Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout2910 RESOLUTION NO. ~q/O A RESOLUTION of the City Council of the City of Bremerton, Washington, adopting findings of fact and continuing a moratorium on the acceptance of applications for any building, land use, or development permit or approval for Class I and Class II Group Residential Facilities as defined in BMC 22.02.070. WHEREAS, the city's zoning code authorizes the placement of Class I and Class II Group Residential Facilities either as outfight permitted uses or as uses permitted through a special use permit, in certain zones throughout the City; and WHEREAS, the definitions of Class I and Class II Group Residential Facilities as set forth in BMC 22.02.070 are not clear as to some types of uses that may or may not fall into the definitions of those classes of residential facilities and further may provide for some inconsistency when applied to Figure 140 of Chapter 21.02 BMC; and WHEREAS, on September 24, 2003, the City Council adopted Resolution No. 2908 imposing a moratorium barring acceptance for any building, land use, or development permit of approval for Class I and Class II Group Residential Facilities as defined in BMC 22.02.070 within the City of Bremerton until additional review has been completed and any necessary code revisions have been adopted by the City Council on the issue of Class I and Class II Group Residential Facilities; and WHEREAS, RCW 35.63.200 provides that a city adopting a moratorium shall adopt findings of fact immediately after the public hearing held within sixty days of adoption of the moratorium; and WHEREAS, a public heating was held on October 22, 2003, before the Bremerton City Council; and WHEREAS, the City Council has considered comments, materials and public testimony presented and finds it is in the best interest of the City of Bremerton to continue the moratorium for the protection of the health, safety, and general welfare of the community; and WHEREAS, the City Council has also considered the applicability of a moratorium to facilities that house handicapped persons as such are defined under the Fair Housing Act, as amended in 1988 ("FHAA") and believes it is appropriate to exclude such facilities fi.om the application of the moratorium; NOW THEREFORE, THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF BREMERTON, WASHINGTON DOES HEREBY RESOLVE AS FOLLOWS: 1 Group Residential Land Use Moratorium Continuation SECTION 1. Recitals and Finding o_f Fact Incorporated. The recitals and findings of fact set forth in this resolution are hereby incorporated as if fully set forth herein. SECTION2. Findings o£Fact. TheCityCouncilherebyadoptsthe following findings of fact: 1. The City is currently reviewing its policies with regard to the zoning and placement of Claas I and Class II Group Residential Facilities as defined in BMC 22.02.070 in the City of Bremerton; and 2. The City is also considering federal and state laws and regulations to ensure that the City's provisions relating to the placement of Class I and Class II Group Residential Facilities are consistent with federal and state law. With regard to secure transition facilities, which are defined in the Growth Management Act as "essential public facilities," the City's regulations cannot be more restrictive than RCW 71.09.285 through 71.09.340. The City needs time to compare its regulations with state law to ensure compliance, and if inconsistent, to follow the process outlined above for the amendment of its development regulations; and 3. The City is facing the potential of applications for development of Class I and Class II Residential Facilities within the City and the City does not have adequate provisions for the review and consideration of the same; and 4. In order to properly adopt the policies, plans and an ordinance to deal with these facilities the City must have a period of time within which to research its options and prepare an ordinance without the influx of new applications; and 5. The citizens of Bremerton would be well-served if the City more fully addressed and understood the potential impacts in the form of health, safety, economics, hazards to traffic, and aesthetics these facilities impose upon neighboring properties and the community as a whole; and 6. The City needs time to review existing information on the effects of these facilities and to review the Bremerton Municipal Code in a comprehensive fashion to determine what necessary code revisions are necessary to address the impacts of such uses; and 7. The City Council finds that the protection of the health, safety, and welfare supports imposing a moratorium on the acceptance of all applications for any building, land use, or development permit or approval under the Bremerton Municipal Code for Class I and Class II Group Residential Facilities as defined in BMC 22.02.070 within the City of