1999 AGN MAY 04 I04 - Laserfiche WebLink

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AGENDA REPORT For Council Meeting of May 4, 1999 TO: Honorable Mayor and Council FROM: City Attorne SUBJECT: Windmill Moratorium Urgency Ordinance DATE: May 4, 1999 Background: Recently, the City revoked the building permit of a property owner who constructed a power generating windmill on property zoned for residential use. The City's revocation of the permit was premised on ambiguities in the City's Zoning Code and different legal interpretations regarding the City's authority to issue such permits in a residential zone. In order to give staff sufficient time to study regulatory and zoning standards for the approval of future requests to construct power generating windmills and similar structures that generate power from harnessing wind, it is necessary to adopt an urgency moratorium ordinance prohibiting their approval. California Government Code, §65858 authorizes cities to enact land use moratoriums for the purpose of prohibiting land uses that may conflict with contemplated land use policies and regulations which the city is studying or intends to study within a reasonable period of time. Adoption of a moratorium must be based on findings that the issuance of additional permits for development threatens the public health, safety or welfare. Thus, the urgency ordinance prohibiting the issuance of land use approvals and permits for power generating windmills and similar structures that generate power from harnessing wind contains findings detailing the threats to public health, safety and welfare including the following: L Power generating windmills and similar structures that generate power from harnessing wind can be large, obtrusive structures that must be properly located and secured to assure they do not fall over and cause personal and property damage; 2. Power generating windmills and similar structures that generate power from RVPUB\A4XIvL508756 Item # 4