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HomeMy WebLinkAbout257ORDINANCE NO. 257 AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF THE TOWN OF LOS ALTOS HILLS AMENDING TITLE 9 OF THE LOS ALTOS HILLS MUNICIPAL CODE BY ADDING THERETO CHAPTER 6 ENTITLED "LANDMARK DESIGNATION AND PRESERVATION" The City Council of the City of the Town of Los Altos Hills does ORDAIN as follows: SECTION 1. STATEMENT OF PURPOSE. It is the purpose of this Ordinance to preserve struc- tures, natural features, sites, and areas of special character or special historical, architectural, cultural, or aesthetic interest or value. It is intended that such preservation will enhance pro- perty values, stabilize neighborhoods, and generally increase the economic and financial benefits to the Town and its inhabitants. It is further intended to enrich human life in its educational and cultural needs by fostering knowledge of the living heritage of the past. SECTION 2. AMENDMENT OF CODE. Title 9 of the Los Altos Hills Municipal Code hereby is amended by amending Chapter 6 thereof to read as follows: CHAPTER 6. LANDMARK DESIGNATION AND PRESERVATION. SECTION 9-6.01. INITIATION OF DESIGNATION. Initiation of the designation of a structure, natural fea- tures, sites or areas having historical, architectural, cultural, or aesthetic significance as a landmark, shall be by the resolution of the City Council, or upon the request of the Los Altos Hills Historical Society or the Town Historian,the verified application of the owner or authorized agent of the property to be designated. The application shall be filed with the City Clerk upon forms which the City Clerk shall provide, and shall be accompanied by all data re- quired by the City Council. - SECTION 9-6.02. LOS ALTOS HILLS HISTORICAL SOCIETY; TOWN HISTORIAN The Los Altos Hills Historical Society is hereby recog- nized as a private, voluntary committee composed of citizens inter- ested in historic preservation. The Town Historian is a person so appointed by the City Council. The City Council may consult with and shall consider the ideas and recommendations of the Los Altos Hills Historical Society and the Town Historian, respectively. SECTION 9-6.03. DESIGNATION BY ORDINANCE. The City Council by Ordinance may designate one or more individual structures or other natural features, sites, or areas having a special character or special historical, architectural, cultural or aesthetic interest or value or significance as landmarks, and shall designate a landmark site for each landmark. SECTION 9-6.04. PUBLIC HEARING The City Council shall hold a public hearing concerning each proposed designation. Notice of time and place of the hearing shall be given not less than ten (10) days prior to the hearing (a) by posting copies of the Notice of Public Hearing in at least three (3) public places in the City of the Town of Los Altos Hills and in at least three (3) places along the streets upon which the property on which the structure, natural feature, site or area abuts, and (b) by United States mail to the owner of the property and to each other property owner within a distance of 300 feet of the property, using addresses from the last adopted tax roll. -2- V J SECTION 9-6.05. DESIGNATION CRITERIA In considering any structure, natural feature, site or area for designation as a landmark, the City Council shall apply the follow- ing criteria: (a) Its character, interest, or value as part of the development, and/or its exemplification of the cultural, educational, economic, agricultural, social or historical heritage of the City. (b) Its identification with a person, or persons, who significantly contributed to the culture, history, or development of the Town. (c) Its embodiment of distinguishing characteristics or an architectural type or specimen. (d) its unique location or singular physical character- istics, whether man-made or natural, representing an established or familiar visual feature of a neighborhood, community, or the Town of Los Altos Hills, or its relationship to any other landmark if its preservation is essential to the integrity of that landmark. (e) Its potential of yielding archaeological informa- tion. (f) Any property which is listed on the National Regis- ter and is described in Section 470a of Title 16 of the United States Code and/or is a Registered State Landmark. SECTION 9-6.06. DESIGNATION; APPROVAL Following the completion of the public hearing, the City Council may deny, approve, or modify and approve, the designation. If the City Council approves the designation, it shall make the follow- ing findings: -3- (a) That the proposed landmark has significant his- torical, architectural, cultural, or aesthetic interest or value. (b) That the proposed landmark may be designated without imposing an undue hardship on the property owner. (c) That approval or modified approval of the applica- tion is consistent with the purposes and criteria of this Chapter. SECTION 9-6.07. NOTICE OF DESIGNATION; RECORDING When a landmark has been designated by the City Council, the City Clerk shall promptly notify the owners of the property in- cluded therein. The City Clerk shall cause a copy of the designat- ing ordinance, or notice thereof, to be recorded in the office of the County Recorder. SECTION 9-6.08 LANDMARK DESIGNATION; TERMINATION The owner of the property which has been declared a land- mark or any interested person may apply to the City Council for ter- mination of a landmark designation. The requirement for notice, and hearing shall be the same as set forth in this Chapter for desig- nating landmarks. when