E.
Designation Procedures.
Historic Landmarks and Historic Districts shall be established by the City
Council in the following manner:
1. Designation of an improvement as an Historic Landmark or the designation of an Historic District is begun by a sponsor who may be an individual or organization submitting an application for such designation to the Planning Division of the Economic Development Department. The application for designation shall contain sufficient documentation and information indicating how the building meets the criteria for designation contained in this Section. The Commission may also initiate such proceedings on its own motion.
a. For Designation of Historic Landmarks for Single Family Structures, the owner of the property shall be notified by certified and first class mail if he or she is not the applicant for designation. The owners consent must be obtained prior to scheduling a public hearing.
b. For Designation of Historic Landmarks for nonresidential structures, the owner of the property shall be notified by certified and first class mail if he or she is not the applicant for designation. The owners consent must be obtained prior to scheduling a public hearing. It is the City Council’s discretion to override a property owner objection with a 5/7’s majority vote provided a finding can be made that the structure is of unique value and of special interest to the entire community.
c.
For Designation of Historic Districts all property
owners within the proposed district shall be notified of the application by
first class mail as described in Section E 4 of this Ordinance. As part of the
application for historic district designation, the sponsor shall provide a set
of mailing labels containing the names and addresses of all property owners of
properties within the proposed historic district as shown on the latest
equalized
2. The Planning and Development Services Manager shall make a preliminary determination as to the completeness of the application within thirty (30) days of its receipt and shall notify the sponsor(s), owner(s) and/or resident(s) of this determination. Inaction by the City on the determination of completeness of the application within thirty (30) days of its receipt shall automatically deem it as complete. A public hearing shall be scheduled before the Commission within thirty (30) days of staff’s acceptance as complete, any application for landmark or district designation. Such hearing need not be held within thirty days, but shall be scheduled within that period.
3. In the case of a proposed Historic Landmark or cultural resource site, notice of the date, place, time, and purpose of the hearing shall be given by first class mail to sponsor(s), owner’s and occupants of the building or site at least thirty (30) days prior to the date of the Commission public hearing and legal notice shall be provided at least ten (10) days prior to the public hearing in a newspaper of local circulation. The site shall be posted with a sign at least 8½” x 14” stating that the property is under consideration for Historic Designation for a period of at last (10) days prior to the public hearing date.
4. In the case of a proposed Historic District, the notice of the proposed district shall be mailed to all property owners thirty (30) days prior to the first scheduled public hearing date. The notice shall include:
a. A map illustrating the boundaries of the proposed Historic District
b. An explanation of how individual properties will be affected by the adoption of an Historic District including any additional review processes that may be required as a result of district designation
c. A description of the Historic District designation process including the date, time an place of scheduled public hearings
d. An explanation of how property owners can request that their property be exempted form the provisions of the proposed Historic District
e. A form to be returned to City Hall fifteen days prior to the first scheduled public hearing date if the property owner opposes district designation and would like to be exempted from the previsions of the District.
5. Fifteen (15) days prior to the first scheduled public hearing date on the Historic District Designation application, the returned responses shall be counted. No application for Historic District Designation shall be noticed for public hearing if fifty percent (50%) of the property owners plus one (1) property owner within the proposed district respond in writing opposing Historic District Designation of their property
6. Legal notice of the public hearing shall be provided in a daily newspaper of general circulation at least ten (10) days before any public hearing.
7. If the Historic District is approved, the following properties will automatically be exempted from the provisions of the Historic District designation until such time as the property ownership changes ownership.
a. Properties owned by persons, trusts, institutions or businesses that returned the form indicating their opposition to the proposed Historic District designation.
b. Properties owned by persons, trusts, institutions or businesses that expressed their opposition to the proposed Historic District in writing or verbally at any time prior to the approval of the designation.
c. No other properties shall be exempted form the provisions of the Historic District designation.
8. No exterior building, demolition, or relocation permits for any improvement, building, or structure within the proposed Historic District or relative to a nominated Historic Landmark shall be issued while the nomination process, including public hearing, is pending.
9. At the conclusion of the public hearing, nut in no event more than fifteen (15) days from the date set for the Commission public hearing for the designation of a proposed Historic Landmark or Historic District, the Commission shall recommend approval in whole or in part, or disapproval of the application in writing. The Commission’s recommendation shall include findings of fact relating to the criteria for designation contained in this subsection that constitute the basis for its decision. The Commission shall transmit its recommendation to the City Council the property owner(s), sponsor(s), and the occupant(s).
10. Approval of Commission Recommendations.
a. For designation of a Historic District, within sixty (60) days of receipt of the recommendations from the Commission, the City Council shall by resolution, approve the nomination in whole or in part, or shall by resolution disapprove it in its entirety.
b. For designation of a Historic Landmark, if the property owner’s written consent to the Historic Landmark is on file, within sixty (60) days of receipt of the recommendations form the Commission, the City Council by majority vote of those present shall by resolution approve the nomination in whole or in part, or shall by resolution disapprove it in its entirety.
11. The nominated building, site, or district, after being officially designated by the City Council, shall be placed on the Pomona Historic Register.
12. The Commission shall not recommend that a resource be removed form the Pomona Historic Register unless it is discovered that the information relied on by the Commission and the City Council in making the original designation was erroneous or false, or that circumstances wholly beyond the owner’s control have rendered the resource ineligible for designation based on the criteria listed in this subsection and it would be infeasible to restore the resource. However, in the case of the moving of the building to another location or the deliterate destruction of the historic and architectural integrity of the resource, the Commission may, after a public haring, remove the resource from the official list.
13. Designations shall be recorded with the Los Angeles County Recorder’s Office.