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HomeMy WebLinkAboutItem 6.3 CondoConversion CITY CLERK File # Dæ~[~J-[6J~ AGENDA STATEMENT CITY COUNCIL MEETING DATE: February 1,2005 SUBJECT: ATTACHMENTS: RECOMMENDATION: ~ PA 04-044 Condominium Conversion Ordinance Regulating the Conversion of Existing Apartments in the City to Condominiums. Report Prepared by: Jeff Baker, Associate Planner~ 1. 2. Urgency Condominium Conversion Ordinance Condominium Conversion Ordinance (Non urgency ordinance) List of Dublin Apartments City Council Staff Report (Dated September 7, 2004) City Council Staff Report (Dated November 16,2004) without attachments Planning Commission Staff Report (Dated January 11,2005) without attachments Planning Commission Resolution 05-02 Recommending that the City Council Adopt an Urgency Ordinance and Non Urgency Ordinance Regulating the Conversion of Existing Apartments in the City to Condominiums Planning Commission Meeting Minutes (1/11/05) Letter rrom David Van Atta Dated January 5, 2005 Open Public Hearing; Receive Staff Presentation and take testimony trom thc applicant and public; Close Public Hearing and Deliberate; and Waive the Reading and Adopt the Urgency Ordinance (Attachment I) Regulating the Conversion of Existing Apartments in the City to Condominiums Waive the Reading and Introduce the Non-Urgency Ordinance (Attachment 2) Regulating the Conversion of Existing Apartments in the City to Condominiums 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. The conversion of rental apartments to for sale condominiums has the potential to create additional property tax revenues for the City. Additional property tax revenues would be generated by establishing a new tax basis with the sale of each unit. The full extent of the financial impacts would be based on the number of conversions that occur. Similarly, the sale of an apartment complcx rrom one group of investors to another could also create additional property tax revenues for the City. Implementation of the Condominium Conversion Ordinance will have all impact on Staff time in relation to adtnioìsiering and monitoring policy provisions. Thc impact on Staff time is discussed in the implementation sections of this Staff Report. FINANCIAL STATEMENT: _____________________._~~_.~______________w________________________________w_~.______________~_______________ G:\PA#\1004\04-044 Condo Con"crliiion ZOA \ccsr2-J,.,f)~.doç COPIES TO: \~'t IT::::.Distrib6~ , PROJECT DESCRIPTION: Apartment units provide a type of housing that is a key to a healthy diversity of housing stock in thc community. Apartments provide housing for all levels of aHbrdability in the community and are a valuable tool for providing work force housillg. Staff believes that the conversion of one or two of the City's apartment communities could have a major impact on the diversity of the City's housing stock in that it would remove from the market a significant pcrcentage of the existing rental units. If sold rather than rented, the units would no longer be available to a segment of the community that is not in a position to purchase such units. In addition, the loss of these units would likely decrease the vacancy rate, may increase rents, and this may in turn further exacerbate the City's shortagc of affordable rental units. This might cause a lasting imbalance in the diversity of housing stock in the City. In the past 10 years the City has seen the development of approximately 1,500 residential apartment units, for an overall total of approximately 3,172 units throughout the City. It should be noted that approximately 1,119 of these units are already mapped for condominiums but continue to operate as apartment communities (Attachment 3). However, the California Department of Real Estate (DRE) has not issued a Public Report for these properties. The Public Report vests the property owner's right to sell the units individually. These apartment communities remain subject to new City ordinances until the property owner has received a Public Report rrom the DRE. If all of these units converted, the ratio of apartments to ownership units would be greatly reduced. In the past ten months, Staff has received inquiries from several existing apartment owners indicating their intent to file subdivision documents to convert their projects to condominiums. The City is currently processing subdivision applications to convert the following apartment projects to for-sale condominiums. Current Subdivision Applications Iron Horse Trail Apartments (Dougherty Road) - Archstone - Emerald Park Apartments (Hacienda Drive) - Total 117 units 324 units 441 Units On September 7,2004, the City Council adopted a Resolution (Resolution #181-04) initiating proceedings to adopt an ordinance regulating the conversion of existing apartments in the City to for-sale condominiums (Attachment 4). Following that meeting, Staff studied the various mechanisms for re~'lI1ating condominium conversions. This Study included a complete review of the Subdivision Map Act, City of Dublin General Plan Housing Element and Condominium Conversion Ordinances from different cities throughout California, including the cities of Livermore and Walnut Creek. Based on this Study, Staff developed a series of policy alternatives for the City Council to consider. On November 16, 2004, Staff presented these policy alternatives to the City Council (Attachment 5). The City Council provided Staff with direction regarding the development of the proposed Condominium Conversion Ordinance. The City Council further directed Staff to hold a meeting with the owners of apartments within the City of DubJin in order to inform them of these policy recommendations and solicit thcir comments. On December 9,2004, Staffhcld a meeting with these property owners and other interested parties. Staff utilized the feedback received at this meeting to further develop the proposed Condominium Conversion Ordinance. Feedback ITom the property owners is included in the analysis section of this Staff Report. On January 11,2005, the Planning Commission adopted a resolution recommending that the City Council adopt an urgency ordinance and a non urgency ordinance, which are included as Attachments 1 and 2 of this Staff Report, to regulate the conversion of existing apartments to condominium. The Planning Commission adopted the resolution after making several minor modifications to the proposed ordinance. A discussion of the Planning Commission's comments and modifications are presented in the Analysis section of this Staff Report. 2~1+ Process: At the present time should a property owner wish to convert an existing apartment complex to for-sale condominiums, the property owner must record a Condominium Map and obtain a Public Report from the DRE. The application for a Condominium Map would be processed in accordance with State law under the Subdivision Map Act. The Subdivision Map Act contains provisions that require the property owner to give notice to tenants and gives tenants the right to purchase their existing units at market rate before they are placed on the market for-sale to the general public. State law permits the City to expand upon these basic requirements through the adoption of a condominium-conversion ordinance. State law provides that cities have the responsibility to use the powers vested in them to facilitate the improvement and development of housing to make adequate provision for the housing needs of all economic segments of the community. (See Gov. Code, § 65580(d»). For example, a condominium conversion ordinance could limit conversions to maintain a balance of housing stock and could require the provision of affordable units under th.e City's Inclusionary Zoning Ordinance. Both of the subdivision applications referenced above would only be subject to the Condominium Conversion Ordinancc if it is adopted before the City takes action on these subdivision maps. Ordinarily, under the Subdivision Map Act, the City may only apply standards in effect at the time that an application for a tentative subdivision map is deemed complete (Gov. Code, § 66474.2(a». However, the City Council adopted Resolution 181-04 initiating proceedings to adopt a condominium-conversion ordinance (Attachment 4). This Resolution was designed to prevent those that file subdivision applications to convert existing apartments to condominiums rrom avoiding the pending condominium-conversion ordinance. The Resolution permits the City to apply the Condominium Conversion Ordinance in effect on the date the City approves or disapproves a tentative map (Gov. Code, § 66474.2(b)). The Subdivision Map Act requires the City to take action on maps within 50 days of deeming an application complete. At the time that this Staff Report was prepared, the subdivision applications referenced above had not been deemed complete. Neighboring Jurisdictions: Cities throughout California have adopted Condominium Conversion Ordinances including the cities of Livermore and Walnut Creek. Both of these cities adopted conversion ordinances that contain provisions which restrict the conversion of apartments to condominiums and provide relocation benefits to displaced tenants. The following is a synopsis of the policy components contained in these ordinances: The City of Livermore: · Application of the ordinance: Projects with 2 or morc units. · Limitations on Conversions: The City Council must annually determine the maximum number of apartments that arc permitted to convert. · Limitations on Rent Increases: Rent increases are not permitted from the date a tentative map application is filed until the tenant relocates. · Relocation Assistance: All tenants receive financial relocation assistance equal to 2-months rent. Seniors are offered rent controlled lifetime leases. Low and moderate income tenants shall be offered a minimum of a 3-year, rent controlled lease. Tenants with school aged children receivc a 6- month lease extension. · Bui1ding Code Requirements: Projects shall conform to the applicable building code in effect at the time the last building permit was issued. · Site Development Review: Landscaping and buildings shall be reviewed by the Planning Department and refurbished and restored to achieve a high degree of appearance. The City of Walnut Creek: · Application of the ordinance: Projects with 2 or more units. · Limitations on Conversions: Conversion is limited to no more than 5% of the City's potentially convertible rental stock in anyone calendar year. · Limitations on Rent Increases: Rent increases are not permitted for a period of 2-years from the date a 36b\"\ · tentative map application is filed with the city. Relocation Assistance: All tenants receive financial relocation assistance equal to 2-months rent. Seniors are offered rent controlled lifetime leases. Low and moderate income tenants shall be oftered a minimum of a 3-year, rent controllcd lease. Building Code Requirements: Projects shall conform to the applicable building code in effect at the timc the last building permit was issued. Site Development Review: Landscaping and buildings shaH be refurbished and restored to achieve a high degree of appearance. · · PROPOSED POLICY COMPONENTS: The following is a discussion of the key policy components of the proposed Condominium Conversion Ordinance. The discussion of each component includes an analysis of the policy along with a discussion of the feedback received at the meeting with the Property Owners and recommendations made by the Planning Commission. In some illstances, the ordinance has been modified based on the feedback and recommendations that Staffreccived. This analysis also includes a discussion of the impacts on Staff time as a result of implementing these provisions. A. Application of the Condominium Conversion Ordinance The following criteria would be used to identify multi-family properties that are subject to the proposed Condominium Conversion Ordinance: · Residential rental projects in which units have been occupied as rental units (Attachment I - Section 8.54.030); · Developments containing 21 or more dwelling units under the same ownership that are held for lease to the general public (Attachment 1 - Section 8.54.020); and · Apartment projects with a recorded subdivision map on September 7,2004, would be exempt from the Condominium Conversion Ordinance (Attachment I . Section 8.54.030). Analysis: The conversion of units that have already been occupied could result in the displacement of residents. Therefore, apartments would be subject to the ordinance if they have already been occupied. Tenants that would be displaced by conversion would be eligible to receive relocation benefits required by the proposed Condominium Conversion Ordinance as discussed in Section D of this Staff Report. The original recommendation to include a provision to make all projects with 20 or more rental units subject to the Condominium Conversion Ordinance is consistent with the threshold that has been established for the existing Inclusionary Zoning Regulations (Section 8.68). This would exclude duplexes and small apartment buildings from the ordinance. The Alders Apartments is the smallest apartment building in the City with only 8 UllitS. The Evan Alan Apartments is the next smallest with a total of 20 units. However, this provision has been modified by the Planning Commission as dis\"'Ussed below, to apply to projects with 21 or more units. The requirement to obtain a public report from the DRE would make units that have already been mapped for condominiums subject to the proposed Condominium Convcrsion Ordinance. The City Attorney's Office's legal review concluded that only the Public Report vests the building owners' rights to sell the units individually. Without the Public Report, the development remains subject to new City ordinances regardless of whether the building is already mapped. At the time that this Staff Report was prepared, the DRE had not issued a Public Report for any units within tbe City that have been mapped for condominiums. However, if all of these units were converted, the ratio of apartments to ownership units would be greatly reduced and a significant number of tenants would be displaccd. Implementation of this provision would reduce the potential impact to these tenants. 4~\~ This approach to regulating the conversion of mapped apartments to condominiums is not currently used by surrounding jurisdictions but is common in Southern California. This provision has been modified by the Planning Commission as discussed below, and would exempt existing projects with Condominium Maps. City Council Meeting (11/16/04): The policy alternatives that were presented to the City Council included an alternative that would make existing projects with recorded Condominium Maps subject to the provisions of the Condominium Conversion Ordinance if the Department of Real Estate (DRE) has not issued a public report for the project. The policy alternatives that were presented to the City Council also included a recommendation to apply the ordinance to apartment projects with 20 or more units. The City Council directed Staff to prepare an ordinance that included both of these provisions. Property Owner's Meeting (12/9/04): Several property owners expressed concern about applying the proposed Condominium Conversion Ordinance to properties that have a]ready processed a Final Map with the City. These property owners indicated that approval of their cxisting condominium maps implied certain approva1s from the City and that application of a Condominium Conversion Ordinance would cffectively reverse these approvals and devalue their properties. Staff also received a letter prepared by David Van Atta on behalf of property owners in the City of Dublin (Attachment 9). This letter argues that California law does not permit the regulation of the conversion of projects with approved Condominium Maps. The City Attorney's Office has reviewed Mr. Van Atta's letter and stands by its conclusion that the City may regulate conversion if the property owner has not obtained a Pub1ic Report. The owner of the Evan Alan Apartments requested that the ordinance apply to properties with 21 or more units in order to exclude it from the ordinance. The Evan Alan Apartments has 20 units and has processed a Final Condominium Map but does not have a Public Report from the DRE. The property owner(s) also expressed concern that they were not notified of the City Council meeting, held Oil September 7, 2004. It was at this meeting that the City Council initiated the development of the proposed ordinance. The City sent a public hearing notice to the leasing office at each property advising them of the City Council hearing. However, the property owner(s) were inadvertently not sent a copy of the hearing notice. Staff has updated the address list for the public hearing notices to include each property owner, All property owners were sent a notice advising them of the Planning Commission hearing on January 11,2005. Planning Commission Meeting (1/11/05): The Planning Conunission raised concern that applying the ordinance to projects with approved Condominium Maps would rcverse previous approvals that were granted by the City. Based on this concern, the Planning Commission recommended that the City Council adopt a Condominium Conversion Ordinance that excludes existing projects with maps. There are six existing apartment projects, with a total of 1,119 units, within the City of Dublin that have recorded Condominium Maps (Attachment 3). The City approved these Condominium Maps at the time that the original entitlements were granted for these projects. As noted above, these projects would be exempt rrom the provisions of the proposed Condominium Conversion Ordinance. These projects are also exempt from the condominium conversion provisions of the Subdivision Map Act because they already have existing maps. The Planning Commission also took testimony from Mr. Joseph Au, owner of the Evan Alan Apartments. Mr. Au requested that the ordinance apply to projects with 21 or more units rather than projects with 20 or more units as originally proposed. The Planning Commission directed Staff to modifY the proposed ordinance to make projects with 21 or more units subject to the ordinance. 5ßb 1+ Theretore, the Evan Alan Apartments would be exempt from the ordinance because it has 20 units and an approvcd Condominium Map. Implementation: Implementation of these policy components would not have a fiscal impact on their own. Howevcr, Staff time would be rcquired in order to implement the overall ordinance. B. Limitations on Conversions Section 8.54.040 of the proposed Condominium Conversion Ordinance would permit conversions if the minimum number of rental units within the City of Dublin exceeds 30% of the total housing supply. Conversions would not be permitted if the convcrsion reduces the total number of rental units below 30% of the total housing supply. Analysis: This provision sets clearly detìned standards that can be used to determine if rental units may be converted to condominium units and continue to preserve divcrsity in the housing stock. When the General Plan Housing Element was updated in 2000, multi~farni1y rental units represented approximately 30% of the total housing supply. This ratio was consistent with the compositioll of the nationwide housing supply at that time and ensures a diversity of housing types to meet the needs of different economic Seb'lllents of the community. Implementation of this provision in the ordinance would preserve a core stock of rental housing consistent with the housing ratio identified at thc timc that the Housing Element was updated. City Council Meeting (11/16/04): The policy alternatives that Stuff presented to the City Council included a recommendation to require a 30% rental housing ratio in order to permit conversions. The City Council directed Staff to include this provision in the proposed Condominium Conversion Ordinance. The policy alternatives that were presented to the City Council also included a recommendation that would require, as a prerequisite to conversion, that the City wide vacancy rate excccd 5% (Attachment 5). The City of Dublin General Plan Housing Elernent (Appendix A, Dublin Housing Stock) indicates that a vacancy rate of 5% is considered ideal for adequate consumer mobility and to ensure that alternative housing is available for tenants that are displaced by conversion. The City Council recommended that this provision be included in the draft ordinance. Property Owner's Feedback (12/9/04): The property owners raised concern that the 30% housing ratio identified in the Housing Element was an arbitrary number and not based on an analysis of the needs of the community. These owners feel that condominiums also play an important role in the community. The property owners also expressed concern about requiring a 5% vacancy rate as a prerequisite to conversion. The owner's illdicated that vacancies are at least partially a refle\..1:ion of the rents that a property is charging. Therefore, the vacancy rate can be manipulated by an increase or decrease in rent. Staff also discovered a number of implementation issues associated with this provision. Vacancy rates are difficult to track. Professional vacancy reports do not typically truck smaller apartment complexes and would not necessarily give an accurate representation of the overall vacancy rate within the City. Staff could periodically survey property owners in order to determine the vacancy rate. However, this would be a labor intensive task and it would be difficult to verity the accuracy of the information that is collected. Based on the concerns raised by the property owners and the difficulty in tracking vacancy rates, Staff has decided to recommend against including a vacancy requirement in the proposed Condomillium Conversion Ordinance. Planning Commission Feedback (J/ll/05): As previously mentioned, the Planning Commission recommended excluding existing projects with Condominium Maps from the Condominium 6~1"t Conversion Ordinance. Staff has re-evaluated the current housing ratio based on the recommendation by th.e Planning Commission. As of October 2004, approximately 18% of the residential permits issued were for multi-family rental housing (excluding existing projects with Condominium Maps). The ratio would increase to 25%, for the same period, if existing projects with Condominium Maps were included in the calculation. Therefore, no conversions would be permitted until additional multi-family rental housing is constructed and the housing ratio exceeds 30%. Staff also estimated the housing ratio when the City reaches build out. This analysis was done using 2000 Census data, Association of Bay Area Governments (ABAG) projections, and the current General Plan Land Use Map. This ratio is based on the assumption that all undeveloped parcels with existing Medium/High and High Density General Plan Land Use designations will be developed as rental units. However, it is unlikely that all of these parcels will be developed as apartments without any for-salc units. Excluding the existing projects with Condominium Maps, multi-family rental units are anticipated to represent a maximum of approximately 32% of the total housing supply when the city reaches build out. Condominiums help to provide a variety of ownership opportunities for different economic segments of the community. Staff believes that it would be undesirable to only build apartments to the exclusion of tor-sale-condominiums. Condominiums provide many first time buyers with affordable homeownership opportunities. But, the construction of for-sale condominiums would reduce the ratio of rental units below 32% of the total housing supply, For example, if half of the undeveloped Medium/High and High Density parcels are developed as for-sale-condominiums the ratio of multi-family rental units would equal 21% of the total housing suppJy. Therefore, condominium conversions would not be permitted because the ratio of multi-family rental housing would be below 30% of the total housing supply. The Condominium Conversion Ordinance would in effect prohibit the conversion of additional rental units to for-sale-condominiums. However, should the City Council wish to set the housing ratio be10w 30%, they could direct Staff to modifY the ordinance prior to adoption. Implementation: A minimal amount of Staff time would be required to calculate the current housing ratio. The City already collects the information that is needed to calculate the ratio. The cost of Staff time needed to calculate the ratio would be recovered through the pre application fee dcscribed in Section 8.54.040.A of the ordinance. C. Limitations on Rent Increases Section 8.54.100 restricts rent incrcases from the date the property owner provides each tenant with a Notice of Intent to Convert pursuant to Section 8.54.050 until twelve months following the approval of the Condominium Conversion Permit or six months following the issuance of a public report by the Department of Real Estate (DRE), whichever occurs later. Ana~ysis: Restricting the property owner's ability to raise rent will limit the potential for property owners to encourage tenants to vacate early in order to avoid the noticing requirements of the Subdivision Map Act and the proposed City of Dublin Condominiwn Conversion Ordinance. Rent would be held in place for a minimum of6-12 months w1der this provision. City Council Meeting (11/16/04): This provision was included in the policy recommendations to the City Council. The City Council directed Staff to include this provision in the proposed Condominium Conversion Ordinance. Property Owner's Meeting (J2/9/04): The property owners did not express concern regarding this specific provision. 7 itJJ If Planning Commission Meeting (1/11/05): The Planning Commission is in support of this provision and did not direct Statf to make further modifications. Implementation: A self reporting process would be utilized and a minimal amount of Staff time would be required to implement this policy. The property owner would be required to notifY each tenant of the limitation on rent increases and provide Staff with a copy of the notice as described in Section 8.54.050.A of the proposed ordinance. D. Tenant Relocation Assistance Plan Section 8.54.110 of the proposed ordinance requires the Applicant to implement a Tenant Relocation Assistance Plan. The relocation plan shall be prepared by the Applicant and indicate thc Applicant's commitment to provide tenants with the benefits required by the Condominium Conversion Ordinance. These henefits include financial assistance with moving expenses and an extension oflease terms for qualified tenants. Financial Relocation Assistance Section 8.54.11 O.D of the proposed ordinance requires the property owncr to provide each tenant with a payment equal to 3 months rent to help cover moving expenses. The property owner is required to make this payment within 10 days of the tenant's waiver to purchase their existing unit. Ana(vsis: There are costs associated with the physical act of moving and setting up ncw utilities. However, the Subdivision Map Act does not require property owners to provide relocation assistance to displaced tenants. The ordinancc requirement to pay moving expenses is intended to reduce the financial burden that is placed on tenants as a result of the property owner's decision to convert and the tenants' subsequent need to relocatc. City Council Meeting (11/16/04): The policy alternatives that were presented to the City Council included a recommendation to pay moving expenses equal to 2-mollths rent within 14-days of relocation. However, the City Council directed Staff to require a payment equal to 3-months prior to relocation. This provision has been included in the proposed ordinance as requested by the City Council. Property Owner's Meeting (12/9/04): Concern was raised by the property owners regarding the requirement to provide financial rclocation assistance. Several property owners stated that the annual tenant turnover rate was between 50% and 80%. These property owners do not feel that they should be required to pay relocation expenses for tcoants that would likely move regardless of a conversion. They suggested that relocation benefits be limited to longtime tenants. However, as demonstrated by these property owners, as much as 50% of their tenallts remain tòr more than one year. Even tenants that might plan to move in a given year could be forced to move early as a result of a conversion. These tcoants will incur moving expenses that they might not have otherwise incurred if the property was not converted. Many of these residents may not have the financial resources to pay moving expenses. Therefore, Staff continues to recommend the financial relocation assistance provision for all tenants. Planning Commission Meeting (1/11/05): The Plwming Commission is in support of this provision and did not direct Staff to make further modifications. Implementation: A self reporting process would be utilized and a minimal amount of Staff time would be required to implement this policy. The property owner would be required to notifY each 800\1 tenant of their relocation benefits and provide Staff with a copy of the notice as described in Sections 8.54.050 and 8.54.110 ofthe draft ordinance. Continued Tentlncy for Qualified Tenants Section 8.54.11 D.E of the proposed ordinance requires property owners to provide a l2-month extension of tenancy to all eligible tenants beyond the 180 day period required by the Subdivision Map Act (Section 66427. I (c). This 12-month extension shall be provided if the head of household or spouse meets the following eligibility criteria: · Has attained age 62 or older; Has a disability as defined by Section 54 of the California Civil Code; Is a resident of an inclusionary housing unit; or Is residing with one or more minor dependent children. · · · Analysis: There is a limited amount of housing that meets the needs of senior, disabled and low~ income tenants. For example, a disabled tenant may require an apartment on the ground floor. Ground tloor apartments are harder to find and tenants may require an extended period of time to locate such a unit. The Subdivision Map Act requires property owners to give tenants a 180-day notice to vacate an apartment prior to terminating a tenancy due to a condominium conversion. However, 180-days may not be a sufficient amount of time for a displaced tenant with special needs to find suitable replacement housing in Dublin. Similarly, the 12-month extension for families with school aged children will provide them with the flexibility to avoid moving during the school year and disrupting the education process. The l2-month extension included in the proposed Condominium Conversion Ordinance would provide these tenants with additional time to find housing within the community and further reduce the potential negative impacts of moving. City Council Meeting (1/16/04): The policy alternatives that were presented to the City Council included a recommendation to provide a 3-year lease extension to tenants that were seniors, disabled or low income (Attachment 5). However, the City Council expressed concern that a 3-year extension may be overly burdensome to property owners and result in discrimination against renting to thcse tenants. The City Council recommended the 12-month extension that is included in the proposed ordinance. Property Owner's Meeting (12/9/04): Thc property owners agreed that a 3-year lease extension was burdensome and also questioned the need to provide any type of time extension. Planning Commission Meeting (1/11/05): The Planning Commission is in support ofthis provision and did not direct Staff to make further modifications. implementation: A minimal amount of Staff time is required to implement this policy. The property owner is required to demonstrate that they have entered a binding lease extension or that the tenant has refused an offer for an extension. The cost of Staff time needed to review this docwnentation could be billed to the Applicant on a time alld materials basis. E. IncIuslonary Zoning Re¡:ulations Section 8.54.130 of thc proposed Condominium Conversion Ordinance treats condominium convcrsions as new residential development projects. As new residential development projects, these converted properties would be required to comply with current Inclusionary Zoning Regulations. The currcnt Inclusionary Zoning Regulations rcquire new developments to provide 12.5% of the units as affordable (Section 8.68). However, if the project had complied with the Inclusionary Zoning Regulations in effect at the time the project was built, the converted project will 96f>li only be required to make up the difference. Thus, ifthc project has complied with a 5% inclusionary requirement at the time it was constructed, then the conversion would be required to satisfy the remaining 7.5% inclusiollary obligation under the existing ordinance. Analysis: The conversion from apartments to condominiums could result in a substantial loss of market rate and affordable rental units. However, condominiums are often seen as an affordable form of homeownership. The conversion of apartments to condominiums will provide the community with additional affordable ownership opportunities. In addition, the provision to require converted propcrties to conform to the Indusionary Zoning Regulations will make 12.5% of the units affordable to a segment of the market that might not otherwise be able to purchase a condominium unit. City Council Meeting (1116104): The policy alternatives that were presented to the City Council included a recommendation to require converted properties to comply with current Inclusionary Zoning Regulations. The City Council directed Staff to include this provision in the proposed Condominium Conversion Ordinance. Property Owner's Meeting (1219/04): The property owner's comments were limited to receiving credit for the portion of any affordable obligation that has already been met. However, the ordinances include a provision that gives property owners credit for in-lieu fees that were previously paid to meet their affordable obligation. Planning Commission Meeting (1/11/05): The Planning Commission is in support of this provision and did not direct Staff to make further modifications. Implementation: A substantial amount of Statr time could be required to implement this policy if a large number of units are permitted to convert at one time. However, this Staff time could be billed to the applicant on a time and materials basis. F. Tenant's Right to Purchase Units The proposed ordinance (Section 8.54.090.B) requires property owners to provide tenants living in inclusionary units with an exclusive right to contract for the purchase of the unit occupied by the tenant at the sales price set forth in the Inclusionary Zoning Regulations based on the tenant's annual household income. Analysis: The Subdivision Map Act requires property owners to provide tenants with an exclusive right to contract for the purchase of their existing unit upon the same terms and conditions that such unit will initial1y be offered to the general public or on terms more favorable to the tenant. However, the Subdivision Map Act does not address inclusionary units. The provisions of the proposed Condominium Conversion Ordinance wi11 provide tenants that reside in inclusionary units with the same preferential treatment that market rate tenants receive. The purchase price would be based on the tenant's household income in accordance with the Inclusionary Zoning Regulations (Section 8.68). This could enable tenants that rent affordable units to purchase their existing unit at an atIordable purchase price and avoid being displaced by the conversion. City Council Meeting (1116104): The policy alternatives that were presented to the City Council on November 16, 2004, included a recommendation to extend the right to purchase to inclusionary tenants at a price consistent with the Inclusionary Zoning Ordinance. The City Council directed Staff to include this provision in the proposed Condominium Conversion Ordinance. 