Chapter 13.31
MOBILE HOME PARK CLOSURES
Sections:
13.31.030 Applications for mobile home park closures.
13.31.040 Procedures for review.
13.31.050 Required findings for approval.
13.31.010 Purpose.
(A) This chapter shall be known as the Mobile Home Park Closure Ordinance.
(B) The County has adopted the regulations described in this chapter for the following purposes:
(1) To ensure that Chapter 13.30 SCCC is not circumvented through the use of early park closures.
(2) To ensure that the homeowners who will be displaced by a proposed park closure, as well as the affordable housing stock located in the mobile home parks in the County, are provided with the protections that Government Code Sections 65863.7, 66427.4, 66473.5 and 65302, and related sections of California’s Housing Elements Law, and Civil Code Section 798.56(g) provide.
(3) To provide procedures that will allow proposed park closures to be properly evaluated in compliance with the above statutes and with the related provisions of this chapter. [Ord. 5323 § 1, 2020].
13.31.020 Definitions.
For purposes of this chapter, the following words are defined as follows:
(A) “Park” means a mobile home park which rents spaces for mobile home dwelling units.
(B) “Owner” means the owner, lessor, or designated agent of the park.
(C) “Tenant” means the owner of a mobile home dwelling unit who is renting space from the owner of a park. [Ord. 5323 § 1, 2020].
13.31.030 Applications for mobile home park closures.
(A) The use of property as a mobile home park shall not be terminated for the purpose of closing a park, or to cease using the land on which it is located as a park, until application for a mobile home park closure has been made to the Planning Director and approval has been received from the Planning Commission or from the Board of Supervisors on appeal.
(B) Applications for a mobile home park closure shall be made to the Planning Director with the filing fee prescribed by resolution of the Board of Supervisors. The application shall contain the following information:
(1) The timetable for closure of the park.
(2) The total number of spaces within the park; the number of spaces occupied; the length of time each space has been occupied by the present tenant; and the monthly rent currently charged.
(C) A park closure certificate shall be submitted with the application that demonstrates that the park must be closed early because the owner is unable to make a reasonable return on the owner’s investment in the park by continuing its operation as a rental park during the time period that the owner needs to determine a new use for the park and apply for its necessary local permits. To meet this burden, the certificate shall be signed by the owner, under penalty of perjury, and it shall state specifically articulable facts that it supports with appropriate documentary or other evidence.
(D) An application for a mobile home park closure shall be subject to environmental review in accordance with the County’s environmental impact review guidelines. [Ord. 5323 § 1, 2020].
13.31.040 Procedures for review.
(A) Within 90 days following the submittal of all required information in connection with an application for a mobile home park closure and completion of the environmental review, the application shall be set for public hearing before the Planning Commission.
(B) The Planning Commission shall, within 30 days after the close of the public hearing, render a decision whether the closure should be approved based upon the findings set forth in SCCC 13.31.050.
(C) Any applicant, or any other person aggrieved, or any other person whose interests are adversely affected by any act or determination of the Planning Commission, may appeal the act or determination to the Board of Supervisors in accordance with SCCC 18.10.300 et seq. For this purpose, the procedure therein set forth is incorporated herein and made a part of this chapter. [Ord. 5323 § 1, 2020].
13.31.050 Required findings for approval.
An application to close a mobile home park, or to cease using the land on which the park is located as a park, shall not be approved unless the following findings are made:
(A) That a park closure certificate has been filed and reviewed, and a determination has been made by the Planning Commission, or by the Board of Supervisors on appeal, that it meets the requirements of SCCC 13.31.030(C) and that it demonstrates that the owner is unable to make a reasonable return on the owner’s investment in the park by continuing its operation as a rental park during the time period that the owner needs to determine a new use for the park and apply for its necessary local permits.
(B) That the mitigation requirements of Government Code Section 65863.7 have been met and that conditions of approval, under SCCC 13.31.060, have been imposed on the approval of the closure that will enable the tenants displaced by the park closure to obtain adequate housing in other mobile home parks within Santa Cruz County. [Ord. 5323 § 1, 2020].
13.31.060 Conditions.
In the approval of an application to close a mobile home park, or to cease using the land on which the park is located as a park, the County may attach conditions deemed reasonable in order to mitigate the impacts associated with the closure. Such conditions may include, but are not limited to, the following:
(A) Full or partial payment for relocation of mobile homes to another park.
(B) If the land occupied by the park is to be sold, the tenants be given the first right of refusal accepting the offer of the seller for the purchase of the park including all improvements.
(C) The tenants be given the option of a long-term lease of the land and purchase of the improvements.
(D) An effective date of the approval of the closure of not less than one year so as to provide sufficient time for the relocation of the mobile homes to other parks.
(E) If the mobile homes cannot be relocated to parks in Santa Cruz County, the applicant may be required to purchase said mobile homes at fair market value, determined by an independent appraiser with mobile home expertise. [Ord. 5323 § 1, 2020].
13.31.061 Severability.
If any section, subsection, sentence, clause, phrase, or word of this chapter is for any reason held to be invalid, the validity of the remaining portions of this chapter shall not be affected. [Ord. 5323 § 1, 2020].