A.
The
purpose of this Chapter is to facilitate the development and availability
of housing affordable to a broad range of households with varying
income levels within the City. As detailed in the findings supporting
the ordinance codified in this Chapter, the requirements of this Chapter
are based on a number of factors including, but not limited to, the
City's long-standing commitment to economic diversity; the serious
need for affordable housing as reflected in local, State, and Federal
housing regulations and policies; the demand for affordable housing
created by commercial development; and the impact that the lack of
affordable housing production has on the health, safety, and welfare
of the City's residents including its impacts on traffic, transit
and related air quality impacts, and the demands placed on the regional
transportation infrastructure. Imposing a fee that is reasonably related
to the burdens created by new commercial development on the City's
need for affordable housing will enable the City to fund development
of affordable housing units that will contribute to addressing these
impacts and fulfilling these goals.
B.
The
City has prepared a Commercial Nexus Study and Linkage Fee Analysis.
It shows, and the City Council finds that there is a reasonable relationship
between the purpose for which the fees established by this Ordinance
are to be used and the type of development projects on which the fees
are imposed, and between the amount of the fees and the cost of the
affordable housing units or portion of the units attributable to the
development on which the fees are imposed.
C.
It is
the intent of the City Council that the fee required by this Chapter
shall be supplementary to any conditions imposed upon a development
project pursuant to other provisions of the Municipal Code, the City
Charter, the Subdivision Map Act, the California Environmental Quality
Act, other state and local laws, which may authorize the imposition
of project specific conditions on development.
(Added by Ord. No. 2486CCS §§
1, 2, adopted June 23, 2015)
A.
The
regulations, requirements and provisions of this Chapter and Council
resolutions adopted pursuant hereto shall apply to any commercial
portion of any new Project for which a development application was
determined complete or an application for change(s) in existing use(s)
was made on or after the effective date of this Ordinance. Any project
subject to the provisions of this Chapter shall not be required to
comply with the Santa Monica Municipal Code Project Mitigation Measures.
B.
Notwithstanding
the above, the following projects or portions of projects as specified
thereof shall not be subject to the requirements of this Chapter:
1.
Places
of worship;
2.
City
projects;
3.
Day
care centers;
4.
Private
K-12 schools;
5.
Commercial
portions of multi-family rental housing projects developed by a nonprofit
housing provider if the developer is receiving financial assistance
through a public agency, so long as the multi-family rental housing
project is an affordable housing project meeting the requirements
of the Santa Monica Municipal Code and the project's affordable housing
obligations will be secured by a regulatory agreement, memorandum
of agreement, or recorded covenant with a public agency for a minimum
period of 55 years;
6.
Re-occupancy
of square footage in an existing building or structure if there is
no change of use;
7.
Square
footage used for outdoor dining in the public right-of-way.
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If a development is exempt from the fee at initial construction,
but later converts to a commercial development subject to this Ordinance,
the converted square footage will be deemed net new commercial square
footage and the housing impact fee shall be paid prior to final approval
of a building permit.
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(Added by Ord. No. 2486CCS §§
1, 2, adopted June 23, 2015)
For the purpose of this Chapter, the following terms shall be
defined as follows:
shall mean a fee paid to the City by an applicant pursuant to Section 9.68.040 of this Chapter in connection with approval of a project, to contribute to the creation of affordable housing production or preservation to offset additional need for affordable housing generated by new commercial development.
shall mean City public works projects and City community
facilities (e.g., libraries, public parking structures, recycling
centers, and community centers), not including public/private partnerships.
shall mean the Commercial Nexus Study and Linkage Fee Analysis
prepared by Rosenow Spevacek Group, Inc., dated July 2013.
shall mean any development having a commercial use component and gross new or additional floor area of one thousand square feet or more or that changes an existing use to a different use that increases the demand for affordable housing. Gross floor area for the purposes of this definition shall be the same as Section 9.52.020, or any successor legislation, but shall exclude parking area.
(Added by Ord. No. 2486CCS §§
1, 2, adopted June 23, 2015)
Except as provided in Section 9.68.050, the developer of a Project shall pay an affordable housing commercial linkage fee in accordance with the following:
A.
Affordable Housing Commercial Linkage Fee. Fees shall be computed
as follows:
1.