1O"b't Property Owner's Meeting (/2/9/04): Staff discussed this provision with the property owners at the meeting on December 9th. The property owners did not provide comments to Staff regarding changes to this provision. Planning Commission Meeting (1/11/05): The Planning Commission recommended notifying tenants of the financial obligations of purchasing a condominium. This includes the creation of a homeowner's association and CC&R's that specify these financial obligations. Section 8.54.090 of the draft ordinance has been modified based on this recommendation (Attachments 1 & 2). implementation: A substantial amount of Staff time could be required to implement this policy if a large number of units are permitted to convert at one time. However, this Staff time could be billed to the applicant on a time and materials basis. G. Building Code Requirements Section 8.54.080 of the proposed Condominium Conversion Ordinance rcquires converted units to meet the building code requirements in effect at the time of construction. Any retrofitting or remodeling work would be required to meet current building code requirements in effect at the time that building permits were issued. Converted units would also be required to 1I1eet the current Housing Code as defined by the Dublin Municipal Code. Analysis: Many existing residential dwellings, including apartments, within the City of Dublin were built prior to the current building code requirements. These dwellings are considered safe and inhabitable structures. Therefore, the City does not typically require cost1y retrofitting of these properties to bring them up to currellt building code requirements. Conversion of existing apartments to condominiums docs not substantially change the use of these structures in a way that would make them less safe or inhabitable. However, any remodeling or retro fitting work that the property owner performs would be required to meet current building code requirements. The Housing Code provides minimum standards for life safety. Existing apartments are required to meet these current Housing Code requirements. Converted units would be required to conform to the housing code at the time of conver~ion. City Council Meeting (11/16/04): This provision was included in the policy recommendations to the City Council. The City Council directed Staff to include this provision in the proposed Condominium Conversion Ordinance. Property Owner's Meeting (12/9/04): The property owners did not express concern with this provision. Planning Commission Meeting (1/11/05).- The Planning Commission directed Staff to research and advise the City Council on the feasibility of requiring converted projects to meet accessibility requirements under the federal Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Staff researched the federal ADA requiren)ents and determined that the ADA is regulated by the Federal Government not the City. However, the State re~,'ulates accessibility requirements under the California Building Code, Title 24, and these standards are enforced by local jurisdictions. The accessibility requirements under Title 24 are in general more stringent than the requirements under the ADA. It should be noted that projects that were built after 1992 are in substantial conformance with current Title 24 standards. Staff has researched the feasibility and economic issues associated with requiring converted projects to meet current accessibility standards under Title 24. These requirements apply to the project site and associated buildings. lløo't Site Accessibility: Title 24, like ADA, includes site design requirements to ensure that new projects arc accessible to people with disabilities. In order for the project site to be accessible to people with disabilities, the parking lot, walkways and other common areas must meet maximum slope standards and provide wheel chair access. Should the City Council dccide to require existing projects to meet current site accessibility requirements under Title 24, projects that were built prior to 1992 would require modifications to the site design in ordcr to meet these standards. The site modifications to thcse projects would require a limited amount of work at a minimal cost to the property owner. Building Accessibility: Title 24 also applies to the design of the units within the apartment project. Current Title 24 standards for new construction require all ground floor units and 10% of the total units within a project to be adaptable tor accessibility to people with disabilities. In order to be considered adaptable, these units must be accessible to people with disabilities including a person in wheel chair accessible, and the interior of the units must be designed to accommodate a wheel chair and people with other disabilities. In order to accommodate a wheel chair the door frames must meet minimum width requirements, the kitchen and at least one bathroom in each adaptable unit must meet minimum size requircmcnts to ensure wheel chair maneuverability and the kitchen and bathroom must be designed with adjustable counters for use by people with disabilities. Should the City Council dccide to require converted units to meet current accessibility requirements under Title 24, the units that were built prior to 1992 wouJd require extensive modifications. For example, an elevator or wheel chair lift may be required to provide wheel chair access to adaptable units. The kitchen and one of the bathrooms may need to be enlarged to meet minimum size requirements. The kitchen and bathroom counters and cabinets would need to be modified in order to be functional for a person with disabilities. These modifications could be cost prohibitive and would likely discourage the conversion of older apartments. The Planning Conunission directed Staff to inform the City Council of the feasibility of modi tying existing projects to meet current accessibility standards. However, the Planning Commission did not direct Staff to modifY the ordinance. Therefore, should thc City Council wish to require converted projects to meet current accessibility standards under Title 24, the City Council could direct Staff to modifY the ordinance prior to adoption. Implementation: The ordinance requires the property owner to provide the City with a report on the condition of each structure and any variation in the code requirements. The cost for a City inspector to rcvicw the property and the report would be billed to the property owner on a time and materials basis as part of the cost for a Condominium Conversion Permit. The property owner would be required to obtain a building permit for retrofitting work. Thc cost of building inspections is included in the building permit fees. H. Site Development Review Section 8.54.060 of the proposed Condominium Conversion ordinance requires Site Development Review (SDR) concurrent with a request to convert to condominiums. The SDR will allow the City to evaluate the physical appearance of the property and require work to refurbish and restore the project as necessary to achieve a high degree of appearance, quality and safety. Analysis: A Condominium Map is required in order to convert an existing apartment complex to condominiums. However, the map process does not provide a mechanism to evaluate the physical appearance of a property. For example, the City could receive an application to convert an existing apartment complex with deferred maintenance that creates an eyesore within the community. This deferred maintenance could include external painting and landscape maintenance to repair sparse or overgrown landscaping. The SDR permit will provide the Planning Commission with a mechanism 121JI't to evaluate the physical appearance of the property and impose conditions that require remedial work to maintain the visual appearance of the City of Dublin. City Council Meeting (1/16/04): Staff presented this policy alternative to the City Council for consideration. The City Council directed Staff to include a provision requiring a Site Development Review permit in this ordinance. Property Owner's Meeting (12/9/04): The property owners raised concern that the Site Development Review process might provide the City with the arbitrary power to make modifications beyond simply rehabilitating the property. However, the language in the proposed ordinance limits the City's evaluation to maintenance and conformance with prior site and architectural approvals. The intent of this provision is not to reopen full site development review but simply to ensure that the property remains in conformance with existing approvals. Planning Commission Meeting (I/1l!05): The Planning Commission is in support of this provision and did not direct Staff to make further modifications. Implementation: Community Development Department Staff time would .be required to perform a physical inspection of the property and review proposed improvements. However, the cost of this review would be included in the application fec for a Condominium Conversion Permit. ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW: The California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), together with the State guidelines and City environmental regulations require that certain projects be reviewed for environmental impacts and that environmental documents be prepared. This project has been found to be exempt from the Calit()rnia Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), pursuant to CEQA Guidclines Section 15061(b)(3), because it can be seen with certainty that there is no possibility that the proposed changes to the Municipal Code will have a significant effect on the environment. CONCLUSION: Apartment units provide a typc of housing that is a key to a healthy diversity of housing stock in the community. Staff believes that the conversion of one or two of the City's apartment communities could have a major impact on the diversity of the City's housing stock in that it would remove from the market a significant percentage of the existing rental units. In consideration of the potential impacts Staff has prepared the attached Condominium Conversion Ordinance. The proposed ordinance would regulate the conversion of rental apartments to for-sale condominiums and mitigate relocation impacts to tenants. On January II, 2005, the Plwming Commission voted 4-0 to adopted a resolution recommending that the City Council adopt an urgency ordinance and a non urgency ordinance, with modified language, to regulate the conversion of rental apartments to for sale condominiums. The urgency ordinancc and non urgency ordinance are included as Attaclunents 1 and 2 of this Staff Report. The ordinance would exempt projects with condominium maps from the provisions of the Condominium Conversion Ordinance. Adopting an urgency ordinance (Attachment 1) will ensure that the ordinance is in effect before the City takes action on the current subdivision applications. Ordinances typically require two readings before the City Council and take effect 30 days following the second reading. However, the urgency ordinancc would take effect immediately after adoption. To enact the urgency ordinance, the City Council must determine that the conversion of these apartments to condominiums might frustrate the City's goal and State law obligation to adequately provide for the housing needs of all economic segments of the community. To ensure that thc Ordinance becomes effective in the event that the urgency ordinance is challenged, the Planning Commission recommends that the City Council also adopt a non urgency ordinance (Attachment 2). The non urgency ordinance would supersedc the urgency ordinance upon becoming cffectivc. 13r1Q j '-\ RECOMMENDATION: Staff recommends that the City Council: 1) open public hearing; 2) receive Staff's presentation and take testimony rrom the applicant and public; 3) close the public hcaring and deliberate; 4) waive the reading and adopt the Urgency Ordinancc (Attachment I) regulating the conversion of existing apartments in the City to condominiums; and 5) waive the reading and introduce the Non-Urgency Ordinance (Attachment 2) regulating the conversion of existing apartmcnts in the City to condominiums. 14~1'"t lOb 'bLf- ORDINANCE NO. - 05 AN URGENCY ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF DUBLIN ADDING CHAPTER 8.54 TO THE DUBLIN MUNICIPAL CODE (ZONING ORDINANCE) RELATING TO CONDOMINIUM CONVERSIONS The City Council of the City of Dublin does hereby ordain as follows: Section 1. Findings. A. State law provides that cities have the responsibility to use the powers vested in them to facilitate the improvement and development of housing to make adequate provision for the housing needs of all economic segments of the community. B. The City Council finds that conditions in the rosidential real estate market have led to the increase in proposals to convert existing multi-family rental projects to condominiums and other forms of multiple ownership and that the conversion of one or two of the City's apartment communities could have a major impact on the City's housing market, in that it would remove from the market a significant percentage of the existing rental units. C. The City Council finds that the conversion of residential structures from individual ownership to condominiums or any other form ofmultipJe ownership interest has the potential to create specific community problenlS, both social and economic. For example, conversions may significantly affect the balance between rental and ownership housing within the City, and thereby reduce the variety of individual choices of tenure, type, price and location of housing. Conversion may also increase overall rents, decrease the supply of rental housing for all income groups, displace individuals and families, and disregard the needs of the housing market place. D. Accordingly, the City Council finds that the adoption of a condominium- conversion ordinance is necessary to limit the impacts on the community of condominium conversions, to provide guidelines for the City to evaluate the economic and social problems associated with condominium conversions, and to establish requirements that must be included in any conversion approval. Section 2. Addition o[Chapter 8.54. Chapter 8.54 is hereby added to the Dublin Zoning Ordinance to read as follows: CHAPTER 8.54 CONDOMINIUM CONVERSION REGULATIONS 8.54.010 Intent. The purpose of this Chapter is to: A. Maintain a supply of at!ordable and market rate rental housing. 2-I-D5 f&,·3 727S's2.3 -1- ATTACHMENT I January 19, 2.005 727552.3 ~flbß"¡' B. Provide a reasonable balance of ownership and rental housing in the community and a variety of choices in the type and price of housing. C. Establish criteria for the conversion of existing multi-family rental housing to condominiums. D. Reduce the impact of conversion on residents ofrental housing that may be required to relocate due to the conversion of rental housing to condominiums. E. Provide the opportunity for very low-, low-, and moderate-income persons to participate in the ownership process and to maintain a supply of rental housing for very low-, low-, and moderate-income persons; and F. Ensure that converted housing achieves a high degree of appearance, quality and safety. 8.54.020 Condominium Conversion Dermed. A "condominium conversion" means the conversion of the ownership of the units in a residential housing project containing twenty-one or more units that are or were previously occupied as rental units from a single ownership to an ownership in which the residential units may be sold individually. Such condominium conversions may include, but are not limited to, the conversion of existing multiple unit residential housing projects to any of the following, all as defined in Civil Code section 1351 (a) a community apartment project, (b) a condominium project, and (c) a stock cooperative. 8.54.030 Condominium Conversion Permit A. Permit Required. No condominium conversion may take place in the City without the owner first obtaining a Condominium Conversion Permit pursuant to this Chapter and, where applicable, an approved subdivision map. B Exemptions. A Condominium Conversion Permit shall not be required prior to the sale of individual units to the public for any of the following residential housing projects: 1. Projects that had recorded subdivision maps for a community apartment project, a condominium project, or a stock cooperative on September 7,2004. 2. Projects in which none of the units have been occupied as rental units. -2- January 19,2005 727552.3 3C-6'ßt¡. 8.54.040 Preliminary Application Process. A. Preliminary Applications. Prospective applicants for Condominium Conversion Permits shall initially submit a preliminary application on forms provided by the City. Preliminary applications shall identifY the owner or the owner's authorized agent and the location and number of units in the building to be converted. The preliminary application shall be accompanied by a preliminary application fee, the amount of which shall be as set forth from time to time by resolution of the City Council. B. Department Review. The Community Development Director shall review preliminary applications for condominium conversions. The Community Development Director shall authorize the submittal of a Condominium Conversion Permit application if both of the following criteria are met: 1. Notice of Intent to Convert. The applicant provides satisfactory evidence to the Community Development Director that the Notice ofIntent to Convert required by section 8.54.050 was received by all tenants of the project proposed for conversion and that 60 days have elapsed since the applicant made the last such notification. 2. Rental/Ownership Housing Ratio. The ratio that multiple-family units in developments of twenty (20) or more rental units bears to the total number of housing units in the City as a whole exceeds thirty percent (30%). For the purposes of this calculation, the units proposed for conversion should be treated as housing units but should not be treated as rental units. Notwithstanding the foregoing, no Condominiun1 Conversion Permit application shan be accepted for projects that propose to convert only a portion of the units in an existing multiplc unit residential project. The Condominium Conversion Permit application shall be submitted no later than 60 days following the Community Development Director's authorization. 8.54.050 Notice ofIntent to Convert. A. At least sixty (60) days prior to submitting an application for a Condominium Conversion Permit pursuant to section 8.54.070, the applicant shall provide notice substantially in the form outlined in subdivision B to each tenant in the project proposed for conversion. B. The notice shall be substantially as follows: "To the occupant(s) of [address]: -3- JanUl\TY 19,2005 727552.3 We 'b $!#- The owner(s) of this building, at [address], planes) to file an application for a Condominium Conversion Permit with the City of Dublin to convert this building to condominiums, community apartments, or a stock cooperative project. You will be provided with notice of each hearing held by the City on the proposed conversion, and you have the right to appear and the right to be heard at any such hearing. Be advised that Chapter 8.56 of the Dublin Municipal Code may give you, as a tenant of a structure proposed for conversion to condominiums, certain rights. [signature of owner or owner's agent] [date] C. In the event that the applicant is simultaneously applying for a tentative map and a Condominium Conversion Permit, the notice required by this section may be combined with the notice required by Government Code section 66452.9 8.54.060 Site Development Review Required, Any condominium conversion shall also be subject to Site Devclopment Review, pursuant to Chapter 8.104, to provide the City with a mechanism to evaluate issues related to maintenance of the property and consistency with prior site and architectural approvals and, if necessary, require modifications to existing site conditions. The applicant shall submit an application for Site Development Review concurrently with the application for a Condominium Conversion Permit. The decision maker shall impose such conditions as are necessary to require that buildings, structures, fences, patio enclosures, carports, accessory buildings, sidewalks, driveways, landscaped areas and utility facilities are refurbished and restored as necessary to ensure that the proposed conversion project is and remains orderly and attractive. 8.54.070 Condominium Application Requirements, An application for a Condominium Conversion Permit shall be accompanied by the following items: A. A report on the physical elements of each structure and facility, which shall include, but not be limited to, the following: I. A report detailing the condition of each element of the property, including foundation, structural, electrical, plumbing, utilities, walls, ceilings, windows, recreational facilities, sound transmission of each building, mechanical equipment, parking facilities, and appliances. Regarding each element, the report shall state to the best know1edge or estimate ofthe applicant when the element was --4- Ji1[]I.I~1'y 19, 200' 727552.3 5rb'D+ constructed or installed, when the element was last replaced, the approximate date upon which the clement will require repJacement, the cost of replacing the element, and any variation of the physical condition of the element rrom the applicable zoning and building code. The report shall identify each known defective or unsafe element and set forth the proposed corrective measures to be employed; 2. A report from a licensed structural pest control operator on each structnre and each unit within the structure; 3. A report on the condition of the common area improvements, including landscaping, lighting, utilities and streets; 4. A report on any known soil and geological conditions regarding soil deposits, rock formation, faults, groundwater and landslides in the vicinity ofthe project, and a statement regarding any known evidence of soils problems relating to the structure. Reference shall be made to any previous soils report for the site and a copy submitted with the report; and 5. A statement of repairs and improvements necessary to refurbish and restore the proj ect to achieve a high degree of appearance, quality and safety. B. A site/development plan; C. Specific information concerning the characteristics of the project, including, but not limited to, the following: 1. Square footage and number of rooms in each unit; 2. Estimated sales price range of units; and 3. Names and mailing address of all tenants. D. A detailed list of rents for each unit to be converted for the twelve (12) months prior to the appJication; E. Economic and demographic information regarding the current tenants as required by the Community Development Director; F. A Tenant Relocation Assistance plan as required by Section 8.54.110; G. Evidence that all eJigible tenants entitled to special protection have been offered lease extensions in accordance with Section 8.54.11 O.F. H. A declaration of covenants, conditions and restrictions (CC&Rs) that would be recorded and would apply to each owner of a condominium unit ·-5-· JaDU~1')' 19, :l:005 7:Z7~52.3 /¡¡~ ?,tf- within the project. The declaration shall include, but not be limited to, pertinent information regarding the conveyance of units and the assignment of parking, an agreement for common area maintenance, including facilities and landscaping, together with an estimate of any initial assessment fees anticipated for maintenance, and an indication of appropriate responsibilities for maintenance of all improvements and utility systems for each unit. The city has the right to review and approve the CC&Rs to ensure that (1) the appropriate conditions of approval are included in them and (2) those provisions reflecting the city's conditions may not be amended without city approval; and I. Such additional information as the Community Development Director deems necessary to ensure the compliance with this Chapter. 8.54.080 Building Code Requirements A building proposed for conversion, and each unit within the building, shall comply at a minimum with all applicable building standards in effect at the time of the last alteration, repair, relocation, or reconstruction of the building, necessitating compliance with the building standards, or, if none, at the time of first construction. In addition, the building proposed for conversion and each unit within the building shall comply with the current Housing Code as defined by section 7.48 of the Dublin Municipal Code. The Building Official shall, if deemed necessary, inspect the project. Upon completion of the inspection, if any, the Building Official shall identify all items evidenced by the application or the inspection to be in noncompliance with applicable building and housing standards. All such itenls shall be corrected to the satisfaction of the Building Official, prior to granting the Condominium Conversion Permit. 8.54.090 Tenant's Right to Purchase Units A. An Units. The applicant shall, as a condition of approval of the Condominium Conversion Permit and before offering the unit for sale to the general public, be required to provide tenants with an exclusive right to contract for the purchase of the unit occupied by the tenant upon the same tenus an.d conditions that such unit will be initially offered to the general public or on terms more favorable to the tenant. The right shall run for a period of 90 days from the date ofissuance of the subdivision public report pursuant to section 11018 of the Business and Professions Code, unless the tenant gives prior written notice of his or her intention not to exercise the right. At least ten days prior to the submission of an application to the Department of Real Estate for a public report, the applicant shall provide notice to each tenant in the project of the fact that the application for a public report will be submitted and that upon the issuance of the public report the tenant will be granted an exclusive right to contract for the purchase of the unit occupied by the tenant upon the same terms and conditions that such unit will be initially offered to the general public or on terms more -6- January 19,2005 727552.3 lr1{) 'at favorable to the tenant. The notice shall further indicate the project will be subject to conditions, covenants, and restrictions that establish a homeowners' association to manage the project, that may restrict how the property is used, and that impose certain financial obligations on tbe owners of units within the project, such as the payment of monthly homeowners' association dues. In addition, within 10 days ofthe issuance of the public report, the applicant shall by mail notifY each tenant in writing that the public report has been issued and shall in writing grant the tenant the right to purchase the unit as provided in this section. If the notice is not mailed within 10 days of the issuance of the public report, the tenant's right to purchase granted pursuant to this section shall be extended for a period equal to 80 days from mailing of the notification. B. Affordable Units. If a tenant occupies an inclusionary unit pursuant to the City's inc1usionary zoning program, all of the provisions of Subsection A shall apply except as otherwise provided in this Subsection B. The applicant shall initially determine the income category (i.e. very low, low, or moderate income) under Section 8.68.030 at which the inc1usionary unit is being rented to the tenant. The applicant shall thcreupon offer the unit to the tenant at the sales price that a unit in the unit's income category could be sold under Chapter 8.68, subject to the City's certification of the tenant's qualifications to purchase the unit. Should the City determine that the tenant's household income is such that the tenant does not qualifY to purchase the unit within the income category at which it is offered, the applicant shall: 1. Offer the unit to the tenant pursuant to Subsection A. If thc tenant accepts the offcr, the applicant shall convert a unit within the project not previously designated as an inclusionary unit to an inclusionary unit in the income category of the unit purchased by the tenant. The number of bedrooms in the converted unit shall be equal to or greater than the number of bedrooms in the unit purchased by the tenant. 2. If the City determines that the tenant's household income is such that it meets one of the other income categories set forth in Section 8.68.020.D (i.e. very low, low, and moderate incomes), and provided that there are available inclusionary units within the project at that income category, offer the unit to the tenant at a sales price that a unit in the tenant's income category could be sold under Chapter 8.68, subject to the City's certification of the tenant's qualifications to purchase the unit. If the tenant accepts the offer, the available unit shall be designated as an inclusionary unit at the income category at which the unit purchased by the tenant was previously rented. 8.54.100 Limitations on Rent Increases Pending Convers.ion. Rents shall not be increased from the date of issuance of the Notice ofIntent to -7- JIIILL ;ilI')' 19,2005 n7~5;Z,3 %t 't4 Convert pursuant to Scction 8.54.050 until twelve months folJowing the approval of the Condominium Conversion Permit or six months fol1owing the issuance of a public report by the Real Estate Commissioner pursuant to Business and Professions Code section 11018, whichever occurs later. If the applicant withdraws an application for a Condominium Conversion Permit, this section shall have no further effect. 8.54.110 Tenant Relocation Assistance A. Requirement. The applicant shall, as a condition of approval of the Condominium Conversion Permit, be required to implement the Tenant Relocation Assistance Plan that is approved by the City in conjunction with the issuance of the Condominium Conversion Permit. The Tenant Relocation Assistance Plan shall be prepared by the applicant and shall indicate the applicant's commitment to provide the tenant benefits required by this section. B. Eligible Tenant. As used in this section, the term "eligible tenant" means any tenant who was a resident of the property both on the date of the filing of the application for a Condominium Conversion Pennit and on the date of approval of the permit and who does not intend to purchase a unit in the conversion project. C. Notice of Termination of Tenancy. Each tenant of a project proposed for conversion shall be given 180 days' written notice of intention to terminate tenancy due to the conversion. The notice shall also provide the tenant with a summary description of the City-approved Tenant Relocation Assistance Plan and information on where to obtain a copy. The notice shall also indicate that the tenant will be granted a right to purchase the unit the tenant occupies. Each person who becomes a tenant of a conversion project after the date of such 180 days' written notice shall be given a copy of the notice of intention to terminate tenancy before entering into any written or oral rental agreement but shall not be entitled to 180 days' written notice prior to termination of tenancy due to the conversion. D. Financial Relocation Assistance. The Plan shalJ include a provision that requires the applicant to provide financial assistance equal to thc rent for the three-month pcriod prior to the filing of the application for the Condominium Conversion Permit to any Eligible Tenant that relocates after the issuance of the Condominium Conversion Permit. The fmancial assistance payment shall be made 15 days prior to the termination of the Eligible Tenant's tenancy, ifth.e Eligible Tenant provides notice to the applicant of the Eligible Tenant's termination ofthe lease, or 15 days prior to the expiration of 180 days Notice of Termination of Tenancy period, --8"- January 19,2005 727552.3 qt~'t whichever is earlier. Notwithstanding Subsection B of this Section, a tenant shall be deemed an Eligible Tenant and eligible for the financial assistance payment ifthe Condominium Conversion Permit has not yet been granted but 165 days have elapsed since the tenant was provided a Notice of Termination of Tenancy. A tenant is not entitled to financial assistance pursuant to this subsection if the tenant has been evicted for just cause or has not made rental payments to which the applicant is legally entitled. F. Continued Tenancy for Tenants Entitled to Special Protection. 