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Planning Commission recommends rewriting temporary-use permit rules, adds minor permit and longer durations
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Summary
The City of Tracy Planning Commission voted to recommend that City Council repeal and replace the Temporary Use Permit ordinance, increasing standard permit duration to 60 days, capping full permits at three per parcel per 12 months, and creating a streamlined Minor Temporary Use Permit (MTUP) for very small, short-term vendors.
The City of Tracy Planning Commission on March 25 voted to recommend that City Council adopt a zoning text amendment to repeal and replace the city’s Temporary Use Permit (TUP) rules, staff said.
Christina Dugadillo, assistant planner, briefed the commission on a staff-initiated rewrite of the TUP provisions in Article 34, Title 10 of the Tracy Municipal Code. “This project is a staff initiated zoning text amendment to repeal and replace the temporary use permit ordinance,” Dugadillo said, summarizing the ordinance’s changes and the anticipated procedural benefits for applicants.
Under the proposal, the maximum duration for a standard TUP would increase from 30 days to 60 days. Full TUPs would be limited to three permits per parcel in any 12-month period; the 12-month clock begins at issuance of the first permit. Dugadillo said the three-per-parcel cap was intended to prevent consecutive reuse of the same site from becoming effectively permanent.
The proposal also creates a Minor Temporary Use Permit (MTUP) category for small vendors and short events. MTUPs would be limited to 400 square feet, allowed for up to three consecutive days per permit, and capped at six MTUPs per parcel within a 12-month period. Dugadillo told commissioners the MTUP is intended for parking-space-sized operations and would carry a lower fee and faster review timeline than a full TUP.
The draft ordinance adds a director-level revocation process. Dugadillo said revocation would be handled at the director/staff level when findings such as fraud, failure to meet permit conditions, or changed circumstances are met; applicants would receive notice and staff would attempt to resolve issues before initiating revocation.
Other changes in the draft include removing a hard-copy plan requirement to reflect the city’s electronic submittal system, adding an event description item to the full-TUP application to aid staff review, and adding a purpose and intent section to align formatting with more recent ordinances.
Commissioners asked a series of clarifying questions. Commissioner Orcutt asked whether large fairs and carnivals apply for TUPs; Dugadillo confirmed carnivals typically apply for standard TUPs and undergo a multiweek, interdepartmental review before issuance. Commissioners also sought clarity on whether the parcel cap follows the parcel or applicant; staff confirmed the cap is tied to the parcel, not the applicant, to avoid a revolving-door of different applicants using the same site repeatedly.
Vice Chair Boce Boateng moved to recommend that City Council waive first reading by substitution of title and introduce and adopt the ordinance repealing and replacing the TUP provision (as exempt from CEQA under Guidelines section 15061(b)(3)); Commissioner Orcutt seconded. Roll-call votes recorded in the transcript show Commissioners who voted “yes” included Commissioner English, Commissioner Orcutt, Vice Chair Boce Boateng and Chair Penning; the motion carried.
The commission’s recommendation sends the draft ordinance to the City Council for public hearing and final action. Staff told commissioners drafted application forms for both full TUPs and MTUPs have been prepared in anticipation of the ordinance’s adoption.
What’s next: the commission recommended the ordinance to City Council; the ordinance must still be noticed, heard and adopted by the City Council before the rules change takes effect.
