County Ordinance Updates 11/30/11

• As detailed in our last newsletter, to operate a rental for vacation purposes in Santa Cruz County now requires a Vacation Rental Permit as part of the County’s recently approved Vacation Rental Ordinance. This week marked the deadline to submit for existing vacation rentals in the County. New vacation rental applications will now be the only vacation rental application accepted. The distinction between existing and new is pertinent for those rentals located within the Live Oak Designated Area (LODA), which spans the coast and immediate inland from the Yacht Harbor to 41^st Avenue. The Ordinance enforces percentage caps for the number of permits issued within the LODA, making the approval of new application contingent upon how many permits have already been approved on the property’s block. Now that the November 28 deadline has lapsed for existing rentals, the County will be processing the numbers of approved existing rentals within the LODA to assess which blocks are at/over capacity, and which blocks can still accommodate more vacation rental permits. This information will be released by the County as soon as it is compiled. For questions about the Ordinance, the application process, or to discuss our services regarding vacation rental applications, please contact our office.

 

• The Sixth District Appellate Court ruled in April that the County of Santa Cruz Planning Department’s practice of issuing code violations or “red-tags” has been in violation of state law, which requires a court order or hearing to record red-tags on property titles. As a result of this ruling, red-tags that were issued without a court order or hearing, and do not have an impact on public safety or health, are eligible to be expunged from the parcel’s title- an action that may have significant positive implications for property owners. If the code violation meets these criteria, the County will expunge the re-tag from the Recorder upon request; however, a record of the violation will remain in the County’s computer system. Therefore, if an application is made to the County Planning Department following the expungement, they may require the property owner to resolve the violation before allowing approval of a subsequent application. According to County Staff, if the red tag is expunged, the County is not likely to pursue the violation.  Staff has indicated that it may take between 4-6 weeks to have a violation expunged once the request is received, and there is no fee associated with this process. Expungement of violations may be critical for those trying to buy, sell, or refinance their property.

For the complete SantaCruz.com article on this issue, visit their website here: http://www.santacruz.com/news/2011/09/13/countys_red_tag_habit_deemed_illegal.

The Request for Expungement form can be found here: http://www.sccoplanning.com/pdf/bldg/violationexpungementrecordednotice.pdf.

Please contact us if you have questions about expunging a red-tag.

Hamilton Swift Sums Up 2011

With 2011 coming to a close, a year that has seen its share of economic hardship, we are thankful for the continued opportunity to provide land use planning services to Santa Cruz County and beyond. While 2011 presented some challenges, it also proved to be a year of notable accomplishments for Hamilton Swift & Associates. Here is a round-up of our 2011 high-lights:

• Charlie Eadie travels to New Zealand to aid in disaster planning efforts. After a devastating series of earthquakes in 2010-2011, Christchurch, New Zealand, Charlie flew down-under to volunteer his time and services as a member of an international team invited there to help sort out, evaluate, and strategize about the next steps in their earthquake recovery efforts. Recounting his experience in New Zealand Charlie notes, “It was a humbling honor and privilege to be there to support their efforts and offer encouragement amidst their trauma.” For more information on Charlie’s trip, click HERE.

• John Swift guest lectures at UCSC. John was invited to be a guest lecturer for the Environmental Studies Department of UCSC. His guest lecture series covered topics such as the environmental review process for planning projects. John plans to continue guest lecturing whenever possible, to provide a professional, hands-on perspective on planning for undergraduate students.

• Deidre Hamilton named Honorary Trustee. Deidre was named Honorary Trustee for the Community Foundation of Santa Cruz County where she served for 11 years, the last two as President.

• Marina Hauze completes her Master’s Degree in Urban Planning. After three years enrolled in the Urban and Regional Planning Program at San Jose State University, Marina graduated with a Master of Urban Planning in May 2011. Her studies specifically focused on urban design issues and solutions, as well as green technologies and sustainable building practices. Now with a BA (2006 from UCSD) and an MA in Urban Planning, Marina plans to become certified with the American Institute of Certified Planners (AICP).