1. Special Protection. An eligible tenant is entitled to "special protection", as defined in this Section 8.54.110, if the head of household or spouse satisfies one or more of the following criteria: has attained age 62; has a disability as defined in Section 54 of the California Civil Code Code; is residing with one or more minor dependent children; or is a resident of an inclusionary housing unit. 2. 12-Month Extension of Tenancy. The applicant shall be required prior to the issuance of the Condominium Conversion Permit to demonstrate that either (a) it has entered into agreements with each eligible tenant entitled to special protection granting such tenant the right of continued tenancy, but permitting the tenant to terminate his or her tenancy upon 30 days' notice, at the rent and on the terms in effect on the date of the mailing of the Notice of Intent to Convert pursuant to section 8.54.050 until twelve months following the end of the l80-day period pursuant to section 8.54.110. C or (b) the eligible tenant has refused the offer of such an extension. 8.54.120 Notification of New Tenants. All prospective tenants of a project for which a Notice of Intent to Convert has been issued to tenants pursuant to section 8.54.050 shall be provided with a copy of the Notice of Intent to Convert. If provided with such notice, prospective tenants shall not be entitled to tenant relocation assistance provided to tenants pursuant to section 8.54.110. 8.54.130 Compliance with Indusionary Zoning Regulations. Condominium conversions shall be treated as "new residential development projects" under and shall be required to comply with the then-current Inclusionary Zoning Regulations in Chapter 8.68. The decision maker shall include conditions in the Condominium Conversion Permit approval sufficient to ensure compliance with the provisions of Chapter 8.68. Notwithstanding the foregoing, if the project was requircd to comply with the Inclusionary Zoning Regulations at the time the project was constructed, the project -9- January 19,2005 727552.3 I oq¡ ~w. shall receive a credit for the number of affordable units required at th.e time the project was constructed. Iffees were paid in lieu of ,,-¡,eating the affordable units, the credit may only be used to satisfy that portion of the obligation under the then-current Inclusionary Zoning Regulations that may be satisfied by payment of fees in lieu of creation of affordable units. By way of illustration, if at the time a 20-unit rental project was constructed, the Inc1usionary Zoning Regulations required 5% of the units in the project to be affordable, and the developer paid fees in lieu of constructing one affordable unit to meet the project's obligations under the Inclusionary Zoning Regulations, then, upon the event of a conversion of the 20-unit project, the converter would be entitled to a one-unit credit against its Inclusionary Zoning obligations. Thus, if the then-current Inclusionary Zoning Regulations require that 12.5% of the units be affordable and provide that at least 7.5% of the units must be constructed, then the converter's Inclusionary Zoning Obligation would be 1.5 units, which is 2.5 units minus the one unit credit. As the one~unit credit was created by the payment ofin~Jjeu fees and is equal to 5% of the total units in the project, the remaining inclusionary obligation could not be satisfied through the payment of in-lieu fees. 8.54.140 Development Standards - Utilities A. Gas. Each condominium unit shall have a separate gas service where gas is a necessary utility. If this provision places unreasonable economic burden on the applicant, the Building Official may approve an alternative method. B. Electricity. Each condominium unit shall have a separate electrical service, with separate meters and disconnects. C. Telephone Company Aeeess. The telephone company serving the location under conversion shall have the right to construct and maintain (place, operate, inspect, repair, replace, and remove) communication facilities as it may rrom tirne~to-time require (including access) in or upon any portion of the common area, including the interior and exterior of the buildings as necessary to maintain communication service within the project. This provision may not be amended or terminated without the consent of the serving telephone company. 8.54.150 Findings Required for Approval The decision maker shall not approve a Condominium Conversion Permit unless it finds: -10- Janua¡y 19. 2005 727552.3 Ileso 34- A. That the proposed conversion is consistent with the General Plan and any applicable specific plans, in particular with the objectives, policies, and programs of the Housing Element of the General Plan designed to provide for the housing needs of all economic segments of the community. B. That the proposed conversion, as conditioned, conforms to the requirements of this Chapter. C. That the ratio that multiple-family units in developments of twenty (20) or more rental units bears to the total number of housing units in the City as a whole exceeds thirty percent (30%). For the purposes of this calculation, the units proposed for conversion should be treated as housing units but should not be treated as rental units. 8.54.160 Term and Lapse of Condominium Conversion Permit. A Condominium Conversion Permit shall lapse I year following the date on which the permit became effective, if the applicant has not yet received a subdivision public report ITom the Real Estate Commissioner pursuant to Business and Professions Code section 11018 authorizing the sale of the units proposed for conversion to the public. The permit shall be extended for a period of not more than one year, if the Community Development Director finds that the applicant is diligently pursuing but has not yet received a subdivision public report from the Real Estate Commissioner pursuant to Business and Professions Code section 11018 authorizing the salc of the units proposed for conversion to the public. Upon receipt of the subdivision public report from the Real Estate Commissioner authorizing the sale of the units proposed for conversion to the public, the Condominium Conversion Permit shall be automatically cxtcnded so long as the subdivision public report remains in effect. 8.54.170 Action. The decision maker for Condominium Conversion Pennits shall be the Planning Commission. The Planning Commission shall hold a public hearing, and after the public hearing is closed may, by resolution and based on evidence in the public record and the tlndings above approve, conditionally approve, or deny a Condominium Conversion Permit. 5.54.180 Adjustments and Waivers. A. Authority to Waive or Adjust Requirements. The requirements of this Chapter may be adjusted or waived if the property owner demonstrates to the City Manager that applying the requirements of this Chapter would take property in violation of the United States or California Constitutions. A person seeking an adjustment or waiver shall apply to the City Manager -1.1- ¡~'I1~ry 19,200.s ?'oo<61f- and provide such information as the City Manager [mds is necessary to determine whether applying the requirements of this Chapter would take property in violation of the United States or California Constitutions. B. Consideration and Decision. In making a determination on an application to adjust or waive the requirements of this Chapter, the City Manager shall consider all relevant evidence submitted by the applicant. The hurden shall be on the applicant to demonstrate th.e applying the requirements of this Cahpter would take property in violation of the United States of Califomia Constitutions. The City Manager, upon legal advice provided by the City Attorney, will make a determination on the application and issue a written decision. The City Manager's decision shall be final. C. Adjustment or Waiver of Requirements. If the City Manager, upon legal advice provided by the City Attomey, determines that the application of the provisions of this Chapter would take property in violation of the United States or California Constitutions, the requirements of this Chapter shall be modified, adjusted or waived to reduce the ohligations under this Chapter to the extent necessary to avoid an unconstitutional result. If the City Manager determines no violation of the United States or Califomia Constitutions would occur through application of this Chapter, the requirements of this Chapter remain applicable. Section 3: Effective Immediatelv. This ordinance is adopted as an urgency ordinance pursuant to subdivision (b) of Government Code section 36937, to take effect immediately, and is for the immediate preservation of the public peace, hcalth and welfare. The facts constituting the urgency are the following: This ordinance applies to condominium conversions that have not recei ved all governmental approvals necessary to sell individual units, including a public report from the Department of Real Estate. Should a converter receive a subdivision report rrom the Department of Real Estate before this ordinance becomes effective, the converter could evade the application of this ordinance. Similarly, under the Subdivision Map Act, the City may only apply standards in effect at the time that an application for a tentative subdivision map is deemed complete. However, if the City initiates proceedings by resolution and publishes a public noti ce containing a description sufficient to notifY the public of the nature of the proposed change in the zoning or subdivision ordinances, the City may apply the ordinance enacted or instituted as a result of the proceedings that are in effect on the date the local agency approves or disapproves the tentative map. The City adopted such a resolution on September 7, 2004. If a converter were to receive a subdivision approval before this ordinance became effective, it could evade this ordinance. If a converter were to evade the application of this ordinance it would thereby frustrate the City's intent to (a) maintain a supply of affordable and market rate rental housing; (b) provide a reasonable balance of ownership and rcntal housing in the community and a variety of choices in the type and price of housing; and (c) establish criteria for the conversion of existing multi- family rental housing to condominiums; (d) reduce the impact of conversion on residents of rental housing that may be required to relocate due to the conversion of rental housing 727552.3 ·12- January 19.2005 )3Þ{:ß+ to condominiums; and (c) provide the opportullity fOf very low-, low-, and moderate- income persons to participatc in the ownership process and to maintain a supply ofrental housing for very low-, low-, and moderate-income persons; and (f) ensure that converted housing achieves a high degree of appearance, quality and safety. Section 4: Posting. The City Clerk of the City of Dublin shaH eause this Ordinance to be posted in at least three (3) public places in the City of Dublin in accordance with Section 36933 ofthe Government Code of the State of California. Section 5: Automatic Repeal. This ordinance shall be automatically repealed upon Ordinance No. _ -05 becoming effective. PASSED, APPROVED AND ADOPTED this_ day of ,2005. AYES: NOES: ABSENT: ABSTAIN: Mayor ATTEST: City Clerk 727552.3 -13- Ja.nuary 19,2005 ¡c..¡.Ub81 . ORDINANCE NO. - 05 AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF DUBLIN ADDING CHAPTER 8.54 TO THE DUBLIN MUNICIPAL CODE (ZONING ORDINANCE) RELATING TO CONDOMINIUM CONVERSIONS The City Council ofthe City of Dublin does hereby ordain as follows: Section 1. Findings. A. State law provides that cities have the responsibility to use the powers vested in them to facilitate the improvement and development of housing to make adequate provision for the housing needs of all economic segments of the community. B. The City Council finds that conditions in the residential real estate market have led to the increase in proposals to convert existing multi-family rental projects to condominiums and other forms of multiple ownership and that the conversion of one or two of the City's apartment communities could have a major impact on the City's housing market, in that it would remove from the market a significant percentage ofthc existing rental units. C. The City Council finds that the conversion of residential structures from individual ownership to condominiums or any other form of multiple ownership interest has the potential to create specific community problems, both social and economic. For example, conversions may significantly affect the balance between rental and ownership housing within the City, and thereby reduce the variety of individual choices oftenurc, type, price and location of housing. Conversion may also increase overall rents, decrease the supply of rental housing for all income groups, displace individuals and families, and disregard the needs of the housing market place. D. Accordingly, the City Council finds that the adoption of a condominium- conversion ordinance is necessary to limit the impacts on the community of condominium conversions, to provide guidelines for the City to evaluate the economic and social problems associated with condominium conversions, and to establish requirements that must be included in any conversion approval. Section 2. Addition o;(Chapter 8.54. Chapter 8.54 is hereby added to the Dublin Zoning Ordinance to read as follows: CHAPTER 8.54 CONDOMINIUM CONVERSION REGULATIONS 8.54.010 Intent. The purpose of this Chapter is to: A. Maintain a supply of affordable and market rate rental housing. 727$8~.3 -1-- , AffÃ'ëHMENT J- 727583.3 15 Þbß+ B. Provide a reasonable balance of ownership and rental housing in the community and a variety of choices in the type and price of housing. C. Establish criteria for the conversion of existing multi-family rental housing to condominiums. D. Reduce the impact of conversion on residents of rental housing that may be required to relocate due to the conversion of rental housing to condominiums. E. Provide the opportunity for very low-,)ow-, and moderate-income persons to participate in th.e ownership process and to maintain a supply ofrental housing for very low-, low-, and moderate-income persons; and F. Ensure that converted housing achieves a high degree of appearance, quality and safety. 8.54.020 Condominium Conversion Defined. A "condominium conversion" means the conversion of the ownership of the units in a residential housing project containing twenty-one or morc units that are or were previously occupied as rental units from a single ownership to an ownership in which the residential units may be sold individually. Such condominium conversions may include, but are not limited to, the conversion of existing multiple unit rcsidcntial housing projects to any of the following, all as defined in Civil Code section 1351 (a) a community apartment project, (b) a condominiWll project, and (c) a stock cooperative. 8.54.030 Condominium Conversion Permit A. Permit Required_ No condominium conversion may take place in the City without the owner first obtaining a Condominium Conversion Permit pursuant to this Chapter and, where applicable, an approved subdivision map. B Exemptions. A Condominium Conversion Permit shall not be required prior to the sale of individual units to the public for any of the following residential housing projects: 1. Projects that had recorded subdivision maps for a community apartment project, a condominium project, or a stock cooperative on September 7, 2004. 2. Projccts in which none of the units have been occupied as rental units. -2- JSI1W1I)' 19,2005 727583.3 I(¿¡Þô~+ 8.54.040 Preliminary Application Process. A. Preliminary Applications. Prospective applicants for Condominium Conversion Permits shall initially submit a preliminary application on forms provided by the City. Preliminary applications shall identify the owner or the owner's authorized agent and the location and number of units in the building to be converted. The preliminary application shall be accompanied by a preliminary application fee, the amount of which shall be as set forth rrom time to time by resolution of the City Council. B. Department Review. The Community Developmcnt Director shall review preliminary applications for condominium conversions. The Community Development Director shall authorize the submittal of a Condominium Conversion Permit application ifboth of the toll owing criteria are met: I. Notice of Intent to Convert. The applicant provides satisfactory evidence to the Community Development Director that the Notice ofIntent to Convert required by section 8.54.050 was received by all tenants of the project proposed for conversion and that 60 days have elapsed since the applicant made the last such notification. 2. RentaIlOwnership Housing Ratio. The ratio that multiple-family units in developments of twenty (20) or more rental units bears to the total number of housing units in the City as a whole exceeds thirty pcrccnt (30%). For the purposes of this calculation, the units proposed for conversion should be treated as housing units but should not be treated as rental units. Notwithstanding the foregoing, no Condominium Conversion Permit application shall be accepted for projects that propose to convert only a portion of the units in an existing multiple unit residential project. The Condominium Conversion Permit application shall be submitted DO later than 60 days following the Community Development Director's authorization. 8.54.050 Notice ofIntent to Convert. A. At least sixty (60) days prior to submitting an application for a Condominium Conversion Permit pursuant to section 8.54.070, the applicant shall provide notice substantially in the form outlined in subdivision B to each tenant in the project proposed for convcrsion. B. Thc notice shall be substantially as follows: "To the oCCllpant(s) of [address]: -3- January 19.2005 727Sß3) n~ß+ The owncr(s) of this building, at [address], plan(s) to file an application for a Condominium Conversion Permit with the City of Dublin to convert this building to condominiums, community apartments, or a stock cooperative project. You will be provided with notice of each hearing held by the City on the proposed conversion, and you have the right to appear and the right to be heard at any such hearing. Be advised that Chapter 8.56 of the Dublin Municipal Code may give you, as a tenant of a structure proposed for conversion to condominiums, certain rights. [signature of owner or owner's agent] [date] C. In the event that the applicant is simultaneously applying for a tentative map and a Condominium Conversion Permit, the notice required by this section may be combined with the notice required by Government Code section 66452.9 8.54.060 Site Development Review Required. Any condominium conversion shall also be subject to Site Dcvclopment Review, pursuant to Chaptcr 8.104, to provide the City with. a mechanism to evaluate issues related to maintenance of the property and consistency with prior site and architectural approvals and, if necessary, requirc modifications to existing site conditions. The applicant shall submit an application for Site Development Review concurrently with the application for a Condominium Conversion Permit. The decision maker shall impose such conditions as are necessary to require that buildings, structures, fences, patio enclosures, carports, accessory bui1dings, sidewalks, driveways, landscaped areas and utility facilities are refurbished and restored as necessary to ensure that the proposed conversion project is and remains orderly and attractive. 8.54.070 Condominium Application Requirements. An application fur a Condominium Conversion Permit shall be accompanied by the following items: A. A report on the physical elements of each structure and facility, which shall include, but not be limited to, the following: 1. A report detailing the condition of each element of the property, including foundation, structural, electrical, plumbing, utilities, walls, ceilings, windows, recreational facilities, sound transmission of each building, mechanical equiprnent, parking facilities, and appliances. Regarding each element, the report shall state to the best knowledge or estimate of the applicant when the element was -4- ,1",tluiU'y 19,2005 727583.3 l'b'bß+ constructed or instal1ed, when the element was last replaced, the approximate date upon which the element will require replacement, the cost of replacing the element, and any variation of the physical condition of the elernent from the applicable zoning and building code. The report shall identify each known defective or unsafe element and set forth the proposed corrective measures to be employed; 2. A report from a licensed structural pest control operator on each structure and each unit within the structure; 3. A report on the condition of the common area improvements, including landscaping, lighting, utilities and streets; 4. A report on any known soil and geological conditions regarding soil deposits, rock formation, faults, groundwater and landslides in the vicinity of the project, and a statement regarding any known evidence of soils problems relating to the structure. Reference shaU be made to any previous soils report for the site and a copy submitted with the report; and 5. A statement of repairs and improvements necessary to refurbish and restore the project to achieve a high degree of appearance, quality and safety. B. A site/development plan; C. Specific information concerning the characteristics of the project, including, but not limited to, the following: I. Square footage and number of rooms in each unit; 2. Estimated sales price range of units; and 3. Names and mailing address of aU tenants. D. A detailed list of rents for each unit to be converted for the twelve (12) months prior to the application; E. Economic and demographic information regarding the current tenants as required by the Community Development Director; F. A Tenant Rclocation Assistance plan as required by Section 8.54.110; G. Evidence that all eligible tenants entitled to special protection have been offered lease extensions in accordance with Section 8.54.11 O.F. H. A declaration of covenants, conditions and restrictions (CC&Rs) that would be recorded and would apply to each owner of a condominium unit -5- JanusI}' 19,20U5 727583.3 1'100 '0 If within the project. The dcclaration shall include, but not be limited to, pertinent information regarding the conveyance of units and the assignment of parking, an agreement for common area maintenance, including facilities and landscaping, together with an estimate of any initial assessment fees anticipated for maintenance, and an indication of appropriate responsibilities for maintenance of all improvements and utility systems for each unit. The city has the right to review and approve the CC&Rs to ensure that (I) the appropriate conditions of approval are included in them and (2) those provisions reflecting the city's conditions may not be amended without city approval; and 1. Such additional information as the COlmnunity Development Director deems necessary to ensure the compliance with. this Chapter. 8.54.080 Building Code Requirements A building proposed for conversion, and each unit within the building, shall comply at a minimum with all applicable building standards in effect at the time of the last alteration, repair, relocation, or reconstruction of the building, necessitating compliance with the building standards, or, if none, at the time of first construction. In addition, the building proposed for conversion and each unit within the buildillg shall comply with the current Housing Code as defined by section 7.48 ofthe Dublin Municipal Code. The Building Official shall, if deemed necessary, inspect the project. Upon completion of the inspection, if any, the Building Official shall identifY all items evidenced by the application or the inspection to be in noncompliance with applicable building and housing standards. All such items shall be corrected to the satisfaction of the Building Official, prior to granting the Condominium Conversion Permit. 8.54.090 Tenant's Right to Purchase Units A. AU Units. The applicant shall, as a condition of approval of the Condominium Conversion Permit and before offering the unit for sale to the general public, be required to provide tenants with an exclusive right to contract for the purchase of the unit occupied by the tenant upon the same terms and conditions that such unit will be initially offered to the general public or on terms more favorable to the tenant. The right shall run for a period of90 days from the date of issuance of the subdivision public report pursuant to section 11018 of the Business and Professions Code, unless the tenant gives prior written notice of his or her intention not to exercise the right. At least ten days prior to the submission of an application to the Department of Real Estate for a public report, the applicant shall provide notice to each tenant in the project of the fact that the application for a public report will be submitted and that upon the issuance of the public report the tenant will be granted an exclusive right to contract for the purchase ofthe unit occupied by the tenant upon the same terms and conditions that such unit will be initially offered to the general public or on terms more -6- January 19, 2005 721$¡;¡3J d1)!If¡ 'G+ favorable to the tenant. The notice shall further indicate the project will be subject to conditions, covenants, and restrictions that establish a homeowners' association to manage the project, that may restrict how the property is used, and that impose certain financial obligations on the owners of units within the project, such as the payment of monthly homeowners' association dues. In addition, within 10 days of the issuance of the public report, the applicant shall by mail notifY each tenant in writing that the public report has been issued and shall in writing grant the tenant the right to purchase the unit as provided in this section. If the notice is not mailed within 10 days ofthe issuance of the public report, th.e tenant's right to purchase granted pursuant to this section shall be extended for a period equal to 80 days rrom mailing of the notification. B. Affordable Units. If a tenant occupies an inclusionary unit pursuant to the City's inclusionary zoning program, all ofthe provisions of Subsection A shall apply except as otherwise provided in this Subsection B. The applicant shaH initially determine the income category (i.e. very low, low, or moderate income) under Section 8.68.030 at which the inclusionary unit is being rented to the tenant. The applicant shall thereupon offer the unit to the tenant at the sales price that a unit in the unit's income category could be sold under Chapter 8.68, subject to the City's certification of the tenant's qualifications to purchase the unit. Should the City determine that the tenant's household income is such that the tenant does not qualifY to purchase the unit within the income category at which it is offered, the applicant shall: 1. Offer the unit to the tenant pursuant to Subsection A. If the tenant accepts the offer, the applicant shall convert a unit within the project not previously designated as an inclusionary unit to an inclusionary unit in the income category ofthe unit purchased by the tenant. The number of bedrooms in the converted unit shall be equal to or greater than the number of bedrooms in the unit purchased by the tenant. 2. If the City determines that the tenant's household income is such that it meets one of the other income categories set forth in Section 8.68.020.D (i.e. very low, low, and moderate incomes), and provided that there are available inclusionary units within the project at that income category, offer the unit to the tenant at a sales price that a unit in the tenant's income category could be sold under Chapter 8.68, subject to the City's certification ofthe tenant's qualifications to purchase the unit. If the tenant accepts the offer, the available unit shall be designated as an inclusionary unit at the income category at which the unit purchased by the tenant was previously rented. 8.54.100 Limitations on Rent Increases Pending Conversion. Rents shall not be increased ITom the date of issuance of the Notice ofIntent to -7- Jom,.,ry J9,LQO.s 727583.3 ;; It '3+ Convert pursuant to Section 8.54.050 until twelve months following the approval of the Condominium Conversion Permit or six months following the issllance of a public report by the Real Estate Commissioner pursuant to Business and Professions Code section 11018, whichever occurs later. If the applicant withdraws an application for a Condominium Conversion Permit, this section shall have no further effect. 8.54.110 Tenant Relocation Assistance A. Requirement. The applicant shall, as a condition of approval of the Condominium Conversion Permit, be required to implement the Tenant Relocation Assistance Plan that is approved by the City in conjunction with the issuance of the Condominium Convcrsion Permit. The Tenant Relocation Assistance Plan shall be prepared by the applicant and shall indicate the applicant's commitrnellt to provide the tenant benefits required by this section. B. Eligible Tenant. As used in this scction, the term "eligible tenant" means any tenant who was a resident of the property both on the date of the filing of the application for a Condominium Conversion Permit and on the date of approval of the permit and who does not intend to purchase a unit in the conversion project. C. Notice of Termination of Tenancy. Each tenant of a project proposed for conversion shall be given 180 days' written notice of intention to terminate tenancy due to the conversion. The notice shall also provide the tenant with a summary description of the City-approved Tenant Relocation Assistance Plan and information on where to obtain a copy. The notice shall also indicate that the tenant will be granted a right to purchase the unit the tenant occupies. Each person who becomes a tenant of a conversion project after the date of such 180 days' written notice shaH be given a copy of the notice of intention to terminate tenancy before entering into any written or oral rental agreement but shall not be entitled to 180 days' written notice prior to termination of tenancy due to the converSIOn. D. Financial Relocation Assistance. The Plan shall include a provision that requires the applicant to provide financial assistance equal to the rent for the three-month period prior to the filing of the application for the Condominium Conversion Permit to any Eligible Tenant that relocates after the issuance of the Condominium Conversion Permit. The financial assistance payment shall be made 15 days prior to the termination of the Eligible Tenant's tenancy, if the Eligible Tenant provides notice to the applicant of the Eligible Tenant's termination of the lease, or 15 days prior to the expiration of 180 days Notice of Termination of Tellancy period, -8- JElßUt1¡:y 19, 2005 727583.3 .;l ;;¡ tb 'B + whichever is earlier. Notwithstanding Subsection B of this Section, a tenant shall be deemed an Eligible Tenant and eligible for the financial assistance payment if the Condominium Conversion Permit has not yet beco granted but 165 days have elapsed since the tenant was provided a Notice of Termination of Tenancy. A tenant is not entitled to financial assistance pursuant to this subsection if the tenant has been evicted for just cause or has not made rental payments to which the applicant is legally entitled. F. Continued Tenancy for Tenants Entitled to Special Protection. 1. Special Protection. An cligible tenant is entitled to "special protection", as defined in this Section 8.54.110, if the head of household or spouse satisfies one or more of the following criteria: has attained age 62; has a disability as defined in Section 54 of the California Civil Code Code; is residing with one or more millor dependent children; or is a residcot of an inclusionary housing unit. 2. 12-Month Extension of Tenancy. The applicant shall be required prior to the issuance of the Condominium Conversion Permit to demonstrate that either (a) it has entered into agreements with each eligible tenant entitled to special protection granting such tenant the right of continued tenancy, but permitting the tenant to terminate his or her tcoancy upon 30 days' notice, at the rent and on the terms in effect on the date of the mailing of the Notice of Intent to Convert pursuant to section 8.54.050 until twelve months following the end of the 180-day period pursuant to section 8.54.110.C or (b) the eligible tenant has refused the offer of such an extension. 