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HomeMy WebLinkAbout05/18/2010, C8 - UNREINFORCED MASONRY BUILDING HAZARD MITIGATION DEADINE SUSPENSIONS AND AMENDMENT OF FAVORABLE FEES council, mxmtD. May 18,2010 j acEnaa nEpom cq CITY O F SAN LUIS OBISPO FROM: Shelly Stanwyck, Assistant City Manager John Mandeville, Community Development Director Prepared By: Claire Clark,Economic Development Manager Tim Girvin, Chief Building Official SUBJECT: UNREINFORCED MASONRY BUILDING HAZARD MITIGATION DEADLINE SUSPENSIONS AND AMENDMENT OF FAVORABLE FEES FOR SEISMIC RETROFIT RECOMMENDATION 1. Approve and authorize the Mayor to sign Seismic Retrofit Agreements with owners of certain Unreinforced Masonry (URM)buildings within the Garden Street Terraces, Naman, and Chinatown Projects as well as the building owned by Springfield Baptist Church in substantial conformance with the Example Agreement attached as approved by the City Manager and City Attorney. 2. Adopt a Resolution suspending enforcement of the deadlines under the Unreinforced Masonry (URM) Hazard Mitigation Program, Ordinance No. 1453 (2004) for certain URM buildings within the Chinatown, Naman, and Garden Street Terraces Projects plus the Springfield Baptist Church located at 2747 Broad Street. 3. Adopt a Resolution amending the City's Master Fee Schedule as to the favorable permit fees for strengthening unreinforced masonry buildings so the favorable fees expire when the seismic retrofit permit expires. DISCUSSION Background In 1997, the City Council set a deadline of 2017 for seismic strengthening of all buildings identified on the Inventory of Hazardous Buildings. Responding to the San Simeon Earthquake and loss of life in Paso Robles, the City Council revised the deadline for seismic strengthening in 2004. The deadline established at that time was July 1, 2010. On February 16, 2010, the Council granted additional time beyond the July 1, 2010 deadline to twelve buildings; five URM buildings in the Garden Street Terraces Project, two in the Naman Project, and four in the Chinatown Project plus 1127 Broad (Springfield Baptist Church) subject to completion of Agreements with the affected property owners. Council concluded that the CSS-� URM Agreements and Related Resolutions Paget buildings in the three large development projects, having complied with City-directed permitting processes spanning years and still being subject to certain unknowns, should be allowed an additional five years, to July 1, 2015, to facilitate bringing these vitality-producing projects to fruition without unduly burdening the projects by requiring seismic retrofits be completed prior to project approvals. In addition, owing to the non-profit ownership status of the Springfield Baptist Church, Council directed staff to allow an additional year for seismic compliance to July 1, 2011. Action and Approvals With this report, staff is returning_ to Council with documents that address the direction given to staff on February 16, 2010. 1. A Seismic Retrofit Agreement format for the three large development projects. Based on an Agreement in substantial conformance with the one shown at Attachment 1, an Agreement will be executed for each of the URM buildings identified with a July 1, 2010 deadline within the three large development projects downtown, namely Chinatown, Garden Street Terraces, and Naman projects. These Agreements will require: a. Hazard mitigation by July 1, 2015. b. Education of occupants of the building about what to do in the event of an earthquake. c. Annual inspections with City Fire Marshall and Building Official.. d. Each project demonstrate continuingprogress in the permitting process. e. Indemnification of the City in the event of earthquake damage. 2. A Seismic Retrofit Agreement format for the Springfield Baptist Church based on an Agreement in substantial conformance with the one shown at Attachment 1. This Agreement will require: a. Hazard mitigation by July 1, 2011. b. Education of occupants of the building about what to do in the event of an earthquake. c. Indemnification of the City in the event of earthquake damage. 3. A Resolution suspending the seismic retrofit deadlines.This Resolution suspends enforcement of the deadlines for specific URM buildings (Attachment 2). Instead of rewriting the Ordinance to change the deadlines for a few buildings, staff proposes this resolution that suspends enforcement of the deadline for a specific period of time for the buildings as described in an Agreement between the building owner and the City. This approach allows the existing deadline to stand and allows enforcement should the projects fail to progress.. 