• Ian Swift joins Leadership Santa Cruz. Ian was selected to participate in Leadership Santa Cruz, a prestigious leadership training program created by the Santa Cruz Area Chamber of Commerce in 1985. The goal of Leadership Santa Cruz County is to “identify potential and existing leaders in business, government, and the community” and give them the tools necessary to network and thrive. For more information about Leadership Santa Cruz, visit their website at http://leadershipscc.org/.,

• Project Highlights: Improving Infrastructure. While our firm has managed numerous projects of all shapes and sizes over the course of 2011, three projects in particular stand out for their place in improving the infrastructure for specific neighborhoods in Santa Cruz County. Charlie Eadie successfully managed the permit processing, approval, and construction oversight of a new water main for Potbelly BeachRoad in Aptos. Deidre Hamilton and Marina Hauze completed the annexation and sanitation district processing to complete the installation of the sewer line on Pinetree Lane in Aptos to provide the residents with public sewer. John Swift spearheaded a hefty drainage infrastructure project on Bowker Road in Watsonville, alleviating several detrimental flooding issues for several neighborhoods.

Holiday Closures

The County of Santa Cruz Planning Department will be closed December 23, 2011 – January 2, 2012.

The City of Santa Cruz Planning Department will be closed December 16, 2011 – January 2, 2012.

Hamilton Swift & Associates will be closed for the holidays, December 23, 2011 – January 2, 2012.

We wish everyone a warm and joyful holiday season!

Charlie Eadie Travels to New Zealand to Aid in Disaster Planning

Charlie Eadie spent a week in Christchurch, New Zealand, this August where he volunteered his time and services as a member of an international team invited there to help sort out, evaluate, and strategize about the next steps in their earthquake recovery efforts.

Christchurch was hit hard by an unusual series of four earthquake/aftershock events (Sept. 2010, Feb., April, June 2011), resulting in 181 deaths and substantial damage throughout the city. Most devastating was the nearly 120 deaths in February that happened in the collapse of one relatively new building in the central business district, after it had been cleared for re-occupancy. Since that time the central business district has been completely cordoned off, and issues of business resumption and recovery, historic and community character, safety, and long-term economic viability and competitiveness are paramount.

The invited team shared a range of experiences with recovery planning, and with many similarities between Santa Cruz and Christchurch, there was keen interest in understanding the planning and community engagement process of Vision Santa Cruz following the 1989 earthquake here, which Charlie spearheaded.

The seven team members each delivered two public presentations at a conference at the University of Canterbury, interspersed with individual and small group sessions with representatives of the City of Christchurch, the Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Authority, and with community and private sector leaders.

Reflecting on the intensity of the work and the team’s 16-hour days of immersion and interaction, Charlie notes:
“The Christchurch community is running at the frantic pace of the first year of recovery, and wanted to take stock of where they are and see if there are lessons from our experiences that would translate to their situation. Recovery starts as a sprint and ends as a marathon, and they are at a critical moment where decisions to be made now will have lasting effects on the short and long-term success of the recovery. It was a humbling honor and privilege to be there to support their efforts and offer encouragement amidst their trauma.”

Team members included Sir Richard Leese, of Manchester, England, who oversaw recovery of that city following IRA bombings in 1996; Douglas Ahlers of Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government, who has done extensive research in disaster recovery and continues to be directly involved in New Orleans; Kerry O’Neill of Australia who worked with the Victorian Bushfire Reconstruction and Recovery Authority in the social planning efforts for recovery of small towns and the region following the 700 fires in 2009; Kit Miyomoto, an internationally known structural engineer who specializes in advanced and cost-effective performance engineering for retrofit and repair of structures, and who has extensive experience in Haiti and Japan; David Lindsay, the Deputy Minister of Energy and Infrastructure in Ontario, who oversaw a major waterfront restoration project in Toronto; Suzanna Penbroke, a cultural heritage consultant from London, and Sam Martin, an urban landscape design specialist based in London, who is now returning to work in his native Christchurch.