8.54.120 Notification of New Tenants. All prospective tenants of a project for which a Notice of Intent to Convert has been issued to tenants pursuant to section 8.54.050 shall be providcd with a copy of the Notice of Intent to Convert. Ifprovided with such notice, prospective tenants shall not be entitled to tenant relocation assistance provided to tenants pursuant to section 8.54.110. 8.54.130 Compliance with Inclusionary Zoning Regulations. Condominium conversions shall be treated as "new residential development projects" under and shaH be required to comply with the then-current Inclusionary Zoning Regulations in Chapter 8.68. The decision maker shall include conditions in the Condominium Conversion Permit approval sufficient to ensure compliance with the provisions of Chapter 8.68. Notwithstanding the foregoing, if the project was required to comply with the Inclusionary Zoning Regulations at the time the project was constructed, the project --9- Jãt'1uary 19,2005 727S~3.3 ;/,3 ~&r shall receive a credit for the number of at'tàrdable units required at the time the project was constructed. If fees were paid in lieu of creating the affordable units, the credit may only be used to satisfy th.at portion of the obligation under the then-current Inclusionary Zoning Regulations that may be satisfied by payment of fees in lieu of creation of affordable units. By way of illustration, if at the time a 20-unit rental project was constructed, the lnclusionary Zoning Regulations required 5% of the units in the project to be affordable, and the developer paid fees in lieu of constructing one affordable unit to meet the project's obligations under the Inclusionary Zoning Regulations, then, upon the event of a conversion of the 20-unit project, the converter would be entitled to a onc-unit credit against its Inclusionary Zoning obligations. Thus, if the then-current Inclusionary Zoning Regulations require that 12.5% of the units be affordable and provide that at least 7.5% of the units must be constructed, then the converter's Inclusionary Zoning Obligation would be 1.5 units, which is 2.5 units minus the Olle unit credit. As the one-unit credit was created by the payment of in-lieu fees and is equal to 5% ofthe total units in the project, the remaining inclusionary obligation could not be satisfied through the payment of in-licu fees. 8.54.140 Development Standards - Utilities A. Gas. Each condominium unit shall have a separate gas service where gas is a necessary utility. If this provision places unreasonable economic burden on the applicant, the Building Official may approve an alternative method. B. Electricity. Each condominium unit shall have a separate electrical service, with separate meters and disconnects. c. Telephone Company Access. The telephone company serving the location under conversion shall have the right to construct and maintain (place, operate, inspect, repair, replace, and remove) communication facilities as it may from time-to-time require (including access) in or upon any portion of the common area, including the interior and exterior of the buildings as necessary to maintain communication service within the project. This provision may not be amended or terminated without the consent of the serving telephone company. 8.54.150 Findings Required for Approval The decision maker shall not approve a Condomillium Conversion Permit unJess it finds: -10· .Tõ'ltll1aty 19,2005 727:5R3.3 c:? L4~ ß'f A. That the proposed conversion is consistent with the General Plan and any applicable specific plans, in particular with the objectives, policies, and programs ofthe Housing Element ofthe General Plan designed to provide for the housing needs of all economic segments of the community. B. That the proposcd conversion, as conditioned, conforms to the requirements of this Chapter. C. That the ratio that multiple-family units in developments of twenty (20) or more rcotal units bears to the total number of housing units in the City as a whole exceeds thirty percent (30%). For the purposes of this calculation, the units proposed for conversion should be treated as housing units but should not be treated as rental units. 8.54.160 Term and Lapse of Condominium Conversion Permit. A Condominium Conversion Permit shall lapse I year following the date on which the permit became effective, if the applicant has not yet received a subdivision public report from the Real Estate Commissioner pursuant to Business and Professions Code section 110 18 authorizing the sale of the units proposed for conversion to the public. The permit shall be extended for a period of not more than one year, if the Community Development Director finds that the applicant is diligently pursuing but has not yet received a subdivision public report from the Real Estate Commissioner pursuant to Business and Professions Code section 11018 authorizing the sale of the units proposed for conversion to the public. Upon receipt of the subdivision public report from the Real Estate Commissioner authorizing the sale of the units proposed for convcrsion to the public, the Condominium Conversion Permit shall be automatically extended so long as the subdivision public report remains in effect. 8.54.170 Action. The decision maker for Condominium Conversion Permits shall be the Planning Commission. The Planning Commission shall hold a pu.b1ic hearing, and after the public hearing is closed may, by resolution and based on evidence in the public record and the findings above approve, conditionally approve, or deny a Condominium Conversion Permit. 5.54.180 Adjustments and Waivers. A. Authority to Waive or Adjust Requirements. The requirements of this Chapter may be adjusted or waived if the property owner demonstrates to the City Manager that applying the requirements of this Chapter would take property in violation of the United States or California Constitutions. A person seeking an adjustment or waiver shall apply to the City Manager -11- JanuElry 19, ZOO$ ç¡s'b 'N and provide such information as the City Manager finds is necessary to determine whether applying the requirements of this Chapter would take property in violation ofthc United States or Calitornia Constitutions. B. Consideration and Decision. In making a determination on an application to adju.st or waive the requirements of this Chapter, the City Manager shall consider all relevant evidence submitted by the applicant. The burden shall be on the applicant to demonstrate the applying the requirements of this Cahpter would take property in violation of the United States of California Constitutions. The City Manager, upon legal advice provided by the City Attorney, will make a determination on the application and issue a written decision. The City Manager's decision shall be final. c. Adjustment or Waiver of Requirements. Ifthe City Manager, upon legal advice provided by the City Attorney, determines that the application of the provisions of this Chapter would take property in violation of the United States or California Constitutions, the requirements of this Chapter shalJ be modified, adjusted or waived to redu.ce the obligations under this Chapter to the extent necessary to avoid an unconstitutional result. If the City Manager determines no violation of the United States or California Constitutions would occur through application of this Chapter, the requirements of this Chapter remain applicable. Section 3: Effective Date. This Ordinance shall take effect and be enforced thirty (30) days following its adoption. Section 4: Posting. The City Clerk of the City of Dublin shall cause this Ordinance to be posted in at least three (3) public places in the City of Dublin in accordance with Section 36933 of the Government Code of the State of California. PASSED, APPROVED AND ADOPTED this day of ,2005. AYES: NOES: ABSENT: ABSTAIN: Mayor 727583.3 -12- J~I'IWl.ry 19, 2005 2/Put) t14- ATTEST' City Clerk 727583.3 13- li1IlU<1T)' 19, 2005 . . ~ o o ~ ~ :) c:: o ..., Õ '" .2. ~ 2: ILl ~ a:: o:t 0.. o:t 2: - ..... «I ::::J Q ..:!_ J.f') '<; " -0 S? 0 '<; " 0- C J.f') 0 J.f') " -0 N - J.f')N N- :I - ( ) -0 .~ o U ~ ( ) 0 ;,,¿ 'C .È; 0<: ( ) 0 O;"¿ ( ) ( ) ( ) '- :J ( ) f!: U..c:: .:o.t. U '" 0 S '" c c 2 0 ~z~uo CJ.f')'<; "OJ.f') uooC')o-- Or-o-..~~ ....cor--.r--.r--. C :e .g c: o U .c:: :!:: S: '" ..... Q. cu « E Q) .~ c.:o.t..!) z a :J ><-::0 .!!oc Co -0 0 E 0 o E ~ U«« ( ) ( ) ~ .~ D 0-0 12 0 o 0 ~ ~ o ..... ..... 0 V)CL C')O NO (") C') r--. r--. ....; ..... ~~ c: '" ~ ~:I ..... . Q.:J- «Q.~«xo Q. :J... .:o.t. « -0 -' CU ( ) 0 -0 .Q ( ) § 0 0 E u«~~~ ~ c ( ) ;,,¿ - Po( ) ..... .E - > ..... 0 0 UW0CL~ ;<''ô z+ roO""<tcocor--.C')I.()OC'?£'I co N ""<t -0 r--. co t-... 0-- It) .'" (")NC')~N~C')O- C".I C'? -0 -0 ( ) > > c:;) c:;) .~ >- >- U ( ) ( ) ( ) ( ) -0 .~ OOUOO »000 ..........CL~-o o 0 C C C -0-0 ( ) o( ) o 0 > ..... u EEoõo ««IUI J.f') J.f')00 o-r--. 0--0 I.() J.f')1..()0J.f')0 t-...r--.J.f')-ol..() o :e o 't;J c: o U ..'>.! ..... o CL '" -0 ..... - '" Q. 0 '" c«Qjõ. ( )>-E« £( )W-oCo ..... 0 I 0 ( ) ~ g>( )00( ) «.....c>~'" o 0 E: '-' ..... t:!-o't;;ODO ( ) 0 ..c:: ..... Qj I -OE~ÕEC «««UW2 - :;) o :e ~ -0-0] 00 00 0 -0 0<: 0<: 0<: g >->-CO<: t tOo ( ) ( ) E ..... ..c:: ..c:: 0 0 OJ OJ 0<: "is' :J :J C '" o 0 ° '" OOV)~ (")000 (")I..()OO N'<t~CO -o-ot-...""<t '" ..... Q. « ~ '" ~õ. :J « -' 't;J CII c: :Q E o u ~J:!~ Q. t_ "_ «55 ( )-- u 0 0 ° ... ... - CII CII OCL.Q.Q Q.12EE « ° :;) :;) Ô> 't: ;z ;z C ( ) - - .- .....0 0 0 ..... -- a-~~~ '" ..... c '" ( ) ..... E O-t « ° ..... ..... ( ) Vi ;,,¿ '- ° CL ATTACHMENT 3 ;;J.~1b 'l4 CITY CLERK File # AGENDA STATEMENT CITY COUNCIL MEETING DATE: September 7, 2004 SUBJECT: ATTACHMENTS: RECOMMENDATION: rvØ FINANCIAL STATEMEN": BACKGROUND: Public Hearing - P A 04·044 Adoption of Resolution Initiating Proceedings to Adopt an Ordinance Regulating the Conversion of Existing Apartments in the City to Condominiums (Report Prepared by: Jerl Ram. Planning Manager) 1. Resolution Initiating Proceedings to Adopt an Ordinance Regulating the Conversion of Existing Apartments in the City to Condominiums. Notice of Public Hearing to Consider Initiating Proceedings to Adopt a Condominium Conversion Ordinance. Copies of Sections ITom the 1990 Housing Element. Copies of Sections ITom the 1999 - 2006 Housing Element. 2. 3. 4. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Open Public Hearing; Receive Staff Presentation; Question Staff and the Public; Close Public Hearing and Deliberate; and Adopt Resolution Initiating Proceedings to Adopt an Ordinance Regulating the Conversion of Existing Apartments in the City to CondominiU11J.S No fmancial impact at this time. State law provides that cities have the responsibility to use the powers vested in them to facilitate the improvement and development of housing to make adequate provision for the housing needs of all economic segments of the community. (See Gov. Code, § 65580(d).) At the local level, cities implement state housing law policje:¡ through the adoption of the Housing Elements of their General Plans, which elements are reviewed and certified by the state's Department of Housing and Community Development ("HCD"). (See Gov. Code, §§ 65583, 65585.) Among other things, Housing Elements must contain a statement of the community's goals, objectives and policies related to the maintenance, preservation. improvement, and development of housing along with an action program to implement these goals, objectives and policies. (See Gov. Code, § 65584(b)-(c).) ._.._____M~M.___._._______~.~.______________.~..__.___-___.__~~~~______~~__________p~_______~._____.ø___~~M__ G:\PANOO4\04-044 Condo Con..moo ZOAIc<:Sr',7.Q4.00C COPIES TO: In-House Distribution ATTACHMENl Y 2~~ 1>+ The City's 1990 Housing Element included several policies that encouraged and suggested actions to ensure the availability of rental housing. One policy required that large multifamily projects include a rental component for a five-year time period. Another policy required the monitoring of the avaHability rental housing and, if monitoring disclosed that it was necessary, the enactment of II condominium- conversion ordinance (Attachment 3). At the time of the adoption of the 1990 Housing Element, there was a concern that, because Ihere were no condominiums or apartments under development, it was possible that applications would be submitted to convert existing apartments into condominiurns. On June 3, 2003, the City Council approved the City of Dublin Housing Element (1999 - 2006) ("the Current Housing Element"), and the State Department of Housing and Community Development certified it on July 11,2003. The Current Housing Element eliminated the program that required the monitoring of the availability of rental housing and potential enactment of condominium-conversion ordinance, reasoning that there was little likelihood that existing rental housing property owners would convert their properries to condominiums. It concluded that conversions were unlikely because of the strong demand for rental housing in Dublin coupled with the development of numerous condominiums (including 1396 condominium units then-currently under construction) that would tend to satisfy the demand for condominiums. The Current Housing Element also noted that the City would assess the need for a condominium-conversion ordinance each time it updates the Housing Element (Attachment 4). Since the adoption of the Current Housing Element, conditions in the housing market have changed markedly. The Community Development Department has noted that the incidence of condominium conversion projects in other communities is increasing. In addition, Staff has received many questions from possible investors and purchasers of ex.isting apartment communities about the City's requirements in relation to condominium conversions; Staff believes that the increase in condominium-conversion activity due to the following factors: · Higher vacancy rates for apartments as more and more people are able to qualify for loans for homes due to lower interest rates: · An inCTI':ascd market for condominiums in the area; · The ability of the property owner to maximize profit by selling units rather than renting them. In the past 10 years the City has seen the development of approximately 1,500 residential apartment units, for an overall total of approximately 2,800 units throughout the City. It should be noted that appro:x.imately 1,119 of these units are already mapped for condominiums and would not be subject to the condominium conversion ordinance or the City's Inclusionary Housing Ordinance. Additionally, if all these units converted, the ratio of apartments to ownership units would be greatly reduced. The remaining apartment units provide a type of housing that is a key to a healthy diversity of housing stock in the community. Apartments provide housing for all Jevels of affordability in the community and are a valuable tool for providing work force housing. In the past seven months, Staff has received inquiries ITom several existing and potential apartment developments of their intent to fIle subdivision documents to convert their projects to condominiums. These possible projects include: Ex istin~ Proiects Iron Horse Trail Apartments (Dougherty Road) - Archstone Apartments - Emerald Park ( Hacienda Drive) - 117 units 324 units ('.. ^ '; 3üOb 'Öi New Proiects Avalon Bay Apartments (Transit Center) - 305 units Staff believes that the conversion of one or two of the City's apartment communities could have a major impact on the diversity of the City's housing stock, in that it would remove from the market II significant percentage of the existing renml units. If sold rather than rented, the units would no longer be available to a segment of the community that is not in a position to purchase such units. In addition, the loss of these units would likely decrease the vacancy rate and accordingly tend to increase rents, and this would tend to further exacerbate the City's shortage of affordable rental units. This might cause a lasting imbalance in the diversity of housing stock in the City. In addition, conversion of apartments without addressing all of the policy issues would be in conflict with the assumptions that forrnedthe basis of the City's Housing Element. At the present time should a property owner file a request for a condominium conversion, the application would be processed in accordance with State law under the Subdivision Map Act. The Map Act contains provisions that require notice to the tenants and gives tenants the right to purchase the units before they are plllCed on the market for sale to the general public. State law pennits the City to expand upon these basic requirements through the adoption of a condominium-conversion ordinance. For example, a conàominium-conversion ordinance could limit conversions to maintai!l a balance of housing stock and could require the provision of affordable units under the City's Inclusionary Zoning Ordinance. Because. of market conditions, Staff believes that it is important to begin the development of II condominium-conversion ordinance. As there are many different mechanisms for regulating conversions in effect throughout the state, City Staff believes it appropriate at this time to explore the various options. Tills study and the eventual drafting would take an unknown amount of time, but Staff anticipates having an ordinance ready to present to the City Council within 6 months. Staff is concerned that while the condominium-conversion ordinance is under development, a subdivision application might be filed to convert an existillg apartment complex to condominiums. For the reasons indicated above, such II conversion could potentially have an impact on the City's ability to provide housing for all economic segments in the community. Thus, if the City Council detemrines that a conversion of apartrn.ents to condominiums might negatively impact the City's goal and State law obligation to adequately provide for the housing needs of all economic segments of the community, Staff recomll1ends that the City Council adopt the attached Resolution initiating proceedings to adopt II condominium-conversion ordinance. The Resolution is designed to prevent those that file subdivision applications to convert existing apartments to condominiums or other fonns of ownership thllt permit the sale of individual units from avoiding the pending condominium-conversion ordinancl::. Ordinarily, under the Subdivision Map Act, the City may only apply standards in effect at the time that an application for a tentative subdivision map is deemed complete. (Gov. Code, § 66474.2(a).) However, if the City initiates proceedings by resolution and publishes a public notice containing II de~cription sufficient to notify the public ,of the nllture of the proposed change ÎI:1 the zoning or subdivision ordinances, the City may apply the ordinance enacted or instituted as a result of the proceedings that are in df'(;c! on the date the local agency approves or disapproves the tentative map. (Gov. Code, § 66474.2(b).) The City published the approprillte notice as required by Government Code section 65090 (Attachment 2) and, in addition although not required by law, provided mailed notice to aU the owners of apartments in the City. The attached Resolution would take the fonnal step of initiating proceedings. 3 tb <24 RECOMMENDATION: Staff recommends the City Council Open Public Hearing; receive Staff presentation; question Staff and the Public; close the Public Hearing and delibeTate; and adopt Resolution (Attachment 1) initiating proceedings to adopt an Ordinance ~gulating the conversion of existing apartments in the City to Condominiums ?'2~ ß"t RESOLUTION NO. -04 RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF DUBLIN INITIATING PROCEEDINGS TO ADOPT AN ORDINANCE REGULATING THE CONVERSION OF EXISTING APARTMENTS IN THE CITY TO CONDOMINIUMS WHEREAS, State ll\w provides that cities have the responsibility to use the powers vested in them to facilitate the improvement and development of housing to make adequate provision fOr the housing needs of all economic segments of the community; and WHEREAS, at the local level, cities implement state housing law policies through the adoption of the Housing Elements of their General Plans, which elements are reviewed and approved by the state's Department of Housing and Community Development ("HCD"); and WHEREAS, among other things, Housing Elements must contain a statement of the community's goals, objectives and policies related to the maintenance, preservation, improvement, and development of housing along with an action program to implement these goals, objectives and policies; and WHEREAS, the City's 1990 Housing Element included several policies that encouraged and suggested actions t<> ensure the availability of rental housing, including a policy that required the monitoring of the availability ofrental housing and, if monitoring disclosed that it was necessary, the enactment of a condominium-conversion ordinance; and WHEREAS, in accordance with state housing law, the City adopted its. 1999-2006 Housing Element ("the Current Housing Element") in June 2003, and it was certified by HCD on July 11,2003; and WHEREAS, the Current Housing Element eliminated the program that required the monitoring of the availability ofrental housing and potential enactment of condominium-conversion ordinance, reasoning that there was little likelihood that existing rental housing property owners would convert their properties to condominiums due to the strong demand for rental housing in Dublin and the deve10pment of condominiums (including 1396 condominiwn units currently under construction) to satisfy the demand for condominiums; and WHEREAS, the Current Housing Element further indicated that the City would assess the need for a condominium-conversion ordinance each time it updates the Housing Element, if the need arises; and WHEREAS, since the adoption of the Current Housing Element, conditions in the housing market have changed markedly, and the Community Development Department has noted that the incidence of condominium-conversion projects in other cornmwnties is increasing; and WHEREAS, the City of Dublin believes that the following market conditions have led to the increase in proposals to convert existing multi-family rental projects to condominiums: a. The higher vacancy rates for apartments as more and more people are able to qualify for loans for homes due to historically low interest rates; G:\P1.#\2004\044\4 Con<k> Con_Ion ZOAloo,"soIintontH 44.0OC , . ?>;l,ø1 ß+ ~ " u b. The increased market for condominiums in the area; and c, The ability of the property owner to maximize profit by selling units rather than renting them. WHEREAS, in the past ten years, the City has developed over 1500 residential apartment units for an overall total of approJ(imately 2,800 units throughout the City. These units and the other rental units in the provide a type of housing that is one of the keys to providing for the housing needs of all economic segments of the community; and WHEREAS, rental units provide housing for persons in all income levels, apd they are a valuable tool for providing workforce housing; and WHEREAS, the conversion of one or two of the City's apartment communities could have a major impact on the City's housing market, in that it would remove rrom the market a significant percentage of the existing rental units; and WHEREAS, if units are sold rather than rented, the units would no longer be available to a segment of the community that is not in a position to purchase such units; and WHEREAS, the loss of these units would likely decrease the vacancy rate and acoordfugly tend to increase rents, and this would tend to further exacerbate the City's shortage of affordable rent¡\] units; and WHEREAS, due to these changes in the marketplace and their potential I:onsequences on the City's ability to provide for the housing needs of all economic segments of the community, the Community Development Department has begun the development of a condominium-conversion ordinance; and WHEREAS, the approval of the conversion of existing residential apartment units to condominiums or other forms of ownership that permit the units to be sold individually, during the period in which the City is considering the adoption of a condominium-conversion ordinance, could frustrate the City's efforts at providing for the housing needs of all economic segments of the community, because it would :result in the removal of units from the City's inventory of rental units available to those at lower income levels and because it would tend to increase: the rents of those: rental units that remain; and WHEREAS, to prc:vent these goals from being frustrated, the City desires initiate proceedings to adopt a condominium-conversion ordinance and desires to place potential subdividers on notice pu:rs\l8!1t to Government Code section 66474.2 of the City's intent to adopt a condominium-conversion ordinance, the effect of which will be to permit the City to app1y the condominium-conversion ordinance ifit is in effect on the date the City approves or disapproves the tentative map. NOW THEREFORE, THE CITY COUNCIL RESOLVES AS FOLLOWS: A. Initiation of Study of Potential Adoption of Condolltinium-Conversion Ordinance. Staff is hereby directed to study the potential adoption of a condominiu.m-conversion ordinance and, if deemed necessary due to existing conditions in the City and the marketplace, present such an ordinance to the Planning Conunission and City Council for potential adoption in the manner required by law. This resolution shall constitute, under subdivision (b) of section 66474.2 of the Government Code, the 2 3"1!/) ~4 initiation of proceedings to adopt an ordinance that regulates, restricts, or prohibits the conversion of existing residential apartment units held in a single ownership, in whatever form, to condominiums or other forms of ownership that permit the units to be sold individually. B. Notification to Subdividerll oflntent to Apply Condominium-Conversion Ordinance. Notwithstanding subdivision (a) of section 66474.2 of the Government Code, the City intends to apply the condominium.conversion ordinance adopted as a result of the proceedings iIÙtiated by this Resolution to all applications for approval oftentative maps and vesting tentative maps that have not been deemed complete as of the date of this Resolution. C. CompUance with California Envlrouimmtal Quality Act. This ordinance is not 1\ ''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. D. Severability. If any provision of this ordinance or the application thereof to any pCfSOn or circumstance is held invalid, the remainder of the ordinance, including the application of such part or provision to other persons or circumstances sha1l not be affected thereby and shall continue in full force and effect. To this end, provisions ofthis ordinance are severahle. 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 anyone or more sections, subsections, subdivisions, paragraphs, sentences, clauses, or phrases be held unconstitutional, invalid, or unenforceable. PASSED, APPROVED IInd ADOPTED this 7th day of September 2004. AYES: NOES: ABSENT: ABSTAIN: Mayor City Clerk 3 CITY OF DUBLIN 35tõ~'f- Website: http://vMIw.cLdublin.ca.us 100 Civic Plaza, Dublin. California 94568 NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING The City of Dublin City CoWlcil will hold II public hearing and take aotion on the fol1owing project: PROJECT: PA 04-044 Amendment to the Dublin Mnnic:ipal Code PROJECT DESCRIPTION: Resolution Initiating Proceedings to Adopt an Ordinance Regulating the Conversion of Existing Apartments in the City to Condominiwns. The specific contl'Ilt of the Ordinance that wi1l be eventu.ally proposed to City Council is presrotly unknown. A proposed ordinance will be drafted after thorough study of the issue by the Couununity DevelOpment Department and by other City departments. At present, it is anticipated that the Ordinance would regulate, restrict, and, in some cases, prohibit the conversion of existing residential apartment units held in a single ownership, in whatever form, to condominiums or other forms of ownership that pennit the units to be sold individually. LOCATION: Citywide ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW: This project has been found to be Exempt £rom the California Enviro~al Quality Act (CEQA) purnuantto Section 15061(b)(3). API'LICANT: City of Dublin PUBLIC HEARING; A public bearing wi1l be held before the City CounciJ on TUe$day, September 7, 2004 at 7:00 pm in the City Council Chambers, 100 Civic Plaza, Dublin. Any interested person may appear and be heerd on this matter. If you challenge the above-describcd action in court, you may be limited to raising only those issues you or other persons raised at the public hearing described in this notice, or in written correspondence delivered to the City of Dublin at, or prior to, the public hearing, The proposed project is available for review at the City Office, 100 Civic Plaza, Dublin, California. If you have any questions of comments, please contact the Community Deve:1opment Department at (925) 833-66 I O. Jeri Ram, AICP Planning Manager Dated: Augusl 25, 2004 Publi,hed: Augus128,2004 Area Cod. (925)' City M...o¡¡OI' 833-6650· City Council 833-6650' POI'Sonoel 833-6605 ' Eoonomic D""elopmon' 833-6650 Fin..."" 833-6640' Publjc Worl<sIEngineering 833-6630' P.,.ks & Cmnmunity Scrvicco 833-6645 . Police 833-6670 Planning/Code En£o=001833-6610 - Building In.pection 833-6620 - F;re PTevention Bureau 833-6606 ReJev~"" ì $11:<:""111:>""5 of 3600 ~'t CITY OF DUBLIN GENERAL PLAN HOUSING ELEMENT A pOP TED B Y: THE CITY COUNCIL FEBRUARY 11, 1985 REV I SED B Y: THE CITY COUNCIL JUNE 11, 1990 The Housing El~ment is a revision of Volu~e 6 of the General Plan as adopted by the city Counoil on February 11, 1985 Policy Objective: Quantified Objective: - 3ìaoe't Encourage development of affordable housing by private organizations not primarily engaged in housing construction or management 90 units (affordable to low and moderate income households) Action Undertaken: Inclusion of "Semi-public use" definition in the General Plan that allow!I housing Actions to be Undertaken: Financing: Implementing RespoJ\s ibili ty: contact owners of semi-public property to inform them of this policy; and grant additional incentives such as reduced site design standards, priority processing and fee reductions Minor administrative cost to City (A) Planning Department 1991 (adopt incentives) and 1992 (oontact owners) E. Require a percentage of units in large multi-family projects (i.e., projects with more than 10 units) be rented for a specified period of time. The difficulties of first-time home buying make rental units the only affordable housing for many moderate income households that do not have the assets to make a down-payment on a home. Other households may chose to rent for other rS/:Isons. Time Frame: Policy Objective: Action Needed: Financing: Insure availability of rental units in Dublin Require that a minimum of 10% of the units in large multi-family projects be maintained as rental unit$ fo~ a period of five years. No cost to City 55 Financing: - 'ð Housing Authority fund and minor 3ß6b 't administrative cost to City (A and D) Implementation Responsibili ty: Housing Authority and Planning Department Time trame: Ongoing implementation I. Monitor AvailaÞility of R8ntal Housing. If deemed necessary, consider enactment of condominium conversion ordinance. Only one condominium conversion project has been approved Þy the City. The developer did not follow through with implementation of the project. Policy Objective: Assist in maintaining rental stock as housing affordable to moderate income Dublin households Actions to be Undertaken: After an application for a condominium conversion is received by the City, evaluate the City-wide rental vacancy rats; pass a condominium conversion ordinance, if necessary Financing: Minor administrative cost to City (A) Implementation Responsibility: Planning Department Time Frame: Ongoing implementation J. Require evidence of developer effort to receive public financial assistance for purpose of including below market rate units in proposed projects; and assist developers in obtaining information on available programs. The range of available state and federal programs designed to increase housing affordability varies from year to year. To insure that developers are participating in appropriate programs when possible, the City will require evidence that developers of multi- family housing have investigated program availability and are using available dssistance whenever possible. To reduce the burden on developers created by this requirement, the City will prepare a packet of information on available programs, including a list of agency contact persons responsible for program implementation. This information will be given to developers as early as possible in the project approval process. This requirement will apply only to developers of projects that contain 75 or more multi-family units. 58 1\t\-tVi.\'<""Í &e.c-\--':;"" oI, City of Dublin . . , . '.' ~.' " ....-fL: .'