The purpose of this chapter is to provide the city, project applicants and the public with the procedures to be used in administering the city's responsibilities under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), codified as Public Resources Code Section 21000, et seq. as amended ("the statutes"). The procedures are intended to protect both local and regional natural resources in a manner that is consistent with the goals and policies of the Anderson general plan.

(Ord. 679 § 1 (Exh. 1 (part)), 1998)

The full text of the State CEQA Guidelines ("the guidelines") as amended is incorporated by reference into this chapter, as if fully set out herein, and shall supersede any inconsistent provisions of these city environmental review procedures. These environmental review procedures supplement the State CEQA Guidelines adopted as California Code of Regulations, Title 14, Section 15000 et seq. In the event there is a conflict between the Public Resources Code and the CEQA Guidelines, the Public Resources Code shall govern.

(Ord. 679 § 1 (Exh. 1 (part)), 1998)

A.

Specifically incorporated herein are the definition sections of the Public Resources Code (Sections 21060 through 21069) and of the State CEQA Guidelines contained in Sections 15350 through 15387.

B.

The list of defined terms in Chapter 17.04 of the city's zoning code under Title 17 of the city Municipal Code is expanded by reference to include the definitions contained in the Public Resources Code and the State CEQA Guidelines.

(Ord. 679 § 1 (Exh. 1 (part)), 1998)

A.

The community and economic development director shall determine whether an application for a permit or other entitlement for use is complete within thirty calendar days from the receipt of the application. If no written determination of the completeness of the application is made within that period, the application shall be deemed complete on the thirty-first day.

B.

When reviewing the application for completeness, the community and economic development director shall identify environmental issues that might require preparation of a negative declaration, a mitigated negative declaration, or an environmental impact report (EIR) or may require additional information or explanation by the applicant. An applicant for a project shall not be accepted as complete by the community and economic development director until all the information necessary for environmental review has been submitted.

C.

Accepting an application as complete does not limit the authority of the city to require the applicant to submit additional information needed for environmental evaluation of the project.

(Ord. 679 § 1 (Exh. 1 (part)), 1998)

A.

Ministerial Projects. Projects which are determined to be ministerial, as defined in Section 15268 of the State CEQA Guidelines, are exempt from CEQA.

B.

Statutory and Categorical Exemptions. Statutory exemptions deal with projects for which exemptions from CEQA have been granted by the State Legislature as described in Article 18 of the State CEQA Guidelines. Categorical exemptions deal with projects which have been determined to have no potential for significant effect on the environment as described in Article 19 of the State CEQA Guidelines, the following is a list of specific activities which fall within the categorical exemption classes and are considered exempt by the city. This list should not be construed as inclusive and is subject to interpretation by the director of community and economic development, the planning commission, or the city council.

1.

Existing Facilities (Section 15301 of CEQA).

a.

Use permits as outlined under Chapter 17.50 of the Anderson Municipal Code;

b.

Home Occupation permits as outlined under Chapter 17.60 of the Anderson Municipal Code;

c.

Zoning exceptions;

d.

Animal permits.

2.

New Construction or Conversion of Small Structures (Sections 15302 and 15303 of CEQA).

a.

Use permits as outlined under Chapter 17.50 of the Anderson Municipal Code;

b.

Administrative sign permits as outlined in Chapter 17.44.

3.

Minor Alterations to Land (Section 15304 of CEQA).

a.

Grading and clearing permits as exempted under Chapters 12.12, 12.20 and 16.26 of the Anderson Municipal Code;

b.

Administrative parcel maps.

4.

Minor Alterations in Land Use Limitations (Section 15303 of CEQA).

a.

Variances which do not result in any potential environmental impacts;

b.

Abandonments which do not result in any potential environmental impacts.

C.

Notice of Exemption. When the community and economic development director determines that a project is categorically or statutorily exempt from CEQA, and the city approves or decides to carry out a project, the director may file a notice of exemption. Within three months after determining that a project is exempt from CEQA, the city shall act on the permit application for that project. The notice of exemption may be prepared in accordance with Section 15062 and Supplementary Document Q of the CEQA Guidelines.