All
nonresidential portions of a Project shall pay the following based
on the gross square footage of each use included in the proposed Project:
a.
Retail: $9.75 square foot.
b.
Office: $11.21 per square foot.
c.
Hotel/Lodging: $3.07 per square foot.
d.
Hospital: $6.15 per square foot.
e.
Industrial: $7.53 per square foot.
f.
Institutional: $10.23 per square foot.
g.
Creative Office: $9.59 per square foot.
h.
Medical Office: $6.89 per square foot.
2.
The
land use categories identified in paragraphs (a)—(h) above shall
have the following meanings:
a.
Retail shall include: animal kennels and veterinary hospitals, auto
repair, car wash, retail and wholesale construction-related materials,
nurseries and garden centers, entertainment and recreational facilities,
gas stations, art galleries, nightclubs and bars, Personal services,
Post-secondary educational facility, private studio, restaurants—fast
food and cafes, restaurants—sit down, retail durable goods,
retail food and markets, retail mixed, and retail nonfood.
b.
Office shall include: financial institutions and office, and general
office.
c.
Hotel/Lodging shall include: hotels, motels and other overnight accommodations.
d.
Hospital shall include: full service hospitals.
e.
Industrial shall include: surface or structured auto inventory storage,
City maintenance facilities and bus yards, heavy industrial and manufacturing,
light industrial, utilities, warehouse and self-storage, and wholesale
distribution and shipping.
f.
Institutional shall include: educational and cultural facilities.
g.
Creative Office shall include: offices, production spaces and work
spaces of establishments that are in the business of the development
of creative property, including but not limited to, advertising, architectural
services, broadcasting, communications, computer software design,
entertainment, engineering, graphic design, interior design, internet
content, landscape design, and similar uses.
h.
Medical Office shall include: Medical office, including medical clinics,
and offices for medical professionals.
3.
The
amount of legally permitted nonresidential square footage to be demolished
in an existing building or structure, or to be removed from an outdoor
area used as part of a service station or for auto dealer sales, display
and inventory storage, as a part of a Project shall be a credit in
the calculation of the Affordable Housing Commercial Linkage Fee.
Outdoor area used as part of a gas station shall not include setbacks,
landscaping, parking and other paved areas used solely for access
and circulation. Credit shall be applied on a per square foot basis
according to per square foot fee assigned to the type of commercial
use that existed on the site prior to the new Project application
submittal.
B.
Timing of Fee Payment.
1.
The
Project applicant shall pay fees according to the schedule of fees
in place on the date the fees are paid, except that the applicant
for a vesting tentative map for a development project shall pay the
fees in effect on the date the application for the vesting tentative
map is deemed complete, as automatically adjusted.
2.
No
building permit for any Project shall be issued unless the fees have
been paid.
(Added by Ord. No. 2486CCS §§
1, 2, adopted June 23, 2015)
A.
A developer of any Project subject to the fee described in Section 9.68.040(A) may request that the requirements of this Chapter be adjusted or waived based on a showing that applying the requirements of this Chapter would effectuate an unconstitutional taking of property or otherwise have an unconstitutional application to the property.
B.
To receive
an adjustment or waiver, the applicant must submit an application
to the City Manager or her/his designee, at the time the applicant
files a discretionary project application, or if no such application
is required, a building permit application. The applicant shall bear
the burden of presenting substantial evidence to support the request
and set forth in detail the factual and legal basis for the claim,
including all supporting technical documentation.
C.
The City Manager or her/his designee, shall render a written decision within ninety days after a complete application is filed. The City Manager's or designee's decision may be appealed to the City Council if such appeal is filed within fourteen consecutive calendar days from the date that the decision is made in the manner provided in Chapter 9.37 Common Procedures of this Code or any successor thereto.
D.
If the
City Manager or her/his designee, or City Council on appeal, upon
legal advice provided by or at the behest of the City Attorney, determines
that applying the requirements of this Chapter would effectuate an
unconstitutional taking of property or otherwise have an unconstitutional
application to the property, the affordable housing fee requirements
shall be adjusted or waived to reduce the obligations under this Chapter
to the extent necessary to avoid an unconstitutional result. If the
City Manager or her/his designee, or City Council on appeal, determines
that no violation of the United States or California Constitutions
would occur through application of this Chapter, the requirements
of this Chapter remain fully applicable.