..,,....riL. ......." Hoús;ng Element (1999-2006) Adopted by the Dublin City CounciL on June 3,2003 Resolution No. 113-03 (Approval of Housing Element) ResoLution No. 114·03 (Adoption of Negative Declaration) Certified by the State Department of Housing and Community Development July 11, 2003 , 3'fG[) t't yt)~ 'Z'+ ciTY OF OU'LI~ HOUSING HEMENT P99."2ooq I. Monitor Ilvlli1llbility of rental housing. If de~med neoessary, oonsider enaetrnc::::nt of the condominium conversion ordinance. The City has approved only one condominium conversion project. The developer did not follow through with implementation of the project. Policy Obj~çliv~s: Actions to be Undertaken: Finanoing: Implementation R.sponsibility: Thm Fral)1~: Aohievewents: Aasist in maintaining rental stoçk as houping affordible to moderate-income Dublin bou&ebolds After on app1icali~n Car . condominium cOl1y"".ion;p recei,,~d by th~ City, evaluate the City-wide rental vacancy rate; p.ss . condominium conversion ordinance, if necessary Minor administrative cost to th~ City Community Development DepartIlICJrt Ongoing implemomation A condominium conversion ordinance was never adopted became the City does not believe that thore is a currCTlt need for sucl> an ordinll1lCö. There is little likolihood that ",,-;.ting rental honshJg property owners will convert their properties to condominhnm du~ to tire .rrong denl'Uld for rental bousing in Dublin and the developrnmt of condominiums to .atisfy th~ demand Cor this type of b01'aing. There are ctTITCTlt1y 1,396 co~dominium& under con!truction in the City. The City will a.sess the need for.a condominiwo conver¡;ion ordinanc. e.ch fune it update. the Hou.ing Element if a need .ri.... .. CITY File # CLERK tJl~ßt AGENDA STATEMENT CITY COUNCIL MEETING DATE: November 16, 2004 SUBJECT: P A 04-044 Presentation of Policy Recommendations for the Proposed Condominium Conversion OrdlnaDce. Report Prepared by: Jeff Baker, Associate Planner ~ ATTACHMENTS: 1. City Councîl Resolution 181-04, Initiating Proceedings to Adopt an Ordinance Regulating the Convorsion of Existing Apartments in the City to Condominiums. City Councîl Staff Report dated September 7, 2004, without attachments. 2. RECOMN!ENDATIO~ \ Provide direction to Staff on policies that should be considered as part of the Condominium Conversion Ordinance. FINANCIAL STATEMENT: No finaneiaI impact at this time. Implementation of the Condominium Conversion Ordinance will have an impact on Staff time in relation to monitoring policy provis-ions. The impact on Staff time is not currently ktiown, Further analysis of this impact will be presented to the City Council at the time the proposed Ordinance is presented. BACKGROUND: On September 7, 2004, the City Council adopted a Resolution (Resolution # 181-04) initiating proceedings 00 adopt an ordillance regulating the conversion of existing apartments in the City to condominiums (Attachment 1). Following that meeting, Staff has studied the various meehanisms for regulating condominium conversions. This study included a complete: review· of the Subdivision Map Act, City of Dublin Genera.! Plan Housing Element and Condominil)J.n Conversion Ordinances from fifteen different cities throughout California, including the cities of Livermore and Walnut Creek.. Based on this study staff has developed a series of policy alternatives for the City Council to consider. Process: Implementation of a Condominium Conversion Ordinance will include the devdoprnent of a new chapter in the City of Dublin Zoning Ordinance for Condominium Conversions as well as related amendments to the existing Inclusionary Zoning Regulations and· Site Development Review chapters of the Zoning Ordinance (Chapters 8.68 and 8.104). Following this policy discussion, Staffwill prepare a draft ordinance for review at public hearings before both the Planning Commission and City Council. _____.__~~~__________________~_._______w______~________~~~__w~~________--------~~~----------~~~------- COPIES TO: In-House Distribution G:\P;tL#\2004\04--044 Condo COJl'\lersIQII ZOA \I::.;:srl1-1G-04.DOC ATTACHMENT 57 ANALYSIS: 1f2Vb tt The following is a list of goals that Staff has used as a framework for developing policy alternatives. These goals were derived rrom the General Plan Housing Element and the Resolution initiating proceedings to adopt an ordinance regulating the conversion of existing apartments in the City to condominiums. These goals help to ensure the creation of policies that are consistent with the City of Dublin General Plan Housing Element. . Condominium Conversion Policy Goals: I. Maintain a supply of affordable and market rate rental housing. 2. Provide a reasonable balance of ownership and rental housing and a variety of choices in the type and price of housing. 3. Establish criteria for the conversion of existing multi-family rental housing to condominiums. 4. Reduce the impact of conversion on residents in rental housing who may be required to relocate due to the conversion of apartments to eondominiurns. 5. Ensure that converted housing achieves a high degree ofappearance, quality and saf&)". Based on the above goals, Staff has prepared policy categories that would be included in a Condominium Conversion Ordinance. These categories are presented with a Staff recommendation and an alternative otItion. Subdivision Map Act: The Subdivision Map Act provides some protection for certain groups that may be affected by Condominium Conversions. However, State Housing Law provides that cities have the responsibility to use the powers vested in them to facilitate the improvement and development of housing to make adequate provisions for the housing needs of all econonÏÍc segments of the cOlDIIlunity (Gov. Code, § 65580(d». Staff's recommendations would build from and augment the provisions of the Subdivision Map Act. A. Condominium Conversion Ordinance 1. Applieation of the Condominium Conversion Ordinance Staff Recommendation: The following criteria would be used to identifY properties that arc subject to the proposed Condominium Conversion Ordinance: · Multi-family residential developments containing 20 or more dwelling units under the same ownership that are held for lease to the general public. Multi.family residential rental projects that have received a release of occupancy. M ulti.family r(':sidential rental projects that have not received a public report from the Department of Real Estat(': (regardless of whether or not they have a recorded condominium map). · · Analysis; The provIsIOn to make all projects with 20 or more rental units subject to the CondominiUm Conversion Ordinance is consistent with the threshold that has been established for the Inclusionary Zoning Regulations. hnplementation of this recommendation would exclude duplexes and smali apartment buildings from the ordinance. The Alde:rs Apartments is the The Evan Alan Apartments is the next Lt3'Ô$+ Incorporating into the ordinance the recommendation requiring a public report fro:m the DRE would have the effect of :making units that have been mapped for condominiums subject to the Condo:minium Conversion Ordinance, in most if not all cases. In order to convert an apartment complex to for-sale condominiums, the property owner must record a Condominium Map and obtain a Public Report from the Department of Real Estate (DRE). State law provides that ollly the Public Report vests the building owners' rights to sell the units individually. Without the Public Report, the development remains subject to new City ordinances rega1'dlesS of whether the building is already mapped. smallest apartment building in the City with only 8 units. smallest with a total of 20 units. The City has released occuPlillcy of approximately 3,172 multi-family rental units throughout the City. It should be noted that approximately 1,119 of these units are already mapped for condominiums. The DRE has not issued a Public Report for any units that have been mapped for condominiums. If all of these units were converted, the ratio of aparttnents to ownership units would be greatly reduced and a significant number of tenants would be displaced. Implementation of this provision would reduce the potential impact to these tenants. Fiscal Impact: Implementation of this recommended policy would not have an impact on its' own. However, depending on the overall policy direction there will be a different amount of Staff time dedicated to the implementation of the ordinance. This analysis would be brought forward to the City Council with the draft ordinance. Alternative Recommendation: The Condominium Conversion Ordinance would be applicable to multi-family residential developments containing 3 or more dwelling units under the same ownership. All othor recommended provisions listed above ",ould also be included. Analysis: This would include all existing apartment projects within the City of Dublin but this would continue to exclude duplexes from the conversion ordinance. Fiscal Impact: Implementation of this policy will not have an impact on its own. However, depending on the overall policy direction there will be a different amount of Staff time dedicated to the implementation of the ordinanco. Thi~ analysis would be brought forward to the City Council with the draft ordinance. 2. Limitations on Conversions The limitations listed below would be utilized by the City to evaluate requosts for conversion of multi-family rental property to condominiums: Staff Recommendation: Condominium conversions would only be permitted if the minimum number of rental units within the City of Dublin e)(ceeds 30% of the total housing su.pply and the average citywide vacancy rate over the previous ye3l" exceeds 5% within the City of Dublin. Conversion cannot reduee the total number of rental units below 30% of the total housing supply and cannot reduce the vacancy rate below 5% as estimated through Staff review. Analysis: This provision sets clearly defmed standards that can be used to determine if rental units may be converted to condominium units and continue to preserve diversity in the housing stock. When the General Plan Housing Element was updated in 2000, there were 9,597 residential units within the City of Dublin. Multi-family rental units represented 2,921 or approximately 30% of ' the total housing supply. This was consistent with the composition of the nationwide housing 4~ ßt supply at that time. Implementation of this provision in the ordinance would preserve a core stook of rental housing consistent with the housing ratio identified in the Housing Elemeut. The City of Dublin Housing Element (Appendix A, Dublin Housing Stock) indicates that a vapancy rate of5% is considered ideal for adequate conSumer mobility and choiee. A vacancy rate below 5% indicates a strong rental market with limited availability. A vacancy rate that is greater than 5% would indicate some excess availability of housing within the City of Dublin. This provision would help to ensure the availability of alternative housing for residents that are displaced by conversion. However, implementation of this alternative couJd limit future conversions based on the housing and vacancy ratios within the City. Fiscal Impact: A minimal amount of Staff time would be required to obtain the current housing ratios and vacancy rates; however, this time could be charged to the Applicant. Alternative Recommendation: Condominium conversions would only be permitted if the minimum number of nmtal units within the City of Dublin exceeds 25% of the total housing supply and the average citywide vaoancy rate over the previous year exceeds 5% within the City of Dublin. Conversion cannot reduce the total number ofrentall.U1i!:i below 25% of the totw housing supply and cannot reduce the vacancy rate below 5%. Analysis: The ratio of rental housing has changed since the General Plan Housing Element was updated in 2000. As of October 2004, the City has issued or finaled building pennits for 15,447 residential units. Approximately 25% of the residentIal permits that have been issued were for multi-family rental housing. This alternative would ensure that the rental housing supply as a pereentage of the total housing supply would not drop below the current ratio. Fiscal ImpaCT: A minimal amount of staff time would be required to obtain the current housing ratios and vacancy rates; however, this time could be charged to the Applicant 3. Tenant Relocation Assistance Plan A Tenant Relocation Assistance Plan shaH be prepared by the Applicant to indicate how the Applicant will assist tenants who will be displaced in securing decent, safe, sanitary and affordable replacement housing not higher in cost than the rent of the existing unit being converted. Staff recommends that, at a minimum, the relocation assistance plan include moving expenses and an extension of lease terms as discussed below. a. Moving Expenses Staff Recommendation: Payment of moving expenses equal to 2 months rent to aU tenants who reside in the property at the time that the "Notice: of Intent to Convert" is issued pursuant to the Subdivision Map Act (Section 66452.9) or the alternative notice required by the Condominium Conversion Ordinance for projects that already have final condominium maps. Payment Iiliall be made within 14 days of relocation. However, any tenant who terminates a lease prior to receiving a notice to vacate from the property owner or is in arrears of rental or leasehold payments, unless withholding payment is legally allowed, shall not be entitled to relocation benefits. Ana¡y~'i1,<: The payment of moving expenses is intended to reduce the fmaneial burden that is placed on tenants as a re~ult of the property owner's decision to convert and the tenants'45 d tt subsequent need to relocate. This money will help to defray the co~t of physically moving and "() related moving expenses. The Subdivi~ion Map Act does not require property owners to provide relocation assistance to displaced tenants. Fiscal Impact: Depending on the policy direction and implementation procedures there will be a different amount of Staff time dedicated to the implementation of this ordinance provision. There i~ a possibility that ~ome type of self-reporting procedure could be implemented that would minimize Staff monitoring time. Further analysis of tì1e amount of Staff time will be included when the ordinance is brought back to the City Council. Alternative Recommendation: Payment of moving expen~es equal to 2 month~ rent only to tenants that are seniors (age 62 and above), permanently di~abled tenants and tenants that reside in affordable units as defined by the City of Dublin Inclusionary Zoning Ordinance (Section 8.68). Analysis: The payment of moving expenses to this select group of tenants will help to reduce the financial burden for those tenants that are likely to have the most difficulty relocating and are least able to bear the co~ts associated with moving. The Subdivisiòn Map Act does not require property owners to provide relocation assistance to displaced tenants. Fiscal Impact: Depending on the policy direction and implementation procedures there will be a different amount of Staff time dedicated to the implementation of this ordinance provision. There is a possibility that some type of self-reporting procedure could be implemented that would minimize Staff monitoring time. Further analysis of the amount of Staff time will be included when the ordinance is brought back to the City Council. b. Lease Agreements Staff Recommendation: Staff recommends inclusion of the following provisions in the Condominiwn Conversion Ordinance: A. Rent will not be increased from the dB.te of issuance of a "Notice of Intent to Convert" pursuant to the Subdivision Map Act (Section 66452.9) or or the alternative notice required by the Condominium Conversion Ordinance for projl::cts that already have fmal condominium maps, whichever occurs first, until 6 months following the receipt of a public report ftom the Depar1m.ent of Real Estate, or the tenant purchases a unit or reloca.tes to other acco=odations, whichever occurs first. B. Provide lease/rental agr<::ement extensions of no less than 3 year5 to all tenants that are seniors (age 62 and above), permanently disabled tenants and tenants that reside in affordable units as defmed by the City of Dublin Inclusionary Zoning Ordinance (Section 8.68). The 3-year extension shall start from the date of issuance of the public report from the Department of Real Estate (DRE). Annual rent increases during this 3-year period may not exceed 75% of the latest average annual rent increase of the residential rent component of the Consumer Price Index. C. Extend leases/rental agreements to families with childrell in grades K through 12 for a minimum of 1 year ITom the date of issuance of a public report ftom the DRE. Analysis: The Subdivision Map Act requires property owners to give 6 months notice of intention to convert prior to terminating tenancy due to the converijion, and the Condominium~/o¡¡1~'f Conversion Ordinance would require a similar notice prior to submission of an application to 'D convert a project that has already been mapped for condominiU11l$. However, th~ is a limited amount of housing that meets the needs of senior, disabled and low-income tenants. Implementation of Staff's recommendation would provide these tenants with additional time to find housing within the community and further reduces the potential negative impac"tS of moving. . Providing tenants with school age children a I-year extension will help to avoid moving during the school year and disrupting the education process. Restricting the ability to raise rent will limit the potc:ntial for property owners to encourage tenants to vacate units and avoid the noticing requirements of the Subdivision Map Act and payment of relocation assistance required by the City of Dublin Condominiwn Conversion Ordinance. Rent would be held in place for a rninimum of 6-12 months under this provision. Fiscal Impact: Staff time will be required to enforce these provisions. The amount of Staff time will be dctermined as the draft ordinance is developed. Further analysis of the amount of staff time will be determined when the ordinance is brought back to City Council. Alternative Recommendation: The following are alternative provisions for consideration in the Condominium Conversion Ordinance. Either one or both of these provisions could be implemented with the Staff recommendations listed above: A. Provide II. lease/rental agreement extension of no less than 1 year from the date of issuance of the public report from the DRE to all tenants that are seniors (age 62 and above), permanently disabled tenants and tenants that reijide in affordable units a!.i defined by the City of Dublin lnclusionary Zoning Ordinance (Section 8.68). B. Pennanently disabled or low-income tenants that are also seniors shall receive a lifetime lease in which rent increases are tied to the Cpr. All other recommended lease provisions listed above would also be included. Analysis; Implementation of these provisions would provide additional protections that are not required by the Subdivision Map Act for tenants that me considered to be ·difficult to relocate. The lease extension will provide tenants that me seniors, disabled or living in affordable units with 6 months more time to relocate than provided by the Subdivision Map Act. Implementation of this provision would enable certain tenants to avoid relocation altogether because of the difficulty in finding replacement housing and physically moving. Fiscal Impact; Staff time will be reqnired to enforce these provisions. The amount of Staff time will be determined as the draft ordinance is developed. Further analysis of the amount of staff time will be determined when the ordinance is brought back to City Council. 4. Buildîng Code Requirements The following recommendations address the application of building code requirements to condominium conversions: Staff Reeommendatlon: Converted condominiums shall be required to meet the building code requirements in effect at the time of construction. Any retrofitting or remodeling work shall mectl(] a. t¡,¡. current building code requirements in effect a.t the time building pennits are issued for the work. U I Analysis: Many existing l1':sidential dwellings, including apartments, within the City of Dublin were built prior to the current building code requirements. These dwe1lings are considered safe and inhabitable structures. Therefore, the City does not typically require costly retrofitting of these properties to bring them up to current building code requirements. Conversion of existing apartments to condominiums does not substantially change the use of these structures in 1\ way that would make them less safe or inhabitable. However, any remodeling or ret!o fitting work that the property owner perfonns would be required to meet current building code requirem~ts. Fiscal Impact: None. The property owner would be required to obtain a building permit for retrofitting work. The cost of building inspections is included in the building pelTI1it fees. Alternative Recommendation: All converted condominiums shall be retrofitted to the standard8 required of new residential condominiums as required by the Building Official. Analysili: Extensive retrofitting would be required for many older properties in order to bring them up to current building code requirements. This is an expensive proposiûon that would likely discourage the conversion of older apartment complexes that were not built to current condominium standards. Fiscal Impact: None. The: property owner would be required to obtain II building permit for retrofitting work. The cost of building inspections is included in the building permit fees. B. Inclusionary Zoning Regulations The following are recommendations regarding the application of Inclusionary Zoning and the purchase of below market rate rental units in developments that are converted to for sale condominiums. I' 1. Application of Inelusionary Zoning Staff Recommendation: Amend the Inclusionary Zoning Regulations (Section 8.68) to require multi.family rental project8 that are subject to the condominium conversion ordinance to provide 12.5% of the total number of dwelling units within the development as affordable purchase units if they have not already obtained a public report from the DRE. Analysis: Approximately 29% of the rental units within the City are located in properties where a Final Condominium Map has already been recorded. Conversion of these rental units could result in a substantial loss of market rate and affordable rental units. This provision would require property owners to provide affordable units at the time of conversion regardless of whether or not a Final Condominium Map has been recorded on the property. This is an innovative approach to providing inclusionary housing with condOIllinium conversions that is not currently used by surrounding jurisdictions. Fiscal Analysili: Staff time will be required for Staff to implement and monitor the Inclusionary Zoning Regulations on all newly converted condominiums. " Alternative Recommendation: Amend the Inclusionary Zoning Regulatìons (Section 8.68) to - require condominium projects with 20 or more units to provide 12.5% of the total number of4~'t+ dwelling units within the development as affordable units if a Final Condominium Map has not been recorded on the property. Analysis: As previously discussed, approximately 29% of the rental units within the City are located in properties where a Final Condominium Map has already been recorded. These properties would not be subject to inclusionary zoning under this provision. However, properties that do not have a recorded Final Map would be subject to inclusionary zoning and contribute to the supply of affordable purchase units within the City. Fiscal Analysis: Staff time will be required to implement and monitor the Inclosionary Zoning Regulations on those developments that have not already recorded a Final Condominium Map. 2. Purchase of Existing Below Market Rate Units Staff Recommendation: Tenants that reside in affordable units as defined by the City of Dublin Inelusionary Zoning Ordinance (Section 8.68) shall have the right of first refusal to purchase their CUJ:Tent unit at an affordable purchase price in accordance with the provisions of the Inclusionary Zoning Regulations and the City of Dublin's "Laypersons Guide to Inclusionary Zoning Ordinance Regulations" . AnalY~'is: This provision would help to reduce the impact ofrelocation on low-income tenants and provide them with prderential treatment in the purchase process. The Subdivision Map Act does require property owners to offer tenants an exclusive right to purchase his or her respective unit at market rate. However, implementation of this provision would enable tenants living in affordable UI1its to purchase their existing unit at an affordable purchase price calcµlated based on the Inclusionary Zoning requirements. Fiscal Analysis: Staff time will be required to verifY that low-income tenants receive the right of first refusal. Additional staff time will be required in order to verify the household's eligibility for these newly converted units. Alternative Recommendation: Offer below market rate purchase units to the general public without preference to the existing affordable tenants. Analysis: Implementation ofthîs provision would mirror the requirements of the Subdivision Map Act. No special preferences would be given to existing tenants living in Inclusionary rental units that want to purchase an Inclusionary for sale unit. All exi5ting tenants would be offered the right of first refusal to purchase their 1ll1Ît at market rate based on the requirements of the Subdivision Map Act. Tenants currently living in Inclusionary rental units that wish to purchase an Inclusionary 1ll1Ît would have to choose from the units that are available at the Inclusionary price. These tenants might have to move from their existing unit. Fiscal Analysis: Staff is already verifying household eligibility for existing for sale housing. Additional Staff time would be required for those newly converl~d units. t, Site DevelDpment Review A C d .. M· . . d· d . . t 4~tlfJ1cf on ommll.ml ap IS ~qUlre In or er to convert an eXIstU1g apartmen cDmplex to condominiums. However, the map process does not provide a mechanism to evaluate the physical appearance of a property. For example, the City could reC(":ive an application to conver¡ an existing apartment complex with deferred maintenance that creates an eyesore within the community. This deferred maintenance could include external painting and landscape mainteru.mce to repair sparse ()T overgrown landscaping. A Site Development Review Perm.it would provide the: City with a mechanism to evaluate the physical appearance of the property and require modifications. The following are recommendatiollS regarding the application of a Site Development Review Permit to condominium conversions. Staff Recommendation: Each main building, stmcture, fence, patio enclosw-e, carport, accessory building, sidewalk, driveway, iandscaped area and uûlity shall be refurbished and restored as necessary to achieve a hi¡;h degree of appearance, quality and safety. Analysis: This provision will provide the City Council with the ability to require property owners to perform deferred maintenance prior to t:onverSÎon. This will help to maintain the visual appearance of the City of Dublin. An amendment to include condominium conversioIlS in the Site Development Revi",w s",ction of the Zoning Ordinance (Section 8.104) would be required in order to implement this provisiQn. FiJ;cal Impact: No financial impact. Community Development Department Staff time would be required to perform a physical inspection of the property and review proposed improvements. However, the Applicant would be required to apply for a Site Development Review Application and is then charged on a time and materials basis. Alternative RecDmmendation: Require the propertY owner to establish a reserve fund in excess of DRE requirements for ongoing maintenance of the property. Analysis: Condominium associations are required to establish budgets and reserve funds for ongoing maintenance. This provision would only require additional funds be set aside for such repairs. However, it does not require the existing property owner or the newly created condominium association to perform maintenance and repairs. Therefore, multi-family developments could convert without performing improvements. Fiscal Impact: No financiaJ impact since no action would be required of Staff. RECOMMENDATION: Staff recommends that the City Council provide direction to Staff on policies that should be considered as part of the Condominium Conversion Ordinance. AGENDA STATEMENT PLANNING COMMISSION MEETING DATE: JANUARY 11, 2005 ~Dðb'ß\f PUBLIC HEARING - PA 04-044 Condominium Conversion Ordinance ^ tl / (Report prepared by: Jeff Baker. Associate Planner)1..Xf' SUBJECT: ATTACHMENTS: RECOMMENDATION: PROJECT DESCRIPTION: 1. Resolution Recommending that the City Council Adopt an Ordinance Regulating the Conversion of Existing Apartments in the City to Condominiums. Urgency Condominium Conversion Ordinance Condominium Conversion Ordinance (Non urgency ordinance) Alternative Urgency Condominium Conversion Ordinance Alternative Condominium Conversion Ordinance (Non urgency ordinance) Notice of Public Hearing to Consider Initiating Proceedings to Adopt a Condominium Conversion Ordinance. List of Dublin Apartments City Council Staff Report (dated September 7, 2004) City Council Staff Report (dated November 16, 2004) without attachments City Council Resolution 181-04, Initiating Proceedings to Adopt an Ordinance Regulating the Conversion of Existing Apartments in the City to COlldominiurns. City Council Meeting Minutes of November 16, 2004 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Open public hearing; Receive Staff Presentation; Question Staff, Applicant and the public; Close Public Hearing and Deliberate; and Adopt Resolution (Attaclunent I) Recommending City Council Adopt an Ordinance Regulating the Conversion of Existing Apartments in the City to Condominiums. Buckground: On September 7, 2004, the City Council adopted a Resolution (Resolution #181-04) initiating proceedings to adopt an ordinance regulating the conversion of existing apartments in the City to for-sale condominiums (Attachment 10). Following that meeting, Staff'studied the various mechanisms for regulating condominium conversions. This Study included a complete review of the Subdivision Map Act, City of Dublin General Plan Housing Element and Condominium Conversion Ordinances from different cities throughout California, including the cities of Livermore and Walnut Creek. Based on this Study, Staff developed Ii series of policy alternatives for the City Council to consider. On November 16, 2004, Staff presented these policy alternatives to the City Council (Attachment 9). The City Council provided Staff with direction regarding the. development of the proposed Condominium Conversion Ordinance. The City Council further din::cted Staff to hold a meeting with the owners of apartments COPIES TO: PAPile G:\PA#\2004\M·044 C01IOO Ç()f1v~ion WA \p¡::srl·11-05,do¡;: ATTAcHMÈNrTilR within the City of Dublin in order to inform them of these policy recommendations and SOli~1 :Þe~'t c.;omments. On December 9, 2004, Staff held a meeting with these property owners and other interested parties. Staff utilized the feedback received at this meeting to further develop the proposed Condominium Conversion Ordinance (Attachments 2-5). Feedback rrom the property owners is included in the analysis seetion of this Staff Report. Apartment units provide a type of housing that is a key to a healthy diversity of housing stock in the community. Apartments provide housing for all levels of affordability in the community and are a valuable tool for providing work force housing. Staff believes that the conversion of one or two of the City's apartment communities could have a major impact on the diversity of the City's housing stock in that it would remove from the market a significant percentage of the existing rental units. If sold rather than rented, the units would no longer be available to a segment of the community that is not in a position to purchase such units. In addition, the loss of these units would likely decrease the vacancy rate, may increase rents, and this may in turn further exacerbate the City's shortage of affordable rental units. This might cause a lasting imbalance in the diversity of housing stock in the City. In the past 10 years the City has seen the development of approximately 1,500 residential apartment units. for an overall total of approximately 3,172 units throughout the City. It should be noted that approximately 1,119 of these units are aln;,ady mapped for condominiums but continue to operate as apartment communities (Attachment 7). However, the California Department of Real Estate (DRE) has not issued a Public Report for these properties. The Public Report vests the property owner's right to sell the units individually. These apartment communities remain subject to new City ordinances until the property owner has received a Public Report from the DRE. If all of these units converted, the ratio of apartments to ownership units would be greatly reduced. In the past seven months, Staff has received inquiries rrom several existing apartment owners indicating their intent to file subdivision documents to convert their projects to condominiums. The City is currently processing subdivision applications to convert the following apartment projects to for-sale condominiums. Current Subdivision Applications Iron Horse Trail Apartments (Dougherty Road) - Archstone - Emerald Park Apartments (Hacienda Drive) . Total 117 units 324 units 441 Units Process: At thc present time should a property owner wish to convert an existing apartment complex to for-sale condominiums, the property owner must record a Condominium Map and obtain a Publie Report from the Department of Real Estate (DRE). The application for a Condominium Map would be processed in accordance with State law under the Subdivision Map Act. The Map Act contains provisions that require the property owner to give notice to tenants and gives tenants the right to purchase their existing units before they are placed on the market for-sale to the general public. State law permits the City to expand upon these basic requirements through the adoption of a condominium-conversion ordinance. State law provides that cities have the responsibility to use the powers vested in them to facilitate the improvement and development of housing to make adequate provision for the housing needs of all economic segments of the commullity. (See Gov. Code, § 65580(d». For example, a condomillium conversion ordinance could limit conversions to maintain a balance of housing stock and could require the provision of affordable units under the City's lnclusionary Zoning Ordinance. Both of the subdivision applications referenced above would only be subject to the Condominium Conversion Ordinance ifit is adopted befofC the City takes action on these subdivision maps. Ordinarily, under the Subdivision Map Act, the City may only apply standards in effect at the time that an application for a tentative suhdivisioll map is deemed complete (Gov. Code:, § 66474.2(a»_ However, the City Council adopted a Resolution initiating proceedings to adopt a condominium-conversion ordinance 2 (Attachment 10). This Resolution was designed to prevent those that file subdivision aPPlica~~:q~ ~ convert existing apartments to condominiums from avoiding the pending condominium-conversion ordinance. The Resolution permits the City to apply the Condominium Conversion Ordinance in effect on the date the City approves or disapproves a tentative map (Gov. Code, § 66474.2(b». The Subdivision Map Act requires the City to take action on maps within 50 days of deeming an application complete. At the time that this Staff Report was prepared, the subdivision applications referenced above had not been deemed complete. Neighboring Jurisdictions: Cities throughout California have adopted Condominium Conversion Ordinances including the cities of Livennore and Walnut Creek. Both of these cities adopted conversion ordinances that contain provisions which restrict the conversion of apartments to condominiums and provide relocation benefits to displaced tenants. The following is a synopsis of the policy components contained in these ordinances: The City of Livermore: · Application of the ordinance: Projects with 2 or more units. · Limitations on Conversions: The City Council must annually determine the maximum number of apartments that are pennitted to convert. · Limitations on Rent Increases: Rent increases are not permitted rrom the date a tentative map application is filed until the tenant relocates. · Relocation Assistance: All tenants receive financial relocation assistance equal to 2-months rent. Seniors are offered rent controlled lifetime leases. Low and moderate income tenants shall be offered a minimum of a 3-year, rent controlled lease. Tenants with school aged children receive a 6- month lease extension. · Building Code Requirements: Projects shall conform to the applicable building code in effect at the time the last building permit was issued. · Site Development Review: Landscaping and buildings shall be reviewed by the Planning Department and refurbished and restored to achieve a high degree of appearance. The City of Walnut Creek: · Application of the ordinance: Projects with 2 or more units. · Limitations on Conversions: Conversion is limited to no more than 5% of the City's potentially convertible rental stock in anyone calendar year. · Limitations on Rent Increases: Rent increases are not permitted for a period of 2-years from the date a tentative map application is filed with the city. · Relocation Assistanee: All tenants receive fmancial relocation assistance equal to 2-months rent. Seniors are offered rent controlled lifetime leases. Low and moderate income tenants shall be offered Ii minimum of a 3-year, rent controlled lease. · Building Code Requirements: Projects shall confonn to the applicable building code in effect at the time the last building permit was issued. · Site Development Review: Landscaping and buildings shall be refurbished and restored to achieve a high degree of appearance. Proposed Policy Component.