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110-899: The California Coastal Commission ( CCC ) is a state agency within the California Natural Resources Agency with quasi-judicial control of land and public access along the state's 1,100 miles (1,800 km) of coastline. Its mission as defined in the California Coastal Act is "to protect, conserve, restore, and enhance the environment of the California coastline". Protection of coastal resources includes shoreline public access and recreation, lower cost visitor accommodations, terrestrial and marine habitat protection, visual resources, and regulation of agricultural lands, commercial fisheries, and industrial infrastructure. By regulating land use within

220-458: A PUD provides flexibility to create convenient ways for residents to access commercial and other amenities. In the US, residents of a PUD have an ongoing role in management of the development through a homeowner's association . Pattern zoning is a zoning technique in which a municipality provides licensed, pre-approved building designs, typically with an expedited permitting process. Pattern zoning

330-470: A barrier of concrete with a path on top. The commission has denied the petitions because of the anticipated loss of beach sand and because the county would shoulder the cost, not the homeowners. The county's responsibility for maintaining the bluff comes from a legal settlement dating to the early days of the development. The county's cost for the new structure was estimated to be $ 10 million for construction and another $ 15 million in mitigation fees to be paid to

440-516: A combination of private and public planning. Other critics of zoning argue that zoning laws are a disincentive to provide housing which results in an increase in housing costs and a decrease in productive economic output. For example, A 2017 study showed that if all states deregulated their zoning laws only halfway to the level of Texas, a state known for low zoning regulations, their GDP would increase by 12 percent due to more productive workers and opportunity. Furthermore, critics note that it impedes

550-622: A community that would preserve the area's natural beauty. But the plan for Sea Ranch eventually grew to encompass 10 miles (16 km) of the Sonoma County coastline that would have been reserved for private use. This and other similar coastal projects prompted opponents to form activist groups. Their efforts eventually led to putting Proposition 20 on the ballot. Proposition 20 gave the Coastal Commission permit authority for four years. The California Coastal Act of 1976 extended

660-593: A compact geographic area. The mixing of land uses is common throughout the world. Mixed-use zoning has particular relevance in the United States, where it is proposed as a remedy to the problems caused by widespread single-use zoning. Form-based or intensity zoning regulates not the type of land use, but the form that land use may take. For instance, form-based zoning in a dense area may insist on low setbacks, high density, and pedestrian accessibility. Form-based codes (FBCs) are designed to directly respond to

770-404: A compatible group of uses are allowed to co-exist - or a combination of both single and mixed-use zones in one system. The main approaches include use-based, form-based, performance and incentive zoning. There are also several additional zoning provisions used in combination with the main approaches. Use-based or functional zoning systems can comprise single-use zones, mixed-use zones—where

880-400: A compatible group of uses are allowed to co-exist —or a combination of both single- and mixed-use zones in one system. The primary purpose of single-use zoning is to geographically separate uses that are thought to be incompatible. In practice, zoning is also used to prevent new development from interfering with existing uses and/or to preserve the character of a community. Single-use zoning

990-494: A constituency that is important to Democrats." Development activities are broadly defined by the Coastal Act to include (among others) construction of buildings, divisions of land, and activities that change the intensity of use of land or public access to coastal waters . Development usually requires a Coastal Development Permit from either the Coastal Commission or the local government if such development would occur within

1100-485: A defined coastal zone extending inland from 3,000 ft (910 m) up to 5 mi (8.0 km), it has the authority to control construction of any type, including buildings, housing, roads, as well as fire and erosion abatement structures, and can issue fines for unapproved construction. It has been called the single most powerful land-use authority in the United States due to its purview over vast environmental assets and extremely valuable real estate. Critics say that

1210-505: A free economy, as poor zoning restrictions hinder the more efficient usage of a given area. Even without zoning restrictions, a landfill, for example, would likely gravitate to cheaper land and not a residential area. Single-use zoning laws can get in the way of creative developments like mixed-use buildings and can even stop harmless activities like yard sales. The Houston example of non-zoning or private zoning with no restriction on particular land use but with other development code shows

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1320-584: A high degree of flexibility, but may be complex to administer. The more a proposed development takes advantage of incentive criteria, the more closely it has to be reviewed on a discretionary basis. The initial creation of the incentive structure in order to best serve planning priorities also may be challenging and often requires extensive ongoing revision to maintain balance between incentive magnitude and value given to developers. Incentive zoning may be most effective in communities with well-established standards and where demand for both land and for specific amenities

1430-500: A local agency (a County, City, or Port) has a Local Coastal Program (LCP) which has been certified by the commission, that agency takes over the responsibility for issuing Coastal Development Permits. For areas with Certified LCP's, the Commission does not issue Coastal Development permits (except in certain areas where the Commission retains jurisdiction, i.e. public trust lands), and is instead responsible for reviewing amendments to

