(a) Council shall either approve or reject the urban renewal plan or make modifications in accordance with the recommendations of the City Planning Commission.
Before approving or modifying an urban renewal plan. Council shall hold a public hearing at which an opportunity shall be provided to all persons interested to be heard, either in person or by counsel, which hearing may be adjourned from time to time. Notice of the date, time and place of such hearing shall be published in a newspaper of general circulation in the City once a week for two consecutive weeks, and at least fifteen full days shall elapse between the second publication and the date set for the public hearing. In addition, notice shall be sent thirty days before the hearing by ordinary first class mail to the owners shown on the records of the Auditor of Hamilton County, Ohio for each parcel within the urban renewal district and by first-class mail to any occupant listed in one of the following: the R.L. Polk Directory, the Haines Directory or any similar address directory, for any address contained in the urban renewal district. Such notices shall also contain a description of each project area by its location in relation to highways, streets, watercourses or other natural or artificial boundaries, and shall also designate the place at which the Plan, together with maps, plats and other materials describing the project area are and will be available for public inspection.
(b) If as a result of the public hearing, Council desires to modify the urban renewal plan other than in accordance with such plan approved by or in accordance with the recommendations of the City Planning Commission, the modified urban renewal plan shall be resubmitted to the Planning Commission for its written approval or recommendations within thirty- one days with the presumption of approval thereafter, all in accordance with Section 163.06.
(c) If Council wishes to approve an urban renewal plan, it shall do so by an ordinance passed by majority vote, provided, however, that if such plan or plans, as submitted with such ordinance, have not been approved by the Planning Commission, or if there were any partial disapprovals by or adverse recommendations of the Planning Commission under Ohio R.C. 713.02, not accepted by Council by its modifications of the plan in accordance therewith, then an affirmative vote of two thirds of the members of Council shall be required to pass such ordinance.
The ordinance of Council approving the plan shall be accompanied by, or incorporate by reference, documents submitted to Council to support findings made therein and the ordinance shall include the following findings:
(1) Specific findings of fact as to the character of the project area and that such area is a slum, blighted area, deteriorated or deteriorating area;
(2) That the size of the area and the location of elements of blight and deterioration in the area make it suitable for urban renewal activities;
(3) That if the project to be developed under the plan involves the elimination of current occupied residential housing units, that there are or will be provided in the project area or are available in other areas not generally less desirable in regards to public utilities and public and commercial facilities, at rents and prices within the financial means of the families displaced from the project area, decent, safe and sanitary dwellings equal in number to the number of and available to such displaced families and reasonably accessible to their places of employment.
(4) (This finding is made only if Federal aid is needed.) That financial aid to be provided by the Federal government under its contract is necessary to enable the project to be undertaken in accordance with the plan;
(5) That the plan for the project area will afford maximum opportunity consistent with the sound needs of the locality as a whole for the rehabilitation or redevelopment of the project area by private enterprise;
(6) That the plan is feasible and conforms to the existing general or master plan for the overall development of the City as prepared by the Planning Commission pursuant to Ohio R.C. 713.02;
(7) That the plan gives the consideration to the provision of adequate park and recreational areas and facilities, as may be desirable for neighborhood improvement with special consideration for the health, safety and welfare of children residing in the general vicinity of the site covered by the plan;
(8) (This finding is to be made only if the project area is not predominantly residential in character and is not to be redeveloped for predominantly residential uses.) That the redevelopment of the project area for predominantly nonresidential uses is necessary for the proper development of the community.
(9) That the urban renewal plan will afford maximum opportunity consistent with the sound need of the community as a whole for the redevelopment of the project area by private enterprise; provided, if the project area or a substantial portion thereof consists of open land to be acquired by the City; such open land shall not be so acquired unless:
A. If it is to be developed for residential uses for low or medium priced private or public housing, Council shall determine that a shortage of housing of sound standards and design which is decent, safe and sanitary exists in the City; that the need for housing accommodations has been or will be increased as the result of the project area; that the conditions of blight in the project area and the shortage of decent, safe and sanitary housing cause or contribute to an increase in and spread of disease and crime and constitute a menace to the public health, safety, morals and welfare, and that the acquisition of the open land for residential uses is an integral part of and essential to the program of the City; or
B. If it is to be developed for nonresidential uses, Council shall determine that such uses are necessary and appropriate to facilitate the proper growth and development of the City in accordance with sound planning standards and local community objectives, and that the acquisition of such open land may require the exercise of governmental action as provided in this chapter because of difficult or unusual condition of site, deficiencies or ownership, tax delinquencies, improper certifications, outmoded street patterns, obsolete platting, deterioration of site, economical disuse, unsuitable topography or faulty layouts, or the need for correlation of the area with the other areas of the City by streets and modern traffic facilities, or any combination of such factors or other conditions which retard development of the area.
(10) (This finding is to be made only where an open space land program is involved.) That the land and the interests in land to be acquired are for the purpose of preserving such area as open space land and are necessary to orderly long-range development, to curb urban sprawl and the spread of urban blight and deterioration, to encourage more economical and desirable urban development and to provide areas for parks, playgrounds, parkways, conservation areas, water sheds, and to preserve natural resources, and that the area so to be acquired is of a size and character appropriate for such purposes.
(11) (This finding is to be made only where an educational institution or a hospital is located in or near the project area and it is desired to utilize Section 112 of the Housing Act of 1949; as amended.) That, in addition to the elimination of slums and blight from such area, the undertaking of an urban renewal project in such area will further promote the public welfare and the proper development of the community:
A. By making land in such area available for disposition, for uses in accordance with the urban renewal plan, to such educational institution or hospital for redevelopment in accordance with the use or uses specified in the urban renewal plan;
B. By providing, through the redevelopment of the area in accordance with the urban renewal plan, a cohesive neighborhood environment compatible with the functions and needs of such educational institution or hospital; or
C. By any combination of the foregoing.
(Ord. 31-2005. Passed 9-13-05.)