~: In consideration of the potential impacts rrom conversion Staff has prepared a Condominium Conversion Ordinance to regulate the conversion of rental apartments to for-sale condominiums. The key components ofthe proposed Condominium Conversion Ordinance are as follows; · Application of the Condominium Conversion Ordinance · Limitations on Conversions · Limitations on Rent Increases · Tenant Relocation Assistance Plan 3 · Inclusionary Zoniug Regulations Tenant's Right to Purchase Units Building Code Requirements Site Development Review b3~'6~ · · · Staff recommends that the City Council adopt the attached Urgency Condominium Conversion Ordinance to ensure that it is ill effect before the City takes action on the current subdivision applications (Attachment 2 or 4). Approval of an ordinance typically requires two readings before the City Council and then takes effect 30-days following the second reading. However, the City Council may cause the Ordinance to take effect immediately by adopting it as an urgency ordinance if the City Council detennines that the conversion of these apartments to condominiums might frustrate the City's goal and State law obligation to adequately provide for the housing needs of all economic segments of the community. There is the potential that the urgency ordinance could be challenged. Therefore, Staff recommends that the City Council also adopt a non urgency Condominium Conversion Ordinance (Attachment 3 or 5). The non urgency ordinance will provide the City with a backup ordinance in the event that the urgency ordinance is challenged. ANALYSIS: The following is a discussion of the key policy components of the proposed Condominium Conversion Ordinance (Attachments 2-5). The discussion of each component includes an analysis of the policy along with associated comments received at the meeting with the property owners, and a discussion of the financial impacts of implementing these provisions. A. Application of the Condominium Conversion Ordinance The following criteria would be used to identifY multi-family properties that are subject to the proposed Condominium Conversion Ordinance: · Developments containing 20 or more dwelling units under the same ownership that are held for lease to the general public (Attachment 2 - Section 8.54.020); · Residential rental projects in which units have been occupied as rental units (Attachment 2 - Section 8.54.030); and · Projects that have not received a public report from the Department of Real Estate (Attachment 2· Section 8.54.030). Analysis: The provision to make all projects with 20 or more: rental units subject to the Condominium Conversion Ordinance is consistent with the threshold that has been established for the existillg Inc1usionary Zoning Regulations (Sectioll 8.68). This would exclude duplexes and small apartment buildings rrom the ordinance. The Alders Apartments is the smallest apartment building in the City with only 8 units. The Evan Alan Apartments is the next smallest with a total of 20 units_ The conversion of units that have already been occupied could result in the displacement of residents. Therefore, apartments would be subject to the ordinance if they have already been occupied. Tenants that would be displaced by conversion would be eligible to reeeive relocation benefits required by the proposed Condominium Conversion Ordinance. The requirement to obtain a public report from the DRE would make units that have already been mapped for condominiums subject to the proposed Condominium Conversion Ordinance. State law provides that only the Public Report vests thc building owners' rights to sell the units individually. Without the Public Report, the development remains subject to new City ordinances regardless of whether the building is already mapped. At the time that this Staff Report was prepared, the DRE 4 Sik1g~ had not issued a Public Report for any units within the City that have been mapped "4-or condominiums. However, if all of these units were converted, the ratio of apartments to ownership units would be great1y reduced and a significant number of tenants would be displaced. Implementation of this provision would reduce the potential impact to these tenants. This approach to regulating the conversion of mapped apartments to condominiums that is not currently used by surrounding jurisdictions but is common in Southern California. The City Council recommended including the provision as described above in the Condominium Conversion Ordinance. Property Owner's Feedback: At the meeting held with the property owners on December 9,2004, several of the owners expressed concern about applying the proposed Condominium Conversion Ordinance to properties that have already processed a Final Map with the City_ These property owners indicated that approval of their existing condominium maps implied certain approvals ITom the City and that application of a Condominium Conversion Ordinance would effectively reverse these approvals and devalue their properties. Additionally, one property owner requested that the ordinance apply to properties with 21 or more units in order to exclude the Evan Alan Apartments. The Evan Alan Apartments has 20 units and has processed a Final Condominium Map but does not have a Public Report ITom the DRE. The property owner(s) also expressed concern that they were not notified of the City Council meeting, held on September 7,2004, in which the City initiated the development of the proposed ordinance. The City sent a public hearing notice to the leasing office at each property advising thenl of the City Council hearing. However, the property owner(s) were inadvertently not sent a copy of hearing notice. Staff has updated the address list for the public hearing notices to include each property owner. All property oWllers were sent a notice advising them of the Planning Commission hearing on January 11,2005. Staff has prepared an alternative ordinance (Attachments 4 & 5) that would exclude properties with an approved condominium map from the conversion ordinance. This alternative ordinance is available should the Planning Commission decide to recommend to the City Council the approval of a Condominium Conversion Ordinance that excludes properties with approved condominium maps. Fiscal Impact: Implementation of these poliey components would not have an impact on their own. However, Staff time would be required in order to implement the overall ordinance. B. Limitations on Conversions Section 8.54.040 ofthe proposed Condominium Conversion Ordinance would pennit conversions if the minimum number of rental units within the City of Dublin exceeds 30% of the total housing supply. Conversions would not be permitted to reduce the total number ofrental units below 30% of the total housing supply. Analysis: This provision sets clearly defilled standards that can be used to detennine i[rental units may be converted to condominium units and continue to preserve diversity in the housing stock. When the General Plan Housing Element was updated in 2000, there were 9,597 residential units within the City of Dublin. Multi-family rental units rcpresented 2,921 or approximately 30% of the total housing supply. This ratio was consistent with the composition of the nationwide housing supply at that time and ensures a diversity of housing types to meet the needs of different economic segments of the community. Implementation of this provision in the ordinance would preserve a core stock of rental housing consistent with the housing ratio identified in the Housing Element. The ratio of existing rental housing has changed since the General Plan Housing Element was updated in 2000. As of October 2004, the City has issued or t'inaled building permits for 15,447 residential units. Approximately 25% of the residential permits that have been issued were for 5 85ø..~4 multi-family relltal housing. Therefore, no condominium conversions would be permitted unth' additional multi-family rental units are constructed and the ratio of these units exceeds 30% of the total housing supply. Staff has estimated the City's housing ratio at built out utilizing 2000 Census data, Association of Bay Area Govemrnents (ABAO) projections, and the current General Plan Land Use Map. Multi- family rental units are anticipated to represent a maximum of approximately 36% of the total housing supply when the city is fully built out. This ratio is based on the assumption that all undeveloped parcels with existing Medium/High and High Density General Plan Land Use designations will consist ofrental units. However, it is likely that for-sale condominiums will be built on some of these parcels. The cOllstruction of for-sale condominiums rather than rClltal apartments would therefore reduce the ratio of rental units below 36%. The ultimate housillg ratio will effect the ability of property owners to convert apartment to condominiums. The policy alternatives that were presented to the City Council on November 16, 2004, also included a recommendation that would require as a prerequisite to conversion that the City wide vacancy rate exceed 5% (Attachment 9). The City of Dublin General Plan Housing Element (Appendix A, Dublin Housing Stock) indicates that a vacancy rate of 5% is considered ideal for adequate consumer mobility and to ensure that alternative housing is available for tenants that are displaced by conversion. The City COImcil recommended that this provision be included in the draft ordinance. However, Staff has discovered a number of implementation issues associated with this provision. Vacancy rates are difficult to trElck. Professional vacaney reports do not typically track smaller apartment complexes and would not necessarily give an accurate representation of the overall vacancy rate within the City. Staff could periodically survey property owners in order to determine the vacancy rate. However, this would be a labor intensive task and it would be difficult to verify the accuracy of the information that is collected. Properry Owner's Feedback: The property owners indicated that vacancies are at least partially a reflection of the rents that a property is charging. Therefore, the vacancy rate can be manipulated by an increase or decrease in rent. Based on these concerns and the difficulty in tracking vacancy rates, Staff has decided to recommend against including a vacancy requirement in the proposed Condominium Conversion Ordinance. Fiscal Impact: A minimal amount of Staff time would be required to calculate the current housing ratios. The City already collects the information that is needed to calculate the ratio. The cost of Staff time needed to calculate the ratio would be recovered through the pre application fee described in Section 8.54.040.A of the ordinance. C. Limitations on Rent Increases Section 8.54.100 restricts rent increases from the date the property owner provides each tenant with a Notice of Intent to Convert pursuant to Section 8.54.050 until twelve months following the approval of the Condominium Conversion Permit or six months following the issuance of a public report by the Department of Real Estate (DRE), whichever occurs later. Analysis: Restricting the property owner's ability to raise rent wi1J limit the potential for property owners to encourage tenants to vacate early in order to avoid the noticing requirements of the Subdivision Map Act and the proposed City òfDublin Condominium Conversion Ordinance. Rent would be held in place fòr a minimum of 6-12 months under this provision. The City Council directed 8taffto include this provision in the proposed Condominium Conversion Ordinance. Property Owner's Feedback: The property owners did not express concern regarding this specific provision. 6 Fiscal Impact: A self reporting process would be utilized and a minimal amount ofStaffti~~W~~ 't be required to implement this policy. The property owner would be required to notify each tenant of the limitation on rent increases and provide Staff with a copy of the notice as described in Section 8.54.050.A of the proposed ordinance. D. Tenant Relocation Assistance Plan Section 8.54.110 of the proposed ordinance requires the Applicant to implement a Tenant Relocation Assistance Plan. The relocation plan shall be prepared by the Applicant and indicate the Applicant's commitment to provide tenants with the benefits required by the Condominium Conversion Ordinance. These benefits include financial assistance with moving expenses and an extension oflease terms for qualified tenants. Financial Relocation Assi.!òtance Section 8.54.11 O.D of the proposed ordinance requires the property owner to. provide each tenant with a payment equal to 3 months reTlt to help cover moving expenses. The property owner is required to make this payment within 10 days of the tenant's waiver to purchase their existing unit. Ana!ysÎ$; The Subdivision Map Act does not require property owners to provide relocation assistance to displaced tenants. However, there are costs associated with the physical act of moving and setting up new utilities. The payment of moving expenses is intended to reduce the financial burden that is placed on tenants as a result of the property owner's decision to convert and the tenants' subsequent need to relocate, The policy alternatives that were presented to the City Council on November 16, 2004, included a recommendation to pay moving expenses equal to 2-months reot within l4-days of relocation. However, the City Council directed Staff to require a payrneni equal to 3-months prior to relocation. This provision has been included in the proposed ordinance as requested by the City Council. Property Owner's Feedback: Concern was raised by the property owners regarding the requirement to provide financial relocation assistance. Several property owners that were present at the meeting stated that the annual tenant turnover rate was between 50% and 80%. These property owners do not feel that they should be required to pay relocation expenses for tenants that would likely move regardless of a conversion. They suggested that relocation benefits be limited to longtime tenants. However, as demonstrated by these property owners, as much as 50% of their tenants remain for more than one year. Even tenants that might plan to move in a given year could be forced to move early as a result of a conversion. These tenants wi1l incur moving expenses that they might not have otherwise incUJTed if the property was not converted, Many of these residents may not have the financial resources to pay moving expenses. Therefore, Staff continues to recommend thc financial relocation assistance provision for all tenants. Fiscal Impact: A self reporting process would be utilized and a minimal amount of Staff time would be required to implement this policy. The property owner would be required to notifY each tenant of their relocation benefits and provide Staff with a copy of the notice as described in Sections 8.54.050 and 8.54.110 of the draft ordinance. Continued Tenancy for Quaiified T enant$ Section 8.54.llO.E of the proposed ordinance requires property owners to provide a l2-month extension of tenancy to all eligible tenants beyond the 180 day period required by the Subdivision Map Act (Section 66427.1 (c). This 12-month extension shall be provided if the head of household or spouse meets the following eligibility criteria: 7 · Has attained age 62 or older; · Has a disability as defined by Section 54 ofthe California Civil Code; · Is a resident of an inelusionary housing unit; or · Is residing with one or more minor dependent children. 51Gb t'* Analysj,~: There is a limited amount of housing that meets the needs of senior, disabled and low- income tenants. For example, a disabled tenant may require an apartment on the ground floor. Ground floor apartments are harder to find and it may require an extended period of time to locate such a unit. The Subdivision Map Act requires property owners to give tenants a 180-day notice to vacate an apartment prior to terminating a tenancy due to a condominium conversion. However, 180-days may not be a sufficient amount of time for a displaced tenant with special needs to find suitable replacement housing in Dublin. Similarly, the l2-month extension for families with school aged children will provide them with flexibility to schedule their move and potentially avoid moving during the school year and disrupting the education process. The 12-month extension included in the proposed Condominium Conversion Ordinance would provide these tenants with additional time to find housing within the community and further reduce the potential negative impacts of moving. The policy alternatives that were presented to the City Couneil, ineluded a recommendation to provide a 3-year lease extension to tenants that were seniors, disabled or low income (Attachment 9). However, the City Council expressed concern that a 3-year extension may be overly burdensome to property owners and result in discrimination against renting to these tenants. The City Council recommended the 12-month extension that is included in the proposed ordinance. Property Owner's Feedback: The property owners agreed that a 3-year lease extension was burdensome and also questioned the need to provide any type of time extension. Fiscal Impact: A minimal amount of Staff time is required to implement this policy. The property owner is required to demonstrate that they have entered a binding lease extension or that the tenant has refused an offer for an extension. The cost of Staff time needed to review this documentation could be billed to the Applicant on a time and materials basis. E. IncIuslonary Zoning Reguladons Section 8.54.130 of the proposed Condominium Conversion Ordinance treats condominium conversions as new residential development projects. As new residential development projects, these converted properties would be required to comply the lnclusionary Zoning Regulations. The current Inc1usionary Zoning Regulations require new developments to provide 12.5% of the units as affordable (Section 8.68). However, if the project had complied with the lnelusionary Zoning Regulations in effect at the time the project was built, the converted project will only be required to make up thc difference. Thus, if the project has complied with a 5% inclusionary requirement at the time it was constructed, then the conversion would be required to satisfy the remaining 7.5% inclusionary obligation under the existing ordinance. Analysis: The COil version from apartments to condominiums could result in a substantial loss of market rate and affordable rental units. However, condominiwns are often seen as an affordable form of homeownership. The conversion of apartments to condominiums will provide the community with additional affordable ownership opportunities. In addition, the provision to require converted properties to conform to the Inclusionary Zoning Regulations will make 12.5% of the units affordable to a segment of the market that might not otherwise be able to purchase a condominium unit. The policy alternatives that were presented to the City Council, included a recommendation to 8 require converted properties to comply with current Inclusionary Zoning Regulations. 6;apc~; CounciJ directed Staff to include this provision in the proposed Condominium Conversion Ordinance. Property Owner's Feedback: Staff discussed this provision with the property owners at the meeting on December 9". The property owner's comments were limited to receiving credit for the portion of any affordable obligation that has already been met. Fiscal Analysis: A substantial amount of Staff time could be required to implement this policy if a large number of units are permitted to convert at one time. However, this Stafftirne could be billed to the applicant on a Üme and materials basis. F. Tenant's Right to Purchase Units The proposed ordinance (Section 8.54.090.8) requires property owners to provide tenants living in inclusionary units with an exclusive right to contract for the purchase of the unit occupied by the tenant at the sales price set forth in the Inclusionary Zoning Regulations based on the tenant's annual household income. Analysis: The Subdivision Map Act requires property owners to provide tenants with an exclusive right to contract for the purchase of their existing unit upon the same terms and conditions that such unit will initially be offered to the general public or on terms more favorable to the tenant. However, the Subdivision Map Act does not address inclusionary units. The provisions of the proposed Condominium Conversion Ordinance will provide tenants that reside in inclusionary units with the same preferential treatment that market rate tenants receive, The purchase price would be based on the tenant's household income in accordance with the Inclusionary Zoning Regulations (Section 8.68). This could enable tenants that rent affordable units to purchase their existing unit at an affordable purchase price and avoid being displaced by the conversion. The policy alternatives that were presented to the City Council on November 16,2004, included a recommendation to extend the right to purchase to inclusionary tenants at a price consistent with the Inclusionary Zoning Ordinance. The City Council directed Staff to include this provision in the proposed Condominium Conversion Ordinance. Property Owner's Feedback: Staff discussed this provision with the property own= at the meeting on December 9'h. The property owners did not provide comments to Staff regarding changes to this provision. Fiscal Ana(vsis: A substantial amount of Staff time could be required to implement this policy if a large number of units are permitted to convert at one time. However, this Staff time could be billed to the applicant on a time and materials basis. G. Building Code Requirements Section 8.54.080 of the proposed Condominium Conversion Ordinance requires converted units to meet the buildillg code requirements in effect at the time of construction. Any retrofitting or remodeling work would be required to meet current building code requirements in effect at tbe time that building permits were issued. Converted units would also be required to meet the current Housing Code as defined by the Dublin Municipal Code. Analysis: Many existing residential dwellings, including apartments, within the City of Dublin were built prior to the current building code requirements. These dwellings are considered safe and inhabitable structures. Therefore, the City does not typically require costly retrofitting of these 9 properties to bring them up to current huilding code requirements. Conversion of ~x:l~ + apartments to condominiums does not substantially change the use of these structures in a way that would make them less safe or inhabitable. However, any remodeling or retro fitting work that the property owner performs would be required to meet current building code requirements. Housing Code provides basic safety requirements. Existing apartments are required to meet these current Housing Code requirements. Converted units would be required to conform to the housing code at thc time of conversion. The City Council discussed this policy component at the City Council hearing on November 16, 2004. The City Council directed Staff to include in the ordinance a provision that requires buildings to be in confomlance with the Building Code at the time that the units were constructed. Staff discussed this provision with the property owners. PrQperty Owner's Feedback: The property owners did not express concern with this provision. Fiscal Impact: None. The ordinance requires the property owner to provide the City with a report on the condition of each structure and any variation in the code requirements. The cost for a City inspector to review the property and the report would be billed to the property owner on a time and materials basis as part of the cost for a Condomillium Conversion Permit. The property owner would be required to obtain a building pennit for retrofitting work. The cost of building inspections is included in the building pennit fees. H. Site Development Review Section 8.54.060 of the proposed Condominium Conversion ordinance requires Site Development Review (SDR) COIlCllITent with a request to convert to condominiums. The SDR will allow the City to evaluate the physical appearance of the property and require work to refurbish and restore the project as necessary to achieve a high degree of appearance, quality and safety. Analysis: A Condominium Map is required in order to convert an existing apartment complex to condominiums. However, the map process does not provide a mechanism to evaluate the physical appearance of a property. For example, the City could receive an application to convert an existing apartment com.p]ex witb deferred maintenance that crcstes an eyesore within the conununity. This defmed maintenance could include external painting and landscape maintenance to repair sparse or overgrown landscaping. The SDR pemlit will provide the Planning Commission with a mechanism to evaluate the physical appearance of the property and impose conditions that require remedial work to maintain the visual appearance of the City of Dublin. Staff presented this policy alternative to the City Council for consideration. The City Council directed Staff to include a provision requiring a Site Development Review permit in this ordinance. Property Owner's Feedback: The property owners raised concern that the Site Development Review process might provide the City with the arbitrary power to make modifications beyond simply rehabilitating the property. However, the Janguage in the proposed ordinance limits the City's evaluation to maintenance and conformance with prior site and architectural approvals. The intent of this provision is not to reopen ful1 site development review but simply to ensure that the property remains in conformance with existing approvals. Fiscal Impact: Community Development Department Staff time would be required to perfoml a physical inspection of the property and review proposed improvements. However, the cost of this review would be included in the application fee for a Condominium Conversion Permit. 