1540-469: A local agency's LCP, or reviewing Coastal Development Permits issued by local agencies which have been appealed to the commission. A Local Coastal Program is composed of a Land Use Plan (LUP) and an Implementation Plan (IP). A Land Use Plan details the Land Uses which are permissible in each part of the local government's area, and specifies the general policies which apply to each land use. The LUP can be

1650-530: A mandate to encourage public access on the California coast and that means doing everything we can to ensure people can actually afford to stay there," said Dayna Bochco, who chairs the commission. In 2022, the commission forced San Diego to require off-street parking for accessory dwelling units within the Coastal Zone in order to reduce potential demand for public parking close to beaches, so that non-residents can find convenient beach parking. In 2023,

1760-520: A master plan in the 1990s. Critics of the development argued the Navy building should be built at a more secure site on a local base and that the downtown property should be developed as parkland for a more civic use, while plan supporters said the development will mean more economic development and additional reasons for visitors to go to the waterfront. The commission's legal opposition to the project began under Executive Director Peter M. Douglas . In 2014,

1870-424: A menu of compliance options where a property developer can earn points or credits for limiting environmental impacts, including affordable housing units, or providing public amenities. In addition to the menu and points system, there may be additional discretionary criteria included in the review process. Performance zoning may be applied only to a specific type of development, such as housing, and may be combined with

1980-431: A number of sub-categories, for example, within the commercial category there may be separate districts for small retail, large retail, office use, lodging and others, while industrial may be subdivided into heavy manufacturing, light assembly and warehouse uses. Special districts may also be created for purposes like public facilities, recreational amenities, and green space. The application of single-use zoning has led to

2090-536: A part of a local government's general plan. The Implementation Plan is responsible for implementing the policies contained in the LUP. The IP is generally a part of the city's zoning code. The Local Coastal Program (LCP) for a run-down gateway to Channel Islands Harbor in Oxnard is designated for visitor-serving commercial uses and harbor-related uses that support recreational boating and fishing. The county owns and manages

2200-422: A property owner and a local government to rezone a property in exchange for a commitment from the developer. It typically involves loosening restrictions on how the property can be used. Contract zoning is controversial and sometimes prohibited because it deviates from the broader planning process and has been considered an illegal bargaining away of the government's police powers to enforce zoning. Fiscal zoning

2310-434: A public works project that would meet regional public needs. The Commission recommended cities implement managed retreat philosophies allowing oceans to naturally erode developments thereby nourishing beaches with reclaimed sand made of disintegrated former properties. In 2019, after the Commission allowed a new seawall to be constructed to protect apartments built in 1972, but denied a permit for townhomes built in 1984,

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2420-418: A quasi-judicial process that enables land uses that, because of their special nature, may be suitable only in certain locations, or when arranged or operated in a particular manner. Uses which might be disallowed under current zoning, such as a school or a community center, can be permitted via conditional-use permits. Contract zoning is a controversial practice in which there is a bilateral agreement between

2530-425: A reduction in lot sizes. The term planned unit development (PUD) can refer either to the regulatory process or to the development itself. A PUD groups multiple compatible land uses within a single unified development. A PUD can be residential, mixed-use, or a larger master-planned community. Rather than being governed by standard zoning ordinances, the developer negotiates terms with the local government. At best,

2640-600: A single space. Mixed-use zoning can be vertical, within a single building, or horizontal, involving multiple buildings. Planning and community activist Jane Jacobs wrote extensively on the connections between the separation of uses and the failure of urban renewal projects in New York City. She advocated dense mixed-use developments and walkable streets . In contrast to villages and towns, in which many residents know one another, and low-density outer suburbs that attract few visitors, cities and inner city areas have

2750-444: A single use (e.g. residential , industrial ), they may combine several compatible activities by use, or in the case of form-based zoning, the differing regulations may govern the density, size and shape of allowed buildings whatever their use. The planning rules for each zone determine whether planning permission for a given development may be granted. Zoning may specify a variety of outright and conditional uses of land. It may indicate

2860-479: A small boutique style hotel to a beach property, they will be required (in 2021) to pay $ 150,000 into a fund which will help to provide for lower cost accommodations in the region. In 2019, the commission fined a hotel builder $ 15.5 million after it "replaced two of the only low-cost motels in Santa Monica with a luxury boutique hotel, without a permit," the commission said in a statement. "We as an agency have

2970-514: A state fund used to purchase threatened properties from homeowners, then rent them back to the resident to live in until it is no longer safe to do so. The California Coastal Commission was established in 1972 by voter initiative via Proposition 20 . This was partially in response to the controversy surrounding the development of Sea Ranch , a planned coastal community in Sonoma County . Sea Ranch's developer-architect, Al Boeke , envisioned

3080-531: A system of use-based districts. Performance zoning is flexible, logical, and transparent while offering a form of accountability. These qualities are in contrast with the seemingly arbitrary nature of use-based zoning. Performance zoning can also fairly balance a region's environmental and housing needs across local jurisdictions. Performance zoning balances principles of markets and private property rights with environmental protection goals. However, performance zoning can be extremely difficult to implement due to

