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CITY OF SAN LEANDRO APPROVED AND STAFF' REPORT FORWARDED TO CITY COUNCIL DATE: September 20, 2010 tephen L. Flollist� City Manager TO: Stephen Hollister. City Manager FROM: Luke Sims, Community Development Directofr 13V: Philip Millenbah, Senior Planner ? /'- SUBJECT PRO.IECT /PROJECT DESCRIPTION: RESOLUTION AMENDING TITLE 2, CHAPTER 5 OF THE SAN LEANDRO ADMINISTRATIVE CODE RELATED TO AMERICANS WITH DISABILITIES ACT /SECTION 504 OF THE REHABILITATION ACT OF 1973 RELATIVE TO REASONABLE ACCOMMODATION POLICIES SUMMARY AND RECOMMENDATION It is recommended that Title 2, Chapter 5 of the Administrative Code be amended to allow for revisions to the existing Reasonable Accommodation policy relative to zoning and land use restrictions. This amendment will also make the City's recently adopted Housing Element eligible for certification by the California Department of Housing and Community Development (1-ICD). • BACKGROUND In November 2009 the City Council amended the City's Administrative Code in order to make City policy conform to Section 504 of the Federal Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. The purpose of these federal laws is to ensure that disabled people have access to government services, programs and housing. On August 6, 2010 1-ICD staff contacted City staff regarding the City's recently adopted Housing Element Update. 1 -ICD staff indicated that HCD was ready to certify the Housing Element Update if the City would clarify its reasonable accommodation policy to ensure that disabled individuals would not be hindered by City zoning and land use laws and regulations. For instance, 1-ICD indicated that there should be a way for a disabled person to build a wheelchair ratnp in any setback in order to access their home. Analysis The recommendation is that Title 2, Chapter 5 of the San Leandro Administrative Code should be amended to allow for exceptions and variances to the zoning code in order to facilitate a disabled person's access to his or her property. The proposed amendment would utilize the previously adopted Reasonable Accommodation policy in terms of procedures, costs to the City, and timelines for staff determinations, but the amendment would add zoning and land use constraints to the list of grievances available for remedy by the ADA Coordinator. The amended procedure would not define or list all possible exceptions or variances but rather the exception