1.

Filing of Notice of Exemption. The community and economic development director may file the notice of exemption with the county clerk of Shasta County. Copies of the notice may also be available for public inspection at the community and economic development director.

2.

Statute of Limitations. If requested, notices of exemption shall be mailed to requesting parties provided that the request is made within the thirty day posting period of the notice. Mailing of the notices starts a thirty-five day statute of limitation period on legal challenges to the city's decision that the project is exempt from CEQA. If a notice of exemption is not filed, a one hundred eighty-day statute of limitation will apply.

(Ord. 679 § 1 (Exh. 1 (part)), 1998)

A.

Environmental Review Committee. An environmental review committee, composed of the community and economic development director, the public works director, and the chair of the planning commission or designee, may review initial studies, approve draft negative declarations, and determine the need for an EIR. Meetings of the committee shall be noticed seventy-two hours in advance and public hearings before the committee shall be noticed as required by local and state law.

B.

Initial Study. If it is determined that a project is not exempt and is subject to CEQA, the community and economic development director shall complete an initial study to determine whether a negative declaration, mitigated negative declaration, or environmental impact report (EIR) is to be prepared. If the director determines that an EIR clearly will be required for a project, an expanded initial study may be conducted to better focus the EIR on important environmental issues.

The initial study report shall be a written environmental determination in the form of an initial study checklist on file with the community and economic development director and is in compliance with Section 15063 of the CEQA Guidelines. If necessary, an extended initial study may be prepared to document the factual basis for the finding in a negative declaration that a project will not have a significant effect on the environment. Thresholds of significance shall be determined as based on CEQA, the Anderson general plan, and other regulatory documents or permit requirements. The extended initial study may also discuss methods to mitigate any potentially significant effects of the proposed project and provide a discussion regarding consistency with existing zoning, general plan and other applicable land use regulations.

Upon completion of an initial study or expanded initial study, the community and economic development director or environmental review committee shall make an environmental determination as to whether a draft negative declaration or a mitigated negative declaration, or environmental impact report is to be prepared.

(Ord. 679 § 1 (Exh. 1 (part)), 1998)

A.

Upon selection of the appropriate environmental determination, the community and economic development director staff shall prepare a draft negative declaration for a project when the initial study demonstrates that there is no substantial evidence that the project will have a significant effect on the environment.

B.

Where the community and economic development director determines that a project may have a significant effect on the environment, the director may propose modifications to the project which would mitigate the potential effects to a level of "less than significant." If such mitigation measures are agreed to in advance by the project proponent and are incorporated into the project or made a condition of the project, the community and economic development director may prepare a draft mitigated negative declaration.

C.

As required by Section 20191 of the Public Resources Code, the community and economic development director shall provide at least a twenty-calendar day public review period for a draft negative declaration or mitigated negative declaration from the date the notice of intent to adopt is postmarked. When a negative declaration or a mitigated negative declaration is submitted to the state clearinghouse for review by state agencies, the review period shall not be less than thirty calendar days from the date the document is distributed by the clearinghouse. Pursuant to the provisions of Public Resources Code Section 20191 of the statutes, the community and economic development director is authorized to request a shortened review period. The proposed negative declaration or a mitigated negative declaration shall be kept on file at the office of the community and economic development director to provide an opportunity for public review.

D.

The public notice of availability of a proposed negative declaration or a mitigated negative declaration shall be mailed to all property owners within three hundred feet of the exterior property boundaries of the subject property using the ownership names and addresses from the latest available Shasta County tax assessor rolls. The notice shall contain the name of the applicant, the location of the project, a brief description of the project, the location where the proposed negative declaration or a mitigated negative declaration can be reviewed, and the date ending the public review period.

E.

Prior to approving a project, the city shall consider the proposed negative declaration or a mitigated negative declaration together with any comments received during the public review period. The city shall approve the negative declaration if it finds, on the basis of the initial study and comments received, that there is not any substantial evidence that the project will have a significant effect on the environment.

