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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2104ORDINANCE NO. 2104 AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PALM SPRINGS, CALIFORNIA, AMENDING PALM SPRINGS MUNICIPAL CODE ARTICLE V OF CHAPTER 8.04 OF TITLE 8 REGARDING UNDERGROUNDING OF UTILITIES AND THE FORMATION OF UNDERGROUND UTILITY DISTRICTS City Attorneys Summary This ordinance amends the City of Palm Springs Municipal Code to codify the procedure for the formation of new underground utility districts. WHEREAS, the City's municipal code sets the requirements for installing service wires and lines, including but not limited to certain overhead electrical lines, underground ("undergrounding") for new and existing developments and places the responsibility for compliance on the developer and owner; and WHEREAS, the City supports undergrounding overhead utility wires and poles; and WHEREAS, undergrounding improves public safety by reducing the threat of fire, impacts from earthquakes and high wind events, and also reduces utility company maintenance costs; and WHEREAS, undergrounding improves the aesthetics of the City; and WHEREAS, City residents have expressed interest in voluntarily undergrounding service wires, lines, and poles in their residential communities; and WHEREAS, the cost of undergrounding can range in the tens of thousands of dollars per household, or higher; and WHEREAS, the California Public Utilities Commission ("CPUC") created the Rule 20 program in the 1970s to assist residents and municipalities with financing the cost of undergrounding; and WHEREAS, per CPUC Decision 23-06-008, the Rule 20A program, which promoted municipal undergrounding projects, has been effectively terminated; and WHEREAS, the CPUC left its Rule 20B and Rule 20C programs largely intact; and WHEREAS, Rule 20B programs empower private property owners to support the cost of undergrounding projects in their neighborhoods via the implementation of an assessment district on properties benefitted by the undergrounding project in order to fiscally support the undergrounding effort, with the cost of undergrounding paid over time Ordinance No. 2104 Page 2 and assessed on the property owners' tax rolls; and WHEREAS, under Rule 20B, a small portion of the project (typically between 20% and 40% of total costs) is eligible (though not guaranteed) for reimbursement by the utility service provider, with the reimbursement spread across ratepayers; WHEREAS, the formation of an assessment district must follow the strict requirements of Proposition 218 (Articles XIIIC and XIIID of the California constitution); and WHEREAS, the formation of an assessment district is a multi -stage endeavor, involving an exploratory phase, a petition phase, and a formal vote(s) before the construction phase can begin; and WHEREAS, the formation of an assessment district is guided by the policies and procedures adopted by the governing body of the municipality in which the proposed district would reside; and WHEREAS, the current Palm Springs Municipal Code is silent on the issue of the formation of assessment districts. NOW, THEREFORE, THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PALM SPRINGS DOES ORDAIN AS FOLLOWS: SECTION 1. Recitals. That the recitals reflected above are true and correct, and are incorporated by this reference herein as the cause and foundation for the action taken by the and through this Ordinance. SECTION 2. Code Amendment. Article V, "Undergrounding of Utilities," of the Palm Springs Municipal Code Chapter 8.04 is amended to read in full as follows. New text is marked in underline, deleted text is marked in stFekethroug-h: "Article V. Undergrounding of Utilities. Division 1 — Generally. 8.04.401 New construction. No certificate of occupancy for new buildings or structures shall be issued unless or until all existing and proposed electrical lines of thirty-five thousand volts or less and overhead service drop conductors, and all gas, telephone, television cable service, and similar service wires or lines, which are on -site, abutting, and/or transecting, are installed underground unless specific restrictions are shown in General Orders 95 and 128 of the California Public Utilities Commission, and service requirements published by the utilities Ordinance No. 2104 Page 3 8.04.402 Existing development. (a) Utility lines of less than 35 kV and overhead service drop conductor(s), including all lines on site, abutting and transecting shall be placed underground when existing buildings or structures are remodeled or expanded where the modification increases the building footprint (exclusive of porches and patios) of an existing structure by more than 10 percent for multifamily, commercial and industrial uses and by more than 40 percent for single-family use unless undergrounding is deferred pursuant hereto. Deferral may be permitted by the city engineer under the following circumstances: (1) if the length of line to be undergrounded is less than 300 lineal feet; or (2) if the cost of undergrounding would be excessive in comparison to the value of the improvements being constructed and be a financial hardship; or (3) if there are alternative methods of accomplishing the under -grounding; or (4) there is limited public benefit to the undergrounding. (b) The overhead service drop conductors shall be placed underground when existing buildings or structures are repaired, remodeled or expanded where the value (as determined for building permit fee purposes by the building code of the city) of such repairs or remodeling or expansion in any calendar year exceeds the assessed valuation of the building or structure, or the amount of $20,000.00 whichever is less. The undergrounding of utilities may be waived or deferred by the planning director under the following circumstances: (1) if the cost of undergrounding would be excessive in comparison to the value of the improvements being constructed and be a financial hardship; or (2) if there are alternative methods of accomplishing the undergrounding; or (3) there is limited public benefit to the undergrounding. (c) Wherever in this section deferral of undergrounding is approved, a covenant shall be recorded, running with the land and setting forth the circumstances under which undergrounding shall be required and giving enforcement rights to the city. Among other provisions the covenant shall provide that the covenantor shall waive any right to protest the establishment of any undergrounding assessment district or other area -wide method of funding such undergrounding including any obligation to reimburse other parties for their respective share of such undergrounding cost. The city shall retain the right to underground such utilities and to receive from covenantor their respective share of such cost, and to establish a lien against the property should covenantor not pay such funds following reasonable notice. 