MEETING DATE:
December 9, 2025
SUBJECT:
Title
ORDINANCE NO. 2025-1576 - AMENDING TITLE 14, CHAPTER 14.04 (HIGHWAYS AND TRAFFIC - APPLICATIONS, PERMITS, AND GENERAL PROVISIONS) AND TITLE 17, CHAPTER 17.32 (GRADING AND RELATED ACTIVITIES), OF THE SAN MARCOS MUNICIPAL CODE
Body
Recommendation
Recommendation
INTRODUCE (First Reading) an ordinance amending Title 14, Chapter 14.04 (Highways and Traffic - Applications, Permits, and General Provisions) and Title 17 Chapter 17.32 (Grading and Related Activities) of the San Marcos Municipal Code.
Body
Board or Commission Action
Not Applicable
Relevant Council Strategic Theme
Good Governance
Executive Summary
City staff recommend that Chapter 14.04 of the San Marcos Municipal Code (SMMC) be renamed and amended to include the specific contract, franchise, and permit application requirements for private construction within the right-of-way and to clarify application and permit expiration timelines and appeal procedures. Further, staff recommend that SMMC Chapter 17.32 be amended to allow the Director to extend grading permit expiration timelines and allow for the appeal of an extension denial.
Discussion
Chapter 14.04
SMMC Chapter 14.04 establishes standards for the administration of private contract work within the public right-of-way, for the development of private property, and for private encroachments and construction-related activity in the public right-of-way and public places. This includes, but is not limited to, utility franchises and encroachment permits. City staff recommend that Chapter 14.04 be renamed and amended to include the specific application requirements to obtain the required contracts, franchises, or permits. This amendment to Chapter 14.04 codifies the City’s business practices for permit applications and submittal requirements. Formalizing these application requirements would provide a published standard with transparency for design professionals and applicants on required submittal items and enhance the consistency and completeness of plan submittals.
City staff also recommend that Chapter 14.04 be amended to clarify application and permit expiration timelines and appeal procedures, paralleling those for grading applications in Chapter 17.32. This amendment to Chapter 14.04 would also provide the Director with the discretion to extend the expiration of a permit. The Director would evaluate whether the applicant had been in regular communication with staff and had diligently pursued completion of the required work, but had been prevented from doing so for reasons beyond their control including, but not limited to, encountering unanticipated site and/or environmental conditions, permitting requirements of other regulatory agencies with jurisdiction over the matter, and/or obtaining necessary easements to facilitate the proposed work. The appeal procedures allow for an applicant to appeal the denial of a permit application extension. Establishing an administrative procedure for approval and issuance of permits allows for clear timelines and consistency with City’s current practices, standards, and regulations while ensuring permit applications are processed in a timely manner.
Additionally, the name of the chapter would be changed to “Chapter 14.04 Public Places - Applications, Permits, and General Provisions”.
Chapter 17.32
SMMC Chapter 17.32 regulates the development of property by grading. Proposed amendments to Chapter 17.32 would allow the Director to have discretion to extend the time limit of a grading permit application and allow the appeal of denial of a permit application extension request. This discretion would not be unfettered; it would require the applicant to have been in regular communication with staff and to have diligently pursued completion of the required work, but to have been prevented from doing so for reasons beyond their control including, but not limited to, encountering unanticipated site and/or environmental conditions, permitting requirements of other regulatory agencies with jurisdiction over the matter and/or obtaining necessary easements to facilitate the proposed work. This amendment would further clarify the City’s permit timeline process and provide additional flexibility on grading permit applications.
If the City Council introduces the ordinance, it will return for the second reading (adoption) at the next regularly-scheduled City Council meeting. It would take effect thirty days after its second reading and passage.
Environmental Review
The proposed actions do not constitute a “project” as defined under section 15378 of the California Environmental Quality Act State Guidelines (CEQA Guidelines) set forth at California Code of Regulations, Title 14, Division 6, Chapter 3. Therefore, pursuant to CEQA Guidelines section 15060(c)(3), no environmental review is required. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the proposed actions contemplated hereunder also qualify for an exemption pursuant to CEQA Guidelines section 15061(b)(3) because it can be seen with certainty that there is no possibility of a significant effect on the environment.
Fiscal Impact
There is no direct fiscal impact due to the adoption of this ordinance.
Attachment(s)
1. Ordinance Amending Chapters 14.04 and 17.32 of the San Marcos Municipal Code
2. SMMC Chapter 14.04, with Proposed Amendments Reflected in Redline/Strikeout
3. SMMC Chapter 17.32, with Proposed Amendments Reflected in Redline/Strikeout
Submitted by: Punam Prahalad, Deputy City Attorney
Reviewed by: Stephanie Kellar, Deputy City Engineer
Reviewed by: Isaac Etchamendy, Development Services Director and City Engineer
Approved by: Michelle Bender, City Manager