F.

With a private project, the negative declaration or a mitigated negative declaration must be completed and ready for approval within one hundred five calendar days from the date when the city accepted the application as complete. The city shall act on permit applications for projects for which a negative declaration or a mitigated negative declaration has been prepared within three months after the negative declaration is approved.

G.

After the city decides to carry out or approve a project for which a negative declaration or a mitigated negative declaration has been approved, the community and economic development director may file a notice of determination with the Shasta County clerk within five working days. The contents of the notice of determination shall comply with Section 15075 of the State CEQA Guidelines. Notices of determination shall be mailed to requesting parties if such request is made within the thirty-calendar day statute of limitations on court challenges to the approval under CEQA. If a notice of determination is not filed by the city with the county clerk, a one hundred eighty-day statute of limitation will apply.

(Ord. 679 § 1 (Exh. 1 (part)), 1998)

A.

Initiation. Upon completion of the initial study and a determination by the community and economic development director that the EIR is required, the director shall initiate the EIR process as described in this chapter. The EIR process should be consolidated, to the extent possible, with the existing planning, review and approval process.

B.

Notice of Preparation. Upon a determination by the city that an EIR is required, the community and economic development director shall prepare a notice of preparation (NOP) pursuant to Section 15082 of the State CEQA Guidelines. The director may require the project proponent to provide information necessary for preparation of the NOP.

The community and economic development director shall send the NOP to each responsible or trustee agency. In addition the community and economic development director may identify other relevant groups or agencies and distribute the NOP to these groups. The director shall use either certified mail or other method of transmittal which provides a record that the NOP was received. A period of thirty calendar days from the receipt of the NOP shall be provided for comment. When one or more state agencies will be a responsible agency or a trustee agency, the director shall send an NOP to each state responsible agency and trustee agency with a copy sent to the state clearinghouse.

C.

Issues in an EIR. During or subsequent to the NOP review period, a meeting may be convened by the community and economic development director. The meeting shall involve representatives from pertinent agencies, in order to clarify and focus the issues to be addressed in the draft EIR.

D.

Preparation of the Draft EIR. When an EIR is required for a project, the community and economic development director shall be responsible for preparation of the draft document. The draft EIR may be prepared by an environmental consultant in a format specified by the city. If environmental documentation is prepared under contract to the city, the contract shall be executed within forty-five days of the determination that the environmental documentation is required.

E.

Acceptance of the Draft EIR for Circulation. Upon completion of the draft EIR, the consultant for the EIR shall submit a specified number of copies of an administrative draft for review by the community and economic development director. The director shall review the administrative draft and make changes as necessary to reflect the independent judgment of the director and to ensure that the document adequately and objectively discloses any potential environmental effects of the proposed project.

This review should be conducted within fourteen calendar days of the date of submittal of the draft EIR. Where corrections or changes are found necessary by the director, a revised administrative draft shall then be prepared. As soon as the revised draft EIR is prepared and accepted by the community and economic development director as adequate under CEQA, a specified number of copies of the circulation draft EIR, together with one original copy, shall be filed with the director.

(Ord. 679 § 1 (Exh. 1 (part)), 1998)

A.

Any draft EIR accepted by the community and economic development director shall comply with the content requirements of Sections 15120 through 5131 of the CEQA Guidelines. The draft EIR shall also include a mitigation monitoring and reporting program as required by Chapter 21081.6 of the Public Resources Code.

B.

Notice of Completion. Upon acceptance of the draft EIR by the community and economic development director, a notice of completion shall be filed with the state clearinghouse pursuant to Section 15085 of the CEQA Guidelines.

(Ord. 679 § 1 (Exh. 1 (part)), 1998)

A.

Public Review. The community and economic development director shall provide at least a thirty-calendar day public review period for a draft EIR. If a state agency is a responsible or trustee agency, the public review period shall not be less than forty-five calendar days unless a shorter period is approved by the state clearinghouse.

