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HomeMy WebLinkAboutOrdinance #3990 ORDINANCE NO. 3990 AN INTERIM URGENCY ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF HUNTINGTON BEACH, CALIFORNIA, EXTENDING THE MORATORIUM ON THE CONVERSION OF ANY MOBILEHOME PARK CURRENTLY-EXISTING IN THE CITY FROM A PARK OCCUPIED PRIMARILY OR EXCLUSIVELY BY RESIDENTS OVER THE AGE OF 55 YEARS (SENIOR RESIDENTS)TO A MOBILEHOME PARK ALLOWING RESIDENTS OF ALL AGES UNTIL APRIL 30, 2014, TO TAKE EFFECT IMMEDIATELY The City Council of the City of Huntington Beach does hereby ordain as follows: SECTION 1. FINDINGS. The Ordinance No. 3986, enacted by the City Council of the City of Huntington Beach(the"City") on August 5, 2013 placed a forty-five(45) day moratorium on the conversion of any mobilehome park existing in the City on that date from a park occupied primarily or exclusively by residents over the age of 55 years(senior residents)' to a mobilehome park allowing residents of all ages. In part the moratorium on conversion allows the City time to study whether an amendment to the Mobilehome Park Overlay District to limit or prohibit such conversions is necessary to protect the public, health, safety and welfare by providing adequate affordable local housing for senior citizens, and whether such an ordinance would have any adverse effects on the general housing market in the City; and Section 65858 et.al. of the California Government Code allows an urgency ordinance enacted under the California Government Code to be extended for ten months and fifteen days past the original 45-day urgency period, following a noticed public hearing, in order to further study the immediate health and safety problems identified in Ordinance No. 3986 and At least ten (10) days prior to September 16, 2013, the City Clerk has caused to be published in a newspaper of general circulation a notice advising that on September 16, 2013 at 6:00 p.m. or as soon thereafter, the City Council will conduct a public hearing to consider extending Interim Ordinance 3986; and such public comment and hearing was conducted on September 16, 2013 at the regular City Council meeting. SECTION 2. EXTENSION OF MORATORIUM. The initial forty-five (45) day moratorium on mobilehome park conversions enacted by Ordinance No. 3986, is hereby extended until April 30, 2014 and shall take effect immediately. SECTION 3. DECLARATION OF URGENCY, FINDINGS. Ordinance No. 3990 as well as staff report in support of the Request for Council Action advances the idea that the City of Huntington Beach ("City") does not have enough affordable senior housing options which continues to create problems for seniors that will only increase with the aging population. Mobilehome parks represent one of a few affordable housing options left to senior citizens that 'Housing for Older Persons Act(HOPA)provides that"Senior"is defined as someone 62 years old and over. HOPA defines housing that are restricted to 55+,as"Housing for Older Persons". 13-3865(lmerim Mobile Home Park Ordinance.docx Ordinance No. 3990 permit exclusive residence in a detached dwelling by those individuals over the age of 55 years. As set forth in the Housing Element of the City's General Plan, an important goal for the City is to preserve the existing senior housing stock which is represented in part by affordable mobilehome housing. "Converting" mobilehome parks from a "seniors only" to all ages parks would reduce the number of senior housing units available to those persons 55 years of age and older. There are 18 mobilehome parks in the City, 10 of which are operating as senior mobilehome parks. Thus, converting the `seniors, only' mobilehome parks to family parks would result in a significant reduction in the number of affordable housing units available to senior citizens of the community and is irreparably detrimental to them as it creates an immediate threat to their health, safety and welfare. . Further, the announcement that the City is studying this issue and may develop a zoning ordinance restricting the change of seniors only mobilehome parks has resulted in the owner(s) of mobilehome park(s) pursuing conversions to all age mobilehome parks prior to any such ordinance taking effect.' There is immediate threat to the public health, safety and welfare that would result from allowing the unregulated conversion of senior housing to non-senior housing justifies the extension of the interim urgency ordinance. Based on initial research and analysis, in contrast to other senior housing in the City, mobile home parks afford seniors the ability to live in their own homes rather than in apartments and provide a senior living community in low-rise setting that typically provides a clubhouse for community events and socializing as well as recreation facilities inside the park so that the residents can easily walk to these facilities and event. Many of the seniors living in these senior mobile home parks enjoy having their grandchildren visit them in the parks, but they, like the seniors without grandchildren, purchased mobile homes in a senior park in order to live in a quieter community with others in their own age group and purchased their homes in these parks because they were senior parks that only accepted prospective purchasers of homes in the park, if at least one occupant of the mobile home being purchased was 55 years or older. While senior housing complexes in the City, other than senior mobile home parks, are generally restricted to senior occupancy by conditions, covenants, and restrictions, that is not the case in senior mobile home parks. The residents of those mobile home parks relied upon the representation of the park management and park owners that only seniors could purchase homes in those parks and obtain tenancies in those parks. These representations were set forth in the leases or rental agreements they were required to sign upon purchasing a mobile home in the parks and moving into the parks and in the rules of those parks, which the residents were also required to sign and acknowledge. Now some owners of senior mobile home parks have indicated that they can, and are already attempting to, change their parks from senior parks to family parks, over the objections of their senior residents, simply by changing park rules using the procedure in Civil Code Section 798.25. 