(a) Special Permit: No person or entity shall operate a group home in the City without first obtaining a special permit therefor. Such special permit shall be applied for through the City Manager. Only group homes of the types and kinds described herein will be permitted.
(b) Contents of Application: The application submitted to the City Manager must show that the proposed group home meets the standards and guidelines set forth in Section 1185.03
, and shall include the names and addresses of all owners of property abutting the lot on which the proposed group home is to be located. In the event that the proposed group home does not meet the standards and guidelines, the application must expressly identify each standard or guideline which the proposed home does not meet, and state the reasons that such failure to meet a standard or guideline does not have a negative impact on the community.
(1) Site plan. A site plan for the proposed group home shall be submitted to the City Manager for review. Such plan shall show the boundary lines of the lot; the location, dimensions and uses of any structures on the lot; the location, dimensions and uses of structures on contiguous lots; the distance in feet from structures on contiguous lots and from other group homes; all walks, drives and parking areas; all landscaping existing and proposed; and all proposed modifications to any structures on the lot. A statement from the applicant with respect to how the group home does or will comply with the Zoning Code requirements shall be filed with the site plan.
(2) Operating plan. Any application for a group home shall also include an operating plan. Such plan shall include the name and background of the licensee of the home; the ownership of the property and terms of lease or rental, if any; the name of the sponsoring organization; the names of persons on the advisory committee; the nature of services to be provided by the home; the number of residents and the nature of their disabilities; the number of resident staff and their qualifications; the number of nonresident staff and volunteers on each shift; the number of shifts; anticipated traffic for such purposes as deliveries, off-premises therapy, visitation by nonresident therapists, etc.; the approximate annual cost of operation; and funding plans for such operation.
(c) City Manager's Review:
(1) The City Manager shall review any application submitted to determine whether it contains the necessary information as required in Section 1185.03 and this section.
(2) The City Manager or his designee shall examine the property to determine if it is suitable for such use under the group home, building, sanitation, and fire laws of the City, County, and State, and the regulations set forth therein.
(3) The City Manager or his/her designee shall evaluate the safety of access to the property by streets and public sidewalks, availability of on-street parking, placement of driveways, speed and density of existing traffic and accessibility of public transportation.
(4) The City Manager shall determine whether the requisite licenses have been issued, or will be issued in due course, by the appropriate State or County certifying agencies.
(5) In the case of an initial application, if the required detailed plans have been furnished, and if the application is otherwise properly submitted, the City Manager shall forward the application to the Planning Commission for a report regarding the application.
(d) Planning Commission:
(1) The Planning Commission shall visit the site to determine whether the plan of the proposed group home will meet the standards and guidelines set out in Section 1185.03 and whether the group home will have a negative impact on the community or be injurious to the public health, safety or general welfare of the community and of the residents and property owners in the vicinity of the proposed home.
(2) The Planning Commission shall review the design of a proposed new structure and the remodeling of an existing structure to determine whether the structure will be feasible for permitted uses within the district in the event that the group home is discontinued, and will not be detrimental to the area because of substantial differences in materials, exterior design or site development with other structures in the area.
(3) The Planning Commission may recommend conditions or restrictions upon the construction, location and operation of the group home as shall be deemed necessary to secure the general objectives of this chapter and the Zoning Code and to insure that such home will not have a negative impact on the community.
(4) The Planning Commission shall issue a written report thirty days after receipt by the chairman of the Planning Commission of the application from the City Manager. The City Manager shall forward such report, along with the group home application, to City Council. The City Manager shall arrange for City Council to visit the location.
(e) City Council:
(1) Before considering the issuance or renewal of a special permit for a group home, City Council shall hold a public hearing. City Council shall give thirty days notice of the time and place thereof in a newspaper of general circulation in the City, and shall notify by ordinary mail all owners of property abutting the lot to be used for the proposed group home at least fifteen days prior to the date of such public hearing. City Council shall consider the standards and guidelines established in this chapter, the group home application, evidence presented at the public hearing, and the Planning Commission's report in making its determination. City Council shall have the right to request additional information to assist it in making its determination herein.
(2) City Council may issue a special permit only if the group home does not, by nature or by reason of the requirements imposed by this chapter, have a negative impact on the community. In making this determination, City Council shall consider the following factors:
A. Effect on property values;
B. Impact on the community of permitting a group home to be located in that particular location;
C. Location and number of other group homes in the City;
D. Need to maintain neighborhood characteristics;
E. Needs of the residents of the community;
F. Needs of the residents of the proposed group home;
G. Effect on the public peace, health, safety, morals, and welfare.
(3) If City Council determines that a special permit for a group home should be issued, it shall so instruct the City Manager to issue the special permit.
(4) City Council shall have the right to waive any provision of the standards and guidelines as set forth in Section 1185.03, provided that such waiver will not have a negative impact on the community or be injurious to the public health, safety or general welfare of the community and of the residents and property owners in the vicinity of the proposed home.
(Ord. 12-2012. Passed 10-15-12.)