Title
An Ordinance to Amend Section 5.28.4 of Chapter 55 (Unified Development Code) of Title V (Citizen Participation) CPC Recommendation: Approval as Amended (7 Yes, 0 No)
Memorandum
In April of 2024, City Council enacted R-24-109 Resolution to Direct the City Administrator to Implement New Processes and Programs for Housing Development at all Income Levels to Support Housing Affordability. In response to this direction, the Planning Commission recommends the attached ordinance, which was specifically directed by City Council as follows:
“Amendments to the Citizen Participation Ordinance so that notification of projects is made digitally through city communication channels (in addition to the paper notification currently required in the ordinance), so that notification in effect becomes a city-wide effort, so that a calendar of meetings under this ordinance is kept on the city website, and so that the timing of the Citizen Participation Ordinance meeting is concurrent with site plan submission.”
In response, suggested revisions were presented in draft to the Planning Commission at its September 10, 2024 working session who expressed the following:
• Support for proposed changes that would modify timing to be concurrent with the site plan review process.
• Opposition to a reduction in the identified buffer by which nearby property owners and residents are notified.
• Support for proposed changes that would eliminate references to “citizen” in favor of “community” to reduce any participatory concerns that individuals may have.
• Support for increased clarity on the identification and sharing of contact information for a petitioner’s representative.
On March 18, 2025, the Planning Commission considered proposed amendments to Section 5.28.4 Citizen Participation that were shaped by the September feedback. Following a public hearing, the Planning Commission recommended approval with amendments that:
• Modify those project types that are classified as Type I or Type II based more on project approval process (i.e. administrative or legislative) than simple project size or scale.
• Modify the timing of Type I community participation meetings to occur within 45 days of the City’s acceptance of a petition for review.
The attached ordinance incorporates the additional amendments recommended by the Planning Commission and has been further edited to enhance clarity, more concise language, and an easier to read format. Because the changes can be hard to follow in the traditional tracked-changes format used for ordinances that amend code sections, the original content of Section 5.28.4 and a final “no markup” version of Section 5.28.4 have been attached as well.
Additionally, Planning staff has incorporated noticed community participation meetings into the City’s A2 Engage site (https://engage.a2gov.org/), to complete the directed notice/calendar of meetings from Resolution R-24-109, which did not require ordinance modification.
Attachments: Ordinance (Citizen Participation)
Section 5.28.4 (Citizen Participation) Unedited
Section 5.28.4 (Citizen Participation) as Proposed No Markup
March 18, 2025 Planning Staff Report
March 18, 2025 City Planning Commission Minutes
Staff
Prepared by: Brett Lenart, Planning Manager
Reviewed by: Derek Delacourt, Community Services Area Administrator
Approved by: Milton Dohoney Jr., City Administrator
Body
(See Attached Ordinance)