2 The two letters to residents of Rancho Huntington mobilehome park residents declaring intent that the mobilehome park no longer restrict housing to older persons(55+)are attached to ordinance no3986. 13-3865/hiterim Mobile Home Park Ordinance.doex Ordinance No. 3990 While the seniors now living in senior mobile home parks could remain in a park that changed to a family park, those seniors would no longer enjoy the.quiet and companionship of a senior community and the limited supply of senior parks that now exists in the City could be greatly diminished or even eliminated. Since mobile homes are not mobile in any practical sense due to the high cost of moving a home, the risk of damage to the home in moving, the loss of improvements such as porches, patios, carports, and landscaping, which cannot be moved, and the lack of available rental spaces in senior parks, or in any mobile home park in the City or surrounding areas that will accept re-locating homes, senior residents of a park that becomes a family park would have to sell the homes in which they have lived for many years and in which they have invested both financial and personal resources in order to move to another senior facility. After selling their mobile homes, these seniors may no longer have sufficient funds to purchase a mobile home in another senior park or senior facility. The City of Huntington Beach currently does not have a "senior only" mobilehome park zoning ordinance in place, but such a zoning ordinance may be needed in the immediate future to preserve the few senior only housing options left to our senior citizens. The change from a "senior only" mobilehome park to an "all ages" mobilehome park will reduce the number of housing units available to those persons 55 years of age and older. Based upon the foregoing, the City Council finds that there is a current and immediate threat to the public health, safety and welfare, and the approval of permits or other entitlements authorizing the conversion of senior mobilehome parks for persons 55 years of age and older to a moblilehome park allowing residents of all ages would result in that threat to the public health, safety and welfare. SECTION 4. EFFECTIVE DATE. The Council finds that public health, safety and welfare require that this ordinance become effective upon its adoption and passage, pursuant to California Government Code Section 65858. SECTION 5. SEVERABILITY. If any section, sentence, clause or phrase of this ordinance is for any reason held to be invalid or unconstitutional by a decision of any court of competent jurisdiction, such decision shall not affect the validity of the remaining portions of this ordinance. The City Council hereby declares that it would have passed this ordinance and adopted this ordinance and each section, sentence, clause or phrase thereof, irrespective of the fact that any one or more sections, subsections, sentences, clauses or phrases be declared invalid or unconstitutional. 13-3865/lnterim Mobile Home Park Ordinance.docx Ordinance No. 3990 SECTION 6. PUBLICATION. The City Clerk shall cause this ordinance to be posted in three places designated by City Council pursuant to City Charter Section 500(c) and published by title with a brief summary at least once within fifteen(15) days after its adoption in a newspaper of general circulation, published in the County of Orange and circulated in the City, in accordance with Section 36933 of the California Government Code; shall certify to the adoption of this ordinance and shall cause a certified copy of this ordinance, together with proof of publication, to be filed in the Office of the Clerk of this City. PASSED AND' ADOPTED by the City Council of the City of Huntington Beach at a regular meeting thereof held on the 16th day of September, 2013. /7 - Mayor ATTEST: 47 APPROVED AS TO FORM: Z 4 City Clerk C it Attorney RE APPROVED: TIATED AND APPRRO,�VE, t onager Hity Attorney 13-386511nterim Mobile Home Park Ordinance.docx Urgency Ord. No. 3990 STATE OF CALIFORNIA ) COUNTY OF ORANGE ) SS: CITY OF HUNTINGTON BEACH ) I, JOAN L. FLYNN, the duly elected, qualified City Clerk of the City of Huntington Beach, and ex-officio Clerk of the City Council of said City, do hereby certify that the whole number of members of the City Council of the City of Huntington Beach is seven; that the foregoing ordinance was read to said City Council at a regular meeting thereof held on September 16,2013 and was passed and adopted by at least five affirmative votes of said City Council. AYES: Sullivan, Hardy, Boardman, Carchio, Shaw,Katapodis NOES: Harper ABSENT: None ABSTAIN: None I,JOAN L.FLYNN,CITY CLERK of the City of Huntington Beach and ex-officio Clerk of the City Council,do hereby certify that a synopsis of this ordinance has been published in the Huntington Beach Fountain Valley Independent ona September 26,2013 In accordance with the City Charter of said City City Verk and ex-officio Cl �)Joan L.Fl nn City Clerk of the City Council of the City w Deputy City Clerk of Huntington Beach, California