A. No person shall demolish, remove or make alterations affecting the exterior appearance of any designated landmark or significant structure or historic district, in whole or in part, without first obtaining a Certificate of Appropriateness or a Certificate of Exemption. The requirement and process for obtaining a Certificate of Appropriateness shall depend on the category of exterior alteration proposed.
1. Major exterior alterations. Prior to the issuance of any City permit required for a proposed major exterior alteration, as defined in § 15.05.010, a Certificate of Appropriateness application, signed by the owner, shall be filed with the Planning Manager, with a complete copy provided to the Community Development Director. The Planning Manager shall submit the application to the Planning Commission at its next regularly scheduled meeting, which is not more than sixty (60) working days after receipt of the completed application. The application and analytic materials prepared by the Planning Manager shall include any input provided by the Cultural Affairs Division staff. The Planning Commission shall approve, conditionally approve or disapprove the application within thirty (30) working days. If the Planning Commission does not disapprove or conditionally approve the application within thirty (30) working days, or for good cause does not extend the time for action, the application shall be deemed approved.
2. Minor exterior alterations. Prior to the issuance of any City permit required for a proposed minor exterior alteration, as defined in § 15.05.010, a Certificate of Appropriateness application, signed by the owner, shall be filed with the Planning Manager. The Planning Manager shall submit the application to the Community Development Director. The Community Development Director shall approve, conditionally approve or disapprove the application within thirty (30) working days. If the Community Development Director does not disapprove or conditionally approve, the application within thirty (30) working days, or for good cause does not extend the time for action, the application shall be deemed approved.
3. Incidental exterior maintenance. While no Certificate of Appropriateness shall be required for incidental exterior maintenance work, as defined in § 15.05.010, the owner is required to notify the Planning Manager of the work proposed to be performed prior to commencement. The Planning Manager shall verify that such work qualifies as incidental exterior maintenance work, and that no further requirements of this Chapter apply, as follows:
a. When the proposed incidental exterior maintenance work requires a building permit, the building permit plan check review and approval process shall be deemed to constitute the Planning Manager's verification.
b. When the proposed incidental exterior maintenance work does not require a building permit, a written statement describing the proposed work shall be submitted by the owner, and the Planning Manager shall indicate the required verification thereon.
B. The approval of a Certificate of Appropriateness shall be conditioned upon all exterior alterations complying with the U.S. Secretary of Interior's Standards for Rehabilitation and Guidelines for Rehabilitating Historic Buildings, as the City Council, Planning Commission or Community Development Director determines appropriate, and with the California State Historic Building Code and Cal. Health & Safety Code §§ 18950 et seq., as amended, as applied to the project by the Building Official. In addition, before approving a Certificate of Appropriateness, the Community Development Director, the Planning Commission or the City Council shall make one or more of the following findings:
1. The proposed alteration would not detrimentally change, destroy, or adversely affect any exterior feature or appurtenance of the landmark or significant structure upon which the work would be done.
2. In the case of the proposed alteration to a structure within a historic district, the proposed work would not be incompatible with the exterior features or other improvements within the historic district, and would not adversely affect the character of the historic district.
3. In the case of any proposed alteration that includes construction of new improvements on the site of a designated structure or district, the exterior features of such new improvements would not adversely affect or be incompatible with the exterior features of the designated cultural resource.
4. In the case of an application to demolish a structure, that there has been compliance with the waiting period and good faith efforts prescribed by the provisions of this Code.
C. In the event the Planning Commission or Community Development Director determines that the proposed alterations would have an adverse impact, one of the following two courses of action shall be taken:
1. Either the Certificate of Appropriateness shall be disapproved; or
2. Up to a six (6) month waiting period shall be imposed during which the owner shall try to identify, and the Planning Commission or Community Development Director shall evaluate, ways to accomplish the owner's goals and to preserve the designated structure. If at the end of the waiting period, the Planning Commission or Community Development Director determines that the owner has acted in good faith but no acceptable way to meet the owner's goals and preserve the structure has been found, one of the following shall occur:
a. If the structure is designated significant, the Certificate of Appropriateness shall be approved; but
b. If the structure is designated landmark, the Certificate of Appropriateness shall be disapproved.
D. No permits for alterations to a nominated landmark or significant structure shall be issued, nor shall any alteration be done, until a final designation decision has been made and a Certificate of Appropriateness, where required, has been approved.
('65 Code, § 38-7) (Ord. No. 91-005 § 1 (part); Ord. No. 91-018 § 1; Ord. No. 94-017 § 4; Ord. No. 2002-005 §§ 1 (part) and 2 (part); Ord. No. 2002-007 § 1 (part); Ord. No. 2003-019 § 1 (part); Ord. No. 2004-004 § 1 (part))