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HomeMy WebLinkAbout06 - Code Enforcement in West Santa Ana HeightsCITY OF NEWPORT BEACH CITY COUNCIL STAFF REPORT Agenda Item No. 6 March 13, 2007 TO: HONORABLE MAYOR AND MEMBERS OF THE CITY COUNCIL FROM: City Manager's Office Dave Kiff, Assistant City Manager 9491644 -3002 or dkiff @city.newport - beach.ca.us SUBJECT: Resolution 2007 -_ Relating to Code Enforcement in West Santa Ana Heights ISSUE: Should the City enter into a contract with the County of Orange to continue providing code enforcement services in West Santa Ana Heights in advance of our annexation of that area? RECOMMENDATION: Adopt Resolution 2007 - authorizing the City's Code and Water Quality Enforcement staff to serve the West Santa Ana Heights community for a two -year program or until such time as the City annexes West Santa Ana Heights, whichever comes sooner. 2. Authorize the City Manager to execute a final contract in substantially similar form to the attached draft agreement. DISCUSSION: State law suggests that cities should ultimately annex territories within spheres of influence. The law suggests that cities are generally more effective providers of municipal services (like libraries, public safety, recreation, code enforcement and street sweeping) than counties or special districts. One area that Newport Beach has considered annexing is West Santa Ana Heights (see map). Council has not yet formally acted on a Resolution of Application to annex West SAH. Most of west and east Santa Ana Heights is within a redevelopment area administered by the County of Orange. The SAH Project Advisory Committee (PAC) assists the County in allocating redevelopment funds in both the east and west sides of SAH. SAHPAC has complimented the City (especially Sr. Code and Water Quality Enforcement Officer Cass Spence) on our Code Enforcement activities since annexation. In 2005, PAC suggested that the same extensive enforcement should occur in the West side, too. Because of staffing constraints, the County's Code Enforcement staff was not always able to respond as thoroughly as the City's staff. We began this service in November 2005, and worked on Code West SAH Code Enforcement March 13, 2007 Page 2 Enforcement on the West side for a full 12 months. We billed the County about $11,000 for these services, which included 11 formal cases, 20 "Knock & Talks" and about 10 other problems solved without creating a case log. The 12 -month agreement expired in November 2006, and SAH PAC and the County have again suggested that we do this work, at least until such time as the City annexes the West side or until the overall annexation decision is addressed. As a result, City and County staff have agreed upon the draft contract that is attached (Exhibit B). It is identical to the 2005 Agreement, except this one is for a 2- yearterm. Committee Action: SAH PAC supports the City's attempt to provide Code Enforcement in West SAH. Env. Review: This action is Categorically Exempt from CEQA under the Class 20 exemption (Changes in Organization of Local Agencies). Public Notice: This agenda item may be noticed according to the Ralph M. Brown Act (72 hours in advance of the public meeting at which the City Council considers the item). Funding Availability: In 2005, we estimated that these services will cost $30,000 annually, including management and a vehicle. The County has agreed to compensate us $30,000 annually for this service. We billed by the hour, and incurred $11,000 in expenses. Submitted by: — ]��2 C, � �- Dave Ki Assistant City Manager Attachment: Resolution 2007 - Draft Agreement for WSAH Code Enforcement a West SAH Code Enforcement March 13, 2007 Page 3 Exhibit A RESOLUTION 2007- A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF NEWPORT BEACH RELATING TO AN AGREEMENT TO CONDUCT CODE AND WATER QUALITY ENFORCEMENT ACTIVITIES IN WESTERN SANTA ANA HEIGHTS WHEREAS, the City of Newport Beach and the County of Orange both provide Code Enforcement services to their respective territories; and WHEREAS, the City has provided a high level of Code and Water Quality Enforcement services to the community of East Santa Ana Heights since the City's annexation of this territory in July 2003; and WHEREAS, in 2005, resident groups in the community, including the Santa Ana Heights Project Advisory Committee (SAH PAC) asked the City to consider delivering the same quality of Code and Water Quality Enforcement services to the Western side of Santa Ana Heights even as this community remains unincorporated; and WHEREAS, State law allows cities to contract with other jurisdictions to provide services outside of a city's boundaries; and WHEREAS, the County of Orange and the City agreed to have the City provide these services in West Santa Ana Heights for one year (roughly November 2005 through November 2006) or until such time as the City annexes West Santa Ana Heights; and WHEREAS, the City and County's impressions after one year of contracted services are generally positive,; now, therefore be it RESOLVED by the City Council of the City of Newport Beach, that it hereby