Bremerton until additional review has been completed and any necessary code revisions have been adopted by the Bremerton City Council; and 8. The purpose of this moratorium is to provide time in which the City Council may study its existing code and ordinances, and the impacts of such uses, during this moratorium period; determine what, if any, reasonable regulation is necessary to mitigate the impacts; and prepare for adoption of permissible regulations to regulate such uses. The City needs adequate 2 Group Residential Land Use Moratorium Continuation time to research the issues relating to such uses, to draft ordinances addressing the same, to hold public hearings on such ordinances before the Planning Commission, to accept public testimony on such ordinances and to adopt amendments to the City's Zoning Code addressing the same. 9. Because the Bremerton Municipal Code does not adequately address the placement of these uses and the impacts that these uses may present, the protection of the public health, safety, and general welfare would be jeopardized by the establishment of such facilities prior to a review of the matter or adoption of new regulations by the City Council, therefore the city council finds that an emergency exits; and 10. The City Council has considered the applicability of a moratorium to facilities that house handicapped persons as such are defined under Section 42 U.S.C. 3602 (h) of the Fair Housing Act, as amended in 1988 ("FHAA"), and believes it is appropriate to exclude such facilities from the application of this moratorium. SECTION3. Purpose of Moratorium. The purpose of this moratorium is to allow the City adequate time to research the issues relating to Applications, including dwelling units to be occupied by persons with handicaps, as defined in RCW 36.70A.410 and the Federal fair housing act of 1988 (42 U.S.C. Sec. 3602), to draft ordinances addressing the same, to hold public hearings on such ordinances before the Planning Commission, to accept public testimony on such ordinances and to adopt amendments to the City's Zoning Code addressing the same. SECTION4. Declaration of Emergency. The City Council does declare that an emergency exists in that the acceptance of applications and the issuance of permits for Class I and Class II Group Residential Facilities without adequate study of the impacts of such facilities, the City's regulations relative to the siting and development of the facilities and the consistency of City regulations to federal and state law. SECTION 5. Continuation of Moratorium. Based on the findings of fact adopted in Section 2, the moratorium enacted in Resolution No. 2908 is hereby continued and will remain in effect for a six month period commencing on September 24, 2003. Accordingly, the moratorium shall not expire until midnight on March 23, 2004, unless the moratorium is shortened or extended by action of the City Council or until the effective date of any ordinance establishing new regulations governing Class I and Class II Group Residential Facilities, which ever is sooner. The City Attorney is hereby directed to prepare an ordinance incorporating the findings of the City Council contained herein and further ratifying the enactment and continuation of the moratorium to March 23, 2004. During said moratorium, no building, land use, or development permit or approval shall be issued, nor shall any such permit or application be accepted for any land use permit or approval for Class I and Class II Group Residential Facilities as defined in BMC 22.02.070 within the City of Bremerton. SECTION 6. Exempt_from moratorium. This moratorium shall not apply to applications for dwelling unit(s) which are demonstrated by the applicant to satisfy the definition of a "residential structure occupied by persons with handicaps" in RCW 36.70A.410 and the Fair Housing Act, as amended in 1988 ("FHAA") (42 U.S.C. Sec. 3602). In addition, this 3 Group Residential Land Use Moratorium Continuation moratorium shall not apply to applications for which the City has received a complete application prior to or on September 24, 2003, which is the date this moratorium was adopted. SECTION 7. Severabilitv. If any one or more sections, subsections, or sentences of this Resolution are held to be unconstitutional or invalid, such decision shall not affect the validity of the remaining portion of this Resolution and the same shall remain in full force and effect. SECTION8. Effective Date. This Resolution shall take effect and be in force immediately upon its passage. PASSED by the City Council of the City of Bremerton, Washington this __ day of ., 2003. CAROL AR_ENDS, Council President APPROVED AS TO FORM: ATTEST: ROGER A. LUBOVICH, City Attorney KATHLEEN MCCLUSKEY, City Clerk R:\LEGAL~Rcsolutions\Group Residential Land Use Moratorium Continuation.doc 4 Group Residential Land Use Moratorium Continuation