Chapter 9.05
GENERAL REGULATIONS
Sections:
9.05.050 Permit fees and valuations.
9.05.060 Work commencing before permit issuance.
9.05.070 Authority to disconnect utilities in an emergency.
9.05.080 Connection after order to disconnect.
9.05.110 Recordation of violation.
9.05.120 Unsafe buildings, structures or building service equipment.
9.05.130 Notice of correction or abatement of unsafe structures.
9.05.140 Authority to condemn building service equipment.
9.05.170 Protection from airport noise.
9.05.180 Hours of construction.
Prior legislation: Ord. 737, 746, 762 and 774.
9.05.010 Applicability.
The provisions of this chapter apply to all chapters from California Code of Regulations Title 24 adopted and incorporated into the MMC by the city, including the provisions of Chapter 9.10 MMC. The following provisions are administrative clarifications to Title 24 and do not modify a building standard pursuant to California Health and Safety Code Sections 17958 and 17958.7. To the extent there is a conflict or ambiguity between the provisions of this chapter and Title 24, the provisions of Title 24 are controlling. (Ord. 801, § 1 (Exh. A)).
9.05.020 Definitions.
The following definitions are applicable to all chapters within this title:
A. “Authority having jurisdiction,” “administrative authority,” “code official,” or “local enforcing agency” means the city of Millbrae and its designated officials, including but not limited to the city’s building official.
B. “Building official” means the city’s designated building official or his/her authorized representative.
C. “City” means the city of Millbrae and any designated city officials, city staff, and/or contractors authorized to work on matters covered by this title.
D. “Code” means Title 24 of the California Code of Regulations adopted by the California Building Standards Commission, as amended.
E. “MMC” means the Millbrae Municipal Code.
F. “Permit” means a building permit issued by the city of Millbrae building department or the city’s building official. (Ord. 801, § 1 (Exh. A)).
9.05.030 Permit application.
A. A permit application is deemed abandoned after one hundred eighty days of the filing of the permit application, unless an extension is granted by the building official for good cause. Good cause includes applications which are being actively worked on by city staff with the applicant or other circumstances which demonstrate that the applicant is pursing the application in good faith. The building official may authorize one or more ninety-day extensions. The extension must be requested in writing and justifiable cause demonstrated.
B. Without good cause, an applicant may extend their permit application by paying the following fees:
1. A permit application one hundred eighty days old or greater, but less than three hundred sixty days old, may be reactivated for a one-hundred-eighty-day period by fifty percent of the established permit application fee.
C. Permit applications three hundred sixty days and older must be resubmitted to the city and are subject to the full established permit application fee.
D. The time limitations set forth in this section do not apply to permit applications to abate enforcement violations. (Ord. 801, § 1 (Exh. A)).
9.05.040 Permit expiration.
A. A permit automatically expires if work authorized by the permit has not commenced within twelve months of permit issuance, or if the work authorized on the site is suspended or abandoned for a twelve-month period after the time the work has commenced.
B. The building official, in her/his sole discretion, may grant up to one or more one-hundred-eighty-day extensions to a permit, if the building official determines that the extension is warranted because circumstances exist out of the control of the permit holder, that necessitate the extension of the permit. Requests for a permit extension must be in writing and the permit holder has the burden of demonstrating that the extension is necessary because of circumstances beyond the permit holder’s control.
C. Permits that are expired, but less than twelve months old, may be renewed subject to a fee of fifty percent of the established permit fee. Permits that are expired, but twelve months old or older, may be renewed subject to a fee of one hundred percent of the established permit fee. (Ord. 801, § 1 (Exh. A)).
9.05.050 Permit fees and valuations.
A. Permit fees, as adopted by the Millbrae city council, must be paid at the time of filing a permit application. A permit will not be accepted and processed by the city until the required permit fees have been paid in full.
B. A permit application must provide an estimated permit value at the time of application submittal. The estimated permit value must reflect the total value of work, including materials and labor, for which the permit is being issued, such as electrical, gas, mechanical, plumbing equipment and permanent systems. The city, in its sole discretion, may request a permit applicant to submit additional documentation to justify the estimated permit value. If, after reviewing the additional documentation, the city determines that the estimated value is underestimated, the permit application will be denied. A permit application that has been denied due to undervaluation may be appealed to the city manager, whose decision on the matter is final. Final permit valuation will be set by the city.
C. Plan Review Fees. When construction documents or other data are required to be submitted, a plan review fee shall be paid at the time of submitting construction documents and specifications for review. Plan review fees will be as set forth by resolution of the city council.
D. Fee Refunds. The building official may authorize the refunding of any fee paid hereunder when there are two permits for the same work (double permitting).