8.04.403 Responsibility for compliance. The developer and owner are jointly and severally responsible for complying with the requirements of this chapter and shall make the necessary arrangements with the utility companies to have such facilities, and/or equipment, properly indicated on a site plan to be submitted with the street improvement plans. Ordinance No. 2104 Page 4 8.04.404 Appurtenances. For the purpose of this chapter, appurtenances and associated equipment, such as, but not limited to, transformers and terminal boxes, shall be installed underground, except in those instances where surface -mounted transformers or pedestal -mounted terminal boxes or meter cabinets, concealed ducts, or similar appurtenances are specifically permitted in aboveground locations as approved by both the city and the utility company. 8.04.405 Risers. Risers on poles and buildings are permitted on single lot developments and shall be provided by the developer or owner on the existing pole which services said property. In no such case shall a new pole be installed, unless a hardship exists, in which case, the director of community development, or his representative, may waive this requirement. 8.04.406 Appeal. The decision of the director of community development is appealable to the planning commission. Sections 8.04.407-8.04.449 Reserved. Division 2 — Underground Utility Districts. 8.04.450 Definitions. The following words, terms, and phrases, when used in this division, shall have the meanings ascribed to them in this section, except where the context clearly indicates a different meaning: Commission means the California Public Utilities Commission. Poles overhead wires and associated overhead structures means poles, towers supports, wires, conductors, guys, stubs, platforms, crossarms, braces, transformers, insulators, cutouts, switches, communication circuits, appliances, attachments, and appurtenances located aboveground within a district and used or useful in supplying electric communication or similar or associated service. Underground utility district and district mean that area in the City within which poles overhead wires, and associated overhead structures are prohibited, as such area is described in a resolution adopted pursuant to Section 8.04.452. Utility includes all persons supplying electric, communication, or similar associated service by means of electrical materials or devices. 8.04.451 Adoption of Undergrounding Policies and Procedures. Ordinance No. 2104 Page 5 The City Council mav, from time to time, adopt by resolution those policies and procedures for the exploration, petition, and formation of underground utility districts by interested residents. 8.04.452 Assessment District Formation and Formal Votes (Weighted & Parcel). The City Council shall consider the application and/or petition of the proponents of a proposed underground utility districts, provided such application and/or petition complies with the City's then -current policies and procedures for the formation of underground utility districts. If the City Council approves the formation, it shall adopt a resolution of initiation and direct the city engineer to prepare the required Proposition 218-compliant Engineer's Report identifying the special benefits the proposed undergrounding ro'ect confers to the properties. The Engineer's Repo shall determine the precise assessment amount on each property within the proposed district based upon the specific special benefit conferred upon each parcel, taking into account administrative, design, and construction costs quoted by the participating utility companies as well as financing costs, making allowances for cost overruns. The City Council shall consider the Engineer's Report and may approve it by resolution. In such event, the City Council shall direct the City Clerk to mail assessment ballots to all affected property owners, along with a Notice of Public Hearing, as required by Proposition 218. The ballots shall be printed in such a way as to allow affected property owners to indicate their support for, or opposition to, the proposed assessment. Property owners shall have 45 days to return the ballots, which shall be opened and tabulated at the noticed public hearing. If a majorityy (50% +_1) of the returned assessment ballots are in favor of the project, as weighted by each assessment amount, the City Council will approve a resolution forming the assessment district. Otherwise, the assessment district is not formed. Regardless of whether a property owner voted to approve the formation of the assessment district, upon such formation all owners of property within the newly formed assessment district must make arrangements to pay their assigned portion of the assessment. Property owners may, within thirty days, pay all or a portion of their assessment as calculated in the Engineer's Report and approved by a majority of the returned assessment ballots. Property owners who fail to pay the full amount within thirty days shall be liable for any unpaid amount via bond and a lien on the assessed property. Regardless of whether a property owner voted to approve the formation of the assessment district, the property owner, and their successors or assigns, is responsible for all costs of connection between the assessed real property and the resulting underground utility system, when available." SECTION 3, Effective Date. This ordinance shall become effective 30 days after its adoption. Ordinance No. 2104 Page 6 SECTION 4. Certification. The Mayor shall sign and the City Clerk shall certify to the passage and adoption of this Ordinance and shall cause the same, or the summary thereof, to be published and posted pursuant to the provisions of law. SECTION 5. Severability. If any section or provision of this Ordinance is for any reason held to be invalid or unconstitutional by any court of competent jurisdiction, or contravened by reason of any preemptive legislation, the remaining sections and/or provisions of this ordinance shall remain valid. The City Council hereby declares that it would have adopted this Ordinance, and each section or provision thereof, regardless of the fact that any one or more section(s) or provision(s) may be declared invalid or unconstitutional or contravened via legislation. PASSED, APPROVED AND ADOPTED BY THE PALM SPRINGS CITY COUNCIL THIS DAY OF JANUARY 2025. JR EHARTE MA OR ATTEST: A 'L� RENDA PRE , MMC, CERA CITY CLERK I Li I 0 Ordinance No. 2104 Page 7 CERTIFICATION STATE OF CALIFORNIA ) COUNTY OF RIVERSIDE) ss. CITY OF PALM SPRINGS) I, BRENDA PREE, City Clerk of the City of Palm Springs, do hereby certify that Ordinance No. 2104 is a full, true, and correct copy, and was introduced by the City Council at a regular meeting held on the 21 sT day of November, 2024, and adopted at a regular meeting of the City Council held on the 9th day of January, 2025, by the following vote: AYES: Councilmembers Ready, Bernstein, Mayor Pro Tern Soto, and Mayor deHarte NOES: Councilmember Garner ABSENT: None ABSTAIN: None IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand and affixed the official seal of the City of Palm Springs, California, this day of J ua 202 BRENDA PREE, MMC, CERA CITY CLERK L n 11l