TITLE
Adopt resolution authorizing Director of Development Services to submit amendments of the Long Beach Zoning Regulations, and supporting materials, to the California Coastal Commission for approval and certification. (Citywide)
DISCUSSION
In March 2017, the City of Long Beach (City) received an inquiry from the United States Department of Justice (USDOJ) about the zoning regulations pertaining to religious assembly uses, specifically noting that churches are not permitted in the Commercial-Neighborhood Pedestrian-Oriented (CNP) zone, but are permitted in other commercial zones. After a four-month investigation, the USDOJ concluded that certain City land use regulations could be in violation of the Federal Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (RLUIPA) and be construed as constituting an unfair treatment of religious assembly uses when compared to non-religious assembly uses. The City’s existing regulations allow for churches and places of worship to be conditionally permitted in most commercial zones (CNP excepted) with approval of an Administrative Use Permit (AUP). In PD-30 (Downtown Plan), a Minor Conditional Use Permit is required for a church use. The USDOJ commented that uses like fitness centers and theaters, which have physical characteristics that could resemble those of religious assembly uses, did not require the same review process. The City has initiated these amendments to the zoning regulations, with guidance and collaboration from the USDOJ, to provide assurance that religious assembly uses are treated in a consistent manner as other similar land use.
This work effort provided staff the opportunity to correct other inconsistencies in the Zoning Code as well as modernize some of the outdated provisions for non-religious assembly uses, such as fitness centers and theaters. As the nature of these assembly uses have changed over the past several decades, updating these provisions will provide clarification and better resp...
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