E.
If an
adjustment or waiver is granted, any change in use from the approved
project shall invalidate the adjustment or waiver.
(Added by Ord. No. 2486CCS §§
1, 2, adopted June 23, 2015)
Pursuant to Government Code Section 66006, the Affordable Housing
Commercial Linkage Fee Reserve Account is hereby established. The
fees paid to the City pursuant to the provisions of this Chapter shall
be deposited into the Affordable Housing Commercial Linkage Fee Reserve
Account and used solely for the purpose described in this Chapter.
All monies deposited into the Reserve Account shall be held separate
and apart from other City funds. All interest or other earnings on
the unexpended balance in the Reserve Account shall be credited to
the Reserve Account.
(Added by Ord. No. 2486CCS §§
1, 2, adopted June 23, 2015)
All monies and interest earnings in the Affordable Housing Commercial
Linkage Fee Reserve Account shall be expended solely on the production
or preservation of affordable housing to help fulfill the need identified
in the Nexus Study to increase the supply of housing affordable to
worker households of extremely low, very low, low, or moderate income,
or such other report as may be prepared from time to time to document
the reasonable fair share of the costs to mitigate the increased need
for affordable housing that is created by new commercial development.
Such expenditures may include, but are not necessarily limited to
the following:
A.
Reimbursement
for all direct and indirect costs incurred by the City to fund the
production of affordable housing pursuant to this Chapter, including
but not limited to, the cost of land and right-of-way acquisition,
planning, legal advice, engineering, design, construction, construction
management, materials and equipment, or issuing loans to nonprofit
affordable housing developers to acquire land and/or to rehabilitate
existing buildings or build new developments to increase the supply
of affordable housing units.
B.
Costs
of issuance or debt service associated with bonds, notes or other
security instruments issued to fund affordable housing needs identified.
C.
Reimbursement
for administrative costs incurred by the City in establishing or maintaining
the Affordable Housing Commercial Linkage Fee Reserve Account required
by this Chapter, including but not limited to the cost of studies
to establish the requisite nexus between the fee amount and the use
of fee proceeds and yearly accounting and reports.
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No portion of the Affordable Housing Commercial Linkage Fee
Reserve Account may be diverted to other purposes by way of loan or
otherwise.
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(Added by Ord. No. 2486CCS §§
1, 2, adopted June 23, 2015)
To account for inflation in affordable housing development costs,
the fee imposed by this ordinance shall be adjusted automatically
on July 1 of each fiscal year, beginning on July 1, 2015, by a percentage
equal to the appropriate Construction Cost Index as published by Engineering
News Record, or its successor publication, for the preceding 12 months.
(Added by Ord. No. 2486CCS §§
1, 2, adopted June 23, 2015)
A.
If an
affordable housing commercial linkage fee is collected on a Project
and the permit for that Project later expires, is vacated or voided
before commencement of construction, the developer shall, upon request,
be entitled to a refund of the unexpended housing commercial linkage
fee paid, less a portion of the fee sufficient to cover costs of collection,
accounting for and administration of the fee paid. Any request for
a refund shall be submitted in writing to the Director of Planning
and Community Development within one year of the date that the permit
expires or is vacated or voided. Failure to timely submit a request
for refund shall constitute a waiver of any right to a refund.
B.
Fees
collected pursuant to this Chapter which remain unexpended or uncommitted
for 5 or more fiscal years after deposit into the Affordable Housing
Commercial Linkage Fee Reserve Account shall be accounted for or may
be refunded as provided by state law.
(Added by Ord. No. 2486CCS §§
1, 2, adopted June 23, 2015)
The amount of the affordable housing commercial linkage fee
and the formula for the automatic annual adjustment established by
this Chapter may be reviewed and revised periodically by resolution
of the City Council. This Chapter shall be considered enabling and
directive in this regard.
(Added by Ord. No. 2486CCS §§
1, 2, adopted June 23, 2015)
The City Manager, or her/his designee, is authorized to adopt
written administrative regulations or guidelines that are consistent
with and that further the terms and requirements set forth within
this Chapter.
(Added by Ord. No. 2486CCS §§
1, 2, adopted June 23, 2015)
