This Chapter provides procedures and requirements for the preparation, filing, and processing of applications for the land use permits required by this Development Code.

(§ 5, Ord. 1085, eff. January 6, 2006)

Table 5-1 (Review Authority) identifies the City official or body responsible for reviewing and making decisions on each type of application, land use permit, and other approvals required by this Development Code.

(§ 5, Ord. 1085, eff. January 6, 2006)

When a project requires a concurrent legislative action, such as a General Plan Amendment or a Zoning Map Amendment, as well as one or more permits under this Chapter, the final decision shall be made by the Council on all of the components, after a recommendation by the Commission.

TABLE 5-1 - REVIEW AUTHORITY

Notes:

(1) "Recommend" means that the review authority makes a recommendation to a higher decision-making body; "Decision" means that the review authority makes the final decision on the matter; "Appeal" means that the review authority may consider and decide upon appeals to the decision of an earlier decision-making body, in compliance with Chapter 9-76 (Appeals); and "Issued" means the Director is authorized to grant the nondiscretionary permit.

(2) The Director may defer action on permit applications and refer the items to the Commission for the final decision.

(3) Projects including affordable units are recommended to the City Council by the Planning Commission.

(§ 5, Ord. 1085, eff. January 6, 2006, as amended by § 2 (part), Ord. 1139, eff. February 9, 2009; § 2 (Exh. A), Ord. No. 1183, eff. March 15, 2012, and § 4 (Exh. A), Ord. No. 1207, eff. March 28, 2013)

The preparation and filing of applications for land use permits, amendments (General Plan, Development Code, and Zoning Map), and other matters pertaining to this Development Code shall comply with the following requirements.

A.

Preapplication review.

1.

A prospective applicant or agent is strongly encouraged to request a preapplication review with the Department before completion of project design and the formal submittal of a permit application.

2.

A request by an applicant for preapplication review, accompanied by preliminary project plans and designs and the required filing fee, will be reviewed by affected City departments and other selected agencies.

3.

The reviewing City staff members will identify specific requirements as they apply to the proposed development project, provide a preliminary list of issues that will likely be of concern during formal application review (e.g., degree of compliance with the General Plan and this Development Code), suggest possible alternatives or modifications to the project, identify additional required information, and indicate probable environmental reporting requirements under CEQA.

4.

When the preapplication review is completed, the City staff will send the applicant a written report which will include a specific evaluation of the proposed project, primarily focusing on the issues identified in Subsection (A)(3), above.

5.

Neither the preapplication review nor information or pertinent policies provided by the Department shall be construed as a Department recommendation for approval or disapproval of the application or project.

B.

Application, contents and fee.

1.

Applications shall be filed with the Department.

2.

An application shall not be accepted for filing and processing unless it conforms to the requirements of this Development Code and the information required by the Department for the specific type of application (e.g., Conditional Use Permit, Planned Development Permit, Variance, etc.), contained in a complete and accurate form the required materials and information prescribed by the forms supplied by the Department, and is accompanied by the appropriate fee(s) required by the City's Schedule of Service Charges.

3.

The content of applications shall be determined by the Department and as identified in Chapter 9-52 (Permit Review, and Approval or Disapproval). Site plans and elevations in color, floor plans, and samples of exterior building finishing materials may be required as part of the permit application.

C.

Eligibility, filing. All land use permit and other applications required by this Development Code shall be made by:

1.

The owner of the subject property;

2.

A person authorized by the property owner to file the application on behalf of the subject property owner; or

3.

The Director, upon initiation by the Council.

D.

Filing date. The filing date of an application shall be the date on which the Department receives the last submission, map, plan, or other material required as a part of that application by Subsection A, in compliance with Section 9-50.060 (Initial Application Review) and deemed complete by the Director.

(§ 5, Ord. 1085, eff. January 6, 2006)

A.

Filing fees required.

1.

The Council shall, by resolution, establish a schedule of fees for amendments, entitlements, and other matters pertaining to this Code, referred to as the City's Schedule of Service Charges.

2.

The schedule of fees may be changed from time to time only by resolution of the Council.

3.

The City's processing fees are cumulative. For example, if an application for a Parcel Map also requires a Variance, both fees shall be charged.

4.

Use of independent consultants.

a.

The City staff may, after conferring with the applicant and with the approval of the City Manager, refer any application to an independent and qualified consultant for review and evaluation of those issues deemed to be beyond the expertise of City staff.

b.

The costs for all consultant work shall be borne by the applicant with joint concurrence of the applicant and City Manager and are independent of the fees paid to the Department for processing of the requests.

5.

Processing shall not commence on an application until all required fees and deposits have been paid.

6.

Without the application fee, or a deposit if appropriate, the application shall not be deemed complete.

7.

The City is not required to continue processing any application unless additionally required fees and deposits (e.g., additionally required "real cost" deposits) are paid in full.

8.

Failure to pay the applicable fees or deposits is grounds for disapproval of the application.

B.

Fee exemptions. A filing fee shall not be charged or collected for any application or appeal filed by:

1.

A Council Member, when the application or appeal has been signed by at least two Council Members;

2.

A Commissioner, when the application or appeal has been signed by at least two Commissioners; or

3.

The City Manager (or designee).