a landmark is terminated, the Building Department shall be notified, and teh appropriate cancellation notice of the previously -recorded notice of designation shall be recorded in the office of the County Recorder. SECTION 9-6.09. LANDMARK DESIGNATION; ALTERATION OR REMOVAL No person shall carry out or cause to be carried out on a designated landmark any material change in exterior appearance through alteration, construction, or relocation, excluding exterior painting or demolition without obtaining a Landmark Alteration Permit from the City Council. -4- V SECTION 9-6.10. PERMIT; APPLICATION The Building Department shall maintain within the said department a current record of designated landmarks. Upon receipt of an application for a permit which indicates a possible material change to the exterior of a landmark, the Building Inspector shall require an application for a Landmark Alteration Permit which shall include plans and specifications indicating the proposed siting, elevations, colors, and material of the structure, or otherwise indicating the proposed material change. SECTION 9-6.11. PERMIT; HEARING No Landmark Alteration Permit shall be approved by the City Council until a public hearing shall have been held. The requirement for notice and hearing shall be the same as set forth in this Chapter for designating landmarks. SECTION 9-6.12. PERMIT; FINDINGS Prior to issuing any Landmark Alteration Permit, the City Council shall make a specific finding on each of the following issues: (a) That the action proposed is consistent with the purposes of this Chapter. (b) That the action proposed will not be detrimental to a landmark of significant aesthetical, cultural, historical, or archi- tectural interest or value. (c) That the applicant has demonstrated denial of the application will result in an immediate or substantial hardship. SECTION 9-6.13. DUTY TO KEEP LANDMARK IN REPAIR Every landmark shall be maintained in good repair by the owner thereof in order to preserve it against decay and deterior- -5- 4 140 ation. Nothing in this Chapter shall be construed so as to pro- hibit ordinary maintenance and repair of a landmark. For the purposes of this Chapter, ordinary maintenance and repairs shall mean any work the sole purpose and effect of which is to correct or prevent deterioration, decay, or damage. SECTION 9-6.19. UNSAFE OR DANGEROUS CONDITIONS. None of the provisions of this Chapter shall be construed to prevent any measures of construction, alteration, or demolition necessary to correct the unsafe or dangerous condition of any struc- ture, other feature or part thereof, where such condition has been declared unsafe or dangerous by the Building Department of the Los Altos Fire District and where the proposed measures have been de- clared necessary to correct said condition. Provided, however, only such work as is reasonably necessary to correct the unsafe or dan- gerous condition may be performed pursuant to this Section. In the event any structure or other feature shall be damaged by fire, or other calamity, or by Act of God or by the public enemy, to such an extent that in the opinion of the Building Department it cannot rea- sonably be repaired or restored, the Building Department shall be required to report to the City Council its reasons for said recom- mendation. Such structure of feature may be removed in conformity with the provisions of the Los Altos dills Municipal Code. REQUIRED. SECTION 9-6.15. PRIVATE PROPERTY; ENTRY: PERMISSION Nothing contained in this Chapter or in the designation of any structure, natural feature, site or area as a landmark by the City Council shall authorize or permit any person to enter upon any structure or natural feature, or the property upon which the structure or natural feature is situated, or upon any site or area so designated which is the private property of another without the permission of the owner, or owners, or the agents or employees of the owner, or owners. SECTION 9-6.16. PUBLIC NUISANCE: ABATEMENT. Any material change made by any person in the exterior appearance of any designated landmark through alteration, con- struction or relocation without the issuance of a Landmark Alteration Permit having been first obtained shall be, and is hereby declared to be unlawful and a public nuisance, and shall be abated in the method provided for in Section 9-5.1106 of the Los Altos Hills Municipal Code. SECTION 3. SEPARABILITY. If any section, subsection, paragraph, subparagraph, sentence, clause or phrase of this Ordinance is for any reason held to be invalid or unconstitutional, such invalidity or unconstitu- tionality shall not affect the validity or constitutionality of the remaining portions of this Ordinance; and the City Council of the City does hereby expressly declare that this Ordinance and each section, subsection, paragraph, subparagraph, sentence, clause and phrase thereof would have been adopted irrespective of the fact that any one or more of such sections, subsections, paragraphs, subpara- graphs, sentences, clauses or phrases be declared invalid or uncon- stitutional. SECTION 4. EFFECTIVE DATE. POSTING. This ordinance shall be in full force and effect thirty (30) days from and after its passage, and shall be posted within -7- the City of the Town of Los Altos Ail=s in three (3) public places. Mayor ATTEST: City Cie k I HEREBY CERTIFY that the foregoing Ordinance was introduced at a Regular Meeting of the City Council of the City of the Tuan of Los Altos Hills on the 17th day of October, 1979, and was thereafter passed and adopted on the 7th day of November, 1979. City Clerk