3190-597: A third of the backlog of over 2,000 unresolved enforcement cases. The first notable fines were issued in December 2016 against Malibu property owners Dr. Warren M. Lent and his wife, for $ 4.2 million, and Simon and Daniel Mani, owners of the Malibu Beach Inn, who settled amicably for $ 925,000. The difference in severity of the fines were attributed to the "egregious" nature of the Lent case. A "local coastal program"

3300-417: A three-bedroom house. The Coastal Commission had asserted that the public-easement condition was imposed to promote the legitimate state interest of diminishing the "blockage of the view of the ocean" caused by construction of the larger house. The court, in a narrow decision, ruled that an "essential nexus" must exist between the legitimate state interest and the permit condition imposed by government, otherwise

3410-592: Is Adelaide in South Australia , whose city centre, along with the suburb of North Adelaide , is surrounded on all sides by a park, the Adelaide Park Lands . The park was designed by Colonel William Light in 1836 in order to physically separate the city centre from its suburbs. Low density residential areas surround the park, providing a pleasant walk between work in the city within and the family homes outside. Sir Ebenezer Howard , founder of

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3520-434: Is a broad term that consists of several alternatives to use-based zoning that incorporate information and communication technologies. There are a number of different techniques to accomplish smart zoning. Floating zones, cluster zoning, and planned unit developments (PUDs) are possible—even as the conventional use-based code exists —or the conventional code may be completely replaced by a smart performance or form-based code, as

3630-425: Is a controversial practice in which a small part of a larger zoning district is rezoned in a way that is not consistent with the community's broader planning process. While a jurisdiction can rezone even a single parcel of land in some cases, spot zoning is often disallowed when the change would conflict with the policies and objectives of existing land-use plans. Other factors that may be considered in these cases are

3740-507: Is a controversial practice in which local governments use land use regulation, including zoning, to encourage land uses that generate high tax revenue and exclude uses that place a high demand on public services. Environmental activists argue that putting everyday uses out of walking distance of each other leads to an increase in traffic, since people have to own cars in order to live a normal life where their basic human needs are met, and get in their cars and drive to meet their needs throughout

3850-616: Is a zoning district that overlaps one or more zoning districts to address a particular concern or feature of that area, such as wetlands, historic buildings or transit-oriented development . Overlay zoning has the advantage of providing targeted regulation to address a specific issue, such as a natural hazard, without having to significantly rewrite an existing zoning ordinance. However, development of overlay zoning regulation often requires significant technical expertise. Transferable development rights, also known as transfer of development credits and transferable development units, are based on

3960-418: Is composed of 12 voting members, 6 chosen from the general public, and 6 appointed elected officials. Being on the commission can carry responsibilities which are highly politicized. The 12 appointed commissioners control zoning , compel property alterations, impose fines, bestow construction approvals or vetoes, and require public thoroughfares on private property. Separate from the appointed Commissioners are

4070-493: Is high. However, hidden costs may still offset its benefits. Incentive zoning has also been criticized for increasing traffic, reducing natural light, and offering developers larger rewards than those reaped by the public. Additional zoning provisions exist that are not their own distinct types of zoning but seek to improve existing varieties through the incorporation of flexible practices and other elements such as information and communication technologies (ICTs). Smart zoning

4180-450: Is the ability to create flexible zoning districts for smoother transitions between adjacent properties with different uses. Inclusionary zoning refers to policies to increase the number of housing units within a development that are affordable to low and middle-income households. These policies can be mandatory as part of performance zoning or based on voluntary incentives, such as allowing greater density of development. An overlay zone

4290-417: Is the official name for a zoning plan controlled by the commission but administered by a local agency. The commission can retake granular control of any project if it is appealed. An appeal will take approximately 6–8 months on average to reach a final decision and may take longer to resolve more complicated appeals. The commission is the primary agency which issues Coastal Development Permits. However, once

4400-428: Is used to reduce barriers to housing development, create more affordable housing, reduce burdens on permit-review staff, and create quality housing designs within a certain neighborhood or jurisdiction. Pattern zoning may also be used to promote certain building types such as missing middle housing and affordable small-scale commercial properties. In some cases, a municipality purchases design patterns and constructs

4510-741: Is where only one kind of use is allowed per zone, or district. It is also known as exclusionary zoning or, in the United States, as Euclidean zoning because of a court case in Euclid, Ohio , Village of Euclid, Ohio v. Ambler Realty Co. 272 U.S. 365 (1926), which established its constitutionality. It has been the dominant system of zoning in North America, especially the United States , since its first implementation. Commonly defined single-use districts include: residential, commercial, and industrial. Each category can have

