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Home My WebLink AboutStaff Report 2304-1323CITY OF PALO ALTO CITY COUNCIL Special Meeting Monday, May 22, 2023 Council Chambers & Hybrid 5:30 PM Agenda Item 9.Amendment to Palo Alto Municipal Code Title 18 Chapter 18.42, Standards for Special Uses, to Codify Firearms Sales Limitations Ordinance; CEQA status—exempt under CEQA Guidelines section 15061(c)(3). Moved to Consent 2 0 6 1 City Council Staff Report From: City Manager Report Type: ACTION ITEMS CONSENT CALENDAR Lead Department: Planning and Development Services Meeting Date: May 22, 2023 Report #:2304-1323 TITLE Amendment to Palo Alto Municipal Code Title 18 Chapter 18.42, Standards for Special Uses, to Codify Firearms Sales Limitations Ordinance; CEQA status—exempt under CEQA Guidelines section 15061(c)(3). RECOMMENDATION Staff and the Planning and Transportation Commission (PTC) recommend Council adopt a new section 18.42.210 that would codify Ordinance 5559, the temporary, uncodified firearms ordinance Council adopted as an interim ordinance in June 2022 and extended in August 2022. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The attached ordinance (Attachment A) is to codify the requirements of Ordinance 5559 in Title 18 of the Palo Alto Municipal Code (PAMC), Chapter 18.42 (Standards for Special Uses). In Palo Alto, a firearms dealership is considered a retail land use. Since Council adopted Ordinance 5559, this retail use has been required to obtain a Conditional Use Permit (CUP) throughout the City. The ordinance does not affect the longstanding requirement that firearms dealerships obtain a firearms permit from the Police Chief per PAMC Chapter 4.57. Regulations for the storage of firearms are set forth in PAMC 9.07. The permanent ordinance continues the requirement for approval of a Conditional Use Permit (CUP) to establish a firearms dealership. This is part of the City’s efforts to keep Palo Alto safe. BACKGROUND On June 21, 2022, City Council adopted a temporary emergency ordinance requiring a conditional use permit to establish a firearms dealership in Palo Alto. Ordinance 5559 became effective for an initial period of 45 days and Council extended it to remain in effect for an additional period of 10 months and 15 days - until June 20, 2023. Staff brought the temporary ordinance forward in part due to an inquiry received at the public planning counter regarding permissible locations for a firearms dealership in the City. On March 8, 2023, the PTC recommended Council approval of 2 0 6 1 the attached ordinance (Attachment A). Links to the March 8 PTC verbatim and summary meeting minutes1 and PTC staff report2 are provided in footnotes below. ANALYSIS Presently, a conditional use permit is required for firearms dealerships. The City has not received any CUP applications for firearms dealers since the passage of ordinance 5595. The proposed ordinance would require all new firearms dealers to obtain a CUP, even where retail is otherwise permitted. A CUP is a planning entitlement that would be handled via the standard staff review process. CUPs may be called up for review by the Planning and Transportation Commission in a public hearing, followed by consent calendar placement on a City Council agenda. The attached ordinance adds a new section into PAMC Chapter 18.42. The new section would: (1) incorporate by reference the various definitions used in PAMC Chapter 4.57 (Firearms Dealers); and (2) codify the requirement for approval of a Conditional Use Permit pursuant to PAMC Section 18.76 (Permits and Approvals). Firearms Dealers Permits A Conditional Use Permit (CUP) is distinct from a Firearms Dealer Permit, which is still required in Palo Alto to establish a firearms dealership in accordance with PAMC 4.57. Firearms permit issuance criteria restrict firearm dealerships within 250 feet of zoning district where housing is a principal use, or daycare centers, schools, massage establishments, and other land uses. Based on these parameters, a firearms dealership could be established in certain areas of the City in locations that are shown in Attachment B, including portions of the Stanford Research Park, which is not anticipated to be a likely location for firearms dealerships. Conditional Use Permit Findings and Process In addition to the Firearms Permit issuance criteria, the standard findings for a CUP are required for approval of a firearms dealership. To grant a CUP, the director of planning and development services or the city council (when a CUP application has been heard by the PTC) must find that the grant would (1) “[n]ot be detrimental or injurious to property or improvements in the vicinity, and will not be detrimental to the public health, safety, general welfare, or convenience,” and (2) “[b]e located and conducted in a manner in accord with the Palo Alto Comprehensive Plan and the purposes of this title (Zoning).” A CUP may also impose reasonable conditions or restrictions as needed to protect the public interest, such as to protect public health, safety and general 1 March 8 PTC verbatim meeting minutes https://www.cityofpaloalto.org/files/assets/public/agendas-minutes- reports/agendas-minutes/planning-and-transportation-commission/2023/ptc-3.8.2023-verbatim-minutes.pdf and summary PTC minutes https://www.cityofpaloalto.org/files/assets/public/agendas-minutes-reports/agendas- minutes/planning-and-transportation-commission/2023/ptc-3.8.2023-summary-minutes.pdf 2 PTC staff report link: https://www.cityofpaloalto.org/files/assets/public/agendas-minutes-reports/agendas- minutes/planning-and-transportation-commission/2023/ptc-3.08-firearms.pdf 2 0 6 1 welfare. Note that PAMC 18.76.015 (Additional Findings for Specified Retail Uses) places additional restrictions on formula retail uses within the (R, Retail) combining zone district, which at present, only occurs in the California Avenue business district. FISCAL/RESOURCE IMPACT There are no significant fiscal or resource impacts associated with this action. ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW Adoption of the attached ordinance is exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) pursuant to CEQA Guidelines section 15061(c)(3), because it can be seen with certainty that there is no possibility of a significant adverse impact on the environment. ATTACHMENTS Attachment A: Draft Ordinance Firearms CUP Recommended by PTC Attachment B: Map of Firearms Business Siting APPROVED BY: Jonathan Lait, Planning and Development Services Director *NOT YET APPROVED* 0160105_20230511_ay16 1 Ordinance No. _____ Ordinance of the Council of the City of Palo Alto Amending Chapter 18.42 (Standards for Special Uses) to Require a Conditional Use Permit for Firearms Dealers The Council of the City of Palo Alto does ORDAIN as follows: SECTION 1. Findings and Declarations. The City Council finds and declares as follows: A. On June 21, 2022, the City Council adopted Ordinance No. 5559 on an interim, urgency basis. Ordinance No. 5559 was adopted pursuant to Palo Alto Municipal Code Section 2.04.270 based on the need to protect the public safety, health, and welfare, as set forth in the findings and declarations of that ordinance. Ordinance No. 5559 was also adopted in compliance with Government Code Section 65858, to the extent that section was applicable, as an interim urgency measure to address a current and immediate threat to the public health, safety, or welfare, for the reasons forth in the findings and declarations in that ordinance. B. On August 1, 2022 the City Council adopted Ordinance No. 5560, extending Ordinance No. 5559 for a period of 10 months and 15 days. C. The conditions that gave rise to the need for Ordinance No. 5559 still exist and the City Council now wishes to adopt a permanent ordinance to amend the zoning code in accordance with section 18.80.080 of the Palo Alto Municipal Code. SECTION 2. Section 18.42.210 (Firearms Dealers) is added to Chapter 18.42 (Standards for Special Uses) of Title 18 (Zoning) of the Palo Alto Municipal Code as follows: 18.42.210 Firearms Dealers (a) Purpose The purpose of this section is to protect the public health, safety, and welfare by imposing reasonable land use regulations on the sale of firearms within the city. (b) Definitions In addition to the definitions in section 18.04.030 of this code, the definitions in section 4.57.010 of the Palo Alto Municipal Code, as may be amended from time to time, shall apply to this section, unless the context indicates otherwise. (c) Conditional Use Permit Required in Tandem with Firearms Dealer Permit A conditional use permit shall be required to operate a firearms dealer business in any district where such use is permitted. This requirement shall apply in addition to the *NOT YET APPROVED* 0160105_20230511_ay16 2 requirement for a firearms dealer permit issued by the chief of police in accordance with Chapter 4.57 (Firearms Dealers). SECTION 3. If any section, subsection, clause or phrase of this Ordinance is for any reason held to be invalid, such decision shall not affect the validity of the remaining portion or sections of the Ordinance. The Council hereby declares that it should have adopted the Ordinance and each section, subsection, sentence, clause or phrase thereof irrespective of the fact that any one or more sections, subsections, sentences, clauses or phrases be declared invalid. SECTION 4. The Council finds that this project is exempt from the provisions of the California Environmental Quality Act (“CEQA”), pursuant to Section 15061 of the CEQA Guidelines, because it can be seen with certainty that there is no possibility that the ordinance will have a significant effect on the environment. SECTION 5. This extension ordinance shall take on the thirty first (31st) day following its adoption. INTRODUCED: PASSED: AYES: NOES: ABSENT: ABSTENTIONS: ATTEST: ____________________________ ____________________________ City Clerk Mayor APPROVED AS TO FORM: APPROVED: ____________________________ ____________________________ Assistant City Attorney City Manager ____________________________ Director of Planning and Developmental Services ____________________________ Director of Administrative Services Alma Street El Camino Real Sand Hill Road Page Mill Road Arastradero Road San Antonio Road Lytton Avenue Hillview Avenue Hamilton Avenue Embarcadero Road Charleston Road Arboretum Road Quarry Road Page Mill Road Oregon Expressway Foothill Expressway Foothill Expressway Foothill Expressway Stanford Los Altos Los Altos Hills Mountain View Stanford University Menlo Park East Palo Alto Atherton Portola Valley This map is a product of City of Palo Alto GIS [ 0 0.850.425Miles Firearms Business Siting Municipal Code Analysis Scenario 2: Flexible Residential Los Altos HillsPortola Valley Los Altos StanfordWoodside Legend Firearm Sales Permitted with CUP Excluded Areas Assessor Parcels City Limit £¤101 §¨¦280 §¨¦280 Rev: June 9, 2022