Permit Required.
No person, firm, corporation, partnership or other entity shall convert the use of any existing mobilehome park or permanent recreational vehicle park without first having said conversion tentatively approved by the Planning Commission, or the City Council on appeal, and having been issued a conversion permit by the Chief of Building and Zoning.
Conversion Defined.
For purposes of this chapter, "conversion" shall mean use of a mobilehome or permanent recreational vehicle park or a portion of a mobilehome or permanent recreational vehicle park for a purpose other than the rental, or the holding out for rent, of two or more mobilehome or recreational vehicle spaces to accommodate mobilehomes or recreational vehicles and shall not mean the adoption, amendment or repeal of a park rule or regulation. "Conversion" may affect an entire park or any portion thereof, and such "conversion" shall include, but is not limited to, a conversion of a park or any portion thereof to a condominium, stock cooperative, residential development, commercial use, office use, manufacturing use or vacant land. Any conversion to condominiums shall be subject to Sections 28.88.050, 28.88.060, 28.88.070, 28.88.080, 28.88.090 and Section 28.88.100 of this title, in addition to the provisions of this chapter. For the purposes of this chapter, condominiums shall be deemed to include community apartments and stock cooperatives.
(Ord. 4269, 1984)
A. 
Criteria. The Chief of Building and Zoning shall issue a conversion permit when he or she determines that:
1. 
The applicant has complied with all the applicable City, state and federal laws and regulations in effect at the time that the conversion was approved; and
2. 
The applicant has complied with all of the conditions of approval.
B. 
Revocation. Once issued, the conversion permit may be revoked if the applicant or his or her successors in interest fails to comply with the conditions of approval or other applicable laws.
C. 
Expiration. For a conversion involving a subdivision, a tentative conversion approval shall expire when the tentative subdivision map expires. For a conversion not involving a subdivision a tentative approval shall expire after the same period of time as if it were a project requiring a tentative subdivision map.
(Ord. 4269, 1984)
A. 
Standards. In order to convert the use of a mobilehome or permanent recreational vehicle park to mobilehome or recreational vehicle condominiums, said park shall be brought up to the standards for construction of new mobilehome or permanent recreational vehicle parks as established in Sections 28.94.040 and 28.94.045. In cases where (i) the applicant can demonstrate that the standards cannot or should not reasonably be met, and (ii) 75% of the current residents of an applicant's park have expressed a written intent to purchase the park from the applicant, said standards may be waived or modified by the Planning Commission.
B. 
Conversion. In order to convert the use of a mobilehome or permanent recreational vehicle park to an overnight recreational vehicle park, said overnight recreational vehicle park shall meet all standards required by Section 28.94.050 of this code.
(Ord. 4269, 1984)
In addition to such other application requirements as the Planning Commission may deem necessary, no application for a conversion permit shall be accepted for any purpose unless it includes the following:
A. 
Concept plan. A written statement and concept plan indicating the use the park site is intended to accommodate, including the approximate number of proposed residential units, if any; approximate square footage and use of any buildings proposed; and the probable impacts/benefits to the community created by the proposed project.
B. 
Site plan. A site plan of the existing mobilehome or permanent recreational vehicle park showing all existing mobilehome and recreational vehicle spaces, identified by number and indicating whether the space is currently occupied.
C. 
Residents list. A list of the names and addresses of all residents of the mobilehome or permanent recreational vehicle park.
D. 
Impact report. A report on the housing and financial impacts of the removal of the mobilehomes and recreational vehicles upon all displaced residents. The report shall include but not be limited to the following six items except where the applicant can demonstrate that such is not available.
1. 
Rental rate history for each space for the previous five years;
2. 
Monthly vacancy rate for each month during the preceding two years;
3. 
Makeup of existing resident households, including family size, length of residence, age of residents, estimated household income, and whether receiving federal or state rent subsidies;
4. 
The date of manufacture and size of each mobilehome and recreational vehicle in the park;
5. 
A list of those mobilehomes or recreational vehicles that cannot qualify for relocation to another park within reasonable proximity to the City; and
6. 
A statement of availability and location of equivalent replacement space in mobilehome or recreational vehicle parks within reasonable proximity to the City.
E. 
Relocation assistance plan. A relocation assistance plan shall be prepared by the applicant which states all measures proposed by the applicant to mitigate any identifiable adverse impacts of the conversion on the displaced permanent residents of the mobilehome or permanent recreational vehicle park. Every relocation assistance plan shall provide, at a minimum, that displaced permanent residents will be provided relocation benefits equal to those required by Section 28.88.100 of this code. A permanent resident (1) is a person for whom the unit he or she owns is his or her sole residence, or who has rented the mobilehome or recreational vehicle for a period of at least nine consecutive months; and (2) does not include a person who has resided in the park for one year or less prior to the date of application for the conversion permit, provided the person was given written notice of the owner's intention to convert prior to agreeing to reside in the park.
F. 
Evidence of notice. The applicant shall submit evidence that a notice of intent to convert was delivered to each resident for whom a signed copy of said notice is not submitted.
G. 