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4620-633: The New Urbanism movement. To accommodate the New Urbanist vision of walkable communities combining cafés , restaurants , offices and residential development in a single area, mixed-use zones have been created within some zoning systems. These still use the basic regulatory mechanisms of zoning, excluding incompatible uses such as heavy industry or sewage farms , while allowing compatible uses such as residential, commercial and retail activities so that people can live, work and socialise within

4730-577: The United States with the Los Angeles zoning ordinances of 1904 and the New York City 1916 Zoning Resolution . There are a great variety of zoning types, some of which focus on regulating building form and the relation of buildings to the street with mixed uses, known as form-based, others with separating land uses, known as use-based, or a combination thereof. Use-based zoning systems can comprise single-use zones, mixed-use zones - where

4840-690: The Zhou Dynasty (1046 – 256 BC), in India during the Vedic Era (1500 – 500 BC), and in the military camps that spread throughout the Roman Empire (31 BC – 476 AD). Throughout the Age of Enlightenment and Industrial Revolution , cultural and socio-economic shifts led to the rapid increase in the enforcement and invention of urban regulations. The shifts were informed by a new scientific rationality,

4950-437: The garden city movement , cited Adelaide as an example of how green open space could be used to prevent cities from expanding beyond their boundaries and coalescing. His design for an ideal city, published in his 1902 book Garden Cities of To-morrow , envisaged separate concentric rings of public buildings, parks, retail space, residential areas and industrial areas, all surrounded by open space and farmland. All retail activity

5060-459: The 1,100 miles (1,800 km) of coastline. The commission's total budget for fiscal year 2019-2020 was $ 32,086,000 The total compensation of the commission's executive director John L. Ainsworth was $ 254,000 in 2019, Charles F. Lester's was $ 177,000 in 2015, and Peter M. Douglas's was $ 213,000 in 2011. Including the proposed budget for fiscal year 2021–22, the cumulative expenses of the Commission since 2007 exceed $ 348 million. The Supreme Court of

5170-507: The 1976 California Coastal Act specifically prohibits State Route 1 from being widened beyond one lane in each direction within rural areas inside the Coastal Zone. The Coastal Commission also had the power to block a proposed southern extension of State Route 241 to Interstate 5 at San Onofre State Beach in San Diego County . The Coastal Commission has the ability to overrule local elected representatives and has also gained

5280-485: The CCC has exceeded its mission, as well as exacerbated California's housing shortage by limiting housing supply in some of the state's most affluent areas, and harmed the environment by defending parking infrastructure, blocking public transit and scuttling dense housing development, while proponents say that the Commission has protected open space, views, habitats, endangered species, and public coastal access. The commission

5390-524: The California Coastal Act, especially the Chapter 3 policies. The agency has sought enforcement through the courts as it originally did not have the power to issue fines on its own to alleged violators. A bill in the California legislature to grant the commission a broad power to issue fines was defeated in September 2013. However legislation attached to the state budget in the summer of 2014 finally granted

5500-473: The Coastal Commission's authority indefinitely. Jerry Brown , in his first term as governor, signed the California Coastal Act into law, but two years later, became frustrated with the commission and called them "bureaucratic thugs." Peter M. Douglas helped write the act in addition to prop 20 and was subsequently employed as the Executive Director of the Coastal Commission for 26 years. In 2011

5610-546: The Coastal Zone. The Coastal Zone is specifically defined by law as an area that extends from the State's seaward boundary of jurisdiction, and inland for a distance from the Mean High Tide Line of between a couple of hundred feet in urban areas, to up to five miles in rural areas. The state authority controls construction along the state's 1,100 miles (1,800 km) of shoreline. One of the provisions passed under

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5720-512: The Commissioners chose Charles Lester as Douglas's replacement, but then fired him in 2016. Accounting for 164 percent inflation, the commission's total funding declined 26 percent from $ 22.1 million in 1980 ($ 13.5 million in then-current dollars) to $ 16.3 million in 2010. The commission's full-time staff fell from 212 in 1980 to 125 in 2010. There are 16 Commission employees working in the enforcement function to investigate violations along

5830-621: The McCarthy family sought permitting to construct a home on their property in San Luis Obispo County . The commission first denied permission telling the McCarthys to relocate a path that ran through the family's property. When the family offered a route to relocate the path and offered to pay for the work, the commission denied their petition because of impacts which included "lesser views for hikers" and significant impacts to

5940-570: The Save San Onofre Coalition, Orange County tollway officials withdrew their approval in 2016 and agreed in a legal settlement to preserve San Onofre State Beach. About 60 oceanview homes in Dana Point sit precariously on a landslide-prone bluff. Since 2012 Orange County has submitted two petitions to the commission to replace the boulders below the bluff along the beach into a "revetment" a combination of boulders backed by

6050-552: The United States ruled in the 1987 case of Nollan v. California Coastal Commission that a requirement by the agency was a taking in violation of the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments. The Coastal Commission had required that a lateral public easement along the Nollans' beachfront lot be dedicated to facilitate pedestrian access to public beaches as a condition of approval of a permit to demolish an existing bungalow and replace it with