The building official may authorize the refunding of not more than eighty percent of the permit fee paid when no work has been done under a permit issued in accordance with this title.
The building official may authorize the refunding of not more than eighty percent of the plan review fee paid when an application for a permit for which a plan review fee has been paid is withdrawn or cancelled before any plan review is performed.
The building official shall not authorize the refunding of any fee paid except upon written application filed by the original permittee not later than one year after the date of fee payment. (Ord. 801, § 1 (Exh. A)).
9.05.060 Work commencing before permit issuance.
No person may commence any work on any building or structure, excavation for building foundations or retaining walls, electrical, gas, mechanical, or plumbing systems without first obtaining the necessary permits from the city. Anyone in violation of this section is subject to a fine up to a maximum of ten times the applicable permit fee as determined by the city. (Ord. 801, § 1 (Exh. A)).
9.05.070 Authority to disconnect utilities in an emergency.
The building official is authorized to disconnect any utility service or energy supplied to the building, structure or building service equipment regulated by this title in an emergency where it is necessary to address an immediate hazard to life or property. The building official, when feasible, will notify the serving utility, the owner and occupant of the building, structure or building service equipment, of the decision to disconnect prior to taking such action. The building official will notify the serving utility, owner and occupant of the building, structure or building service equipment operator, in writing, of such disconnection as soon as practical after causing the disconnection. (Ord. 801, § 1 (Exh. A)).
9.05.080 Connection after order to disconnect.
An electrical, gas, fuel or other power supply that has been ordered to be disconnected by the building official may not be reconnected until written authorization for the reconnection has been issued by the building official. No new electrical, gas, fuel or other power supply may be connected to the property or building service equipment after a disconnection order has been ordered by the building official, until written authorization for the new connection has been issued by the building official. (Ord. 801, § 1 (Exh. A)).
9.05.090 Appeals.
A permit applicant or permit holder may seek reconsideration of an order, determination, or decision of the building official’s application of this title by following the process outlined below.
A. First, the person must submit a written request for reconsideration to the building official, which must include any relevant information regarding the request. After receiving the written request for reconsideration, the building official will meet with the person seeking reconsideration and issue a written determination on the matter within five business days of receiving the reconsideration request.
B. The person submitting the reconsideration request, if still aggrieved by the building official’s determination, may request in writing an appeal of the matter to the city’s designated appeals board, the city’s planning commission. Unless otherwise mutually agreed to, the city will schedule the appeal hearing within forty-five days. The decision of the planning commission is final.
C. A reconsideration and/or appeal does not stay the building official’s order, determination or decision, which will remain in effect until rescinded by the building official or appeals board. (Ord. 801, § 1 (Exh. A)).
9.05.100 Nuisance.
Any work conducted in violation of this title is hereby declared to be a public nuisance and may be abated by the city, pursuant to the procedures set forth in Chapter 6.25 MMC. (Ord. 801, § 1 (Exh. A)).
9.05.110 Recordation of violation.
If the building official determines that a code violation exists, the building official will give notice either by personal service or by certified mail, postage prepaid and return receipt requested, to the owner at the address shown on the latest equalized assessment roll of the county of San Mateo, California. The notice will state that if the violation is not corrected within sixty calendar days of the date of personal service or mailing, or within such time as deemed appropriate by the building official, the building official shall record a notice of code violation with the county of San Mateo recorder’s office, California. Unless a violation is appealed in accordance with MMC 9.05.090, the building official will record the notice of code violation after sixty calendar days. (Ord. 801, § 1 (Exh. A)).
9.05.120 Unsafe buildings, structures or building service equipment.
All buildings or structures regulated by this title that are structurally inadequate or have inadequate means of egress, or inadequate light and ventilation, or which constitute a fire hazard, or are otherwise dangerous to human life, for the purpose of this title shall be deemed in unsafe condition.
Building service equipment regulated by this title, which constitutes a fire, electrical or health hazard, or an unsanitary condition, or is otherwise dangerous to human life, for the purpose of this section, shall be deemed unsafe. Any use of buildings, structures, or building service equipment constituting a hazard to safety, health, or public welfare by reason of inadequate maintenance, dilapidation, obsolescence, fire hazard, disaster, damage or abandonment, for the purpose of this section, are deemed an unsafe use.
Parapet walls, cornices, spires, towers, tanks, statuary and other appendages or structural members which are supported by, attached to, or a part of a building and which are in deteriorated condition or otherwise unable to sustain the design loads which are specified in the Title 24 Building Codes are hereby designated as unsafe building appendages.