4. A Resolution amending the City's Master Fee Schedule.This Resolution, shown at Attachment 3, adds language so the favorable fees for strengthening unreinforced masonry buildings expire when the seismic retrofit permit expires. The URM permits are unlike other permits in that they stay open well longer than a typical building permit that expires after a year. The URM Ordinance provides that the URM Permit shall remain URM Agreements and Related Resolutions Page 3 valid until required strengthening work is completed by the deadline. With this change to the fee schedule, should a URM permit expire, the favorable fees will expire also. Every effort will be made to work with building owners to avoid permit expiration. Next Steps Staff will continue work with building owners to complete execution of the Seismic Retrofit Agreements. In addition, staff will continue to work with the development teams for the three large projects to encourage progress toward completion of the project and to assure that mitigation of the hazards is a priority. All buildings will be reviewed by the Chief Building Official and Fire Marshall as set forth in the Agreements. In addition, the Springfield Baptist Church will receive all possible assistance from City staff for successful mitigation of the hazard. FISCAL IMPACT The favorable fees have offered a significant incentive to building owners to complete seismic strengthening. However, at this point in the program, increasing the fees to "normal' levels will not generate significant revenues for the City. Allowing the fees to rise to "normal' levels for projects that have failed to comply should incentivize building owners to take appropriate action. ATTACHMENTS 1. Example Seismic Retrofit Agreement 2. Draft Resolution Amending the Master Fee Schedule 3. Draft Resolution Suspending Enforcement of Seismic Deadlines for Specific Buildings ATIACHMEW 1 SAMPLE AGREEMENT Seismic Retrofit Agreement Property Owner: Leslie R. Naman,Trustee, et al. Mailing Address: 2656 SW Vista Avenue Portland, OR 97201 Property Address: 1029-1033 Chorro Street San Luis Obispo, CA 93401 Telephone: 503-226-6345 The City of San Luis Obispo ("City") and Leslie R. Naman, Trustee, et al. ("Property Owner") enter into this Agreement as of May_, 2010. Recitals: 1. On February 16, 2010, the City Council of the City of San Luis Obispo reviewed Unreinforced Masonry Building seismic retrofit deadlines and extended certain deadlines based upon defined criteria. 2. Leslie R. Naman, Trustee, Et al., is the owner of real property located at 1029-1033 Chorro Street, San Luis Obispo, CA 93401 3. City Council granted additional time to the above-referenced property for completion of the seismic retrofit subject to the requirement that the Property Owner execute an agreement to be recorded against the property memorializing the obligations of the Property Owner in consideration for the additional time. 4. The above-referenced Property Owner wishes to avail him or herself of the additional time and voluntarily enters into this Agreement in order to obtain the benefits of suspension of enforcement of the previously adopted seismic retrofit deadline that would otherwise apply to his or her property. Agreement: A. City Deadline Suspension. The City of San Luis Obispo hereby agrees to suspend enforcement of the deadline for abatement of the hazard created by the building(s) occupying the above-referenced Property from July 1, 2010 until July 1, 2015. B. Property Owner Obligations. In consideration of the City's suspension of enforcement of the abatement deadline, Property Owner hereby agrees to perform the following: CE- f ATTACHMENT t 1. Complete all required seismic retrofit and/or hazard abatement work no later than July 1, 2015. 2. Provide written verification to the City that the Property owner has developed and distributed, no later than thirty (30) days after the execution of this Agreement, an informational package for tenants, employees and occupants of the building informing them of earthquake hazards and requiring that they review and acknowledge earthquake safety guidelines available through FEMA, the California Seismic Safety Commission or the Structural Engineers Association of Southern California (SEASOC)' Al\ 3. Provide an annual information package to tenants and make-available to all tenants and their employees earthquake safety guidelines available through FEIYIA, the California Seismic Safety Commission, or SEASOC about what to do in the event,of an earthquake. 4. Allow building access and participate in an annual assessment of the building with the Chief Building Official and the Fire Marshall. W,lere possible, ;include the project Ne -building. in the annual review of safety at :buildi\ng.