This district is intended to create, preserve and enhance areas of unusual civic significance requiring special design treatment and consideration of aesthetic and functional relationships to surrounding development.

(Ord. 668 § 4 (part); Ord. 635 § 14A.1, 1965)

This district, if applied, shall be combined with any other district. The regulations of the S-1 district shall be supplementary to the regulations applying in the district with which it is combined.

(Ord. 668 § 4 (part); Ord. 635 § 14A.1, 1965)

No building, structure, sign or other facility shall be constructed, altered or painted a new color in this district until plans for such work shall have been approved pursuant to the procedure contained in Section 17.26.050.

(Ord. 668 § 4 (part); Ord. 635 § 14A.3, 1965)

In considering an application for design review the following criteria shall be applied:

A.

That the proposed development shall serve to achieve a group of buildings or other facilities which will be well related one to another and which, taken together, will result in a well-composed urban design, with consideration given to site, height, arrangement, texture, material, color and appurtenances, the relation of these factors to other buildings and facilities in the immediate area, and the relation of the development to the total setting as seen from key points in the surrounding area. Only elements which have some significant relationship to outside appearance shall be considered;

B.

That the proposed development shall be of a quality and character which harmonizes with, and serves to protect the value of, private and public investments in the area.

(Ord. 668 § 4 (part); Ord. 635 § 14A.4, 1965)

A.

Application for design review shall be made upon a form to be provided by, and shall be submitted to, the city planning division, and shall be accompanied by such information as may be required to allow applicable design review criteria to be applied to the development. This information shall include site and building plans, drawings and elevations, landscaping plans, exterior material and color samples, and operational data, as necessary. The application for design review shall be accompanied by a fee as fixed by resolution of the city council.

B.

Preliminary plans: An application which does not include detailed information and plans on ultimate development, but which is sufficiently detailed and complete to permit a decision to be made under this procedure, shall be accepted as a preliminary application.

C.

When approval is granted upon the basis of a preliminary application, a final application shall be submitted to the city planner prior to application for a building permit or business license, for determination that the final application coincides in all essential respects with the approved preliminary application. If the city planner finds that it does not so coincide, he shall require such modification in the final application as will cause it to so coincide. When he considers the final application to coincide with the approved preliminary application, the city planner shall so certify to the building inspector or the finance director, as the case may be.

D.

The city planner shall determine if the proposed design conforms to all the criteria set forth in this chapter. When deemed necessary or advisable by the city planner, he may refer any application to the city planning commission for hearing and action in accordance with the provisions in this chapter.

E.

Any application not referred to the city planning commission pursuant to subsection (D) of this section, and which has been approved by the city planner, shall be submitted to the city council within three days of such approval. The city council shall act on said application within twenty-one days of its receipt by the city council.

1.

The approval of the city planner shall become a final decision pursuant to the provisions of subsection (F) of this section, if the city council fails to act within the twenty-one days, subject to the provisions of subsection (E)(3) of this section.

2.

The council may disapprove said application in whole or in part, and the determination of the city council shall be the decision of the city planner pursuant to subsection (F) of this section.

3.

The city council, by four-fifths vote of its members, may extend the twenty-one day period set forth in this section, for an additional period of time up to fourteen days, but only one such extension shall be allowed.

F.

The decision of the city planner shall become final and effective seven days after date of mailing notice of decision to the applicant or any other party who has filed a written request for notice with the city planner.

(Ord. 1146 § 27, 1991; Ord. 668 § 4 (part); Ord. 635 § 14A.5, 1965)

A.

Any applicant or party who has filed a request for notice with the city planner shall have the right to appeal the decision of the city planner to the planning commission in writing prior to said decision becoming effective and final.

B.

The commission shall hold a public hearing on any such appeal. Notice of such public hearing shall be given in the manner as provided for by Section 65.854 of the Government Code of the State of California.

C.

In considering such an appeal, the commission, using the design review criteria set forth in the section, may approve or disapprove the proposed design, or require such changes as are in its judgment necessary to carry out the general purposes of this title. The determination of the commission shall become effective seven days after the date of mailing of decision unless appealed to the city council in accordance with the procedure set forth in Section 17.26.070.

(Ord. 668 § 4 (part); Ord. 635 § 14A.6, 1965)

Within seven days following the date of mailing the decision by the planning commission under Section 17.26.060, an appeal may be taken to the city council by the applicant or any other interested party. An appeal shall be made in writing and shall be filed with the city clerk. Upon receipt of such appeal, the city council, at its next regularly scheduled meeting, following receipt of such appeal, shall set the matter for hearing pursuant to Section 65.856 of the Government Code of the State of California. The city council may affirm, reverse, or modify the decision of the planning commission and may impose such conditions as the facts warrant. The decision of the council shall be final.

(Ord. 668 § 4 (part); Ord. 635 § 14A.7. 1965)