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Home My WebLink About2008/04/14 Board of Appeals & Advisors Agenda Packet CITY OF CHULA VISTA BOARD OF APPEALS AND ADVISORS REGULAR MEETING AGENDA Monday - 5:15 p m Conference Room # 137 (inside Public Services Bldg.) April 14, 2008 276 Fourth Avenue, Chula Vista, CA 91910 CALL MEETING TO ORDER/ROLL CALL West Turner_ Buddingh_ Buencamino- Andrews_ Flach_ Lopez_ Sides_ 1. DECLARATION OF EXCUSED/UNEXCUSED ABSENTEEISM: 2., APPROVAL OF MINUTES: March 10, 2008 (Regular Meeting) 3. NEW BUSINESS: A An Ordinance Designating Very High Fire Hazard Safety Zones. Presented to Board by Deputy Building Official Lou EI-Khazen and Fire Marshal Justin Gipson 4 CHAIRMAN'S COMMENTS/REPORTS: 5., BUILDING OFFICIAL'S COMMENTS/REPORTS: 6. COMMUNICATIONS (PUBLIC REMARKS/WRITTEN CORRESPONDENCE): 7„ ADJNDAY MAY 12,020 8GAT 5R5 PM IN CONFERENCE ROOM 137. MO , y~% DATE RAD REMP, C.B O ASST. DIR. OF PLANN~ G & BUILDING/BUILDING OFFICIAL SECRETARY TO THE BOARD OF APPEALS AND ADVISORS COMPLIANCE WITH AMERICANS WITH DISABILITIES ACT The City of Chula Vista, in complying with the Americans with Disabilities Ad (ADA), request individuals who require special , accommodations to access, attend, and/or participate in a City meeting, activity, or service, request such accommodation at least forty-eight hours in advance for meetings and fve days for scheduled services and activities. Please wntact Eileen Dimagiba, Secretary, for specific information at (619) 4073510 or Telecommunications Device for the Deaf (TDD) at (619) 585-5647 California Relay Service is also available for the hearing impaired J:\Bld_HSgUudi BelllBoard of Appeals & Advisors\04 14.2008adoc MINUTES OF A REGULAR MEETING BOARD OF APPEALS AND ADVISORS CITY OF CHULA VISTA, CALIFORNIA March 10, 2008 Conference Room #137 inside Public Services Building 5:15 PM 276 Fourth Ave.. Chula Vista, CA 91910 MEMBERS PRESENT: Chairman West, Vice-Chairman Turner, Members: Buddingh, Buencamino- Andrews, Flach, Lopez MEMBERS ABSENT: None CITY STAFF PRESENT: Brad Remp, Assistant Director/ Building Official of Planning and Building; Doug Leeper, Code Enforcement Manager; Eileen Dimagiba, Senior Office Specialist (Recording Secretary) OTHERS PRESENT: None CALL MEETING TO ORDER: Chairman West called meeting to order at 5:15 PM ROLL CALL: Members present constituted a quorum. 1 DECLARATION OF EXCUSEDIUNEXCUSED ABSENTEEISM: None i 2 APPROVAL OF MINUTES: MSC (BuddinghM/est) (6-0) motion to approve the minutes of October 8, 2007 Regular Meeting 3 NEW BUSINESS: A. Code Enforcement Powerpoint Presentation- By Doug Leeper Doug Leeper, Code Enforcement Manager presented a Powerpoint presentation on our I current Code Enforcement Programs and the Code Enforcement Section Topics of the presentation included Programs and Statistics, Enforcement Process and Options, New Programs, Service Reductions, Trends and Hot Topics, Full Cost Recovery & Fines and Assessments, The Code Enforcement Team, and questions at the end of the presentation 4 MEMBERS COMMENTS/CHAIRMAN'S COMMENTS/REPORTS: • Member Turner asked about the requirements for yard (garage) sales and Doug stated that residents are required to apply fora "free" garage sale permit with the Planning and Building Department and residents are allowed to have 2 sales per calendar year and each garage sale permit good for 10 days each Member Turner also asked if any feedback has been received from the HOAs on this new Residential Abandoned Properties program and Doug said that real estate agents and HOAs are behind this ordinance, The ones who are against this are the lending industries and their attorneys, and the people looking to rent out these vacant properties for more money, knowing that they are losing these properties soon to foreclosure. • Member Buencamino-Andrews asked Doug if Chula Vista is the only City in California with this type of ordinance and Doug replied that we are the first city in the country with this type of proactive ordinance Several cities throughout the country have contacted Doug for advice on creating a similar ordinance like this one for their jurisdictions Board of Appeals & Advisors Page 2 March ~ 0, 2008 Meeting Minutes • Doug noted that HOAs aren't able to enforce CC&R's on these vacant properties because they have difficulties finding the correct contact person for these banks that own these properties and Member Turner commented that he is on the HOA board for San Miguel Ranch and he and his HOA board has stumbled upon these problems as well • Brad commented that compared to otherjurisdictions of our size, we have half the number of Code Enforcement staff that they do • Member Turner commented that HOAs will most likely be able to help out somewhat with the violations listed on the "Service Reductions" list for Code Enforcement He also asked about the Volunteer Program • Member Buddingh asked why doesn't