6160-634: The ability of those that wish to provide charitable housing from doing so. For example, in 2022, Gloversville's Free Methodist Church in New York wished to provide 40 beds for the homeless population in -4 degree weather and were inhibited from doing so. Corruption is a challenge for zoning. Some have argued that zoning laws increase economic inequality . Empirical effectiveness estimates show some zoning approaches can contribute to housing crisis . The legal framework for land use zoning in Australia

6270-474: The ability to fine private citizens. The agency has sought enforcement through the courts as it originally did not have the power to issue fines on its own to alleged violators. A bill in the California legislature to grant the commission a broad power to issue fines was defeated in September 2013. However legislation attached to the state budget in the summer of 2014 finally granted the authority to impose fines on violators of public-access which could apply to about

6380-417: The advent of mass production and complex manufacturing, and the subsequent onset of urbanisation. Industry leaving the home reshaped modern cities. The definition of home was tied to the definition of economy, which caused a much greater mixing of uses within the residential quarters of cities. Separation between uses is a feature of many planned cities designed before the advent of zoning. A notable example

6490-420: The authority to impose fines on violators of public-access which could apply to about a third of the backlog of over 2,000 unresolved enforcement cases. The first notable fines were issued in December 2016 against Malibu property owners Dr. Warren M. Lent and his wife, for 4.2 million dollars, and Simon and Daniel Mani, owners of the Malibu Beach Inn, who settled amicably for $ 925,000. The difference in severity of

6600-544: The beach in Hollister Ranch unless the public were allowed access through their property. Alternatively, the Remmengas were given the option to pay the commission $ 5,000 which was said to help fund public pathways to the beach. The California Courts of Appeal held that "even if an individual project does not create an immediate need for a compensating accessway, one may be required of it if its effect together with

6710-533: The building restriction "is not a valid regulation of land use but an out-and-out plan of extortion." The commission won its attempt to require a permit for activity on a pharmaceutical limestone quarry owned by Granite Rock Company of Watsonville, California , in the United States Supreme Court case California Coastal Comm'n v. Granite Rock Co. Granite Rock's approved Forest Service permit to excavate pharmaceutical limestone expired by

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6820-636: The case in London or New York. The construction of the Montparnasse Tower in 1973 led to an outcry. As a result, two years after its completion the construction of buildings over seven storeys high in the city centre was banned. Performance zoning, also known as flexible or impact zoning or effects-based planning, was first advocated by Lane Kendig in 1973. It uses performance-based or goal-oriented criteria to establish review parameters for proposed development projects. Performance zoning may use

6930-482: The city of Miami did in 2019. The incorporation of ICTs to measure metrics such as walkability , and the flexibility and adaptability that smart zoning can provide, have been cited as advantages of smart zoning over "non-smart" performance or form-based codes. Floating zones describe a zoning district's characteristics and codify requirements for its establishment, but its location remains unspecified until conditions exist to implement that type of zoning district. When

7040-738: The city of Sacramento; in turn, the larger agencies and departments also have local offices around the state which report to headquarters in Sacramento. Notable exceptions include the California Public Utilities Commission and the California Department of Industrial Relations, which are both headquartered in San Francisco. Other defunct statewide elected offices that no longer exist include the comptroller (which became controller in 1862),

7150-645: The commission rejected a proposal for a freeway through San Onofre State Park in San Diego County. The decision was upheld by the U.S. Department of Commerce for this alternate route to congested Interstate 5 , Southern California's main north–south artery. In agreeing to end lawsuits brought by the state of California, the California Parks and Recreation Commission, the Native American Heritage Commission and

7260-677: The commission required restaurants on the San Diego beach to replace any street parking spaces "lost" to permanent outdoor dining structures (San Diego's "Spaces as Places" outdoor dining program) that had grown extremely popular after first being implemented on a temporary basis during the COVID pandemic with other parking spaces no more than 1,200 feet away. In 2018, a high-profile case was resolved without litigation: at tech billionaire Sean Parker 's 2013 wedding in Big Sur , where extensive staging

7370-616: The commission's employed staff, numbering some 164 people during 2021–22. Jonathan Zasloff, a law professor at the University of California, Los Angeles stated that "The commission is the single most powerful land use authority in the United States given the high values of its jurisdiction and its high environmental assets." and that, because its members are appointed by the governor and the State Senate and Assembly leaders (which have generally been Democrats), "The commission reflects

7480-458: The commission's fine of $ 1.9 million and will follow the restoration order requiring LADWP to apply for a coastal development permit to complete the project and to restore 9 acres (3.6 ha) of habitat within the coastal zone and an additional 17 acres (6.9 ha) outside the zone. In the 1980s, the commission denied the Remmenga family's petition to build a home 1 mi (1.6 km) from