10 l.oC~ iN ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW: The California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), together with the State guidelines and City enviroIJrnental regulations require that certain projects be reviewed for environmental impacts and that environmental documents be prepared. This project has been found to be exempt rrom the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), pursuant to CEQA Guidelines Section 15061(b)(3), because it can be seen with certainty that there is no possibility that thc proposed changes to the Municipal Code will have a significant effect on the environment. CONCLUSION: Apartment units provide a typ¡;: of housing that is a key to Ii h¡;:althy diversity of housing stock in the community. Staff b¡;:lieves that the conversion of one or two of the City's apartment communities could have a major impact on the diversity of the City's housing stock in that it would remove from the market a significant percentage of the existing rental units. In consideration of the potentìal impacts Staff has prepared the attached Condominium Conversion Ordinance. The proposed ordinance would regulate the convcrsion of rental apartments to for-sale condomilliurns and mitigate relocation impacts to tenants. As pr¡;:viously discussed, Staff has prepared two alternative versions of the Condominium Conversion Ordinance for consideration by the Planning Commission (Attachments 2-5). Attachments 2 and 3 contain a provision that would make a project with a condominium map subject to the ordinance if the Department of Real Estate (DRE) has not issued a public report. Attachment 2 is an urgency ordinance and Attachment 3 is a non urgency ordinance. Attachments 4 and 5 are included should the Planning Commission decide to recommend adoption of an ordinance that exempts projects with condominium maps regardless of whether or [1ot the DRE has issued a public report. Attachment 4 is an urgency ordinance and Attachment 5 is a non urgency ordinance. Staff recommends that the Planning Commission recommend to the City Council adoption of both an urgency ordinance and a non urgency ordinance (Attachments 2 and 3 or Attachments 4 and 5). The urgency ordinance would take effect immediately and ensure that the ordinance is in effect before the City takes action on the current subdivision applications for condominium conversions. The non urgency ordinance will provide the City with a backup ordinance in the event that the urgency ordinance is challenged. RECOMMENDATION: Staff recommends that the Planning Commission: I) open public hearing; 2) receive Staff presentation; 3) question Staff and the public; 4) close the public hearing and deliberate; 5) adopt a resolution (Attachment I) recommending that the City Council adopt a resolution adopting an ordinance regulating the conversion of existing apartments in the City to condominiums. G:\PA#\1004\04-044 Condo Conv¡:rsicm ZOA \pcsrl~] -OS.doc 11 wlD-Q~~ RESOLUTION NO. 05-02 A RESOLUTION OF THE PLANNING COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF DUBLIN RECOMMENDING THAT THE CITY COUNCIL ADOPT AN ORDINANCE REGULATING THE CONVERSION OF EXISTING APARTMENTS IN THE CITY TO CONDOMINIUMS (PA 04-044 CONDOMINIUM CONVERSION ORDINANCE) WHEREAS, Statc law provides that cities have the responsibility to use the powers vestcd in them to facilitate the improvement and development of housing to make adequate provision for the housing needs of all economic segments of the community; and WHEREAS, at the local level, cities implement state housing law policies through the adoption of the Housing Elements of their General Plans, which elements are reviewed and approved by the state's Department of Housing and Community Development ("HCD"); and WHEREAS, among other things, Housing Elements must contain a statement of the community's goals, objectives and policies related to the maintenance, preservation, improvement, and development of housing along with an action program to implement th.ese goals, objectives and policies; and WHEREAS, the City's 1990 Housing Element included several policies that encouraged and suggested actions to ensure the availability of rental housing, including a policy that required the monitoring of the availability of rental housing and, if monitoring disclosed that it was necessary, the enactment of a condominium-conversion ordinance; and WHEREAS, in accordance with state housing law, the City adopted its 1999-2006 Housing Element ("the Current Housing Element") in June 2003, and it was certified by HCD on July 11, 2003; and WHEREAS, the Current Housing Element eliminated the program that required the monitoring of the availability of rental housing and potential enactment of condominium-conversion ordinance, reasoning that there was little likelihood that existing rental housing property owners would convert their properties to condominiums due to the strong demand for rental housing in Dublin and the development of condominiums (including 1396 condominium units currently under construction) to satisfY the demand for condominiums; and WHEREAS, the Current Housing Element further indicated that the City would assess the need for a condominium-conversion ordinance each time it updates the Housing Element, ifthe need arises; and WHEREAS, since the adoption of the Current Housing Element, conditions in the housing market have changed markedly, and the Community Development Department has noted that the incidence of condominium-conversion projects in other commnnitics is increasing; and WHEREAS, the City of Dublin believes that the following market conditions have led to the increase in proposals to convert existing multi-family rental projects to condominiums: ATTACHMENT 7 /¡;2~ ~'t a. The higher vacancy rates for apartments as more and more people are able to qualify for loans for homes due to historically low interest rates; b. The increased market for condominiums in the area; and c. The ability of the property owner to maximize profit by selling units rather than renting them. WHEREAS, in the past ten years, the City has developed over 1500 residential apartment units for an overall total of approximately 3,172 units throughout the City. These units and the other rental units in the provide a type of housing that is one of the keys to providing for the housing needs of all economic segments of the community; and WHEREAS, rental units provide housing for persons in all income levels, and they are a valuable tool for providing workforce housing; and WHEREAS, thc conversion of one or two of the City's apartment communities could have a major impact on the City's housing market, in that it would remove from the market a significant percentage of the existing rental units; and WHEREAS, ifunÎts are sold rather than rented, the units would no longer be available to a segment of the community that is not in a posi tion to purchase such units; and WHEREAS, the loss of these units would likely decrease the vacancy rate and accordingly tend to increase rents, and this would tend to further exacerbate the City's shortage of affordable rental units; and WHEREAS, conversion of apartments to condominiums could result in displacing existing tenants; and WHEREAS, tenant relocations that result from conversion of apartments to condominiums could place a financial burden on displaced tenants; and WHEREAS, there is a limited amount of housing that meets the needs of senior, disabled and low-income tenants; and WHEREAS, the Subdivision Map Act does not provide a mechanism to cvaluate the physical appearance of a property; and WHEREAS, the City could receive an application to convert an existing apartment complex with deferred maintenance that creates an eyesore within the community; and WHERE AS, a Site Development Review permit would allow the City to evaluate the physical appearance of the property and require work to refurbish and restore the project as necessary to achieve a high degree of appearance, quality and safety; and WHEREAS, due to these changes in the marketplace and their potential consequences on the City's ability to provide for the housing needs of all economic segments of the community, the Community Development Department has been considering the development of a condominium- conversion ordinance; and WHEREAS, the approval of the conversion of existing residential apartment units to condominiums or other forms of ownership that permit the units to be sold individually, during the period 2 /o~ß~ in which the City has beeD developing a condominium-conversion ordillance, could frustrate the City's cfforts at providing for the housing needs of all economic segments of the community, because it would result in the removaJ of units from the City's inventory ofrental units available to those at lower income levels and because it would tend to increase the rents of those rental units that remain; and WHEREAS, to prevent these goals from being frustrated, the City Council adopted Resolution 181-04 to initiate proceedings to adopt a condominium-convcrsion ordinance and to place potential subdividers on notice pursuant to Government Code section 66474.2 of the City's intent to adopt a condominium-conversion ordinance, the effect of which will be to permit the City to apply the condominium-conversion ordinance if it is in effect on the date the City approves or disapproves the tentative map. WHEREAS, the Community Development Department has developed a condomininm- conversion ordinance to regulate the conversion of apartments to for sale condominiums and mitigate the impacts to residents that are displaced by conversion; and WHEREAS, the Planning Commission held a public hearing on said Condominium Conversion Ordinance on January 11,2005, tor which proper notice was given in accordance with California State Law; and WHEREAS, the ordinance is intended to comply with the requirements of the Subdivision Map Act, regarding the provision and regulation of converting apartments to for sale condominiums and the Housing Element (1999-2006) of the Dublin General Plan, related to maintaining a diversity of housing stock in the City of Dublin; and WHEREAS, the Planning Commission did hold a properly noticed public hearing on this project on January 11,2005, and did recommend Ordinance XX-05 to the City Council to re~,'ulate condominium conversions as stated in the Ordinance; and WHEREAS, the Planning Commission at its January 11,2005, meeting did hear and use its independent judgment and consider all said reports, recommendations, and testimony hereinabove set forth. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED THAT, the Dublin Planning Commission docs hereby find that, the ordinance is consistent with the Subdivision Map Act, General Plan Housing Element and all applicable Specitìc Plans; and, 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; and, recommends that the City Council adopt the ordinance to regulate the convcrsion of apartments to condominiums in accordance with the Ordinance in Attachments 2 and 3 of the Staff Report for PA 04-044. PASSED, APPROVED AND ADOPTED this 11th day of January 2005. AYES: Cm. Schaub, Biddle, Wehrenberg, and King NOES: ABSENT: ABSTAIN; 3 ATTEST: {Ptf~ßt Planning Commission Chairperson Planning Manager 4 œfanning Commission :Minutes ~?6QZtf CALL TO ORDER A regular meeting of the City of Dublin Plaruúng Commission was held on Tuesday, January 11, 2005, in the Council Chambers located at 100 Civic Plaza. Chair called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. ROLL CALL Present: Comnússioner King; Jeri Ram, Plaruúng Manager; Jeff Baker, Associate Planner, Charity Wagner, Associate Plarmer; Kristi Bascom. Senior Plarmer; Kay Keck, City Clerk; and Maria Carrasco, Recordillg Secretary. ADDITIONS OR REVISIONS TO THE AGENDA Jeri Ram, Plarming Manager stated there are revisions to the agenda and Oral Communications will be addressed before the Minutes of the previous meeting. She introduced Mayor Lockhart. ORAL COMMUNICATION - Mayor Lockhart welcomed the three new Planning Comnússioners and thanked Cm. King for his continued service. She explained to the Commissioners that they will be participating in something that is very important to the comnmnity. There will be a lot of opportunities to look at a variety of projects alld concepts on how to improve the community. She looks forward to the Commission's observations, ideas and communicating to the Council their vision for the community. She thanked them for volunteering and serving the community in this capacity. 6.1 Swearing In of New Planning Commissioners Ms. Ram introduced Kay Keck, City Clerk. Kay Keck, City Clerk swore in the new Planning Comnússioners - Bill Schaub, Donald Biddle, and Doreen Wehrenberg. 6.2 Election of Officers for Chairperson and Vice-Chairperson Ms. Ram explained that nominations for Chairperson and Vice-Chairperson always take place at the first meeting in January. She opened up the meeting for nominations for Chairperson. On motion by Cm. Biddle, secollded by Cm. Wehrenberg by a unanimous vote, the Plallning Commission elected Cm. Schaub as ChaÌIperson. Ms. Ram asked Chair Schaub to continue with the election for Vice Chairperson. Chair Schaub entertained a motion for a Vice Chairperson. On motion by Cm. Wehrenberg, 2nd by Chair Schaub and by unanimous vote, the Planning Commission elected Cm. Biddle as Vice Chairperson. Chair Schaub thanked the members of the audience for their patience. <P14nnillB Commission '1I.'o"&'r fM""in¡¡ ATTACHMENT qntlaryl1'2WJ Ms. Ram stated that if anyone wishes to speak on any of the iterns on the agenda there are blue ~p~:@~ +- forms located on the table under the General Plan map. Ms. Ram took another roll call. Present: Commissioner's Wehrenberg; Biddle; King; and Chairperson Schaub. MINUTES OF PREVIOUS MEETINGS - The millutes of the previous Planning Commission Meeting were continued to the January 25, 2005 meeting. WRITTEN COMMUNICATIONS - None PUBLIC HEARINGS 8.1 P A 04-058 Kids Learning Center - Conditional Use Permit for a Large Family Daycare The proposed project is a request for a Conditional Use Permit application for a large family daycare in a single-family home located at 7029 Tory Court in Dublin. The applicant currently operates a small family daycare at this location and proposes to expand the operation. The property is zoned R-1 Single-Family Residential and the General Plan designation is Single-Family Residential. Large family daycare homes (up to 14 children) are permitted in this zoning district upon approval of a Conditional Use Permit. Chair Schaub opened the public hearing and asked for the staff report. Charity Wagner, Associate Planner presented the staff report and explained that the Applicant is requesting approval of a Conditional Use Permit for a Large Family Daycare (up to 14 children) in a single-family home located at 7029 Tory Court. The standard operating hours for the daycare are Monday - Friday from 7;00 a.m. to 5;30 p.m. The Large Family Daycare will have two fu1l-time employees consisting of the Applicant and her daughter-in-law. As indicated in the attached written statement, the Applicant wants to increase the size of the day care to allow for her to care for her grandchildren and to help meet the need for infant care in the conununity. The Applicant illtends to care for up to 4 infants and 6 to 8 toddlers. The City has not received any complaints regarding the existing daycare operation. Staff visited the site and determined that noise impacts to surrounding residences would be minimal. The project site is an interior lot surrounded by single-family homes. The City's Traffic Engineer determined that the traffic impacts of the proposed Large Family Daycare home would be minimal and that no Traffic Impact Fee is required. Pick up and drop off times will be primarily in the morning and evening hours, but the number of children being served is few enough that there should not be a great concentration of vehicles to and from the house at any particular time. Condition 4 states that outside activities are restricted from taking place before 9:00 a.m. or after 5:00 p.m. Per the City's Parking Ordinance, a daycare facility of this size is required to provide seven (7) off-street parking spaces. Two (2) parking spaces are rescrved for the home, one (1) space is reserved for the employee, and four (4) parking spaces based on the number of students the daycare will serve. This project site has four (4) off-street parking spaces: two (2) spaces in the garage and two (2) spaces in the driveway, resulting in a shortage of threc (3) off-street parking spaces. The Applicant will utilize the parking spaces in the garage and the employee (daughter-in-law) wi1l use one of the parking spaces in the driveway. There is one parking space in the driveway and two (2) on- street parking spaces available in front of the house for parents to use when they are dropping off and rPfanni"IJ Commission 2 .1.n",,'Y 11, 2005 '1I!¡¡nCar ~..ti"IJ picking up their children. Parking studies have been prepared for previous Large Family DaYCa~ 1003 4- Conditional Use Permits. These parking studies have demonstrated that it takes approximately six (6) minutes to drop-off or pick-up a child. Because of staggered drop-off and pick-up times, the combination of available on-street and off-street parking should be sufficient to serve the proposed daycare use. Condition 6 has been ineluded in the resolution and requires the operator to submit a copy of the State of California Department of Social Services License Permit for the operation of a Large Family Daycare Home for verification purposes, prior to establishment of the use. Ms. Wagner explained that notices were sent to property owners within a 300-foot radius of the project to advise them of this request for a Conditional Use Permit. Staff received an emaiJ alld a phone call from neighbors that are in favor of the project. Staff believes that the proposed Large Family Daycare Home would have limited impacts to the surrounding neighborhood regarding noise, traffic, and parking. The facility wiH be properly licensed, and no complaints have been received about the existing Small Daycare Home that would lead Staff to believe that expanding the use would be problematic. She concluded her presentation. Roy Starùey, Applicant stated he was available to answer allY questions the Planning Commission may have. em. Wehrenberg asked Mr. Stanley if he was ill agreement with the conditions of approval and StaJf's recommendation. Mr. Stanley responded yes. Chair Schaub asked Mr. Stanley how long they operated their current daycare. Mr. Stanley stated they have operated their current daycare on and off since 1975. He explained that his wife operated a daycare when their children were little as well as teaching in preschool for about 10 years. Chair Schaub clarified that the approval of the daycare is for a permit in land use. Mr. Stanley stated he understood that. Chair Schaub asked if there were any other speakers on the issue. Hearing none he closed the public hearing and asked for a motion. Cm. Biddle stated that the Stallley's have demonstrated they have operated a successful daycare. The City has not received any complaints from surrounding property owners and there is a need for daycares in the community. Cm. Wehrenberg stated that she reviewed the site and was concerned about the parking. After reviewing the site she felt there was adequate parking and it appears to be a win-win situation. Chair Schaub asked for a motion. On motion by Cm. Biddle, seconded by Cm. Wehrenberg, by a vote of 4-0, the PlaI1Iling Commission unanimously adopted Pld.nnj"8 CQmmissior¡. !JI.rgutß, 'Meeti"f! 3 Jiluumy 1 J) 2005 (Qß~ ~+- RESOLUTION NO. 0~1 A RESOLUTION OF THE PLANNING COMMISSION APPROVING A REQUEST FOR P A 04-058 KIDS LEARNING HOME DAY CARE CONDITIONAL USE PERMIT TO OPERATE A LARGE FAMILY DAYCARE HOME AT 7029 TORY COURT 8.2 P A 04-044 Condo Conversion Ordinance - Amendment to the Dublin Municipal Code Resolution recommending that the City Council adopt an ordinance regulating the conversion of existing residential apartment units held in a single ownership, in whatever from, to condominiums or other forffi5 of ownership that permit the umts to be sold individually. The ordinance would provide criteria for the Plaruúng Commission to regulate, restrict and in some cases, prohibit the future conversion of existing residential apartment units; evaluate the physical appearance of the property being converted; and, mitigate the impacts to tenants that are displaced by such a conversion. Chair Schaub opened the public hearing and asked for the staff report. Jeff Baker, Associate Plarmer presented the staff report and explained that the project is for a proposed Condominium Conversion Ordinance regulating the conversion of existing residential apartment umts held in a single ownership, in whatever form, to condominiums or other forms of ownership that permit the umts to be sold individually. The ordinance would provide criteria for the Planning Commission to regulate, restrict and in some cases, prohibit the future conversion of existing residential apartment units; evaluate the physical appearance of the property being converted; and, mitigate the impacts to tenants that are displaced by such a conversion. Mr. Baker stated that state law provides that cities have a responsibility to facilitate the development and make provisions for housing to meet the needs all economic segments of the community. Cities implement housing law policies through the adoption of the General Plan Housing Element. The Housing Element for the City of Dublin contains statements of goals, objectives and policies related to the maintenance, preservation and development of housing. The current Housing Element requires the City to aSsess the need for a condominium conversion ordinance with each updated housing element. Apartment units provide a type of housing that is a key to a healthy diversity of housing stock in the commumty. Apartments provide housing for all levels of affordabiJity in the community and aTe a valuable tool for providing work force housing. Staff believes that the conversion of one or two of the City's apartment communities could have a major impact on the diversity of the City's housing stock in that it would remove from the market a significant percentage of the existing rental units. If sold rather than rented, the units would no longer be available to a segment of the community that is not in a position to purchase such umts. In addition, the loss of these umts would likely decrease thc vacancy rate, may increase rents, and this may in turn further exacerbate the City's shortage of affordable rental units. This might cause a lasting imbalance in the diversity of housillg stock in the City. In the past seven months, Staff has received inquiries from several existing apartment owners indicating their intent to file subdivision documents to convert their projects to condominiums. The City is currently processing subdivision applications to convert the followillg apartment projects to for-sale condominiuffi5. œldn.ni1¥J Cornmissùm '1!..fOUra,.Wl!fti"l1 4 ,1anuary .11, 200.5 Current Subdivision Applications Iron Horse Trail Apartments (Dougherty Road) - Archstone - Emerald Park Apartments (Hacienda Drive) - Total lADb ß If 117 units 324 units 441 Units On September 7, 2004, the City Council adopted a Resolution (Resolution #181-04) initiating proceedings to adopt an ordinance regulating the conversion of existing apartments in the City to for-sale condominiums. Staff studied the various mechanisms for regulating condominium conversions. This Study included a complete review of the Subdivision Map Act, City of Dublin Gelleral Plan Housing Element and Condominium Conversion Ordinances from different cities throughout California, including the cities of Livermore and Walnut Creek. Based on this Study, Staff developed a series of policy alternatives for the City Council to consider. On November 16, 2004, Staff presented these policy alternatives to the City Council. The City Council provided Staff with direction regarding the development of the proposed Condominium Conversion Ordinance. The City Council further directed Staff to hold a meeting with the owners of apartments within the City of Dublin in order to inform them of these policy recommendations and solicit their comments. On December 9, 2004, Staff held a meeting with these property owners and other interested parties. Staff utilized the feedback received at this meeting to further develop the proposed Condominium Conversion Ordinance. In developing the ordinance, Staff developed a list of policy goals based on the General Plan Housing Element and the resolution that initiated the proceedings to adopt an ordinance. 1. Maintain supply of affordable & market rate rental housing. 2. Provide balance of ownership and rental housing. 3. Establish criteria for conversion of existing multi-family rental housing. 4. R..duce impact of conversion on residents in rental housing. 5. Ensure converted housing has high degree of appearance. In consideration of the potential impacts from conversion Staff has prepared a Condominium Conversion Ordinance to regulate the conversion of rental apartment~ to for-sale condominiums. Mr. Baker explained in d..tail each of the key components of the proposed Condominium Conversion Ordinance as follows: · Application of the Condomirúum Conversion Ordinallce · Limitations on Conversions · Limitations on Rent Increases · Tenant Relocation Assistance Plan · Inclusionary Zoning Regulations · Tenant's Right to Purchase Units · Building Code Requirements · Site Development Review Staff recommends that the City Council adopt the attached Urgency Condominium Conversion Ordinance to ensure that it is in effect before the City takes action on the current subdivision applications (Attachment 2 or 4). Approval of an ordinance typically requires two readings before the City Council and then takes effect 30-days following the second reading. However, the City Council may cause the Ordinance to take effect immediately by adopting it as an urgency ordinance if the City Council determines that the conversion of these apartments to condominiums might frustrate the City's goal and State law obligation to adequately provide for the housing needs of all economic segments of the community. There is the potential that the urgency ordinance could be challenged. Therefore, Staff œfa1t.tt.ing CommissÙm 'kJoul4r g,(''',i''ll 5 January 11, 2005 1°Dbg+ recommends that the City Council also adopt a non urgency Condominium Conversion Ordinance (Attachment3 or 5). The non urgency ordillance will provide the City with a backup ordin¡mce in the event that the urgency ordinance is challenged. Staff believes that the conversion of one or two of the City's apartment communities could have a major impact on the diversity of the City's housing stock in that it would remove from the market a significant percentage of the exi...ting rental units. In consideration of the potential impacts Staff has prcpared the attached Condominium Conversion Ordinance. The proposed ordinance would regulate the conversion of rental apartments to for-sale condominiums and mitigate relocation impacts to tenants. As previously discussed, Staff has prepared two alternative versions of the Condomillium Conversion Ordinance for consideration by the Plarming Commission (Attachments 2-5). Attachments 2 and 3 contain a provision that would make a project with a condominium map subject to the ordinance if the Department of Real Estate (DRE) has not issued a public report. Attachment 2 is an urgency ordinance and Attachment 3 is a non urgency ordinance. Also there is a provision to make all projects with 20 or more rental units subject to the Condominium Conversion Ordinance which is consistent with the threshold that has been established for the existing Inclusionary Zoning Regulations. Attachments 4 and 5 are included should the Plarming Commission decide to recommend adoption of an ordinance that exempts projects with condominium maps regardless of whether or not the DRE has issued a public report. Staff has received a letter from the law firm of Hanna & Van Atta in opposition to the Condo Conversion Ordinance which would impose additional regulations on buildings that have already been approved as condominium projects when initially constructed and that had received subdivision approvals from the City as condominium projects under the Subdivision Map Act. Staff recommends that the Planning Commission recommend to the City Council adoption of both an urgency ordinance and a non urgency ordin¡mce (Attachments 2 and 3 or Attachments 4 and 5). The urgency ordinance would take effect immediately and ensure that the ordinance is in effect before the City takes action on the current subdivision applications for condominium conversiolls. The non urgency ordinance will provide the City with a backup ordinance in the event that the urgency ordinance is challenged. He stated he was available for any questions the Commission may have. Cm. King asked what the distinction is with the combined ordinances, attachments 2 and 3 opposed to attachments 4 and 5. Mr. Baker stated that attachments 2 and 3 are a pair and would make existing projects with condo maps to subject to the ordinance if they do not have a public report from the Department of Real Estate. Cm. King asked about the ordinances which are attachments 4 and 5. Mr. Baker stated that attachments 4 and 5 would make existing projects with condo maps exempt from the ordinance. Cm. King asked Staff if they are sure the statement on page 4 is correct which states that State Jaw provides that oruy the Public Report vests the building owners' rights to sell the units individual1y. Kit Faubion, City Attorney explained that the City Attorney's office reviewed a number of cases that have addressed the role and nature of a condo conversion ordinallce. She stated that they believe the statement at the bottom of page 4 is accurate. (f'{ann;ng Comt";"siqn <1WJnCar'Muting 6 Jan""'Y 11, 2005 Cm. Biddle asked for darification On what is a condo map. 11'1Jt>'f Ms. Faubion stated that a condominium map is a tentative map under the Subdivision Map Act for condominimn purposes. The Subdivision Map Act is regulated by the State. The process of establishing a condominium is that a tentativc map is filed with the City which allows multiple owncrship opportunities. The map is usually labeled tentative map for condominium purposes, which is usually called a condo map for ease of reference. The City will process it according to its subdivision regulations and once the City approves it, then it goes on to the State process. The map is processed through the City in accordance with subdivision regulations. The applicant then must file a request for a public report wit the Department of Real Estate. em. Biddle asked what the State Real Estate Report entails. Ms. Faubion stated she does not know exactly what the document contains but it basically identifies the ownership and it is necessary to be issued to the DRE before a property call be sold. The City goes through its process, thc applicant goes through a process before it is a final condominium map then it goes on to the State. Until the final report is issued, the devcloper cannot sen the units. Cm. Biddle asked if the process by the State and the process by the City could run concurrently or are they sequentia1. Ms. Faubion responded they would be sequential; the City first than the State. Chair Schaub asked whether the 1,119 units that do have condo maps were approved by the City to be condominiums. Mr. Baker stated yes. Chair Schaub stated there are 1,119 units that are in the relltal market today which would not be part of the rental market if they would have been sold as condos. Mr. Baker said that additional units could have been constructed it those units were not in the market as rental units. Cm. Biddle asked Staff if they know when those condo maps were applied for. Mr. Baker said to his knowledge the condo maps were done whell the units wCrC constructed which has been rouglùy over the last 10 to 12 ycars. em. Biddle asked if there was any effort made to get the report from the State. Mr. Baker stated the report has a life to it which could be renewed, but many property owners would not have that report if they were holding properties as rental units. Cm. Wehrenberg asked for darification on the number of units being constructed that are designated rentals. Mr. Baker stated that at this time there are 15,447 units and 25% were for rental units. Approximately 600 of those units are in the construction stage. Chair Schaub caned on Mr. Rafanelli who wished to speak on the item. &nninß Commusion '1<MUÚlr'M..ti"fl 7 JQn""ry J 1, 2005 12~ ~If- Ron Nahas, 1 Bates Boulevard, Orinda stated he would like to speak before his partner Mr. Rafanelli. He explained that they have developed and owned property in Dublin since 1984. He stated that of the 1,119 units spoken of they have built 1,083. He stated that the ordinance and the presentation is disingenuous. Effectively this ordinance is a ban on condominium conversiolls and not an ordinance to regulate them. The current ratio of rentals in the City of Dublin is about 25% which have not all been built. Until that ratio rises to 30% no conversions would be allowed. He asked what problem is this ordinance trying to fix. He would argue that conversions are necessary and desirable at this moment in the housing market. The price of for-sale housing is soaring at 25% a year and rents on rental housing have been falling since 2001. The artificial constraint on the movement of rental units into for~sale housing does not work. Such restrictions simply transfer costs from one person to another. San Francisco has been doing it for years and it has the most unaffordable rental housing as well as for-sale housing. He stated that there is no evidence that the 30%ratio taken from the housing element has any meaning at al1 with regard to the affordability or the availability of rental housing. When the Housing Element was adopted the ratio was slightly more than 30% and because it was slightly more than 30% in theory condominium conversions at that time would have been al1owed. He stated that when the Housing Element was adopted in 2000 the average vacancy rate for the apartments they own and manage was less than 3 % and rents were rising at over 6 % a year; both indicating that there was a shortage of rental housing. In 2004, rental housing is only 25 % of the housing stock so in theory under this ordinance, nO one would be allowed to convert an apartment. He continued to state that the vacancy rates in their apartments have exceeded 7% and rents have been fal1ing every year since 2001 which is an indicator that there is an excess of rental housing in this market. Conversion would have been allowed when there is a shortage of apartments and banned when there is a surplus of apartments. He stated that the staff reports indicates there are minimal fiscal impacts but he would argue that there are huge fiscal impacts for the Dublin tax payers. Converting an apartment to a for-sale unit is a tax windfall for the City, the County and the School District. Real Estate Tax receipt upon sales wiH double or triple. The two projects that Staff is anxious to get an urgency ordinance adopted to stop these projects from converting could contribute an additional $800,000 a year in tax revenues to the City, the County and the School District. There is a proper role for the City in encouraging affordable housing - the City could reduce its fees. In regard to conversions the City could focus on three things. There should be a review of the quality and condition of common improvements, an orderly marketing plan with adequate notice to tenants, and disabled tenants and occupants of below market rate units need to be protected. The City should not transfer its obligation for affordable housing onto the back of apartment owners. Mark Rafenelli, 1 Bates Boulevard, Orinda stated he disagrees with the City Attorney. He stated that attempting to apply this ordinance to existing condominiums is not consistent with California law. They processed 1,083 units as condominiums and built the units as condominiums. They recorded final subdivision maps and condominium maps on al1 the units. The City Staff recommendation is relying upon one case involving the City of West Hollywood where an owner filed a subdivision map converting existing apartments to condominiums prior to the incorporation of the City of West Hol1ywood. The individual obtained a public report from the Department of Real Estate and let it lapse and the appellate court held that by letting that lapse they could impose new conditions. Staff's recommendation would be contrary to all vesting rights and all California law on vesting rights. They have processed their units as condominiums and built them as condominiums. Staff acknowledges that applying a condominium conversion ordinance to already mapped units has not been done in Northern California but is common in Southern California. They are not aware of any jurisdiction other than West Hol1ywood but would like to know if any other jurisdiction has attempted this approach. Applying this ordinance to existing condominiums will generate a Ilumber of legal challenges. If the City were to adopt the ordinance as recommended it wou Id imply that the City could go back and change the terms and conditions on any approval as long as the developer has not obtained their final public report from tp{q.n.tl.ing Commission IJI.rnu¡;'r'Mnti"il 8 Jauuary 11, ZIJ05 the Department of Real Estate. A public report is required to sell the units and not a diSCretiOna~'3 ~ t.