Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Zoning Reasonable Accommodations topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Fortuna Council unanimously adopts zoning "reasonable accommodations" procedure for disability access
Summary
The Fortuna City Council voted 4-0 Jan. 6 to adopt Ordinance 2024-769, adding a formal reasonable-accommodation procedure to Title 17 of the Fortuna Municipal Code to allow zoning exceptions for certain disability-related housing modifications.
The Fortuna City Council on Jan. 6 unanimously adopted Ordinance 2024-769, amending Fortuna Municipal Code Title 17 to add Chapter 17.10 establishing a formal reasonable-accommodations policy and procedure for housing-related requests tied to disability needs.
The ordinance, introduced at the council's Dec. 16 meeting and returned for a second reading, implements Housing Element program H-18 and is intended to align local zoning procedure with federal and state fair-housing requirements. Community Development Director Sherry Mead presented the item and said the change creates a clear process for individuals with disabilities to request relief from zoning rules—such as setbacks—to enable essential home modifications, like wheelchair ramps.
Mead told the council the city's most recent sixth-cycle housing element (adopted Aug. 7, 2019) requires implementing programs to remain in compliance with the California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD). She said HCD has heightened enforcement and that a decertified housing element could jeopardize grant funding and expose the city to penalties or to builders' remedy actions. The staff report cites federal fair-housing law and the California Fair Employment and Housing Act as the legal basis for the ordinance.
Under the adopted procedure the community development director will evaluate accommodation requests and applicants may appeal an adverse decision to the city manager. The staff report and council presentation state the ordinance is exempt from additional review under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) pursuant to Guidelines sections 15162 and 15061(b)(3); staff will file a notice of exemption upon adoption.
A motion to hold the second reading and adopt Ordinance 2024-769 (read by title only) was made and seconded. The council voted Aye: Connolly, King, Mayor Pro Tem Trent and Mayor Mike Johnson (4-0). The motion passed and the ordinance was adopted.
The change becomes part of Fortuna's zoning code; staff said implementation will be managed within existing general-fund staffing and contracted legal review.
