Tomorrow Tuesday, January 12, 2010, the Santa Cruz County Planning Department will present to our County Board of Supervisors a proposed program to address your ability to rebuild or remodel your home. This proposal specifically addresses those homes that have become non-conforming as a result of the many changes that have been made over the years to our building ordinances.
PACIFICA, Calif.””Authorities are monitoring two buildings along a crumbling Northern California coastal bluff, just a stone’s throw from an apartment building that was evacuated amid fears it would slide into the Pacific.
The Santa Cruz Planning Commission has now recommended that a “grandfather” clause be added to the Pleasure Point Combining Zone District ordinance. This “grandfather” clause may however only address those properties that will become non-conforming as a result of the Pleasure Point Combining Zone District ordinance.
Responding to some who expressed concern about the proposed regulations, the Planning Commission recommended a handful of small changes to the plan Tuesday, including grandfathering current homeowners who don’t comply, meaning these people can rebuild in the event of natural disaster.
The Santa Cruz County Planning Department is proposing another zoning change that will adversely impact our ability to rebuild existing homes that are destroyed by fire or other natural disasters. These continuing zoning changes are creating a substantial increase in the number of non-conforming properties in all unincorporated areas of the county.
The following Item will be heard at 1:30 PM
Public hearing to consider proposed Pleasure Point Combining Zone District
The proposed project consists of the creation of a new Pleasure Point Community Design (“PP”) Combining Zone overlay district in the Pleasure Point neighborhood, within which special residential development standards would apply. This action will involve rezoning all Single Family (R-1), Multi-Family (R-M), and Parks, Recreation and Open Space (PR) zoned parcels
At the urging of Pleasure Point residents, the county Board of Supervisors last year committed to halting construction of out-of-scale homes and protecting the neighborhood’s gritty, surf-town feel. Next week, planners are expected to introduce rules to honor that commitment.
Wells is the project superintendent of the $6.2 million Pleasure Point seawall project, now taking form between Pleasure Point and 36th Avenue. After he arrived in Santa Cruz from Discovery Bay in April, it didn’t take Wells long to realize how important and delicate this project is to the surf community.
His selection marks the first time in nearly two decades a county resident will have a seat on the powerful regulatory board. The appointment is widely viewed as win for the environmental community, which fought to block a pro-development voice on the panel.
LCP Amendment No. SCO-MAJ-1-08 Part 3 to amend the Local Coastal Program to simplify requirements related to certain smaller scale residentially-related projects, including accessory structures and second units.