The community and economic development director shall provide notice of the public review for the draft EIR upon filing of the notice of completion with the state clearinghouse per Section 15087 of the State CEQA Guidelines. Direct notice shall be given to all organizations or individuals who have previously requested such notice. If a state agency is a responsible or trustee agency, ten copies of the draft EIR shall be provided to the state clearinghouse.

Comments received as part of the public review should be in writing and should focus on environmental issues related to the project and adequacy of the EIR. The community and economic development director may schedule a public hearing before the environmental review committee or the planning commission during or upon completion of the public review period for the purposes of receiving public comments on the draft EIR. The public hearings may be held at the regular time and place of planning commission meetings, or they may be held at another established place and time convenient to that portion of the general public most interested in the project for which the public hearing is being conducted.

B.

Response to Comments on a Draft EIR. The community and economic development director shall evaluate comments on environmental issues received during the noticed public review period and shall prepare written responses. The responses shall comply with the requirements described in Section 15088 of the CEQA Guidelines. The response to comments may take the form of revisions to the draft EIR, or may be a separate section of the final EIR.

All comments received either in writing or as summarized in minutes of public meetings shall be retained by the community and economic development director for a period of at least three years following certification of the final EIR for the subject project.

(Ord. 679 § 1 (Exh. 1 (part)), 1998)

A.

Preparation. The community and economic development director shall prepare the final EIR in accordance with Section 15132 of the State CEQA Guidelines.

B.

Certification of the Final EIR. Prior to action on the project, the final EIR shall be presented to the planning commission or city council. At least ten days prior to certifying an EIR, the city shall provide a copy of its written responses to comments to any public agency that submitted comments during the review period. The city shall certify that the final EIR has been completed in compliance with CEQA and that the decision-making body has reviewed and considered the information contained in the final EIR pursuant to the findings of Sections 15090 and 15091 of the State CEQA Guidelines.

C.

Adoption of Findings. The city shall not approve or carry out a project for which an EIR has been prepared which identifies one or more significant environmental effects, unless one or more written findings is made for each of those significant effects. Possible findings are described in Section 15091 of the State CEQA Guidelines.

D.

Decision on a Project. After considering the final EIR and in conjunction with making findings under Section 15091 of CEQA, the city may decide whether or how to approve or carry out the project. Permit applications for projects for which an EIR has been prepared shall be acted upon within six months after the EIR is certified. The city shall not decide to approve or carry out a project for which an EIR was prepared unless either:

1.

The project as approved will not have a significant effect on the environment; or

2.

The city has:

a.

Eliminated or substantially lessened all significant effects on the environment, where feasible, as shown in findings under Section 15091 of CEQA,

b.

Determined that any remaining significant effects on the environment found to be unavoidable under Section 15091 of CEQA are acceptable due to overriding concerns as described in Section 15093 of CEQA.

E.

Statement of Overriding Considerations. If the city determines that the benefits of a proposed project substantially outweigh the unavoidable adverse environmental effects, the city shall make a statement of overriding considerations in approving the project. The city shall state specific reasons to support its action based on the certified final EIR and additional evidence if presented for the record.

F.

Time Limits. With a private project, the city shall complete and certify the final EIR within one year after the date the project application was accepted as complete. An unreasonable delay by an applicant in meeting requests by the city necessary for the preparation of an EIR shall suspend the running of the time period for the period of the unreasonable delay. Alternatively, the city may disapprove a project application where there is unreasonable delay in meeting requests. The city may allow a renewed application to start at the same point in the process where the application was when it was disapproved.

G.

Notice of Determination. The city shall file a notice of determination (NOD) with the Shasta County clerk following project approval for which an EIR was prepared. The notice shall be prepared in accordance with Section 15094 of the State CEQA Guidelines. If a state agency is a responsible or trustee agency, the NOD shall also be filed with the state clearinghouse.

H.