7590-456: The community's desired character and intensity of development. The French planning system is mostly form-based; zones in French cities generally allow many types of uses. The city of Paris has used its zoning system to concentrate high-density office buildings in the district of La Défense rather than allow heritage buildings across the city to be demolished to make way for them, as is often

7700-634: The complexity of preparing an impact study for each project, and can require the supervising authority to exercise a lot of discretion. Performance zoning has not been adopted widely in the US. Incentive zoning allows property developers to develop land more intensively, such as with greater density or taller buildings, in exchange for providing some public benefits, such as environmental amenities or affordable housing units. The public benefits most often incentivised by US cities are "mixed-use development, open space conservation, walkability, affordable housing, and public parks." Incentive zoning allows for

7810-427: The concept that with land ownership comes the right of use of land, or land development . These land-based development rights can, in some jurisdictions, be used, unused, sold, or otherwise transferred by the owner of a parcel. These are typically used to transfer development rights from rural areas (sending sites) to urban areas (receiving sites) with more demand and infrastructure to support development. Spot zoning

7920-514: The criteria for implementation of a floating zone are met, the floating zone ceases "to float" and its location is established by a zoning amendment. Cluster zoning permits residential uses to be clustered more closely together than normally allowed, thereby leaving substantial land area to be devoted to open space. Cluster zoning has been favored for its preservation of open space and reduction in construction and utility costs via consolidation, although existing residents may often disapprove due to

8030-469: The cumulative impact of similar projects would in the future create or increase the need for a system of such compensating accessways." Jeff Peck and his business partner, Steve Barber, bought a large Half Moon Bay property for $ 3 million in 1999. Peck intended to build homes where his 17-year-old autistic daughter, Elizabeth, could live independently among friends after he dies. He proposed building 225,000 sq ft (20,900 m) of office space on

8140-538: The day. Single-use zoning and urban sprawl have also been criticized as making work–family balance more difficult to achieve, as greater distances need to be covered in order to integrate the different life domains. These issues are especially acute in the United States, with its high level of car usage combined with insufficient or poorly maintained urban rail and metro systems. Some economists claim that zoning laws work against economic efficiency, reduce responsiveness to consumer demands and hinder development in

8250-571: The dissolution of the California State Personnel Board were not. In the 1980s, a recommendation to decentralize hiring to departments was implemented. In 2012, California Department of Human Resources was created by combining the functions the former Department of Personnel Administration (DPA) with most of the operations of the State Personnel Board, largely implementing recommendations by experts in

8360-452: The distinctive form of many cities in the United States , Canada , Australia , and New Zealand , in which a very dense urban core , often containing skyscrapers , is surrounded by low density residential suburbs , characterised by large gardens and leafy streets . Some metropolitan areas such as Minneapolis–Saint Paul and Sydney have several such cores. Mixed-use zoning combines residential, commercial, office, and public uses into

8470-421: The downtown project because of insufficient plan conformity with height and density specifications. Commission district supervisor Ryan Maroney said the mass and scale of a building would impact the "coastal resources" of views, community character and aesthetics. In 2023, the commission lobbied against California state legislative proposals that would ease housing construction in areas under the CCC's remit. Under

8580-531: The environment. San Luis Obispo County gave the McCarthys a permit, but the commission vetoed it in 2021. In 2016, the commission denied a controversial proposal for 895 homes, a hotel, and shops from being built on an Orange County oil field overlooking the Pacific Ocean. The Los Angeles Times said the denial was an expression of frustration with competing staff and developer proposals. The site had been disturbed by nearly 70 years of oil production but

8690-399: The fines were attributed to the "egregious" nature of the Lent case. According to the commission, the California Coastal Act requires that "overnight accommodations in the Coastal Zone are [be] available at a range of price points." When permitting new hotels, they usually try to require 25% of bookings at expensive hotels be offered at lower rates, or, in the case of a developer who is adding

8800-565: The government. Generally, a Cabinet-level head of an agency in California holds the title of "secretary", while the head of a department holds the title of "director." Exceptions include the head of the Department of the California Highway Patrol , whose title is actually "commissioner." The vast majority of state government agencies and departments are headquartered in Sacramento or in parts of Sacramento County near

8910-425: The governor are cabinet-level agencies. Some agencies such as the state controller , attorney general , and insurance commissioner are headed by independent elected officials. The state auditor is appointed by the governor with confirmation by the legislature, but operates independently of both. One relatively new top-level agency, California Government Operations Agency , was created in 2012 to help modernize

9020-449: The harbor and wanted to amend the LCP to allow a mixed-use development with up to 400 apartments as their selected developer said the project was only feasible with the housing. In 2020, the commission refused to override the denial by the city of Oxnard of land-use changes as that is only intended to be used in rare instances when a local government is standing in the way of the development of

9130-412: The law. The Commission appealed the ruling, and observers have stated that the final result of this litigation will have far-reaching consequences on the future of California's coast. Currently, 14% of the whole of the California coastline, and 38% of Southern California beaches are protected with seawalls. One proposal to remedy this situation and allow managed retreat was a bill which would have created

