To: Board of Supervisors
Department or Agency Name(s): Permit Sonoma
Staff Name and Phone Number: Eric Gage, (707) 565-1391
Vote Requirement: Majority
Supervisorial District(s): Countywide
Title:
Title
1:40 P.M. Readoption and Extension of Sonoma County Code Chapters 40, 40A, 40C, and 40D
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Recommended Action:
Recommended action
Permit Sonoma recommends that the Board find the ordinance exempt from CEQA and adopt the attached ordinance readopting with amendments and extending the sunset date of Sonoma County Code Chapters 40 (Sonoma Complex Fire Disaster Recovery), 40A (Kincade Fire Disaster Recovery), 40C (LNU Lightning Complex Disaster Recovery), and 40D (Glass Incident Disaster Recovery).
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Executive Summary:
Following the October 2017 Sonoma Complex Fires, 2019 Kincade Fire, and 2020 LNU Lightning Complex and Glass Incident Fires, the Board of Supervisors adopted multiple ordinances to assist recovery and rebuilding efforts. These ordinances are contained within Chapters 40, 40A, 40C, and 40D of the Sonoma County Code, which will expire on December 31, 2022, unless extended by the Board of Supervisors. Permit Sonoma recommends extending most provisions in Chapters 40, 40A, 40C, and 40D, for an additional two years because rebuilding efforts, which have been delayed due to high construction costs and the COVID-19 pandemic, remain ongoing. On November 10, the Planning Commission held a public hearing on this item and adopted a resolution recommending that the Board approve the draft ordinance. The recommended modifications to the Disaster Recovery Chapters are outlined in this report.
Discussion:
During and immediately after the October 2017 Sonoma Complex Fires, the Board of Supervisors adopted several urgency ordinances to assist rebuilding and recovery and provide for additional housing options for disaster survivors. Together, these ordinances were codified in a new Chapter 40 (Sonoma Complex Fire Disaster Recovery) within the Sonoma County Code.
In response to the Kincade Fire in 2019, the Board approved the Kincade Fire Disaster Recovery Ordinance as Sonoma County Code Chapter 40A, which includes provisions similar to those in Chapter 40 to support fire recovery.
In 2020, the Board approved the LNU Lightning Complex Disaster Recovery Ordinance and the Glass Incident Disaster Recovery Ordinance, creating Chapters 40C and 40D respectively to address recovery efforts.
In 2019, the Board adopted Ordinance No. 6289, amending Chapter 40 and extending its expiration to December 31, 2021. In 2021, the Board approved Ordinance No. 6362, extending the expiration of both Chapter 40 and Chapter 40A to December 31, 2022. Chapters 40C and 40D are also set to expire on December 31, 2022.
The attached draft ordinance includes the following amendments to Sonoma County Code Chapters 40, 40A, 40C, and 40D:
1. Continue Chapters 40, 40A, 40C, and 40D for an additional two years to facilitate the rebuild effort (Sections 40-4; 40A-5; 40C-5; 40D-5).
2. Discontinue provisions prohibiting new short-term rentals within the burn areas (Sections 40-47; 40A-47; 40C-47; 40D-47).
These amendments are discussed below.
Extend Recovery Provisions. The County has experienced four fire disaster events in since 2017, the 2017 Sonoma Complex Fire, the 2019 Kincade Fire, the 2020 Lightning Complex Fire, and the 2020 Glass Fire. The total number of parcels with structures destroyed by fire is 2,532, and the total number permits issued for rebuilding dwelling units is 1,582. The remaining approximately 37% may be rebuilt, sold, or left vacant. The extension of the ordinances will support and encourage the ongoing rebuild efforts.
Fire survivors who have chosen to rebuild often experience delays because of the shortage of contractors and materials stemming from other wildfire rebuilding efforts across the state. Other reasons for delay include outstanding insurance claims, high construction costs, and delays due to the weather. The COVID-19 pandemic has also contributed to supply chain disruption, job loss, and economic uncertainty throughout the county. For these reasons there is still a need for the disaster recovery provisions to remain in effect.
Secondary housing displacement has exacerbated the need for these disaster recovery provisions. The recovery provisions of Chapters 40, 40A, 40C, and 40D apply to displaced persons who suffered a direct loss of their home in the fire events since 2017. While the initial displacement from the fires continues to be an important factor because of the delays in rebuilding, continued or secondary displacement remains an additional factor. The diagram below illustrates how market demand for housing following a disaster results in the secondary displacement of residents. Extension of Chapters 40, 40A, 40C, and 40D serve to ensure that persons secondarily displaced have access to interim housing solutions.
Staff recommends a two-year extension of these recovery provisions to allow adequate time for those remaining fire-damaged lots to rebuild. During this two-year period Permit Sonoma staff have been directed to return to your Board to present changes to the zoning code to allow for the use of tiny homes as temporary housing. Staff do not anticipate for there to be conflict between a countywide ordinance to allow for the temporary use of tiny homes and the extension of the fire recovery provisions.
Discontinue Vacation Rental Restrictions. The Board’s moratorium currently restricts new vacation rentals throughout the unincorporated county. To avoid confusion and potential conflict with implementation of the vacation rental ordinance update, the proposed ordinance does not carry forward restrictions on vacation rentals in fire burn areas.
The project was analyzed under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and the CEQA Guidelines. Staff has determined that the project is exempt under CEQA Guidelines §15301, exempting the maintenance, operation and/or permitting of existing facilities; Guidelines § 15302, exempting projects involving replacement or reconstruction of existing structures on the same site and having substantially the same purpose and capacity as the structure replaced; Guidelines § 15303, exempting construction of limited numbers of new, small facilities or structures and the conversion of existing small structures from one use to another; Guidelines § 15305, exempting minor alterations in land use limitations in areas with an average slope of less than 20% which do not result in any changes in land use or density; and CEQA Guidelines §15061(b)(3), because it can be seen with certainty that there is no possibility that the action proposed may have a significant effect on the environment.
Strategic Plan:
N/A
Prior Board Actions:
The Board adopted multiple urgency and longer-term ordinances to assist recovery from the Sonoma Complex Fires:
• Ordinance No. 6210 on 10/24/2017
• Ordinance No. 6213 on 11/07/2017
• Ordinance No. 6215 on 12/12/2017
• Ordinance No. 6248 on 10/23/2018
• Ordinance No. 6290 on 11/05/2019
• Ordinance No. 6325 on 09/15/2020
• Ordinance No. 6329 on 12/31/2022
• Ordinance No. 6362 on 12/31/2022
Fiscal Summary
Narrative Explanation of Fiscal Impacts:
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Narrative Explanation of Staffing Impacts (If Required):
N/A
Attachments:
Att 1 Ordinance
Att 2 Pre-Adoption Summary
Att 3 Post-Adoption Summary
Att 4 Staff PowerPoint
Related Items “On File” with the Clerk of the Board:
N/A