¿ c4 approval. It is guaranteed if you comply with disclosure requirements, reserve requirements and the format for the conditions, covenants and restrictions required by the State. The proposed ordinance would damage Dublin's reputation for fairness and reasonableness. Dublin has always been perceived to have rigorous and fair development standards. The development goals of the City have always been to achieve the highest standard of quality. He stated they did not receive any notice to participate in the discussion of this proposed ordinance. They heard about it from another property owner. Mr. Rafanelli stated he contacted the Oty Manager and he set up a meeting for them to meet with Staff. If they would have been notified they could have easily gone to the California Department of Real Estate and pulled the public report. He stated that Staff did apologize and Staff did state they should have been noticed. Chair Schaub apologized for the mix up with the notice. Mr. Rafanelli stated he appreciated that. He stated that Staff also apologized and felt it was sincere. In conclusion if adoption of this ordinance as drawn would ban the very thing the market needs which is conversion of apartments to affordable ownership housing. It is not cOllsistent with California law and would invite a lot of serious legal opposition. He was available for questions. Cm. King asked if the Department of Real Estate report is ministerial and does not include a discretionary element. Mr. Rafanelli responded yes. Cm. King asked why he would not apply for the report tomorrow. Mr. Rafanelli stated they may but it takes 5-6 months to obtain it. In going through the process, they would need to submit drafts of conditions, covenants and restrictions as well as property reports. Cm. King asked what the Department of Real Estate does with those documents. Mr. Rafanelli said they look at them to see if they are reasonable. They also look at the disclosure documents, the sale contracts, the terms and conditions of the sale contracts. What ever the set of legal documents used for the sale of those units alld the rurming of the HOA are subject to the DRE review. Cm. King stated that it sounds discretionary. Mr. Rafanelli said no it is not discretionary in a legal sense. They do not have the discretionary ability to turn you down. They could turn you down if you are not willing to set aside a certain reserve to repair the roof or if you are not willing to have the right disclosure documentation in a sales agreement. In a legal sense it is a ministerial review. Cm. King said one of the obvious reasons for the proposal is to reserve a certain amount of affordable rental units. It is based on a premise that rental rates are more accessible for middle income individuals. He asked if not having a certain amount of rental units would not be a benefit to an important class of people. Mr. Rafenelli said the market is a much better way to determine what is needed. Currently there are approximately 70 - 90% of units they have turned over in the last three years are from people that have left to purchase homes due to historically low rates. The market has been a dear way of determining that. PI'o.nnin¡] CommissWn o[("8"l4r rM""jn¡¡ 9 Jduuary 11, 201.!5 Î4-01) ~4- Joseph Au, 46920 Aloe Court, Fremont stated he owns an apartment complex here in Dublin. He attended the ownership meeting in December. He would like Staff to clarify the number of units that will be affected by this ordinance. He asked the Plarming Commission to not affect complexes with 20 units or less. Chair Schaub asked if there were any other members of the audience that wished to speak; hearing none he closed the public hearing. He stated the logical approach would be to discuss the ordinances (attachments 2 and 3) first. He does not believe that it is right to change the terms for the existing property owners regardless of whether it is legal or not legal. He would like to hear feedback from the other Commissioners. Cm. King stated that is a legitimate concern but he is not as sympathetic. Changing the land use regulations is not a new notion and has been a very strong legal tradition in California. He stated that it is a stretch to ask the Planning Commission to reach a legal conclusion. em. Biddle said that if they were built as condos and a condo map was issued for the property, why weren't they sold as condos. It was advantageous to rent for awhile but now it is more advantageous to sell. Things change over a 20 year period and changes need to be made. Cm. Wehrenberg stated that the City of Dublin needs to have a balance; and affordable housing is Ínlportant but agrees with Chair Schaub that it is not right to change the terms for the existing property owners. Cm. Biddle stated affordable housing is important. He supports the 30% approach which will take some City intervention to establish affordable housing for the community. Chair Schaub said even with the 1,100 units, in 10 years a llÙracle will have to take place in building rental units because it does not sound like the econollÙCS will make it happen. If the City wants to get to 30% by the year 2010, the City will need 2,200 more rental units. He asked for the Plarming Commission to suggest how to make and build more rental units. He asked if there was a consensUS on removing attachments 2 and 3 that would affect existing apartments with Condo Maps as their recommendation to Council. Cm. King said for the minutes to reflect that he would have voted for attachments 2 and 3. Chair Schaub asked for discussion on attachments 4 and 5. He stated that if the City is going to adopt an ordinance like this, it should affect all units regardless of size, which would be a modification to what is proposed. Ms. Ram stated that would require an amendment to the ordinance attachments 4 and 5. Cm. Biddle said he is opposed to that suggestion. There are two smaller apartment complexes one has 8 units and the other complex with 20 units; then there is a gap with the next complex with 56 units. It may be more appropriate to affect the complexes with more than 20 units. Cm. King said he is inclined to go with 21 Or more units. Chair Schaub asked Staff if any of the property owners had any concerns about rent limitations. Mr. Baker said there was limited discussion on that but no recommendation made. #ann¡ng Commis..wn IJ(fgu("r'Merli1lf1 10 }anuary 11, 2005 Î~dbt'f' Chair Schaub stated that the informatÌoll the Commission received in the packet did not identify implications to City revenue and wanted everyone in the audience to be aware of that. Chair Schaub asked for discussion on the tenant relocation assistance plan. He said to his understanding that 50% of the tenants are going to leave anyway. There was consensus that the Commission supports Staff's recommendation regarding the tenant relocation assistance plan. There was discussion on the Inc1usionary Zoning regulations and agreement with Staff's recommendation. em. Biddle asked Staff for c1arification with all the issues that deal with conversions such as defining property, common facilities, and homeowners associations that are covered in State regulations. Mr. Baker stated it is involved with both the public report and the CC&R's for the project which spells out the ownership rights. Chair Schaub asked if there was a way to make sure the folks purchasing one of these condos were aware that as collective group they could fonn an HOA. Ms. Faubion stated there various notices that the map act requires for condomillium conversions to occur including a notice of intent to convert. The need for an HOA after the conversion could be included in the mandatory notices. Chair Schaub asked whether there needs to be any discussion on building code requirements. em. Biddle stated converting these properties would not require any major construction changes that would require an updated code. Mr. Baker said if there was work needed it would be required to meet the current building codes. As far as the modifications to bring it up to current code, the ordinance as it is written would not require that. Cm. Wehrenberg asked if that includes bringing them up to ADA requirements. Mr. Baker stated to his knowledge, they would not be required to bring them up to ADA requirements unless they were changing the parkillg lot or the walkways, etc. Cm. King asked if they should impose a condition requiring the projects to be brought up to the ADA requirements. Chair Schaub asked Staff to look into the ADA requirements. Ms. Ram stated she would like to speak with the Building Official and Staff will provide comments to the City Council with the Commissions concerns regarding ADA requirements. Chair Schaub said he has no issue with the proposal for the Site Development Review. Chair Schaub stated he believes they are ready to adopt the Resolution recommending adoption of the ordinances, attachment 4 and 5. He asked whether it is in the best interest of the residents of Dublin to approve a condo conversion. He personally believes that the City should be involved with this. œf.ttnning Commission 'l.,gu¡;"rW,,'i"ll II Jon""7) 11, ZQQ5 1 Iii f1b ßf Cm. King said the intent of attachment 4 and 5 is to resist the pressure to convert apartments based on the premise that the City has a good balance of affordable livillg units. He stated that a lot of dues in the past have given a lot of lip service to requiring affordable housing. In the past developers çould pay a certain amount of money and get out of the requirement and the City pats itself Oil the shoulder for doing their duty but the result is no affordable housing. There are people who want to live here that are important part of the community such as teaçhers and law enforcement. He believes that the City should be taking a proactive approach. Cm. Wehrenberg stated that Dublin has done a good job with housing and bringing in the younger families to afford homes. The condo conversion will also help. Chair s<:haub asked for a motion to adopt these ordinances. Ms. Ram said that the recommendation is to adopt the Resolution Attachment 1 referring the ordinances, attachments 4 and 5 to the City Council with the noted amendments. Cm. King stated that the last paragraph on the Resolution refers to attachments 2 and 3 which needs to be amended to refer to attachments 4 and 5. Cm. Biddle said he is a little concerned with rccommending 4 and 5. With the recommendation of 4 and 5 the City is putting an awfully big dent in the rental market. What could be done to recover from that and how quickly? Ms. Ram said the Planning Commission does have the ability to not approve a mndo project and recommend more apartment projects. Chair Schaub said as a Commission they do want to get to 30%. Cm. Biddle stated that just because the Planning Commission is adopting this recommendation for these ordinances does not automatically approve each and every conversion at this time. Ms. Faubion said that there are two ways to deal with apartments. If there is a condo project, it can be evaluated against the Housing Elemellt and at that point decide whether you want to approve the condominium part or just the struçtural part of it. On motion by Cm. King, seconded by Cm. Wehrenberg, by a vote of 4-0, with an amendment to only affect projeçts with over 21 units, the Planning Commission adopted RESOLUTION NO. 05 - 02 A RESOLUTION OF THE PLANNING COMMISSION RECOMMENDING THAT THE CITY COUNCIL ADOPT AN ORDINANCE REGULATING THE CONVERSION OF EXISTING APARTMENTS IN THE CITY TO CONDOMINIUMS (PA 04-044 CONDOMINIUM CONVERSION ORDINANCE) œr".m"l! c....mir.rion 'Rlou{,¡r fMuti.o 12 Ja.U4'Y ll, 2005 8.3 P A 02-074 Adoption of a Historic Overlay Zoning District Ordinance and Des~ ~ 8 If Guidelines for the Dublin Village Historic Area - The proposed project consists of the following components: 1. Amending the Zoning Map to create a new Historic Overlay Zoning District; 2. Adoption of an Ordinance creating Chapter 8.62 of the Dublin Municipal Code which contains provisions for establishing Historic Overlay Zoning District Site Development Review; and 3. Amending Chapter 8.104 of the Dublin Municipal Code relating to Site Development Review. Chair Schaub opened the public hearing and asked for the staff report. Kristi Bascom, Senior Plarmer presented the staff report and explained the background for the project. For several years, the City Council has been considering how to take a more proactive approach to building the historic Dublin Village settlement area around Donlon Way into a cohesive district to better highlight Dublin's historic resourceS. In 2001, the City Council authorized Staff to prepare a Specific Plan for the area, and work has been done over the past two years to achieve this goal. In January 2004, the City Council adopted a one-year development moratorium in the Historic Dublin Village settlement area around DOlllon Way, Dublin Boulevard, and San Ramon Road which expires on January 21, 2005. After the Council initiated the specific plan Staff began working with RBF Consulting to develop the design guidelines for the Donlan Way/Dublin Village area. The design guidelines were being developed while the specific plan was put on temporary hold. Staff decided to go with the overlay zoning district which al10wed Staff to apply a historic zoning designation to the area and design guidelines applicable to the area in lieu of a specific plan. One item to note is that Staff is recommending that the boundary for the Dublin Village Historic Area and Overlay Zoning District be revised from the original moratorium area boundary. Staff and the Design Guidelines consultants agreed that the area should include only those properties with the closest ties to the City's most relevant historic resources, and to include those properties east of San Ramon Road with linúted historical significance would dilute the integrity of the district. The Heritage and Cultural Arts Commission unanimously approved a recommendation to change the boundary area as well. This project is divided up into 2 main components: the Design Guidelines and the three associated Zoning Ordinance amendments to implement the Design Guidelines. The goal to developing the design guidelines wi11 preserve and enhance those remaining historic resources within the area and guide the design of future development to reinforce the historic quality and improve public realm over time to create a positive pedestrian experience and enhance the areas image. RBF prepared a draft version of the guidelines that contained the fol1owing components: Chapter 1: Chapter 2: Introduction. explanation of the purpose of the document and how it shall be used An overview of the original Dublin Village settlement area and vision for the future of the area Commercial alld Mixed Use Guidelines (including architectural, site planning, signage, lighting, and landscape guidelines) Residential Guidelines (including architectural, site planning, lighting, and landscape guidelines) Chapter 3: Chapter 4: CPúuminD Commission <1!.!'IJul4r !Muting 13 January.i1,2oo-, Chapter 5: lß~~t Guidelines for Historic Resources (applicable only to those historic resources listed in the Olapter) Streetscape and Public Space Guidelines (including guidelines for comrnurûty gathering spaces, streetscape furniture and amenities, and public irnprove:ments) Chapter 6: Staff is proposing to adopt an overlay zoning district that will serve to implemellt the Dublin Village Design Guidelines and provide the mechanism for ensuring compliance with that document. To implement the design guidelilles would require 3 different Zoning Ordinance amendments. There will be a new chapter added to the Zoning Ordinance titled - Historic Overlay ZOlling District Site Development Review. There will be an amendment to Amendment to Chapter 8.104 of the Dublin Murûcipal Code (Site Development Review and an amendment to the Zoning Map to add an Overlay Zoning Designation to the Historic Area. In approving the Resolution (Attachment 3), the Planning Commission will be recommending that the City Council amend the Zoning Map to add an overlay zoning designation to the Historic Area. Ms. Bascom stated that the proposed amendments to Title 8 of the Mullicipal Code will provide a suitable mechanism to implement the Dublin Village Historic Area Design Guidelines in the absence of an adopted Specific Plan. In conclusion Staff recommends that the Planning Commission recommend to the City Council recommending City Council approval of the Dublin Village Historic Area Design Guidelines and the following amendments to Title 8 of the Dublin Murûcipal Code: Creation of Zoning Ordinance Chapter 8.62, Historic Overlay Zoning District Sire Development Review ; Amenchnent to Olapter 8.104, Sire Development Review; and an amendment to the Zoning Map to add an overlay zoning designatioll to the Historic Area. Cm. King asked what the plall is for the Dublin Square Shopping Center. Ms. Bascom stated that the City Council has authorized that an appraisal be conducted on the cellter as wen as a phase 1 environmental assessment. Cm. King stated he has concerns about west Dublin and it getting refurbished. He asked if designating the historical overlay district will give the City any additional legal powers. Ms. Faubion stated that what is before the Planning Commission is a zoning action that identifies on behalf of the City an area of interest and identifies a way to address future development in that area. It is not intended to be a national historic area. Cm. King asked if there are any additional powers that the City could utilize to encourage change in this area. Ms. Faubion stated that Staff felt this was the best way to approach the situation at this point and not just focus on the historic resources but what is around them as wen. Ms. Ram said should the City Council decide they want to make some public investment ill the area they could do a Capital Improvement Project through the budget process to do some of the streetscape items, which could encourage private investment. Cm. King stated the Power Point indicated a pedestrian friendly area. He asked if the City plans to make the area pedestrian friendly. œfßnning Commission 'RJBuÚl.r fMeeting 14 janllary 11, 2005 ì9tr.b't Ms. Bascom stated the vision for the area shows streetscape improvements but it will be at the discretion of the City Council on how the resources wi11 be distributed over the next few years. Cm. Biddle stated that it is rather un.fortunate that more of historic Dublin has not been preserved. Ms. Bascom stated there were a lot of resources that were demolished just as late as the 1960's. Cm. Wehrenberg stated that she feels the City is headed in the right direction. Cm. King asked about the school house in East Dublin. Ms. Bascom stated that is the Antone School House which is on the Wallis Property. There has been discussion 011. moving the building but it is in fairly poor condition and the cost of moving it would be phenomenal. Chair Schaub stated it will get tricky to put some of those IÙce features in with six lane roads. It is not an easy intersection. Chair Schaub asked if anyone in the audience wished to speak. Jim Devenport, owner of the Heritage Park Office Center stated that along with implementing some of guidelines he would like to make a recommendation to allow for modern requirements which are needed for retail and office environments. He would like to see enough flexibility in the guidelines. Chair Schaub thanked Mr. Devenport and dosed the public hearing. On motion by Cm. Biddle, seconded by Cm. King by a 4-0 th.e Planning Commission unanimously adopted RESOLUTION NO. 05 - 03 A RESOLUTION OF THE PLANNING COMMISSION RECOMMENDING CITY COUNCIL APPROVAL OF P A 02-074, APPROV At OF THE DUBLIN VILLAGE HISTORIC AREA DESIGN GUIDELINES AND THE FOLLOWING AMENDMENTS TO TITLE 8 OF THE DUBLIN MUNICIPAL CODE: CREATION OF ZONING ORDINANCE CHAPTER 8.62, HISTORIC OVERLAY ZONING DISTRICT SITE DEVELOPMENT REVIEW; AMENDMENT TO CHAPTER 8.104, SITE DEVELOPMENT REVIEW; AND AN AMENDMENT TO THE ZONING MAP TO ADD AN OVERLAY ZONING DESIGNATION TO THE DUBLIN VILLAGE HISTORIC AREA. NEW OR UNFINISHED BUSINESS - None OTHER BUSINESS (Commission/Staff Informational Only Reports) ADJOURNMENT - The meeting was adjourned at 9:30 p.m. q>r."ÎtI{J Commiuion <1I!IJur.r'Meeting 15 .7ani~my 111 2005 Respectfully submitted, ßö1b'bf Planning Commission Chairper50n ATTEST: Planning Manager Œfa.ning Commifsion 'l(j:oufar fMuting 16 January 11, 2005 g Iüt> ~If HANNA & VAN ATTA Attorneys at Law A Parmership of Pro:felision.al CorpOl'ation¡¡ 525 University Avenue, Suite 705 Palo Alto, CA 94301-1921 Tolephooe: (650) òZJ-~700 Fac~imile: (650) 32]-5639 www.hartvan.oom. John F'ewl H~nna, a Profes:!;Iìonal Corporation David M.. Van Atta, a Profsß8íoni!ll Corporation E~MAIL: davidvl@hanvan.com January 5, 2005 Mr. Jeff Baker, Associate Planner City of Dubhn 100 Civic Plaza Dublin, CA 94568 Rc; Proposed Condominium Conversion Ordinance Dear Mr. Baker: W. have been provided with information conceming the proposed condominium conversion ordinance proposed for the City of Dublin. I understand that you have the responsibility for preparing material forreview by the Ci,ty officials regarding this proposed ordinance. 'When we last spoke, you informed me that no actual language for the proposed ordinance has been written, and that the most up to date information on the subject is that contained in the recent Staff reports to the City Council with policy recommend.tions regarding such proposed condominium conversion ordinance. On behalf of property owners in the City of Dublin, we are expressing concems with particular .spects of what is being proposed. We want to make it cle.r th.t we, and the parties that we represent, are not, at this time, objecting to the basic concept of a condominium conversion ordinance for the City of Dublin, applicable to rental apartment projects that are not .Ire.dy approved and developed as condoTIÚnium projects. However, the breadth of the ordinance raises concems, particularly as the discussion purports to impose .dditional regulations on buildings that have already been approved .s condominium projects when they were initially constructed and that had received subdivision approvals from the City as condoTIÚnium projects under the Subdivision Map Act and other laws and ordil1ances of the City. Such additi011.l regul.tion of already permitted and developed projects is inappropriate, legally improper and will deprive property owners of their vested legal rights. In. portion ofthe agenda statement addressed to the City Council for its meeting of November 16, 2004, there is language which states "in order to convert an apartment complex to for-sale condominiums, the property owner must record a condominium map, and obtain a public report from the Department of Real Estate (DRE)." 111e statcment then continues stating "State law provides that only the PubJic Report vests to building owners' rights to sel1 the units individual1y. Without the PubJic Report, the development remains subject to new City ordjmmces, regard1ess of whether thc building is already mapped." ATTACHMENT c¡ ~d.- OIOú/J5" ~2Vb "6if' Jeff Baker January 5, 2005 Page 2 This statement is erroneous and a misinterpretation of the pertinent State Jaw. The statement, we belicve, is an attempt to state the holding of the California Supreme Court in the West Hollvwood case (City of West Hollywood v. Beverly Towers, Inc., 52 Ca1.3d 1184, 805 P.2d 329, 278 Ca1.Rptr. 375 (1991).) There appears to be a misunderstanding ofthe background and intent ofthc West Hollvwood case. In West Hollvwood, the developer parties had obtained approvals of condominium conversions of ex;$ting buildings from the County of Los Angeles before tbe incorporation of the City of West Hollywood. The City of West Hollywood, upon incorporation, then attempted to impose new requirements on these condominj,¡m projects that had been earlier converted. The projects involved in the West Hol1vwood case wo:re not "new construction" for which the County or the City had approvcd zoning, development pennits, issued building permits or other land usc and zoning approvals in addition to tbe subdivision map approval. This is a critical distinction. Where a condominium project has been approved under the City's land use, zoning and building laws and pel11'lits, and tbe developer in reliance upon those approva1s and permits has builtanci operated this project as constructed, the developer has vested rights to the project in accordance witb tbe laws and regulations that were in effect at the time tbe project waS approved and permitted. The Ci ty no longer has the legal right to impose additional rcstrictions, requirements or regulations with respect to the operation or sale of units ill that project that were not imposed as part oftbe permitting of the project wben it was approved for development. The project operations and sales are no longer a matter of regulation of the City, except for regulations that were in effect when the project was approved, or for imposition of general1y applicablcrcgulations required tOr health and safety rcasons. The fact that after such approvals were obtained, the developer chose not to .el1 some or all of the units in the project for a period of time is ¡jot a matter that pennits new City regulations. The sale of units in an already approved and mapped project is not a conversion and not subject to city regulation. A conversion occurS whcre the OWDer of a building that is currently zoned and approved as a rental apartment property, withollt any condominium approvals or map, applies to the City for approval of the building as a condominium projcct under the Subdivision Map Act and the City's laws and regulations. An oWDer of a rental apartment property has the right to apply for a subdivision approval for condominium purposes for such an existing rental apartment building. This is what is !mown as a condominium conversion. The statutes pertaining to condominium conversions under the Subdivision Map Act relate to and pertaill only to properties that have not vet been so subdivided. Careful reading of the Subdivision Map Act as it pertains to condominium corversions shows thatthe scope and intent of that law is to provide fomotices and hearings and process with respect to a building that is not yet a condominium project, and for which nO condominium map has been approved. See Govemment Code sections 65090, 65091(a)(3), 66427.1, 66451.3 (b), 66452.3, 66452.5, 66452.8(b), 66452.9 and 66459 (onIysection 66459 applies specifically to condominium project after a tinal map has been approved and expressly applies to right of tenants in existing buildings that are already condominiums. ) Thc West Hol1vwood case involved properties that Were rental apartments for which subdivision maps had been obtained, and for which a final suhdivision public report had heen obtained from the Department of Real Estate. In this context, tl1e developers had not gone through any zoning, land use or building pel11'lit procedures otber than obtaining a subdivision map for condominium purposes. They had not cO!Jstmcted a project in reliance of those permits. The West Hol1vwood case, although favorable to the cO!Jverters, did not pertain to the subdivision of properly for which new constmction was involved based upon permits granted by a city for a new condominium project. The factor of obtaining a public report from the Depal1rnent of Real Estate may have been critical to the Court in West Hol1ywood as beillg one of the grounds for findi!Jg the condominium converters had vested rights. But it clearly is not the only factor, particularly whert thc project is one that was permitted for new construction of condominium improvements. 830b 'bt Jeff Baker January 5,2005 Page 3 The filing with the Department of Rcal Estate for a subdivision public report authorizes the sale of condominium units to the public. It is a disclosure process, and is not clearly a discretionary filing for which approvals from a local goverrunent agency have been obtained. Once a final subdivision map has been obtained for a newly constructed condominium project, a.nd the developer ha.s expended funds On reliance on the permits and the map, the jurisdiction ofthe City with respect to the sale ofthe units in that condominium project no longer exists. The City cannot impose further or additional conditions for this already permitted property. It nO longer has jurisdiction for land use and procedures with respect to the offering of sale of units in the Project under the already approved peITIlits and Subdivision Map Act. The developers of these projects have vested rights in their approved condominium projects based upon their obtaining of the development permits for the project, as well as the approved final subdivision maps, and having acted in good faith in reliance on those permits. Avco Community Developers. Inc. v. South Coast Regional Com. (1976) 17 Ca1.3d 785, 132 Cal.Rptr. 386, 553 P.2d 546. Although the Court did not apply the vested rights doctrine of Avco in the context of West Hollvwood. the doctrine of vested rights as discussed in A vco and related cases is clearly applicable and germane where a developer has obtained permits for new construction of condominium units under the City land use and zoning procedures, as well as obtained a 'final subdivision map for such a condominium development and expended material funds in reliance on such pennits. This is true whether or not a Public Report has or has not been obtained from the Department of Real Estate. The obtaining of a Public Report may be one indication of the obtaining of penn its upon which the developer had relied, but in the case of a newly conslrncted condominium project, it clearly is not the only permit upon which the developer of snch a project would have relied. Wc have been infoTITIed that the City may be relying on a subsequent West Hollywood case decided by the appellate court in 2003. We do not believe that this subsequent case changes the discUssion stated above or, in fact, applies to the issucs at hand. ln this subsequent case, City of West Hollywood v. 1112 Investment Co., 105 Cal. App. 4th 1134, 130 Cal. Rptr 2d 168 (2d Dist. 2003), opinion modified on denial ofreh'g, City 0.[' Wesl Hollyv'lOodv. 1112 Inv. Cn., ]06 Ca!. App. 4th 653c, 2003 WL457066 (2d Dist. 2003), the court ruled that the exemption from the City ordinanœ requiring a conditional use pennit for conversion, and imposing rent controls, waS grounded on a holding that something short of a ve.ted right precluded the City from imposing fluiher requirements 011 the apartment owners. The court said that the right gained by the owners by virtue of the issuance of the public report, could expire or lapse upon the expiration ofthe pubhc report. The court found that the right of exemption expired because the public report expired before the ovvner obtained a renewa!. This second West Hnllywood caSe is not germane to our diseussion. The vested rights of the developers who bnilt condominium projects under zoning and map approvals and building permits does not rely on a public report issued by the Department of Real Estate. With all due respect, we believe that tbe concept of adding existing condominium units to the "condominium conversion ordinance" is a flawed concept. 10 addition, it deprives a property owner of the legal rights to sell condominium nnits that were legally ereated for their properties. Tn addition, the processes that are proposed for "condominium conversions" make no sense when applied to an existing property for which condominiums have been previously created. ß'-tØfJ'DL/- Jeff Baker January 5, 2005 Page 4 The City must distinguish between a project that ;s already zoned, permitted, mapped and completed as a condornin;um project and a condominium conversion, which is the transformation of an existing rental apartment building into a condominium project by an application for a subdivision map approval under the City's subdivi.ion ordinances and the Subdivision Map Act. Failure to do so will deprive property owners of their legal and vested rights for which the property owners will be compelled to seek legal redress from the City. We appreciate your consideration of these points. cc: Mayor Jan.et Lockhart Vice Mayor George Zika Councilmember Kasie Hildenbmnd Councilmernber Claudia McCorrn;ck Councilmember Tony Oravetz Mr. Richard Ambrose, City Manager Mr. Patrick Mockler, Cross Creek LP DMV;smIBAKER12.21 TIWpw;n60ICLlENTSICROSS CREEK-DUBLIN'BAKERIA.Q5.dœ