authorizes the Mayor to execute a 2 -year agreement or contract with the County of Orange or its officers to provide Code and Water Quality Enforcement Services in West Santa Ana Heights. ADOPTED this 13'h day of March, 2007. STEVEN ROSANSKY Mayor of Newport Beach ATTEST: LAVONNE HARKLESS City Clerk 3 West SAH Code Enforcement March 13, 2007 Page 4 Exhibit B CODE ENFORCEMENT SERVICES AGREEMENT THIS AGREEMENT is dated the day of 2007, for purposes of identification, is made and entered into by and between The COUNTY OF ORANGE, a political subdivision of the State of California hereinafter referred to as "COUNTY" and The CITY OF NEWPORT BEACH, a municipal corporation, hereinafter referred to as "CITY ". RECITALS WHEREAS, the CITY is considering the annexation of the unincorporated West Santa Ana Heights community; and WHEREAS, the COUNTY has historically provided planning, zoning and code enforcement services within the unincorporated West Santa Ana Heights community; and WHEREAS, CITY and COUNTY desire to accelerate the revitalization of blighted conditions in the West Santa Ana Heights unincorporated community with targeted Code and Water Quality Enforcement; and WHEREAS, COUNTY is presently responsible for enforcing the Building, Grading, Zoning, Nuisance, and Water Quality Codes in the unincorporated areas. As part of its responsibility to maintain livable communities, COUNTY conducts response -driven code enforcement for structural codes (Building and Grading) and non - structural codes (Zoning, Water Quality and Nuisance), and WHEREAS, CITY and COUNTY are public entities possessing the common power to provide municipal services and perform municipal functions. Government Code sections 54890 et seq. authorize a local agency, including a county and a city to contract with each other for the performance by designated officers and employees, of municipal functions common to both agencies, within the territory of the other. This Agreement fully complies with all State statutory and constitutional provisions related to the transfer of municipal functions from a county to a city, and WHEREAS, in connection with said Agreement, CITY and COUNTY desire to identify the responsibilities and duties with respect to the specified Code Enforcement services for the West SAH Code Enforcement March 13, 2007 Page 5 revitalization of blighted conditions and for the investigation of reported or observed land use violations in the Santa Ana Heights unincorporated community, and WHEREAS, the Parties agree that various other services within or benefiting the West Santa Ana Heights area may be performed by CITY with the consent of COUNTY as described in this Agreement, and WHEREAS, such services would be a continuation of the previous one year agreement executed on October 18, 2005 with the CITY of Newport Beach for the same specific Code and Water Quality Enforcement activities, and WHEREAS, COUNTY will provide up to $30,000 per year towards the costs associated with this two -year code enforcement program which is agreed by CITY and COUNTY to constitute reasonable consideration for the services to be provided pursuant to this Agreement. AGREEMENT NOW, THEREFORE, the parties hereto agree as follows: 1. DEFINITIONS. This Agreement uses a number of terms having specific meanings, as defined below. These specially defined terms are distinguished by having the initial letter capitalized, or all letters capitalized when used in the Agreement. The defined terms include the following: 1.1 "Agreement" means this "Code Enforcement Services Agreement ". 1.2 `Blighted Areas" means those areas specified in the COUNTY'S Housing and Community Services Department Annual Report. 1.3 "CITY" means the City of Newport Beach. 1.4 "COUNTY" means the County of Orange, a political subdivision of the State of California. 1.5 "Land Use Regulations" mean those regulations of COUNTY governing the permitted uses of land, density and intensity of use and the design, improvement, and construction standards and specifications applicable to development of property. Said regulations shall include, but not be limited to ordinances, exactions, conveyances of rights and interests, encroachments and other permits that provide for the right of entry upon public property. 1.6 "Regulations" means laws, statutes, ordinances and codes (including the Building and Improvement Standards, Nuisance and Land Use Regulations) resolutions, rules, 57 West SAN Code Enforcement March 13, 2007 Page 6 regulations and orders, use permits of every kind, programs, official policies and actions of COUNTY, together with amendments to all of the foregoing. 1.7 "Territory" means the unincorporated West Santa Ana Heights community as shown on Exhibit 1, which is attached to this Agreement and incorporated into the Agreement as if set out in this Agreement in full. 1.8 "Water Quality Regulations" means those laws and ordinances that regulate the discharge of prohibited materials into the MS4 (Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System). 