to provide the City with information on the tools at its disposal to protect, preserve, and elucidate this history of the Historic Area. In view of the facts set forth in the Recitals of this Ordinance, it is necessary to immediately study, hold hearings, and consider the adoption of a Specific Plan for the Historic Area as it may be recommended to the City Council by the Planning Commission. A Specific Plan cannot be enacted without due deliberation, and it will take an undetermined length of time to complete the appropriate studies and drafting necessary to prepare the Specific Plan. It would be destructive of the goals of the proposed Specific Plan if, during the period the Specific Plan is being studied and is the subject of public hearings, parties seeking to evade the operation of Specific Plan in the form it may be adopted should be permitted to operate in a manner that might progress so far as to defeat in whole or in part the ultimate objective of the Specific Plan. 2) Compliance with California Environmental Quality Act. This ordinance is not a "project" within the meaning of Section 15378 of the State CEQA Guidelines, because it has no potential for resulting in physical change in the environment, directly or ultimately; it prevents changes in the environment pending the completion of the contemplated Specific Plan. This ordinance is categorically exempt from CEQA under section 15308 of the State CEQA Guidelines because it is a regulatory action taken by the City, in accordance with Government Code section 65858, to assure maintenance and protection of the environment pending completion of the contemplated Specific Plan. 3) Severability. If any provision of this ordinance or the application thereof to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the remainder of the ordinance, including the application of such part or provision to other persons or circumstances shall not be affected thereby and shall continue in full force and effect. To this end, provisions of this ordinance are severable. The City Council hereby declares that it would have passed each section, subsection, subdivision, paragraph, sentence, clause, or phrase hereof irrespective of the fact that any one or more sections, subsections, subdivisions, paragraphs, sentences, clauses, or phrases be held unconstitutional, invalid, or unenforceable. 3 4) Effective Date. This ordinance shall become effective immediately upon adopti°n if adopted by at least four-fifths vote of the City Council and shall be in effect for forty-five days from the date of adoption unless extended by the City Council as provided for in Government Code section 65858. PASSED, APPROVED and ADOPTED this 7th day of October 2003. AYES: NOES: ABSENT: ABSTAIN: City Clerk Mayor 4 ORDINANCE NO. xx-03 AN URGENCY ORDINANCE MAKING FINDINGS AND ESTABLISHING A MORATORIUM ON THE APPROVAL OF pE~S FOR DEVELOPMENT IN THE DUBLIN HERITAGE mSTORICAL DISTRICT AREA PENDING THE COMPLETION OF A SPECIFIC PLAN WHEREAS, the area generally surrounding the present intersecting of D~nlon Way and Dublin Boulevard, and diagrammed on Exhibit A attached hereto ("the Historic Area"), is the crossroads of two stagecoach routes and the location of the community of Dublin's founding. WHEREAS, in 1993, the City of Dublin acknowledged the area's historical nature by acquiring several historical structures ~an.d properties in the Historic Area--the Old St. Raymond's Church, the Old Murray School House, and the Dublin Pioneer Cemetery--and establishing the Dublin Heritage Center. WHEREAS, the Dublin Heritage Center and the Green Sto~_~n~._~ty's general store during the late 19th and early 20th century, now a privately owned building presently used as a church are located near the south of the intersection of Donlon Way and Dublin Boulevard. WHEREAS, the Green Family Mansion, owned by Dublin's most prominent businessman during the late 19th century, formerly stood near the southwest_c0m~ 0fthe present intersection of San Ramon Road and Dublin Bouley~d. WHEREAS, Alamilla Springs and the site of the Jose Maria Amador home (constructed in 1834) are located northwest of the intersection of San ~0n Road and Dubl~.Bou!eyard~~ VfHEREAS, a large and distinctive heritage Live Oak tree, likely associated with early settlement of the Historic Area, is located near the northeast comer of San Ramon Road and Dublin Boulevard. . WHEREAS, in'March of 2001, the City Council, as part of its annUal Goals and Objectives program, made a high staff priority the development of plans for a historical district designation in the Historic Area, specifically including the Alamilla Springs and the Green Store. WHEREAS, several property owners have proposed development projects in the Historic Area in the last several years, and the City Council has expressed concerns over those proposed projects' effect on the historic namregf.