Unsafe buildings, structures or appendages and building service equipment are hereby declared to be public nuisances and shall be abated by repair, rehabilitation, demolition or removal in accordance with the procedures set forth in the latest edition of the Uniform Code for the Abatement of Dangerous Buildings or such alternate procedures as may be adopted by this jurisdiction. As an alternative, the city may institute any other appropriate action as permitted by law to prevent, restrain, correct or abate the violation. (Ord. 801, § 1 (Exh. A)).
9.05.130 Notice of correction or abatement of unsafe structures.
If an inspection shows a building or structure or portion thereof to be “unsafe” as defined by Title 24, the building official will give the owner of said building or structure written notice stating the defects thereof. The notice may order the correction or abatement thereof by demolition, closing or repair within ninety days of the date said notice is given or such additional time as the building official may allow. If, in the opinion of the building official, such conditions can be corrected or abated by repair, the notice shall state the repair required. The notice may also be given to any mortgagee or beneficiary under any deed of trust of record. (Ord. 801, § 1 (Exh. A)).
9.05.140 Authority to condemn building service equipment.
Whenever the building official ascertains that any building service equipment regulated in the codes has become hazardous to life, health, or property, or has become unsanitary, he/she will order in writing that such equipment either be removed or restored to a safe or sanitary condition, as appropriate. The written notice will set a time limit for compliance with such order.
Defective building service equipment may not be maintained after receiving such notice.
When such equipment or installation is to be disconnected, a written notice of such disconnection and causes therefor will be given within twenty-four hours to the serving utility, the owner and occupant of such building, structure or premises.
When any building service equipment is maintained in violation of the codes and in violation of any notice issued pursuant to the provisions of this section, the building official shall institute any appropriate action as permitted by law to prevent, restrain, correct or abate the violation. (Ord. 801, § 1 (Exh. A)).
9.05.150 Civil penalties.
Any person who intentionally, accidentally, or negligently violates any provision of this title, any written authority of the building official or the city, or any provision of any permit issued pursuant to this title, may be civilly liable to the city in the sum of not less than one hundred dollars but not exceeding one thousand dollars per day, for each day in which such violation occurs or continues. The city may seek any and all legal actions to enforce the civil penalties authorized by this section. The civil penalty authorized by this section excludes inspection costs and abatement costs, is cumulative and not exclusive, and is in addition to all other remedies available to the city under state and federal law and local ordinances. (Ord. 801, § 1 (Exh. A)).
9.05.160 Building address.
Approved address identification must be provided on all new and existing buildings in such a position as to be plainly visible and legible from the street or road fronting the property. Said numbers shall be Arabic numbers or alphabetical letters and must contrast with their background, must be a minimum of one-half inch stroke by four inches high, and must be either internally or externally illuminated in all new construction, alterations or repair of existing construction.
A. Multifamily Residences. Numbers or letters shall be designated on all tenant spaces within a building. Size must be a minimum of one-half-inch stroke by four inches high and on a contrasting background. Directional address numbers or letters shall be provided. Directional signage and room use label signage must be designed and posted in accordance with Chapter 11 of the building code and shall be either internally or externally illuminated in all new construction.
B. Rear Addressing. When required by the fire chief, approved numbers or addresses must be placed on all new and existing buildings in such a position as to be plainly visible and legible from the fire apparatus road at the back of a property or where rear parking lots or alleys provide vehicular access. Number stroke and size shall comply with Section 505.1 of the fire code.
C. Utility Identification. In multi-unit commercial and residential buildings, gas and electric meters, service switches and shut-off valves shall be clearly and legibly marked to identify the unit or space that they serve.
D. Accessory dwelling units (ADU) shall be provided with a separate address, such as:
123-ABC Street – Main unit.
123-ABC Street #B – For the accessory dwelling unit. (Ord. 801, § 1 (Exh. A)).
9.05.170 Protection from airport noise.
Any residential building located within the 65 CNEL zone (as determined by the 2012 Noise Contour Map, as published in the C/CAG Comprehensive Airport Land Use Compatibility Plan) which is either newly constructed or renovated at a cost equal to or greater than twenty-five percent of the valuation (as assessed by the county assessor) must meet a Sound Transmission Class (STC) Rating of 35. (Ord. 801, § 1 (Exh. A)).
9.05.180 Hours of construction.
The hours of noise generating construction activity are limited to the hours of seven-thirty a.m. to seven p.m., Monday through Friday, eight a.m. to six p.m. Saturdays and nine a.m. to six p.m. on Sundays and holidays. Work outside of these hours may be approved by the building official when requested in writing, a minimum of forty-eight hours in advance. (Ord. 801, § 1 (Exh. A)).