Upon the initiation of designation proceedings, any alteration, restoration, reconstruction, relocation, rehabilitation, stabilization, or demolition, in whole or in part, of a proposed landmark or a property located in a proposed historic district is prohibited, and no permits shall be issued by any city department, board, or commission, including, but not limited to, a conditional use permit, a tentative tract map or tentative parcel map permit, a development review permit, any administrative approval, design review approval, or architectural review approval. No building permit authorizing any alteration, restoration, reconstruction, relocation, rehabilitation, stabilization, or demolition shall be granted while a property or historic district is being considered for nomination by the commission or designation by the city council, or any appeal related thereto is pending. Pending permit applications may be processed, but no final action shall be taken until after the conclusion of all designation proceedings and the expiration of all periods for appeal or city council review thereof.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, the director may waive the hold on building permits if the director determines that proposed work would not alter any of the character defining features of a subject property, or that the work would comply with the secretary of the interior's standards. The director may also issue permits to mitigate or eliminate an imminent threat to the public health, safety, and welfare.
If, in a final decision, the commission decides not to nominate a property or geographical area for designation as a landmark or historic district, as the case may be, or the city council decides not to designate a nominated property or geographical area as a landmark or historic district, as the case may be, then, after all periods for appeal or city council review have expired, the temporary prohibition on the issuance of a permit to alter, restore, reconstruct, relocate, rehabilitate, stabilize, or demolish the proposed landmark, or the properties within the proposed historic district, shall terminate, and, upon the issuance of such permits, alteration, restoration, reconstruction, relocation, rehabilitation, stabilization, or demolition may proceed. (Ord. 15-O-2682, eff. 11-19-2015)