~9~ ?~r instance, the City Council considered adopting a moratorium when the demolition of the existing Dublin sq~e"~h~plng~nler aiad the construction of an office building in its place was proposed, again to ensure ~t dgyelopment was consistent with the City's plans to preserve and highlight the historic nature of the Historic Area. The application for that project was later withdra~wn. Similarly, the City issued a conditional use permit of a limited term for the church occupying a building within the Dublin Square shopping center, because of the City's pending planning to protect and potentially unearth the historic nature of the Historic Area: WHEREAS, on June 3, 2003, the City retained the architectural firm of Page and TumbuI1 to complete an historical inventory of and design guidelines for the H~stonc Area ('the Report ). While not G:\CC-MTGS~2003-qtr4\Oet~I O-07-O3\ord-hi~toricaLdoc -- W-FIEREAS, the City Council finds that the approval of additional subdivisions, use permits, variances, building permitS, or any other applicable discretionary permits that would allow the modification of the properties within the Historic Area therefore would result in that threat [o public health, safety and welfare. NOW THEREFORE, THE CITY COUNCIL ORDAINS AS FOLLOWS, ADOPTED AS AN 65858: 1) Moratorium Imposed. From and after the date of this o~ce, no building permit, shall be approved or issued and no land use permit shall be approved that would result in the construction or initiation of any of the following uses on any parcel located in the Historic Area (shown on Exhibit ,,A. yet complete, the scope of work for the Report includes a recommended boundary for the proposed specific plan area. -. WHEREAS, a preliminary study prepared by the City's archeological consultant, William Self Associates, Inc., details the historic and prehistoric settlemem ofthe~.Hi~0ric Area an~d notes~tha~ ~e ~ "archaeological high probability area" extends easterly across San Ram0n Road ~d~s~e. rly beyond the Dublin Square Shopping Center. WHEREAS, in reviewing its Goals and Objectives at the September 16, 2003 meeting, the City Council expressed its strong desire to immediately move forward with a comprehensive Specific Plan for the Historic Area with th~ purpose of preserving, protecting, and exposing the historical past in the Historic Area. WHEREAS, the City anticipates that among the tools that the specific plan may recommend are (a) various means to preserve, protect, and highlight existing historic structures ~sites, (b) architectttral guidelines, which would apply to all structures and future development in the area, that would serve to promote a theme related to the ~story of the Historic Area; and (c) the placement of signage and monuments at the location of historic sites. WHEREAS, the City has not yet received a recommended boundary for the Specific Plan-area from Page and Tumbutl, and, therefore, the boundaries of the Historic Area depicted in Exhibit A are based on the information presently known to the City, and detailed in the recitals above, regarding the historic center of the ~ity of Dublin. WHEREAS, the intersection of Dublin Boulevard and San Ramon Road isand long has been an important entry way into the City, and the inclusion ...............................................of property on the comers of that ~ie~tion in the Historic Area is being considered for the potential to provide an attractive, historic themedentry way into the historic district, in addition to the possibility that historic or prehistoric resources or sites my be associated with those properties. WHEREAS, untimely changes of uses within the. Historic ~a.~O~Ufi'ng the time that the City completes the Specific Plan could ultimately frustrate the City's long term efforts to ensure the area is developed consistently with the City's goals for the Historic Area, either by allowing the initiation of uses and construction incompatible with that recommended by the Specific Plan study or by directly preventing the use of properties as recommended ~ th~.~study. WHEREAS, the City Council has determinedthat the initiatipn' of ~ertain uses, listed below (,the Prohibited Uses"), may be 'in conflict with the. e~memplated Historic Area Specific Plan, the goals of which are to encourage the development of an historic-themed, pedestrian-oriented commercial area, centered around the historic structures and sites that mark the comm~ty~s founding. WHEREAS, based on the foregoing, the City Council finds that alloWing development of the Prohibited U~e~m~.