Other information. Any other information which, in the opinion of the Community Development Department, will assist in determining whether the proposed project will be consistent with the purpose and intent of this chapter.
(Ord. 4269, 1984)
The housing and financial impact report, the relocation assistance plan, the notice of intent to convert, and other documents shall not be deemed filed until approved in writing by the Community Development Department.
(Ord. 4269, 1984)
A. 
Notice of intent. A notice of intent to convert the use of the park shall be delivered to each resident's dwelling unit a minimum of 60 days prior to submittal of an application to convert the use. Evidence of delivery shall be submitted with the application for conversion. The form of the notice shall be as approved by the Community Development Department and shall inform the resident of the following:
1. 
Name and address of current owner;
2. 
Name and address of the applicant;
3. 
Approximate date on which the application for the conversion is to be filed;
4. 
Anticipated date on which the conversion permit is to be issued;
5. 
Approximate date on which the space is to be vacated by the resident;
6. 
Provisions for special cases;
7. 
Each resident will receive notice for each hearing and right to appear and be heard at any such hearing;
8. 
Each resident will receive a copy of the housing and financial impact report and relocation assistance program; and
9. 
Other information as may be deemed necessary by the Community Development Department.
B. 
Resident notice. Prior to the approval, the Planning Commission shall hold a public hearing. Notice of the hearing shall be mailed at least 10 days prior to the hearing date to the affected residents and conspicuously posted on the parcel. The public hearing notice shall describe the general nature of the application, and include notice of time and place of the public hearing, and notification of the residents' rights to attend and to be heard.
C. 
Staff report. Any report or recommendation on a proposed conversion of a mobilehome or permanent recreational vehicle park by the Staff to the Planning Commission shall be in writing and a copy shall be sent to the applicant and to each resident of the subject park at least three days prior to any hearing or action on such conversion by the Planning Commission.
D. 
Impact report and relocation assistance plan. A copy of the housing and financial impact report and relocation assistance plan shall be delivered to each permanent resident, as defined in Section 28.78.040.E, of the subject mobilehome or permanent recreational vehicle park by the applicant a minimum of 15 days prior to the public hearing and evidence of delivery shall be submitted to the Community Development Department.
(Ord. 4269, 1984)
The Planning Commission shall not approve an application for the conversion of a mobilehome or permanent recreational vehicle park unless the Planning Commission finds that:
A. 
All provisions of this chapter are met and the issuance of the conversion permit will not be detrimental to the health, safety and general welfare of the City. In making this finding, the Planning Commission shall not consider the impact of the conversion on the City's affordable housing stock.
B. 
With respect to conversions of an existing park to a mobilehome or recreational vehicle subdivision, that the benefits to be derived from providing increased low-to-moderate cost home ownership opportunities outweigh the loss of rental housing opportunities.
C. 
In the case of conversion to condominiums, the proposed conversion will conform to the Santa Barbara Municipal Code in effect at the time of approval, except as otherwise provided in this chapter.
D. 
The park owner has made reasonable efforts to prepare a relocation assistance program which (i) mitigates any significant adverse impact on the ability of displaced permanent mobilehome or permanent recreational vehicle park residents to find adequate space in a mobilehome or permanent recreational vehicle park, or (ii) in the event such a space is not available, provides other reasonable and comparable relocation assistance, and there are sufficient assurances that the measures in the program will be implemented.
E. 
In a park where the majority of permanent residents have incomes at or below low and moderate levels, as defined by the federal government and as established by the most recently filed federal income tax returns or some other document deemed acceptable by the Community Development Department, the Redevelopment Agency for the City of Santa Barbara has been offered the right to purchase the mobilehome or recreational vehicle park at fair market value, as determined by an independent real property appraiser selected by the Agency, and has declined the offer or has failed to act on the offer within 180 days of the park owner's mailing to the Agency a "Notice of Intent to Convert." This finding may be waived where the applicant can demonstrate, to the satisfaction of the Planning Commission or City Council on appeal, that the applicant has made reasonable efforts to obtain necessary income information from a majority of the permanent residents in the park and has been unable to do so.
F. 
The applicant has not engaged in coercive action toward the residents, such as an unreasonable rent increase, after submission of the first application for City review through the date of approval. In making this finding, consideration may be given to:
1. 
Rent increases at a rate greater than the rate of increase in the Consumer Price Index (Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers, Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim Average, all items, as published by U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics) unless provided for in leases or contracts in existence prior to the submittal of the first application for City review, and
2. 
Any other action by the applicant which is taken against residents to coerce them to refrain from opposing the issuance of the conversion permit including, but not limited to, any violation of Chapter 26.04 of this code. An agreement with residents which provides for benefits to the residents after the approval shall not be considered coercive action.
G. 
That all notice requirements of the City and the state have been met.
H. 
All permanent buildings shall, on the date of change of use, be in compliance with the exit and occupancy requirements and the height and area requirements for the type of construction and occupancy involved as required by the California Building Code as adopted and amended by the City, and other applicable laws.
(Ord. 2585, 1957; Ord. 2763, 1960; Ord. 3710, 1974; Ord. 4269, 1984; Ord. 4275, 1984; Ord. 5451, 2008)