� 5. Demonstrate continuation of progress'toward hazard abate entby the timely submission and processing of development`or other'permit applications through the City's development review process. In tlieyevent that it is determined a project for which an extension has been granted has faiied,to�progress\the,Property Owner shall be notified in writing and given a reasonable time'frame,m which to resume progress. In the event the Property Owner fails to—resume progress in-the time provided, the Building Official shall order completion oPfiie-full_retrofit oNhe building to begin within forty-five (45) days of the determination that tlie\project has; failed to progress. Said full retrofit shall be completed within nine (9) months. Thb-Community Development Director shall have the authority to determine if a prof ct,hasstopped progressing and his determination shall be final. C. Ind mnification�1Property Owner shall to the fullest extent permitted by law indemnify, defend ;iand hold harmless the City of San Luis Obispo, and any and all of its employees, officials, and agents from\and against any and all liability (including liability for claims, suits, actions, arbitration_proceedings, administrative proceedings, regulatory proceedings, losses, expenses or costs of an kind whether actual, alleged or threatened, including attorneys fees and costs, court costs, interest, defense costs, and expert witness fees), where the same arise out of, are a conse udnce-of or are in an way related to, in whole or in art, an partial or full failure q , ., Y Y P Y of the structure identified above, stemming from an earthquake or other seismic event occurring prior to completion of Level B seismic strengthening construction and final approval by the City's Building Division. D. Breach. Failure to perform any condition or to comply with the terms of this Agreement or applicable seismic retrofit laws or regulations, or to complete required seismic retrofit work/hazard abatement consistent with City regulations on or prior to July 1, 2015 shall constitute a breach of this Agreement. 2 C S'S 1 ATTACHMENT 1 In the event of a breach, the injured party shall be entitled to seek any appropriate remedy or damages from a court of competent jurisdiction, including but not limited to specific performance. E. Costs and Attorney's Fees. The prevailing party in any action between the parties to this Agreement brought to enforce the terms of this Agreement or arising out of this Agreement may recover its reasonable costs and attorney's fees expended in connection with such an action from the other party. F. Binding on Successors. Property Owner agrees that this Agreement hall run with the land and be recorded against title to the property and shall be binding,pon and/shall inure to the benefit of,the heirs, assigns, and successors in interest of the parties hereto�<\ ,l/�� G. Severability. If any provision of this Agreement is found by a court o�Jompetent jurisdiction to be void, invalid or unenforceable, the same,4 1 either be reforme )to�comply with applicable law or stricken if not so conformable, so as not to,affect the validity or enforceability of this Agreement. F `c r H. Waiver. No delay or failure to require peerforman e of any p ovision of this Agreement shall constitute a waiver of that provision as to that-oean•y other instance. Any waiver granted by a party must be in writing, and shall apply t&the specific inst nce expressly stated. I. Authority. The party executing this`Aeement represents that s/he is the owner of record and agent with authority-to-enter into,contracts ani to bind any and all other owners or record interest holders in the abovereferenced;`properrty/ G' J. No Third Party Beneficiaries:., There-are no third party beneficiaries to this Agreement and the Agreement is intended only to benefit the City and the Property Owner(s). t Leslie R. Naman,Trustee, et at BY: _ Le'sle'R 'Naman.;_,Trustee!' � ) v City of San Luis Obispo' By: David F. Romero, Mayor Approved as to Form: J. Christine Dietrick City Attorney 3 ATTACHMENT 1 STATE OF OREGON ) ss. COUNTY OF MULTNOMAH ) On May , 2010 before me, personally appeared Leslie R. Naman who proved to me on the basis of satisfactory evidence to be the person(s) whose name(s) is/are subscribed to the within instrument and acknowledged to me that he/she/they executed the same in his/her/their authorized capacity(ies), and that by his/her/their signature(s) on the instrument the person(s), or the entity upon behalf of which the person(s) acted, executed the instrument. I certify under PENALTY OF PERJURY under the laws of the State of Oregon that the foregoing paragraph is true and correct. WITNESS my hand and official seal. (Seal) 4 C91-7- - ATTACHME92 RESOLUTION NO. (2010 Series) A RESOLUTION OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SAN LUIS OBISPO AMENDING THE CITY'S MASTER FEE SCHEDULE FOR PERMIT FEES TO STRENGTHEN UNREINFORCED MASONRY BUILDINGS WHEREAS, it is the policy of the City of San Luis Obispo to review service charges on an ongoing basis and to adjust them as required to ensure that they remain adequate to achieve adopted cost recovery goals; and WHEREAS, in accordance with this policy the Council adopted Resolution No. 10098 on June 16, 2009 updating the City's updated master fee schedule on a comprehensive basis; and WHEREAS, the Council considered amendments to the master fee schedule for permit fees to strengthen unreinforced masonry buildings at a public hearing on February 16, 2010. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the Council of the City of San Luis Obispo that the City's master fee schedule is hereby amended as set forth in Exhibit A, effective July 1, 2010. Upon motion of seconded by and on the following roll call vote: AYES: NOES: ABSENT: the foregoing resolution was adopted on May 18, 2010. Mayor David F. Romero ATTEST: Elaina Cano, City Clerk APPROVED AS TO FORM: Stine Dietrick, City Attorney ATTRCHN2 Exhibit A Amend the BUILDING & SAFETY FEE SCHEDULE to add the language in italics to the existing fees that follow: All fees associated with Seismic Strengthening of Unreinforced Masonry Buildings shall revert to usual Plan Review, Permit and/or Planning services fees when the seismic retrofit permit is deemed to have expired by the Community Development Department following the - deadline for completion of the seismic retrofit. Plan Review Fees: The plan review fee for a permit application that includes seismic strengthening of a building of unreinforced masonry construction shall be $40.00. Amend the BUILDING & SAFETY FEE SCHEDULE to add the following paragraph under Permit Fees—General application: The all inclusive combination permit fee for a construction permit that includes seismic strengthening of a building of unreinforced masonry construction shall be $40.00. Amend the PLANNING SERVICES FEE SCHEDULE to add the following category under OTHER PLANNING SERVICES for Architectural Review: Project with Seismic Strengthening of Unreinforced Masonry Building $40.00 Establish a Fee for Use of Parking Spaces as follows: For construction projects with a valid building permit to strengthen an unreinforced masonry building, the fee for use of each Metered Parking Space, up to three for a maximum of six months, shall be $1.00. ATTACHMENT S RESOLUTION NO. (2010 Series) A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY OF SAN LUIS OBISPO SUSPENDING ENFORCEMENT OF SEISMIC RETROFIT DEADLINES FOR SPECIFIC UNREINFORCED MASONRY BUILDINGS WHEREAS, on September 7, 2004 the City Council adopted changes to its existing Unreinforced Masonry Program (URM) by adopting Ordinance No. 1453 (Series 2004) establishing July 1, 2010 as the deadline for strengthening unreinforced masonry buildings identified on the Inventory; and WHEREAS, on April 3, 2007 the City Council established deadlines for specific buildings based on aggregate hazard reduction and other practical aspects, including progress by large projects within the City permitting process and ownership by not-for-profit entities, by adopting Resolution No. 9890 (2007 Series); and WHEREAS, the deadline established for the buildings identified on the Inventory as 722, 728, and 748 Marsh; 1119 and 1123 Garden all part of the Garden Street Terraces Project, and 1029 and 1035 Chorro all part of the Naman Project, and 840, 848, and 886 Monterey; and 861 Palm, all part of the Chinatown Project, and 2747 Broad is July 1, 2010; and WHEREAS, the three large projects have made diligent progress toward project permitting and are in various stages of the process but without construction documents that allow construction to begin; and WHEREAS, the building at 2747 Broad is owned by a non-profit entity with limited ability to complete the retrofit within the deadline; WHEREAS, the Garden Street Terraces, Naman, and Chinatown Projects continue to progress toward construction but require more time to obtain required permits and construction financing prior to beginning construction, and WHEREAS, the Chamber of Commerce, following careful consideration and recommendation by the Chamber Seismic Task Force, supports the action by Council allowing the Garden Street Terraces, Naman, and Chinatown Projects more time to address the hazard due to the diligent efforts exercised by the owners of these three projects to obtain necessary permits. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the Council of the City of San Luis Obispo as follows: SECTION 1. Subject to the property owners' execution of agreements to secure performance, the City will suspend the enforcement of seismic deadlines as to the URM buildings identified on the Inventory as 722, 728, and 748 Marsh; 1119 and 1123 Garden all part of the Garden Street Terraces Project, and 1029 and 1035 Chorro all part of the Naman Project, and 840, 848, and 886 Monterey; and 861 Palm, all part of the Chinatown Project until July 1, 2015 unless the project fails to progress, in the sole discretion of the Community Development Director. R 0,�'/D ATTACHMENTS Resolution No. (200x Series) Page 2 SECTION 2. Subject to the property owner's execution of an agreement to secure performance, the City will suspend enforcement of the seismic deadlines as to the URM Building identified as 2747 Broad Street until July 1, 2011. Upon motion of seconded by and on the following vote: AYES: NOES: ABSENT: The foregoing resolution was adopted this 18th day of May 2010. Mayor David F. Romero ATTEST: Elaina Cano City Clerk APPROVED AS TO FORM: Christine Dietrick City Attorney Lx- Cg- � �