the City Attorney collect the big amounts of FCR, fines, and penalties assessed for Code Enforcement, and Doug said that we are currently discussing the probability of this happening, hopefully soon. • Member Flach asked about the Code Enforcement fines and penalties assessed in relation to the City's current budget crisis, and Brad responded by saying that fines and penalties are assessed only when necessary and only to motivate them into compliance, and that Code Enforcement is not in the "business of making money' • Member Flach commented that this was a great presentation on Code Enforcement and asked if something like this presentation can be put together as a short article in the Chula Vista newspaper about what exactly Code Enforcement does, and Brad and Doug said that we've done something like that in the past in "The Spotlight", and it's a great suggestion 5 BUILDING OFFICIAL'S COMMENTSIREPORTS: A Next month, we will have an appeal for a Fire Department requirement and a staff report will be done by the Fire Department and distributed to members before our next month's meeting B Recommendation on Adoption of the Urban Wildlife interface will also be discussed in the coming months. Deadline is July 1~~, 2008 6 COMMUNICATIONS (PUBLIC REMARKS/ WRITTEN CORRESPONDENCE): None 7 ADJOURNMENT: MSU (Buencamino-Andrews/West) (6-O) adjournment of meeting at 6:24 p m to the next regular meeting in the Planning and Building Conference Room #137 on April 14, 2008 ' BRAD REMP, C.B O ASST DIR. OF PLAN G & BUILDING/ BUILDING OFFICIAL SECRETARY TO THE BOARD OF APPEALS & ADVISORS MI UTE TAKE BY: EILEEN DIMAGIBA, SR. OFFICE SPECIALIST PLANNING & BUILDING DEPARTMENT (RECORDING SECRETARY) BOARD OF APPEALS AND ADVISORS Meeting Date: 04/14/08 Subject: An Ordinance Designating Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zones as Recommended by the Director of Forestry and Fire Protection Submitted By: Assistant Director of Planning and Building/Building Official Fire Chief i Pursuant to Government Code Section 51179, the City must designate, by ordinance, very high fire hazard severity zones in its jurisdiction within 120 days of receiving recommendations from the Director of Forestry and Fire Protection. The City received the Director's recommendations, amap identifying very high fire hazard severity zones within Chula Vista. This ordinance designates these zones as required by State law. RECOMMENDATION: Recommend to City Council the adoption of the ordinance.. DISCUSSION: The Oakland Hills fire in 1991 prompted the 1992 "Bates Bill", Assembly Bill 337 (Government Code 51175 - 51189). It instructed the Director of ~I Forestry and Fire Protection (DEEP) to classify lands in the state in accordance with whether a very high fire hazard is present so that public officials are able to take measures that will reduce the potential intensity of uncontrolled fires that threaten to destroy resources, life, or property. Pursuant to Government Code (GC) Section 51179, within 120 days from receiving the recommendations, local jurisdictions must designate, by ordinance, very high fire hazard severity zones I, (VHFHSZ) in its jurisdiction I Exhibit A, the Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zones (VHFHSZ) map, dated April 3, 2008, identifies these zones in the City as recommended by the DFFP.. The ' recommendations are a result of a model that took into account factors such as ~i fire history, existing and potential fuel, flame length, blowing embers, terrain, ~ weather and the likelihood of buildings igniting. There are approximately 3300 parcels that are located fully or partially in a VHFHSZ,. Reducing wildfire threat is a two-part approach; 1) Reduce flammable material around homes to keep direct flames and heat away from the side of buildings I and, 2) construct buildings so that they have less chance of catching fire from j burning embers. GC 51182 addressed the first approach by requiring any person who owns, leases, controls, operates, or maintains an occupied structure in a VHFHSZ to maintain the property as followes: H:~BLD_HSG~Board of Appeals~BOAA State VHFHSZ Map Adoption doc Page 1 of 3 1. Provide a 100 foot defensible space; clear 30 feet around structures or to the property line, which ever is nearer, and do fuel modification to the remaining 70 feet, or to the property line, which ever is nearer. 2. Keep the roof of structures free of leaves, needles or other dead vegetative growth. 3 Trim tree branches so that they are at least 10 feet away from chimneys or stovepipes, and maintain trees adjacent to or overhanging any structure free of dead or dying wood. 4. Upon sale or transfer of the property, disclose to a prospective buyer or transferee the fact that the property is located within a VHFHSZ and is subject to the requirements imposed on structures in the VHFHSZ. ' These requirements do not apply to areas of land or water acquired or managed for any of the following purposes: 1. Habitat for endangered or threatened species, or any species that is a I candidate for listing as an endangered or threatened by the State or Federal government. 