Statute of Limitations. Notices of determination shall be mailed to requesting parties if such request is made within the thirty-day posting period of the notice. Mailing of the notices starts a thirty-day calendar day statute of limitations on court challenges to the approval under CEQA. If a notice of determination is not filed with the county clerk by the city, a one hundred eighty-day statute of limitations will apply.

I.

Final EIR Distribution. Within fifteen calendar days after certification of a final EIR, a copy of the final EIR shall be available for review or sale at the community and economic development director for a reasonable amount of time. The city shall provide a copy of the certified final EIR to each responsible agency.

(Ord. 679 § 1 (Exh. 1 (part)), 1998)

A.

As required under Section 12081.6 of the Public Resources Code, the city shall establish monitoring or reporting procedures for mitigation measures adopted as a condition of project approval in order to mitigate or avoid significant effects on the environment. A mitigation monitoring/permit compliance program shall be on file with the community and economic development director as adopted by city council resolution.

B.

The mitigation monitoring/permit compliance program shall describe the purpose, policy and procedure that the city follows for a discretionary project. A checklist shall be included which shall reference the mitigation measure to be monitored, the agency and/or person responsible for monitoring, and dates for the commencement and completion of the mitigation.

C.

Draft monitoring programs for projects for which an EIR is prepared shall be included in the draft EIR. The monitoring plan shall be subject to the same public review and comment accorded all other portions of the EIR. The final monitoring plan shall be adopted as part of the CEQA findings for the subject project.

A monitoring program for a mitigated negative declaration shall be attached to the document as a supporting exhibit if the monitoring program is deemed necessary.

D.

Where the city's monitoring or reporting activities demonstrate that mitigation measures are not being implemented, the director shall notify the project applicant of the specified areas of noncompliance and request immediate correction. Where good faith negotiation with the applicant does not result in compliance with the mitigation measures, the city shall take appropriate enforcement action, including issuance of stop-work orders.

(Ord. 679 § 1 (Exh. 1 (part)), 1998)

Any determination or decision made by the community and economic development director pursuant to these environmental review procedures may be appealed to the planning commission by any person aggrieved or affected by such determination or decision. Such an appeal shall be made by filing a written appeal with the community and economic development director within ten calendar days after the decision or determination. The written appeal shall set forth the grounds upon which the appeal is based. The planning commission shall act on the appeal within thirty days of the date of the filing of written appeal.

Where an appeal is made on the decision of a project, the planning commission or city council may also review the environmental document prepared for the project; however, the environmental document need not be recertified if the appeal is not based on issues of the environment (for definition of "environment" refer to Section 15360 of the CEQA Guidelines).

(Ord. 679 § 1 (Exh. 1 (part)), 1998)

A.

An applicant for a private project, which is determined not to be exempt from the provisions of CEQA, shall pay environmental review fee at the time of application as set by city council resolution. It is the intent of the city council that this fee be interpreted to include costs complying with the CEQA process with the exception of the cost for EIR preparation and processing as set by city council resolution.

B.

If the determination is made that an EIR must be prepared for a private project, the applicant proposing the project shall pay the EIR processing fees as set by city council resolution. The environmental review fee shall be credited to the EIR processing fee. The EIR processing fee shall cover the estimated costs incurred by the city in reviewing and processing the EIR. The fees shall be payable prior to review of the first draft EIR by staff of the community and economic development director.

C.

To guarantee that the city has the resources to carry out the mitigation monitoring and reporting program, the planning commission or city council may require the project proponent to post a cash bond or other specific assurity acceptable to the city attorney at the time the project is approved or is to be carried out. The assurity would be used to cover the cost of staff time in meeting the requirements of a mitigation monitoring and reporting program. The assurity would be posted with the city treasurer and all accrued interest would be used to cover administrative handling by the city. Upon completion of the monitoring program, any unused portion of the assurity would be returned to the project proponent.

D.

The community and economic development director shall establish the costs to purchase each EIR. The cost shall cover reproduction, storage, mailing and handling costs.

(Ord. 679 § 1 (Exh. 1 (part)), 1998)