Hawthorne, CA Zoning Ordinance

The principal purpose of this chapter is to address properties which place a disproportionate burden on police resources due to criminal activity that could otherwise be deterred with reasonable security measures. This chapter ensures that reasonable measures to prevent burglaries, vandalism, theft, robberies, assault, rape, and other crimes of similar nature are addressed in a plan that is reviewed and approved by the chief of police or designated representative.

For purposes of this chapter, the term "commercial development" includes shopping centers, strip malls, mixed use projects, or any other collection of commercial spaces that share parking or have reciprocal easements for parking or vehicular access.

(Ord. 2075 § 3, 2014)

New Commercial Developments. A security plan pursuant to Section 17.78.030 below is required to be submitted to the chief of police prior to issuance of a building permit to construct a multi-tenant commercial development of any size or single-tenant commercial development with ten thousand square feet or more of gross floor area.

Existing Commercial Developments.

An existing commercial development shall be required to submit a security plan pursuant to Section 17.78.030 below if it is determined by the chief of police that the number of calls for service in the previous six months from a commercial development are disproportionately high when compared to other commercial developments in the vicinity or compared to similar commercial developments in the city, subject to the following criteria:

Calls for police service that can trigger this requirement shall include burglaries, vandalism, theft, robberies, assault, rape, homicide and other crimes of similar nature are disproportionately high within the previous six-month period.

The threshold for determining that a commercial development has a disproportionately high volume of calls for police service shall be one hundred twenty percent or more of the average of calls for service within the vicinity or when compared to similar commercial developments in the city.

Alternatively, the chief of police may also require a security plan for an existing commercial development if the severity of an incident or series of incidents requiring police response are deemed by the police chief to warrant the need for a security plan.

The chief of police or designated representative may waive the requirement for a security plan at an existing commercial development if it is determined that a significant portion of the calls for service are generated by private security personnel performing their duty to refer criminal activity to the police department.

(Ord. 2075 § 3, 2014)

Every security plan shall contain the following information:

The addresses and assessor parcel numbers of all properties within the commercial development;

The name, address, contact numbers and email addresses of all property owners within the development;

Name, address, contact numbers and email addresses of all businesses and/or business owners within the development;

A list of all businesses within the development, including name, nature of the business (for example: restaurant, clothing retailer, etc.), hours of operation, size of tenant space, and emergency contact information;

Name and contact numbers of all private security companies providing security services to the commercial development, if known;

A site plan showing all structures, parking areas, loading areas, landscape areas, and entrances to the property;

Floor plans of all tenant spaces showing all entrances/exits, rooms, purpose of each room (for example: office, storage, etc.) and the location of cash registers and safes;

A certification by the chief or police, or designated representative, that the plan was reviewed and approved and the date of said approval;

A certification by the director of planning, or designated representative, that the plan was received and filed with the records maintained by the planning department; and

10.

Procedures for amendment or replacement of the plan, portions of the plan, or specific information/provisions contained within the plan.

Other content of the security plan for any particular commercial development will be specifically tailored to the needs of that development relative to anticipated or actual criminal activity in that development. Security plans may be required by the chief of police to include, among other things, provisions that address the following:

On-site private security guards, their number, hours of operation and responsibilities;

Security cameras, their number, placement, and how video is stored and for how long;

Lighting, type, placement and maintenance;

Landscaping;

Signage;

Alarm systems; and

Procedures to handle various types of criminal activity that may occur.

A security plan may be required to be updated or revised to address any of the following:

New criminal threats not previously or adequately addressed by the plan;

A surge in criminal activity that pushes the development above the threshold described in Section 17.78.020;

New technologies becoming available or becoming reasonably affordable that more effectively address criminal threats currently addressed by other means in the plan; and

At the request of property and/or business owners of or within the commercial development, a modification to portions of the plan if less costly or more easily maintained preventative measures are feasible and it can be demonstrated that calls for police service in the previous six month period were below seventy-five percent of the average for the vicinity or when compared to similar commercial developments within the city.

(Ord. 2075 § 3, 2014)

Upon determining that a commercial development is subject to this chapter based on the number of calls or severity of incidents, the chief of police shall notify the property and/or business owners of the commercial development and any other persons or entities having control of the premises. The notice shall specify the calls and/or incidents upon which the determination is based. The notice shall require commercial development to provide to the chief of police a draft security plan pursuant to Section 17.78.030 that addresses the public safety issues identified. The plan shall also include a method of and a commitment to implement the final plan. The written notice shall include a deadline for response of not more than fourteen days. Upon the written request by the business owner(s) or property owner(s) submitted before the expiration of the time for a response, the chief of police may, in writing, grant an extension of the time in which a response is required.

The chief of police, or designated representative, shall review the draft security plan and determine if the draft plan is sufficient to address the identified public safety issues. If the chief of police determines that the suggested plan is sufficient to address the identified safety issues, the chief of police shall approve the plan, a copy sent to the planning department to file, and no further action will be taken, provided, that the suggested plan is implemented.

If the chief of police determines that the proposed plan is not sufficient to address the identified safety issues, or if no response is received, the chief of police shall develop a plan to address the identified safety issues. This plan may include any reasonable changes in the design, operation, hours of operation, etc., as necessary, and may specifically include a requirement for the provision at no cost to the city of on-site private security officers employed by a private security operator or private security service. The chief of police shall notify the business or property owners in writing of the plan, and shall specify a reasonable deadline for compliance.

Commercial developments may be charged by the city for the cost of all calls for service to the location if they fail to comply with this chapter by:

Failing to respond to the initial notice from the chief of police; or

Failing to comply with any plan approved or imposed by the chief of police pursuant to this chapter. The rate of charge shall be determined by the city based on direct and indirect personnel, equipment, and other costs of calls to the location.

(Ord. 2075 § 3, 2014)

Person(s) aggrieved by any determination of the chief of police may file an appeal with the city manager. Said appeal must be made in writing and specify the grounds for the appeal. Said appeal must be provided to the city clerk no later than thirty days from the police chief's written determination. The person(s) aggrieved may present any evidence in support of their appeal. The city manager will hear the appeal no later than sixty days from the written appeal. The appeal may be heard in public at the request of the person(s) aggrieved. The decision of the city manager shall be final.