HomeMy WebLinkAbout1768 ORDINANCE N0. 1768
AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY
OF PALM SPRINGS, CALIFORNIA, AMENDING SECTION
8.70.100 OF THE PALM SPRINGS MUNICIPAL CODE
FOR THE PURPOSE OF ESTABLISHING ON-SITE
STORMWATER RETENTION REQUIREMENTS.
City Attorney Summary
This Ordinance establishes on-site stormwater retention
requirements for new development projects within the City
pursuant to an RWQCB Order.
WHEREAS, the City has adequate legal authority by and through the Palm
Springs Municipal Code and the Riverside County Code to implement and enforce the
legal requirements related to on-site stormwater retention imposed upon the City to date
under Regional Water Quality Control Board (RWQCB) Order No. R7-2008-0001,
consistent with the requirements set forth in the regulations of the Clean Water Act, 40,
Code of Federal Regulations 122.26(d)(2)(i)(A-F), and to the extent permitted by State
and Federal Law and subject to the limitations on municipal action under the California
and United States Constitutions, and
WHEREAS, adoption of an implementing ordinance is a requirement of the
National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) program as an alternative for
the City in lieu of establishing additional Site Design Best Management Practices
(BMP), and it will further allow the City to eliminate developer requirements under the
Riverside County Water Quality Management Plan (WQMP), such as the aforesaid Site
Design BMP, stormwater treatment, and hydromodification; and
WHEREAS, adoption of the implementing ordinance will result in financial
savings to developers and the City as relates to the development and review of WQMP.
THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PALM SPRINGS DOES HEREBY ORDAIN AS
FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Section 8.70.100, Chapter 8.70, Title 8 of the Palm Springs
Municipal Code shall be amended to delete the existing provisions thereof in their
entirety, and replace said provisions as follows:
8.70,100 On-Site Stormwater Retention
(a) When required by the City Engineer, the applicant shall submit hydrology
and hydraulic calculations, and drainage area maps to the City, to determine the
quantity of stormwater runoff generated by a site or tributary to it, as well as its effects
on the site, and to upstream or downstream properties. Erosion and sediment transfer
studies, and other supporting data may be required as determined by the City Engineer.
Ordinance No. 1768
Page 2
(b) Limits of inundation on the subject property during condition of specified
storm frequencies may be required to be delineated on the grading plan, along with the
submittal of supporting calculations.
(c) The use of streets for flood control and drainage purposes may be
prohibited by the City Engineer if the use of the streets is not in the interest of the public
health, safety, and welfare. If the City Engineer permits the use of streets for flood
control and drainage purposes, the 10-year storm frequency design discharge shall be
contained between the tops of curbs or asphalt concrete dikes, and the 100-year storm
frequency design discharge shall be contained within the street right-of-way. The
tributary drainage area for which an applicant is responsible shall extend to the
centerline of adjacent public streets.
(d) On-site stormwater retention requirements for new development and
redevelopment projects in the City of Palm Springs are defined as follows:
(i) A required on-site stormwater retention system shall have sufficient
capacity to contain the volume of stormwater runoff representing the difference between
the existing (undeveloped) condition and the proposed (developed) condition resulting
from the most conservative duration (1-hour, 3-hour, 6-hour, or 24-hour) 100-year storm
(hereafter defined as the "project storm"). This volume of stormwater runoff is defined
as the "incremental volume of stormwater runoff'.
(ii) For single family residential in-fill lots, if a drainage area is 70% or
more developed, individual single family residential projects located on an in-fill lot will
be exempt from the on-site stormwater retention requirements, except in the case of
hillside lots. A "drainage area" is defined as the area within the boundaries of the
separate drainage areas defined on the Master Drainage Plan for the Palm Springs
Area (either "North", "Central", "South", "East", "Southeast", or "Eagle Canyon") or as
may be determined by the City Engineer. Front yards shall drain to the street unless
constrained by the overall lay of the land. Hillside development shall be designed to
retain on-site the incremental volume of stormwater runoff.
(iii) For non-residential (commercial or industrial) in-fill lots, if a
drainage area is 70% or more developed, non-residential (commercial or industrial)
construction projects two (2.0) acres or less in size, will be exempt from the on-site
stormwater retention requirements, except in the case of hillside development. Hillside
development shall be required to retain on-site the incremental volume of stormwater
runoff.
(iv) If an existing retention or disposal site is available and has
adequate capacity to accept the incremental volume of stormwater runoff, an on-site
retention system may be eliminated if a drainage system is provided which adequately
conveys the incremental volume of stormwater runoff to the existing retention or
disposal site as approved by the City Engineer. Such a drainage system shall include a
provision to fully address disposal of nuisance water to the satisfaction of the City
Engineer.
Ordinance No. 1768
Page 3
(v) On-site retention areas shall be clearly shown on site plans to
demonstrate compliance with these stormwater retention requirements. Site plans shall
be designed to ensure that adequate area exists for on-site retention, minimizing the
use of parkway and setback landscaped areas exclusively as retention areas. Parkway
and setback landscaped areas shall balance the need for retention and
community/project design. As a general rule, a maximum of 40% to 50% of any parkway
and setback landscape area may be designed as a retention area. Retention basin side
slopes and depth shall be subject to the approval of the City Engineer.
(vi) In the design of retention facilities, the maximum percolation rate
shall be two inches per hour. The percolation rate shall be considered zero unless the
applicant provides site-specific data that indicates otherwise.
(vii) The site shall be graded to allow stormwater runoff in excess of the
incremental volume of stormwater runoff to flow out of the site through a designated
overflow outlet and into the historic drainage relief route. Stormwater runoff historically
received from adjoining property shall be received and retained on-site, or passed
through to the historic downstream drainage relief route.
(viii) No site design shall cause any increase in flood boundaries, flood
levels, flood duration or flood occurrence in any off-site area.
(e) The civil engineer or design professional responsible for preparation of the
plans shall certify that the building pads to be created through any proposed grading are
free from inundation from stormwater runoff from the project storm, and to provide
floodplain elevations and widths, sheet flow depths, floodway elevation and widths (in
accordance with the Palm Springs Municipal Code Chapter 8.68 for Flood Damage
Prevention), and any other data required by the City Engineer, or by any applicable
county, state, or federal flood protection or insurance program or requirement.
SECTION 2. 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.
SECTION 3. 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 and this Ordinance shall take
effect thirty (30) days after passage.
Ordinance No. 1768
Page 4
ADOPTED THIS 3RD DAY OF FEBRUARY, 2010.
�! /'�' ��
STEPH N P. POUGN T, MAYOR
ATTEST:
?MES THOMPSON, CITY CLERK____._
STATE OF CALIFORNIA )
COUNTY OF RIVERSIDE ) ss.
CITY OF PALM SPRINGS )
I, JAMES THOMPSON, City Clerk of the City of Palm Springs, California, do
hereby certify that Ordinance No. 1768 is a full, true, and correct copy, and was
introduced at a regular meeting of the Palm Springs City Council on the 20th day of
January, 2010, and adopted at a regular meeting of the City Council held on the P day
of February, 2010 by the following vote:
AYES: Councilmember Foat, Councilmember Mills, Councilmember Weigel,
Mayor Pro Tern Hutcheson, and Mayor Pougnet.
NOES: None,
ABSENT: None.
ABSTAIN: None.
mes Thompson, City Clerk / 2-1 Lo f
City of Palm Springs, California a3 e