1146.03 PROCEDURES.

   The following procedures must be complied with in order to establish an Overlay District.

   (a)    A petition requesting an Overlay District must be submitted to the City Clerk on forms provided by the City Clerk. The petition requirements are as follows:

      (1)   The petition must clearly describe the specific boundary where the Overlay District is to be located.

      (2)   Each petition must be circulated by a person who owns property within the proposed district and be signed by the circulator.

      (3)   The petition must contain the signatures and addresses of two-thirds of parcel owners within the proper boundary of the Overlay District, exclusive of public property. Jointly-owned parcels will be considered owned by a single person for purposes of petitioning, and any co-owner may sign a petition for such parcel. Only one owner of each parcel will count towards the two-thirds requirement. If a person owns more than one parcel of property within the proposed district, that person may sign the petition for each parcel he or she owns.

      (4)   Each person signing the petition must also enter on the petition, adjacent to their signature, the date the person signed the petition.

      (5)   The petition must accurately advise the signer of the restrictions that would be imposed on the property if the Overlay District is established.

      (6)   The proposed boundary may not overlay a boundary of an existing Overlay Districts or the boundary of an Overlay District that is already the subject of an introduced ordinance pursuant to this section.

      (7)   When submitted, no signature dated earlier than six months prior to the time the petition is filed with the City Clerk shall be counted in determining the validity of the petition.

      (8)   A minimum of ten adjacent parcels must be included in the proposed Overlay District, clearly bounded in a geographically logical way (for example two adjacent block faces, an entire block, a cul-de-sac) that does not cross any physical barrier in a single parcel extension fashion. In no instance shall the proposed boundary create an island surrounded by the proposed district. City Council may waive this minimum number of parcels/structure requirement, but only after a positive recommendation from the Planning Commission.

   (b)   Upon presentation to the City Clerk for review, the Clerk shall verify the signatures on the petition. If an insufficient number of signatures are presented, the Clerk shall return the petition to the person filing the petition and identify the valid and invalid signatures. If sufficient valid signatures are presented, the Clerk shall refer the petition to the Community Development Department, which shall within fifteen (15) days, determine whether the petition is in conformity with the remaining conditions of this section.

      (1)   If the petition is determined to be in conformity with the requirements of this section, the Clerk shall place this petition before the City Council for acceptance by adopting a Resolution to refer this petition to the Planning Commission for recommendations.

Upon receipt of a petition to establish an Overlay District, the Zoning Administrator shall then place this matter before the Planning Commission at the earliest possible meeting date, in accordance with the zoning map amendment procedures set forth in Chapter 1135, Zoning Code Amendment. All procedure set forth in Chapter 1135 shall be followed.

      (2)   Decision Standards for considering Overlay District:

         A.   The proposed Overlay District meets the boundary criteria.

         B.   The proposed Overlay District will preserve and enhance the neighborhood character.

         C.   The proposed Overlay District will promote the public health, safety and general welfare of the people of the neighborhood.

         D.   The proposed Overlay District will promote and implement the intent of the Comprehensive Plan.

         E.   The proposed Overlay District will satisfy a legitimate need.

      (3)   If the petition is not in conformity with the requirement of this section, the Zoning Administrator shall reject the petition and return it to the Clerk with a written explanation as to why the petition does not meet the requirements of this section. The Clerk shall then forward the petition and the explanation to the person who filed the petition.

      (4)   If the petition is rejected for failure to comply with the boundary requirements, it may be resubmitted with the corrected property boundary lines and accompanied by certification that a copy of the petition and written notice explaining the correction of the nonconformity was mailed to each property owner affected by the change, notifying them their property was either added or deleted from the petition and weather the correction to the boundary line means the petition still meets all other requirements of the Code.

      (5)   If the petition is rejected for an insufficient number of valid signatures, it may be resubmitted with the additional signatures necessary for compliance as long as the other signatures remain valid.

      (6)   Any resubmission after the initial petition has been rejected by the City must be filed within 60 days from the date of receipt of the rejection letter from the Clerk. Failure to meet this deadline shall constitute the petition being denied.

   (c)   Subsequent to the petition to establish an Overlay District, the circulator(s) of the petition for the proposed Overlay District or a majority of those persons who signed the petition for an Overlay District may file a written request with the City to table consideration of further proceedings toward the adoption of the Overlay District for 60 days in order to allow the submission of an alternate petition for a different boundary for the Overlay District. After the public hearing, the Planning Commission shall make its recommendations to City Council for legislative action.
(Ord. 3187. Passed 9-18-12.)