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Civic Center City of San Leandro 835 East 14th Street San Leandro, California File #:18-164,Version:1 Staff Report Regarding Discussion of a Potential Merger of the Planning Commission and the Board of Zoning Adjustments SUMMARY AND RECOMMENDATIONS Merging the Planning Commission and Board of Zoning Adjustments would result in measurable efficiency and cost-saving benefits and would bring the City’s entitlement process in line with the majority of other cities and counties in California. For these reasons, Staff recommends that the City Council direct Staff to return to the City Council with the necessary legal and procedural actions for a merger of the Planning Commission and Board of Zoning Adjustments beginning in 2019. If so directed, Staff would then return to the City Council with a draft ordinance and resolution as necessary to formalize the merger. BACKGROUND Under State law (California Government Code Section 65100,et seq.), every city and county in California must have a planning agency with the authority to fulfill functions and decisions related to planning and zoning laws as established by the City Council. The City Council’s authority includes the ability to establish (or disestablish) a planning commission, board of zoning adjustment, board of appeals, zoning administrator, and/or hearing officers. Each of these bodies has a specific purpose and function defined under State law. If neither a board of zoning adjustment or a zoning administrator has been established, State law stipulates that the planning commission is responsible for their functions and duties. (Gov. Code Section 65902.) Of these bodies, a board of zoning adjustment (BZA) can be established for the specific purpose of hearing and deciding upon conditional use permits, variances and any other permits granted by local ordinance. (Gov. Code Section 65901.) In San Leandro, the BZA has the added responsibility of approving certain Site Plan Review applications and Parking Exceptions. The BZA primarily decides on current planning applications and, in most instances, is the final deciding authority. In San Leandro, the Planning Commission (PC) primarily serves as a recommending body focused on long-range planning and complex applications. The PC makes recommendations to the City Council on Planned Developments, Rezoning, General Plan Amendments, and Tentative Tract Maps. With the rare exception of a denied appeal (San Leandro Zoning Code Section 5-2810), the City Council is the final deciding authority on all applications heard by the PC. San Leandro is one of the few remaining cities in the State of California to have both a PC and a BZA. Of the other cities in California, only Berkeley, Modesto, Bakersfield, Norco, and Perris are known to have a similar arrangement. Alameda County and Sonoma County are the only counties known to have a separate PC and BZA. The cities of Merced, West Sacramento, Folsom, and Beverly Hills and Santa Clara County have merged their BZAs into their PCs. City of San LeandroPage 1 of 46//2018 powered by Legistar™