~9~gt~g~.P~qgur, pending the adoption of the specific plan, poses a current and immediate threat to the public health, safety and welfare because it wilt likely result in further 2 ~- WHEREAS, the City Council finds that the approval of additional subdivisions, us~ permits, variances, building permits, or any other applicable discretionary permits that would allow the modification of the properties within the Historic Area therefore would result in that threat to public health, safety and welfare. 65858: 1) Moratorium Imposed. From and after the date of this ordinance, no building permit shall be approved or issued and no .land use permit shall be approved that would result in the construction or initiation o£ any of the following uses on any parcel located in the Historic Area (shown on Exhibit A hereto): 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. I0. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. Adult Business Establishment Automobile/Vehicle Brokerage Communi.'ty Care Facility / Large Dance, Ho. Qr Drive-in/Drive-through Business -Eating and Drixaking Establishment Fommetelting Health Services/Clinics Massage Establishment Plant Nursery Recreational Facility / Indoor Recreational Facility / Outdoor Retail - Outdoor Storage Service station Shopping Center So long as this ordinance is in effect, the City shall, nevertheless, accept and process applications for such entitlements. Except as modified herein, all other requirement of the Zoning Ordinance shall rem 'ain in effect during the term of this ord~9.e~ This ordinance is an interim ordinance adopted as an urgency measure pursuant to Government Code Section 65858 and is for the imm~g~e, preservation of the public peace, health and welfare. The facts constituting the urgency arethese: Development within the Historic Area could further deteriorate the historic resources within the Historic Area and frustrate .... the City's goal of protecting, preserving, and unearthing historical resources in the HiStoric Area~"~i~n~il~itii--di~ andPotential furore studies are necessary to catalog the existing historical resOurces in the Historic Area and to provide the City with information on the tools at its disposal to protect, preserve, and elucidate this history of the Historic Area~ In view ofthe facts set f0rthin the Recitals of this Ordinance, it is necessary to immediately study, hold heatings, and consider the adoption of a Specific Plan for the Historic Area as it my be recommended to the City Council by the Planning Commission. A Specific Plan cannot be eng~.~.~..~.~.~p~t,~d~i~,. ~.~t~n, andit Will take an undete ~rmin~ length of time to complete the appropriate studies and drafting necessary to prepare the'SPecific Plan. It would be destructive ofthe goals of the proposed Specific P1an if, during the period the Specific Plan is being studied' and is the SUbject of public hearings, parties seeking to evade the operation of Specific Plan in the form it may be adopted shoUld be permitted to operate in a manner that might progress so far as t~defeat in whole or in part 'the ultimate objective of the Specific Plan. 2) Comphance with Califorma Environmental Quality Act. This ordinance is not a "project" within the me~g of Section 15378 of the State CEQA Guidelines, because it has no potential for're-g~ting in physical change in the environment, directly or Ultimately; it prevents changes in the environment pending the completion of the contemplated Specific Plan. This ordinance is categorically exempt from CEQ~ under section.15308 of the State CEQA Guidelines because it is,a regulatory action taken bythe City; in accordance with Government Code section 65858, to assure maintenance and prOtection of the envir0nm, ent pending completion of the contemplated Specific Plan 3) Severability. If any provision of this ordinance or the application thereof to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the remainder of the ordinance, including the application of such part or provision to other persons or circumstanc_es,~!~.~_0..~.~.~.c..t,~e..~bY and shall c0nt~: and effect. To this end, provisions of this ordinance are severable. The City Council hereby declares that it would have passed each section, subsection, subdivision, paragraph, sentence, clause, or phrase hereof irrespective of the fact that any one or more sections, subsections, subdivisions, lmragmphs, sentences, clause'; o~phrases be held unconstitutional, invalid, or unenforceable. :4) Effective Date. This ordi~¢e ~h~,].b~0~.e,,~~)~._,~ upon adoption if adopted by at least four-fifths VO~._~f~ity Council and shall be ~._effe, ct. date of adoption unless emended by the City Council as provided for in Government_. Code ~eetion 6.5858.. PASSED, APPROVED and. ~OPTE~.?~ day of october 2003. AYES: NOES: ABSENT: ABSTAIN: .... ; . . ......... Mayor ATTEST: