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HomeMy WebLinkAbout129 - 09/17/2002 - AMENDING THE CITY CODE TO CREATE A STANDARD PROCEDURE FOR ADMINISTRATIVE APPEALS TO THE CITY MANAGER ORDINANCE NO. 129, 2002 OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS AMENDING THE CODE OF THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS TO CREATE A STANDARD PROCEDURE FOR ADMINISTRATIVE APPEALS TO THE CITY MANAGER WHEREAS, various sections of the City Code currently allow for appeals to the City Manager of certain decisions made or actions taken by City employees or officers; and WHEREAS,the appeals procedures outlined in such sections are not consistent,as they vary in both content and complexity; and WHEREAS,although some variation in appeals procedures is necessary because of the type or nature of decision or action being appealed, the Council believes it is in the best interests of the City that a consistent general procedure be established for administrative appeals to the City Manager. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS as follows: Section 1. That Article VI of Chapter 2 of the Code of the City of Fort Collins is hereby enacted to read as follows, and the subsequent Articles contained in Chapter 2 are renumbered accordingly: ARTICLE VI. ADMINISTRATIVE APPEALS PROCEDURE Sec. 2-540. Definitions. The following words,terms and phrases,when used in this Article,shall have the meanings ascribed to them in this Section: Administrative decision maker shall mean the City officer or employee whose decision or action is subject to appeal to the City Manager pursuant to the City Code. Appellant shall mean the person or organization who has taken an appeal from an administrative decision maker to the City Manager by the filing of a notice of appeal. Sec. 2-541. Certain appeals to be taken to City Manager. Where the Code allows for appeals to the City Manager of decisions made or actions taken by an administrative decision maker, the appeals procedures set forth herein shall apply unless different or additional procedures are specifically set forth in the Code sections pertaining to such decision or action. Where different procedures are set forth,those procedures shall control. Where additional procedures are set forth,they shall be in addition to the procedures set forth in this Article. This Article shall not apply to the appeals process set forth in the City's Personnel Policies and Procedures. Sec. 2-542. Filing of notice of appeal. An appeal may be taken by filing a written notice of appeal with the City Manager within fourteen (14) days after the decision or action which is the subject of the appeal. The notice of appeal shall be signed by all appellants and shall include the following: (1) The action or decision which is the subject of the appeal; (2) The date of such action; (3) A specific statement of the reasons for appeal, and any data or documentation upon which the appellant seeks to rely. (4) The name,address,telephone number and relationship of each appellant to the subject of the action or decision being appealed; and (5) In the case of an appeal by more than one(1) appellant,the name, address and telephone number of one(1)such appellant who shall be authorized to receive,on behalf of all appellants, any notice required to be mailed by the city to the appellants under the provisions of§§ 2-543 or 2-544. Sec. 2-543. Review of notice of appeal by City Attorney. Within five(5)working days of the date of the filing of the notice of appeal,the notice shall be reviewed by the City Attorney for any obvious defects in form or substance. A notice of appeal which fails to conform to the requirements of Section § 2-542 shall be deemed deficient. The City Manager shall notify the appellant in writing of any such deficiency,which notice shall be mailed no more than seven(7) working days from the date of the filing of the notice of appeal. The appellant shall have five (5) working days from the date of mailing of the notice of deficiency to cure such deficiency. If the appellant does not cure the deficiency within said period of time, the appeal may be dismissed if, in the judgement of the City Manager, the notice of appeal does not provide adequate information to allow the parties involved to prepare for the hearing on the appeal. Sec. 2-544. Scheduling of hearing. Upon receipt of an appeal,the City Manager shall schedule a date for hearing the appeal,which hearing shall be held no later than forty-five (45) days after the filing of the notice of appeal. Written notice of the date,time and place of the hearing shall be mailed by the City Manager to the appellant no less than fourteen (14) calendar days prior to the date of said hearing. Notice shall also be provided to the administrative decision maker and all city staff and members of the public who appeared before or presented evidence or information to the administrative decision maker regarding the decision that is the subject of the appeal. Said notice shall include a copy of the notice of appeal. Sec. 2-545. Procedure at hearing; burden of proof; final decision. (a) In hearing an appeal that has been filed under the provisions of this Article, the City Manager shall hear the matter anew,and shall not be limited to the evidence originally presented to the administrative decision maker. The City Manager's decision shall be based on the evidence and such criteria as exist in the Code or administrative guidelines. (b) At the hearing, the City Manager shall provide the appellant and city staff an opportunity to present testimony and evidence regarding the matter being appealed. This shall include: (1) Explanation of the nature of the appeal by city staff, (2) Presentation by the appellant and any other interested parties of evidence and argument in support of the appeal; (3) Presentation by city staff and any other interested parties of evidence and argument in opposition to the appeal; (4) Presentation of rebuttal arguments, as permitted in the discretion of the City Manager. (c) The burden of proof in the hearing shall be on the appellant. (d) The hearing shall be tape recorded and the tape retained for sixty(60)days from the date of the City Manager's written decision. (e) The City Manager shall issue his or her final decision in writing no later than fourteen (14) days following the hearing, and shall provide a copy of such decision to all appellants and the administrative decision maker. Other interested parties may obtain a copy of the decision upon request to the City Manager's Office. (f) The decision of the City Manager shall be final, subject only to such judicial review, if any, as may be available under the Colorado Rules of Civil Procedure. The date of the City Manager's written decision shall be the date of final action for the purpose of any such subsequent judicial review of the decision of the City Manager. Secs. 2-546—2-565. Reserved. Section 2. That Section 7.5-23 of the Code of the City of Fort Collins is hereby amended to read as follows: Sec. 7.5-23. Appeals. (a) Any property owner or developer may appeal the following decisions to the City Manager, pursuant to the appeals procedure set forth in Article VI of Chapter 2 of this Code, and the specific requirements of Subsection(b),below: (1) The applicability of any fee to the development; (2) The amount of any such fee; (3) The availability, amount or application of any offset or credit; or (4) The amount of any refund, as determined by the Financial Officer, under the provision of§ 7.5-25 below. (b) The burden of proof in any such hearing shall be on the applicant to demonstrate that the amount of fee or offset or credit was not properly calculated by the city. In the event of an appeal of the amount of a fee, the feepayer shall, at his or her expense, prepare and submit to the City Manager an independent fee calculation study for the fee in question. The independent fee calculation study shall follow the methodologies used in the Capital Improvement Expansion Cost Study, dated May 21, 1996, as amended, or the city's Street Oversizing Impact Fee Study, dated July 15, 1997, as amended, whichever is applicable. The independent fee calculation study shall be conducted by a professional in impact analysis. The burden shall be on the feepayer to provide the City Manager all relevant data, analysis and reports which would assist the City Manager in determining whether the capital improvement expansion fee should be adjusted. The City Manager shall modify said amount only if there is substantial competent evidence in the record that the city erred,based upon the methodologies contained in the Capital Improvement Expansion Cost Study, dated May 21, 1996, as amended, or the city's Street Oversizing Impact Fee Study, dated July 15, 1997, as amended, whichever is applicable. Section 3. That Section 7.5-25(d) of the Code of the City of Fort Collins is hereby amended to read as follows: Sec. 7.5-25 Procedure to obtain refund. (d) The decision of the Financial Officer with regard to the refund may be appealed to the City Manager under the provisions of§ 7.5-23(b) and Article VI of Chapter 2 of this Code. Section 4. That Section 7.5-49 of the Code of the City of Fort Collins is hereby amended to read as follows: Sec. 7.5-49. Appeals of amount of in-lieu fees. (a) Any property owner or developer may appeal to the City Manager,pursuant to the appeals procedure set forth in Article VI of Chapter 2 of this Code, and the specific requirements of Subsection(b),below,the amount of any in-lieu fee or any determination regarding the refund of a fee under the provisions of § 7.5-50(0) below. (b) In the event of an appeal of the amount of a fee, the feepayer shall, at his or her expense, prepare and submit to the City Manager an independent fee calculation study for the fee in question. The independent fee calculation study shall follow the criteria described in § 7.5-48(d) above. The burden shall be on the feepayer to provide the City Manager all relevant data, analysis and reports which would assist the City Manager in determining whether the in-lieu fee should be adjusted. The City Manager shall modify the amount of a fee or refund of a fee only if there is substantial competent evidence in the record that the city erred,based upon the criteria contained in § 7.5-48(d) above. Section 5. That Section 7.5-83(e) of the Code of the City of Fort Collins is hereby amended to read as follows: Sec. 7.5-83. Independent fee calculation study. (e) Appeal of independent fee calculation study decision. (1) A feepayer affected by the administrative decision of the Fee Administrator on an independent fee calculation study may appeal such decision to the City Manager pursuant to the appeals procedure set forth in Article VI of Chapter 2 of this Code,and the specific requirements of Subparagraph(2), below. (2) In making his or her decision, the City Manager shall apply the standards in this Section. If the City Manager reverses the decision of the Fee Administrator, the City Manager shall direct the Administrator to recalculate the fee in accordance with his or her findings. Section 6. That Section 7.5-84(d) of the Code of the City of Fort Collins is hereby amended to read as follows: Sec. 7.5-84. Credits. (d) Appeal of credit decision. A feepayer affected by the decision of the Fee Administrator regarding credits may appeal such decision to the City Manager pursuant to the appeals procedure set forth in Article VI of Chapter 2 of this Code. In making his or her decision, the City Manager shall apply the standards in this Section. If the City Manager reverses the decision,the City Manager shall direct the Fee Administrator to readjust the credit in accordance with his or her findings. Section 7. That Section 7.5-85(0) of the Code of the City of Fort Collins is hereby amended to read as follows: Sec. 7.5-85. Benefit districts. (c) Appeal of refund decision. A feepayer affected by the Fee Administrator's decision regarding refunds may appeal such decision to the City Manager pursuant to the appeals procedure set forth in Article VI of Chapter 2 of this Code. In making his or her decision,the City Manager shall apply the standards in this Section. If the City Manager reverses the decision of the Fee Administrator,the City Manager shall direct the Administrator to readjust the refund in accordance with his or her findings. Section 8. That Section 15-265(g) of the Code of the City of Fort Collins is hereby amended to read as follows: Sec. 15-265. Investigation and approval of licensees and managers required. (g) The revocation,suspension or denial of the issuance or renewal of a license or manager's certificate may be appealed to the City Manager pursuant to the appeals procedure set forth in Article VI of Chapter 2 of this Code. Section 9. That Section 15-318(e) of the Code of the City of Fort Collins is hereby amended to read as follows: Sec.15-318. Application for secondhand dealer license;renewal;limitation on use; appeals. (e) The revocation,suspension or denial of the issuance or renewal of a license may be appealed to the City Manager pursuant to the appeals procedure set forth in Article VI of Chapter 2 of this Code. Section 10. That Section 15-368 of the Code of the City of Fort Collins is hereby amended to read as follows: Sec. 15-368. Suspension or revocation of license or endorsements. The City Engineer may suspend or revoke any license or endorsement issued under this Article upon determining that the licensee: (1) Has failed to abide by the requirements of this Code,including this Article, relating to work done under the license and/or endorsement. (2) Is unqualified to perform the work for which the license or endorsement was issued. (3) Has demonstrated a careless, dangerous or destructive approach to the work being performed. (4) Has violated provisions of the applicable construction or repair standards or specifications. Upon taking action to suspend or revoke a license, the City Engineer shall give written notice to the licensee of such action. Such license shall not be in effect again until duly reinstated by the City Engineer,nor shall any refund of the license fee be made for any length of time for which the license has been suspended or revoked. The licensee may appeal the decision of the City Engineer to the City Manager pursuant to the appeals procedure set forth in Article VI of Chapter 2 of this Code. Section 11. That Section 23-194(D) of the Code of the City of Fort Collins is hereby amended to read as follows: Sec. 23-194. Natural areas permit process. . . (c) A permit decision by the Director under Subsection (b) above may be appealed to the City Manager pursuant to the appeals procedure set forth in Article VI of Chapter 2 of this Code. Section 12. That Section 23-204(D) of the Code of the City of Fort Collins is hereby amended to read as follows: Sec. 23-204. Recreation area permit process. (c) A permit decision by the Director under Subsection (b) above may be appealed to the City Manager pursuant to the appeals procedure set forth in Article VI of Chapter 2 of this Code. Section 13. That Section 24-113(b) of the Code of the City of Fort Collins is hereby amended to read as follows: Sec. 24-113. Fee waiver, appeals. (b) Appeals. Any decision of the City Engineer under Subsection (a) above may be appealed to the City Manager pursuant to the appeals procedure set forth in Article VI of Chapter 2 of this Code. Introduced, considered favorably on first reading, and ordered published this 3rd day of September, A.D. 2002, and to be presented for final passage on the 17th day of September, A.D. 2002. i -Mayor At,TTEST City Clerk Passed and adopted on final reading this 17th day of September, A.D. 2002. Mayor ATTEST: City Clerk