2. PURPOSE OF AGREEMENT. This Agreement is made in order to provide for the CITY to perform Code and Water Quality Enforcement services for COUNTY in a two -year program to reduce blighted conditions in the unincorporated West Santa Ana Heights island area as set forth in the following paragraphs: 2.1 This Agreement serves to assure the COUNTY that CITY will provide Code and Water Quality Enforcement services in a two -year program for the unincorporated Santa Ana Heights island area, in a manner meeting the approval of the COUNTY's Director of Planning and Development Services. 2.2 This Agreement will provide for COUNTY to compensate the CITY for the two - year for the unincorporated Santa Ana Heights island area to a maximum of $30,000 per year, in a manner meeting the approval of the CITY'S City Manager. 2.3 This Agreement will allow the CITY to acquaint their Code and Water Quality Enforcement personnel with the island area in order to facilitate future annexation; and to allow the COUNTY to re- allocate limited Code Enforcement resources to other blighted island areas within the COUNTY, to the benefit of both entities. 3. SERVICES TO BE PERFORMED 3.1 Enforcement. The parties agree that the CITY shall be authorized to perform the services and follow the procedures described in this Agreement to enforce COUNTY Codified Ordinances in the West Santa Ana Heights unincorporated area shown in Exhibit 1. Unless otherwise instructed by the COUNTY's Director of Planning and Development Services, CITY shall enforce the following COUNTY regulations or codes in a manner similar to the CITY'S enforcement of CITY codes within CITY boundaries: 3.1.1 Land Use Regulations 3.1.2 Water Quality Regulations 3.1.3 Property Maintenance G West SAH Code Enforcement March 13, 2007 Page 7 (including, but not limited to, construction done without permits but not including the scheduled inspection of permitted construction typically done by CITY'S and COUNTY'S building inspectors). 3.2 Enforcement Methods. Such Enforcement shall include, but not be limited to, actions that result in verbal education or verbal warnings, written Notices of Violations, the issuances of Administrative Citations, the imposition of COUNTY fines or penalties, or the bringing of legal proceedings in civil or criminal court. The decision to bring any court action shall be made mutually by CITY and the County of Orange District Attorney's office. 33 Enforcement Administration. CITY shall adjudicate all enforcement issues using the same or similar procedures as are used by CITY for fines, notices, or administrative citations issued within CITY boundaries. CITY shall administer all enforcement actions and claims unless otherwise advised by the City's counsel, County Counsel or District Attorney. 3.4 Reporting. CITY and COUNTY shall mutually determine the format of a monthly report to be provided by CITY to COUNTY to specify calls for service, recordation of site visit information, case progress notes, enforcement actions, and other relevant data to be conveyed to COUNTY for database input. CITY shall establish a separate identifier within CITY's case database and shall provide COUNTY with direct online access to West Santa Ana Heights cases on a continuous basis. CITY shall produce a weekly report of these cases and shall transmit it electronically to the RDMD Director (or his designee). At the conclusion of each case, CITY shall transmit to COUNTY an electronic version of all documents within that case's file. Online case information provided to COUNTY shall include, at a minimum, site address, site owner's name, site owner's phone number, photographs, code violations, specific CITY actions at site (i.e. investigation, education, NOV, citation, etcetera), and case notes by the enforcement officer. CITY and COUNTY shall mutually establish Code Enforcement and Water Quality Enforcement job numbers to track complaints and case progress. 3.5 Communication. CITY and COUNTY agree to use their best efforts to achieve optimal communication as to case reporting and field actions to ensure strong constituent service and agency cooperation. 3.6 Fines and Penalties. CITY shall collect all fines or penalties that result from CITY's enforcement of COUNTY codes in West Santa Ana Heights. On a quarterly basis, CITY shall pay to COUNTY, either directly or as a credit to a recent Invoice, all revenues from fines or penalties resulting from Enforcement in West Santa Ana Heights. 3.7 Indemnification. Unless otherwise directed by COUNTY, CITY shall indemnify, defend and hold harmless COUNTY for any CITY enforcement action that causes a property owner to bring an action against CITY or COUNTY to challenge CITY's enforcement action. CITY shall also indemnify, defend and hold harmless the COUNTY 7 West SAH Code Enforcement March 13, 2007 Page 8 and its officers, employees and agents with respect to any claim, damage, loss, cause of action, lawsuit or proceeding that arises out of or is in any way related to any act or omission by CITY or its officers, employees or agents in the performance or non- performance of any duty or obligation under this Agreement. 4. COMPENSATION. 