9240-515: The legislative proposals, housing that complies with zoning rules and environmental protection laws, would be fast-tracked in areas of the state that have not met their state-set housing goals. By exempting these housing developments from lengthy public hearings and environmental legal challenges, the proposals would effectively cut the CCC out of the housing permitting process. The CCC delayed approval for 141 units of affordable housing on Venice Beach in 2022. The affordable housing project had been in

9350-747: The mayor of Malibu commented: "The commission basically tells us what to do, and we're expected to do it. And in many cases that extends down to the smallest details imaginable, like what color you paint your houses, what kind of light bulbs you can use in certain places." The agency is tasked with protection of coastal resources, including shoreline public access and recreation, lower cost visitor accommodations, terrestrial and marine habitat protection, visual resources, landform alteration, agricultural lands, commercial fisheries , industrial uses, water quality, offshore oil and gas development, transportation, development design, power plants, ports, and public works. The commission's responsibilities are described in

9460-464: The new Government Operations Agency; and the transportation components of BTH along with the formerly separate California Transportation Commission will become part of the new Transportation Agency . Zoning In urban planning , zoning is a method in which a municipality or other tier of government divides land into "zones", each of which has a set of regulations for new development that differs from other zones. Zones may be defined for

9570-432: The owners of the 1984 townhomes sued. The Commission reasoned that the Coastal Act states that the Commission "shall" issue permits for coastal armoring designed to protect "existing structures," which the Commission interpreted as existing at the time of the passage of the Coastal Act, 1977. In 2023, the judge ruled for the plaintiffs, stating that the Commission's position was an “erroneous and unreasonable” interpretation of

9680-427: The physical structure of a community in order to create more walkable and adaptable environments. Form-based zoning codes have five main elements: a regulating plan, public standards, building standards, and precise definitions of technical terms. Form-based codes recognize the interrelated nature of all components of land-use planning—zoning, subdivision, and public works—and integrate them to define districts based on

9790-562: The prior decades. In 2012, the California Government Operations Agency was created under Governor Jerry Brown. Its director, Marybel Batjer , launched an initiative of civil service reform intended to make state employment more attractive to talented employees relative to the private sector. In 2015, the first engagement survey of state employees was conducted using a sample of 5,000. The survey showed that employees largely believed that their work

9900-423: The problem of maintaining order between strangers. This order is maintained when, throughout the day and evening, there are sufficient people present with eyes on the street . This can be accomplished in successful urban districts that have a great diversity of uses, creating interest and attracting visitors. Jacobs' writings, along with increasing concerns about urban sprawl, are often credited with inspiring

10010-563: The process of replacing wooden power poles with steel poles to reduce wildfire risk, the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP) graded fire roads and created new roads on Environmentally Sensitive Habitat Areas in Topanga State Park which destroyed almost 200 endangered Braunton's milkvetch plants on 9 acres (3.6 ha)(10% of those plants in the area). The city agreed that its utility will pay

10120-687: The project's potential effect on traffic, noise, light, and views. In 2020, the commission required the elimination of basements for planned homes in Monterey because there was no way to be completely certain there were no artifacts on the sites in an archaeologically sensitive area, reversing the Monterey County Board of Supervisors' split approval of the projects. In 2020 and 2021, Santa Cruz city planners advocated housing projects including 175 apartments to be built downtown adjacent to Santa Cruz's main bus station. The commission opposed

10230-513: The properties themselves while in other cases the municipality offers the patterns for private development. A hybrid zoning code combines two or more approaches, often use-based and form-based zoning. Hybrid zoning can be used to introduce form and design considerations into an existing community's zoning without completely rewriting the zoning ordinance. Composite zoning is a particular type of hybrid zoning that combines use, form, and site design components: An advantage of composite zoning

10340-409: The property to help fund homes that would also be built to house 50 disabled people. The San Mateo County Board of Supervisors unanimously approved the project in 2011. In 2012 commissioners agreed with appeals filed against the project, saying the proposal would have too large of an impact on utilities, environment and traffic. Peck then filed a civil lawsuit against the commission and a complaint with

10450-522: The proposal was part of an "old paradigm of needing to constantly build 'new and more.'" California executive branch Total number of employees is 227,536 excluding California State Universities. In 2004, there were 4,462 job classifications, many of which had no employees occupying the position, as a workaround for certain hiring practices. As part of a civil service reform initiative beginning in 2013, 700 job titles were eliminated. The California Department of Human Resources primarily oversees

10560-563: The size and dimensions of lots that land may be subdivided into, or the form and scale of buildings. These guidelines are set in order to guide urban growth and development. Zoning is the most common regulatory urban planning method used by local governments in developed countries. Exceptions include the United Kingdom and the City of Houston , Texas . Most zoning systems have a procedure for granting variances (exceptions to

