Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutRCC AGENDA PK 1993/11/08Council Agenda Statement Item: Meeting Date: 1993 Referral No. 2803 Item Title: Ordinance: Amending Section 8.25.090 "Compost- ing" to Establish a Minimum Distance of Six Feet that A Composting Bin Must Be Placed From Adjacent Residential Property. Submitted by: Bruce M. Boogaard, City Attorney Agenda Classification: (X ) Consent ( ) Action Item ( ) Public Rearing ( ) Other: 4/5ths Vote: ( ) Yes (X) No At their meeting of September 14, 1993, during the public hearing on the yard waste recycling franchise and related ordinance amendment, the Council directed staff to establish a minimum distance that a composting bin must be located from adjacent property in order to avoid nuisance complaints. The attached ordinance establishes a six foot minimum distance that a composting bin must be placed from an exterior entrance to an adjacent residential structure. Recommendation: Adopt the attached ordinance. Boards and Commissions Recommendation: Resource Conservation Commission reviewed this proposed amendment on November 8, 1993, and voted to to support (oppose) the amendment. The minutes of their meeting are attached. Discussion: A. Features of the Ordinance. 1. If a composting bin further than 6 feet constitutes a nuisance to the adjacent property owner, the proposed ordinance does not preclude us from citing it. 2. As worded, the proposed ordinance is not dependent on lot lines, so it is applicable to apartments and condos, as well as to single family residential units. 3• The ordinance creates a private nuisance as well as a public nuisance, so it gives the private property owner a civil right of enforcement rather than rely on city enforcement resources if they do not want to. B. Options for Alternate Ordinance language not recommended. 1• The Council may desire to require that composting bins be place 6 feet from their lot lines regardless of the distance from an adjacent exterior window or other entrance. This is not recommended because it will unnecessarily constrain the use of a persons property if they are required to set their compost bins 6 feet away from their property lines, regardless of the fact that no one is, or is likely to complain of, the location. Fiscal Impact: We can expect a negligible increase in enforcement costs. Additional funds are unlikely to be needed. ORDINANCE NO. AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF CHULA VISTA AMENDING SECTION 8.25.090 OF THE CHULA VISTA MUNICIPAL CODE "COMPOSTING" TO ESTABLISH A MINIMUM DISTANCE OF SIX FEET THAT A COMPOSTING BIN MUST BE PLACED FROM ADJACENT RESIDENTIAL PROPERTY The City Council of the City of Chula Vista does hereby ordain as follows: SECTION I: That Section 8.25.090 of the Chula Vista Municipal Code is hereby amended to read as follows: Sec. 8.25.090 Composting. A• Every establisher of a Composting pile, bin, holding area or other such Composting system shall first obtain a permit from the City, if the total volume used within the boundaries of the premises for Composting is 15 cubic yards or greater. B. Every Composting pile, bin, holding area or other such Composting system shall be maintained so as to not create a public or pie nuisance through visual, odor, safety and/or other means, or as prescribed in Chapter 19.66 of the Chula Vista Municipal Code. Wit_hn„r ,.,.....~_~__~. C• The owner, operator, or occupier of property fining a Compost pile, bin, holding area or other such Composting system that is greater than 5 feet high, 5 feet wide and 5 feet in length shall weekly monitor temperature, through utilization of a thermometer designed for such purposes. D. No single Compost pile, bin, holding area or other such Composting system on a Residential Single-Family (as defined in Ordinance No. 2443) premises shall be more than 5 feet in height and/or greater than 6 feet in width or length. SECTION II: This ordinance shall take effect and be in full force on the thirtieth day from and after its adoption. Presented and Approved as to form by Bruce M. Boogaard, City Attorney c:~o,~azso9o ""'f`~ ~~ Resource Conservation Commission City of Chula Vista Chula Vista, California To: City Council Subject: Purchasing Background. Earlier this year, a Public Notice appeared in the Chula Vista Star-News publishing the revised purchasing policy for the city. There was no definitive statement on procurement of recycled materials in that policy. Athena Bradley informed members of this Commission that there was an unwritten policy and it "was too late" to change the published policy statement. Recommended Action. The City take a firm, public position on procurement of recycled materials for use in administration and operations. We suggest that the statement be strongly worded in a manner similar to: "will afford precedence to procurement of products containing recycled materials. Exceptions to this rule would apply only when the recycled material content is prohibited by state or Federal regulations or does not meet specific specifications of the user. When the price of the product containing recycled materials is within 10 percent of the price of the lowest qualified bidder or list price, preference will be given to the product containing recycled materials." ~a~ Resource Conservation Commission City of Chula Vista Chula Vista, California To: City Council Subject: Compost Background. The City of Chula Vista recently imposed a mandatory yard waste program on its residents. The objective is to reduce the amount of organic material unnecessarily being dumped at either the Otay Landfill or that diverted to commercial application. In the meantime, there is a growing amount of composting/ed material available outside the Otay Landfill for public use. The material is available at no cost. Users must provide their own containers and transportation. Recommended I~ction. Quarterly, the City deliver full containers of this composted material to two or more locations within the city limits. Material containers would be dropped off mid-day on Friday and retrieved the following Monday. Compost would be available at the locations for individual residential purposes. Perhaps senior citizens could be provided with hand-out material and be available to answer non-technical questions on use of compost. By bringing the compost back to the user"s home territory, residents might be more receptive to use of the compost and acceptance of the yard waste program. This action should be evaluated following not less than two weekends of availability.