2. Land kept as natural habitat for wildlife, plants or animals. 3. Open space lands that are environmentally sensitive parklands 4. Lands having scenic values, as declared by the local agency or by state or federal law. As for the second part of the approach, recent State legislation directed the State Fire Marshal (SFM), with the help of the DFFP and the Director of Housing and Community Development (DHCD), to develop fire protection building standards for roofs, exterior walls, structure projections, and structure openings of buildings located within areas designated to be at a significant risk from wildfires.. The Building Standards Commission (BSC) adopted these standards as Chapter 7A of the 2007 California Building Code (2007 CBC). Local enforcement of Chapter 7A takes effect July 1, 2008: New buildings located in VHFHSZ for which an application for a building permit is submitted on or after July 1, 2008, must ' comply with Chapter 7A.. Chapter 7A requires the use of approved building products and construction methods, the use of exterior wildfire exposure protection materials and construction methods for exterior siding, windows, eave vents, exterior doors and ' decks, and the enclosure of all under-floor areas and the underside of decks to within six inches of the ground. The ignition-resistant standards in Chapter 7A are intended to protect buildings from being ignited by flying embers which can travel as much as a mile away from the wildfire, Attachments: 1, ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF CHULA VISTA DESIGNATING VERY HIGH FIRE HAZARD SEVERITY ZONES AS RECOMMENDED BY THE DIRECTOR OF THE H:~BL.D_HSG~Boazd of Appeals~BOAA State VHFHSZ Map Adoption,doc Page 2 of'.3 CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF FORESTRY AND FIRE PROTECTION AS DESIGNATED ON MAPS MAINTAINED IN THE OFFICE OF THE CITY CLERK 2. Exhibit A -Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zones [VHFHSZ] -Local Responsibility Areas [LRA] map H:~BLD_HSG~Board of Appeals~BOAA State VHPHSZ Map Adoption doc Page 3 of 3 Attachment 1 ORDINANCE NO. ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF CHULA VISTA DESIGNATING VERY HIGH FIRE HAZARD SEVERITY ZONES AS RECOMMENDED BY THE DIRECTOR OF THE CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF FORESTRY AND FIRE PROTECTION AS DESIGNATED ON MAPS MAINTAINED IN THE OFFICE OF THE CITY CLERK„ WHEREAS, the California State Legislature has declared that the prevention of fires is a matter of statewide concern; and WHEREAS, the State Legislature has directed the Director of the Califarnia Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE) to identify azeas as very high fire hazard severity zones in all counties based on consistent statewide criteria and based on the severity of fire hazard that is expected to prevail in those areas; and WHEREAS, the determination of an area as a very high fire hazard severity zone is based on fuel loading, slope, fire weather; and other relevant factors; and WHEREAS, the purpose of the designation of areas as very high fire hazard severity zones is so that public officials axe able to identify measures that will retazd the rate of spread, and reduce the potential intensity, of uncontrolled fires that threaten to destroy resources, life, or property; and WHEREAS, the director of CAL FIRE has transmitted to the City those areas designated as very high fire hazard severity zones; and WHEREAS, the City Council must designate, by ordinance, very high fire hazard severity zones as recommended by the director of CAL FIRE, pursuant to Government Code section 511'79. NOW, THEREFORE, the City Council of the City of Chula Vista does ordain as I follows: SECIION I: It designates Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zones as recommended by the Director of the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection and as designated on a map titled Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zones (VHFHSZ) Map, dated Apri13, 2008, and filed with the Office of the City Clerk. SECIION II: This ordinance shall take effect and be in full force on the thirtieth day from and after its adoption., H:~BLD_HSG~Board of Appeals~Designating Very High Fue Hazard Severity Zonesdoc Presented by Approved as to farm by Brad Remp Ann Moore Building Official City Attorney Presented by .Jim Geering Fire Chief I j H:~BL.D_HSG~Board of'Appeals~Designating Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zones doc Attachment 2- u Exhibit A ~ ~s: r - ai ~ ' ~ d - ,r , I 3 3 ~ ~ F l.. ~ ~ v "si-q•m ? r .i t e l 1 a.- n ~ ~ 1p ~ ! c.. ~ _a _ _ - _ ~ i ~°'a"'~ 1 ~ 1. . 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