10670-621: The size of the parcel, the zoning categories involved, how adjacent properties are zoned and used, and expected benefits and harms to the landowner, neighbors, and community. Conditional zoning is a legislative process in which site-specific standards and conditions become part of the zoning ordinance at the request of the property owner. The conditions may be more or less restrictive than the standard zoning. Conditional zoning can be considered spot zoning and can be challenged on those grounds. Conditional zoning should not be confused with conditional-use permits (also called special-use permits ),

10780-455: The state Department of Fair Employment and Housing claiming that the commission's action discriminated against developmentally disabled people. Supporters of the development said the Coastal Commission had never approved any affordable housing for the disabled in the organization's 40-year history. That accusation was based on a cursory database search and does not prove anything, said Charles Lester, commission executive director in 2012. In 2008,

10890-625: The state's civil service system, with some additional functions handled by the California State Personnel Board . In 1979, then-Governor Jerry Brown requested a report on the State's personnel system from the Little Hoover Commission , an independent government oversight agency, which resulted in several recommendations of which some were implemented, including the creation of the Department of Personnel Administration but other recommendations such as

11000-516: The state. In 2014, the commission appealed a San Diego project by the United States Navy because of environmental impacts. The Navy had awarded a 99-year lease to a developer to build a multi-use development including a 373,000 sq ft (34,700 m) regional Navy headquarters at no cost to the public to replace buildings that dated to the 1920s. The U.S. Congress had authorized the reuse plan in 1987 and local agencies approved

11110-560: The surveyor general (1849–1926), and the clerk of the Supreme Court. In June 2012, Governor Jerry Brown obtained approval from the legislature to proceed with a reorganization plan. By July 2013, the business and housing components of BTH will be consolidated with the consumer components of SCSA to form the new Business, Consumer Services and Housing Agency; the remainder of SCSA and the Technology Agency will merge into

11220-666: The time the case was decided. Critics of the commission's authority say it has exceeded its mission, violated the constitutional property rights of citizens, worsened the California housing shortage by limiting dense housing development and harmed the environment by defending parking infrastructure and blocking public transit projects. Proponents say that the Commission has protected open space, views, habitats, endangered species, and public coastal access, and therefore argue that it should be given even greater authority to control housing projects within its jurisdiction. Jeff Jennings,

11330-476: The walls is where unsanitary and dangerous activities occurred such as butchering, waste disposal, and brick-firing. Within the walls were civic and religious places, and where the majority of people lived. Beyond distinguishing between urban and non-urban land, most ancient cities further classified land types and uses inside their walls. This was practiced in many regions of the world – for example, in China during

11440-509: The works since 2022. By 2023, the CCC had yet to approve the development. In 2024, the CCC hired lobbyists to push back against California legislative proposals to ease housing construction in the state. In 2024, the CCC expressed opposition to the conversion of two lanes on a six-lane freeway in Monterey County into bus/carpool lanes. CCC argued that the bus/carpool lanes "would cause substantial impacts to coastal resources" and that

11550-405: The zoning rules), usually because of some perceived hardship caused by the particular nature of the property in question. The origins of zoning districts can be traced back to antiquity . The ancient walled city was the predecessor for classifying and regulating land, based on use. Outside the city walls were the undesirable functions, which were usually based on noise and smell. The space between

11660-421: Was important, but did not strongly believe that workers were held accountable or that they received proper recognition for good work. In 2016, the state rolled out a new hiring website, for the first time allowing for electronic job applications for state jobs. Unusually, it was programmed by state employees rather than an external contractor. Agencies under the direction of a secretary that report directly to

11770-492: Was installed in an ecologically sensitive area without a proper permit, Parker cooperated with the Commission and created a mobile app named YourCoast to help visitors discover 1500 access points to beaches as well as report violations. He also paid $ 2.5 million in penalties even though the property owner was at fault and had illegally closed the area to the public for six years. The Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Half Moon Bay

11880-454: Was ordered to pay $ 1.6 million in penalties for failing to provide public access to its nearby beaches in 2019. Cars of hotel guests and golfers would be parked in public spaces by the valets or public access was simply denied to those spaces. In 2020, the commission fined 33 Newport Beach residents a total of $ 1.7 million because their yards encroached on the beach, and required that the beach be returned to its natural state. In 2019, during

11990-473: Was still a crucial ecological refuge for plants and animals. In 2018, the commission approved 120 new oil wells in southeast Long Beach. The commission defended the approval, saying that the oil company swapped 150 acres of wetland to the city of Long Beach in exchange for the right to set up new oil wells. In 2020, the commission delayed construction of a two-story Newport Beach office building and garage with space for two tenants because neighbors objected to

12100-523: Was to be conducted within a single glass-roofed building, an early concept for the modern shopping centre inspired by the Crystal Palace . However, these planned or ideal cities were static designs embodied in a single masterplan . What was lacking was a regulatory mechanism to allow the city to develop over time, setting guidelines to developers and private citizens over what could be built where. The first modern zoning systems were applied in

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