C.

Refunds. Recognizing that filing fees are utilized to cover City costs of public hearings, mailing, posting, transcripts, and staff time involved in processing applications, no refunds due to a disapproval are allowed.

(§ 5, Ord. 1085, eff. January 6, 2006)

All applications filed with the Department in compliance with this Development Code shall be initially processed as follows.

A.

Completeness review. The Director shall review all applications for completeness and accuracy before they are determined to be complete in compliance with Section 9-50.040(B) (Application contents and fee), above.

1.

Notification of applicant.

a.

No later than 30 days of the filing date of the application (as defined in Section 9-50.040(D), the City shall determine in writing whether the application is complete and has been accepted for processing, or that the application is incomplete and that additional information, specified in the letter, shall be provided to make the application complete. The City shall immediately transmit the determination to the applicant.

b.

Failure of the Director to respond within 30 days of submittal of an application with a determination as to completeness shall be deemed a determination that the application is complete.

c.

If an applicant is notified that a submitted application is incomplete, the time used by the applicant for preparation and submittal of the required additional information shall not be considered part of the period within which the Director shall complete the determination of completeness.

d.

Submittal of the additional Director-requested information shall establish a new 30-day period for a determination of completeness.

2.

Waiver of content.

a.

The Director may find that unusual characteristics of a project site or the nature of a project make it infeasible or unnecessary for the applicant to submit all of the information for an application required by this Development Code.

b.

In these cases, the Director may waive or reduce the content requirements if it is also found that the absence of the information will not reduce the ability of the Director to evaluate the compliance of the proposed project with the standards of this Development Code.

3.

Appeal of determination of completeness.

a.

Appeal of Director's determination.

(1)

If the Director determines that an application is incomplete, the applicant shall have the right to appeal that determination to the Commission by submitting a letter to the Commission within 14 days of the notice of incompleteness, in compliance with Chapter 9-76 (Appeals).

(2)

The applicant's letter shall clearly state the reasons why the applicant believes the application is complete.

(3)

Appeals included within this Subsection may also include appeals where it is alleged by the appellant that the Director erred in refusing to accept or process an application for failure to pay outstanding fees and charges in compliance with the City's Schedule of Service Charges. In hearing and deciding an appeal of the Director's determination, the Commission shall consider the correctness of the amount of the outstanding fee or charge, and whether the fee or charge is owed by the appellant, if the issues are raised by the appellant.

b.

The Commission shall make a decision on the appeal of the Director's determination.

c.

The applicant shall have the right to appeal the Commission's decision to the Council by submitting a letter to the City Clerk within 14 days of the Commission's decision.

d.

The Council shall make a decision on the appeal of the Commission's decision.

4.

Environmental information. The Director may require the applicant to submit additional information needed for the environmental review of the project in compliance with Section 9-50.070 (Environmental Assessment), below.

5.

Application deemed withdrawn. If the applicant does not provide the additional information required in compliance with Subsection (A)(1), above, within 90 days after the date of the letter requesting the additional information, the Director may consider the application withdrawn if the Director determines that reasonable progress toward completion of the application has not occurred, unless an appeal of the Director's determination has been filed in compliance with Chapter 9-76 (Appeals). Application processing shall not resume thereafter until a new application is filed, including fees, plans, exhibits, and other materials that are required for any project on the same site.

6.

Violations on the site.

a.

The Director shall not find the application complete, and shall not process or approve the application, if conditions exist on the site in violation of this Development Code or any permit or other approval granted in compliance with this Development Code, except for an application for a permit or entitlement that includes correction of the violation.

b.

The Director's authority under this Subsection shall apply whether:

(1)

The current applicant was the owner of the subject property at the time the violation occurred; or

(2)

The applicant is the current owner of the subject property with or without actual or constructive knowledge of the violation at the time of acquisition of the subject property.

c.

The Director's decision may be appealed in compliance with Chapter 9-76 (Appeals).

B.

Referral of application. At the discretion of the Director, or where otherwise required by this Development Code, State, or Federal law, any application filed in compliance with this Development Code may be referred to any public agency that may be affected by or have an interest in the proposed land use activity.

C.

Development Advisory Committee meeting. Before an application is deemed complete by the Director, a Development Advisory Committee (DAC) meeting may be held among various governmental agencies (City Departments, Fire District, School District, Recreation and Parks District, etc.) to review the application with the applicant. This meeting may result in recommendations by affected public agencies for changes to the application.

(§ 5, Ord. 1085, eff. January 6, 2006, as amended by § 2 (part), Ord. 1110, eff. April 6, 2007)

A.

Review under CEQA. After acceptance of a complete application, the project shall be reviewed as required by the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and the Simi Valley Environmental Review Guidelines.

B.

Level of environmental assessment. The City shall evaluate the proposed project to determine the level of environmental assessment which will be required under CEQA.

1.

If the project requires a Negative Declaration (ND) or Mitigated Negative Declaration (MND), that work shall be conducted by the City staff as part of its initial study of the application.

2.

The requirement for an Environmental Impact Report (EIR) may necessitate the employment of an independent and qualified consultant under the direction of the Deputy Director/City Planner with costs to be borne by the applicant.

(§ 5, Ord. 1085, eff. January 6, 2006)