4.1. Annual Compensation. COUNTY shall compensate CITY in an amount up to $30,000 per year for these services. CITY shall submit quarterly Invoices describing hours worked and general tasks performed. Invoices shall include a billing rate that can reflect CITY's direct or indirect costs of providing the service. In no instance shall CITY bill more than $7,500 per quarter. COUNTY shall make all reasonable efforts to pay Invoices within 30 days of receipt. 4.2. Invoices. CITY agrees to submit service invoices on a quarterly basis to COUNTY. Such invoices shall describe clearly the services performed by CITY and shall indicate the cost of performance of such services. To be approved for payment, an invoice must provide the information necessary to permit the COUNTY to determine services provided and the costs of such services in order to assess whether payment of the invoiced amount is appropriate in light of the services rendered. 4.3. Payment. COUNTY agrees to reimburse CITY for approved invoices in an expeditious manner following receipt of invoices. 5. TERM AND TERMINATION. 5.1 Term_ The term of this Agreement for Code Enforcement in West Santa Ana Heights shall be for two (2) years from the date this Agreement executed by both parties. COUNTY may extend this Agreement at the conclusion of any two (2) year term via written notice to the CITY at least 30 days prior to the expiration date of the Agreement as such term may be extended for additional period(s). 5.2 Termination. This Agreement may be terminated by either party upon 30 days written notice to the other at the address set forth in this Agreement. 5.3 Annexation. This Agreement shall terminate upon the effective date of annexation of all or a portion of the Territory. 6. MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS. 6.1 Entire Agreement. This Agreement sets forth and contains the entire understanding of the parties and there are no oral or written representations, understandings or ancillary covenants, undertakings or agreements which are not contained or expressly referred to herein and no testimony or evidence of any such representations, understandings or I West SAH Code Enforcement March 13, 2007 Page 9 covenants shall be admissible in any proceeding of any kind of nature to interpret or determine the terms or conditions of this Agreement. 6.2 Interpretation and Governing Law. This Agreement and any dispute arising hereunder shall be governed and interpreted in accordance with the laws of the State of California. This Agreement shall be interpreted according to its common language and meaning to achieve the objectives and purposes of the Parties. The rule of construction that ambiguities are to be resolved against the drafting Party shall not apply in interpreting this Agreement since all parties have been represented by counsel. 6.3 No Third Party Beneficiaries. The only parties to this Agreement are CITY and COUNTY. There are no third party beneficiaries and this Agreement is not intended, and shall not be construed, to benefit or be enforceable by any other person whatsoever. 6.4 Mutual Covenants. The covenants contained herein are mutual covenants and also constitute conditions to the concurrent or subsequent performance by the party benefited thereby of the covenants to be performed hereunder by such benefited party. 6.5 Cooperation. COUNTY shall provide any assistance requested by CITY with respect to the implementation and administration of this Agreement. 6.6 Severability. If any term, provision, covenant, or condition of this Agreement is ruled invalid, void or unenforceable by a court of competent jurisdiction, this Agreement, shall nonetheless remaining full force and effect as to all remaining terms, provisions, covenants and agreements. 6.7 Section Headings. All section headings and subheadings in this Agreement are inserted for convenience only and shall not affect any construction or interpretation of this Agreement. 6.8 Amendment. This Agreement may be amended only by a written document executed by the parties. 6.9 Notice. All notices given under this agreement shall be in writing and shall be deemed served when delivered personally or on the third business day after deposit in the United States mail, first class mail, postage prepaid and addressed as follows: 9 West SAH Code Enforcement March 13, 2007 Page 10 TO CITY: City of Newport Beach City Manager's Office 3300 Newport Blvd. PO Box 1768 Newport Beach, CA 92658 -8915 TO COUNTY: Director of Planning and Development Services County of Orange 300 North Flower Street Santa Ana, CA 92703 -5000 IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the COUNTY and CITY have approved the foregoing AGREEMENT and caused the same to be executed by their duly authorized officers as set forth below. APPROVED AS TO FORM Office of the County Counsel Orange County, California By: Deputy COUNTY in Chairman of the Board of Supervisors CITY 0 Homer Bludau, City Manager .APPROVED AS TO FORM Stradling Yocca Carlson & Rauth Special Counsel to the City wo �a West SAH Code Enforcement March 13, 2007 Page 11 Exhibit 1 QUEST SANTA ANA HEIGHTS CODE ENFORCEMENT Main of Area Affected It