COUNTY OF SAN MATEO

Inter-Departmental Correspondence

 

PLANNING AND BUILDING DEPARTMENT

 
 

DATE:

September 22, 2008

BOARD MEETING DATE:

October 7, 2008

SPECIAL NOTICE/HEARING:

None

VOTE REQUIRED:

Majority

 

TO:

Honorable Board of Supervisors

 

FROM:

Lisa Grote, Director of Community Development

 

SUBJECT:

Consideration of an amendment to Division VII, Chapter 14, of the San Mateo County Ordinance Code (the Building Regulations) to amend the “Green Building Program” requiring minimum standards for new construction or substantial remodels of residential single-family, low-rise multi-family buildings, commercial and industrial buildings.

 

RECOMMENDATION

 

Approve the proposed amendments to Chapter 14 of the Building Regulations by adopting the required findings in Attachment A and adopting the proposed amendments to the ordinance contained in Attachment C.

 

VISION ALIGNMENT

 

Commitment: The proposed amendments keep the commitment of “Preserve and provide people access to our natural environment.”

 

Goal 14 states: “Important natural resources are preserved and enhanced through environmental stewardship.”

 

The proposed modifications to the “Green Building” Program continue to encourage, among other things, the use of recycled materials and energy efficient appliances in building projects. The program will lower energy usage, reduce the operating and maintenance costs for buildings, provide a healthier indoor environment, and reduce waste in landfills.

 

BACKGROUND

 

Chronology: The Green Building Task Force was created under the direction of Supervisor Mark Church and the Environmental Quality Committee of the Board of Supervisors. Its membership includes contractors, architects, environmental advocates, and homeowners, as well as County staff from the Recycle Works Program, Planning and Building Department, and Board of Supervisors staff. It is chaired by Community Development Director Lisa Grote. Since the adoption of the Green Building Program regulations by your Board on February 12, 2008, the Task Force has continued to meet monthly. On September 10, 2008, the Planning Commission held a public hearing to receive a Program status report and consider possible amendments to the Program regulations.

 

Proposal: The Planning and Building Department, in collaboration with the San Mateo County Green Building Task Force, is proposing amendments to the Green Building Program Regulations to clarify certain standards and requirements, which will improve the effectiveness of the Program.

 

Planning Commission Action: The Planning Commission considered this item and staff’s proposed modifications at their September 10, 2008, public hearing. The Commission voted to recommend approval of the Program regulations amendments with clarifying language regarding temporary occupancy in Section 1407 of the ordinance. The Commission also requested that Planning and Building staff and the Task Force report back to it in six months to research and discuss potential “fee bate” alternatives and additional types of projects to include within the scope of the Green Building Program and regulations.

 

DISCUSSION

 

A.

KEY ISSUES

   
 

1.

Background

     
   

On February 12, 2008, your Board adopted an ordinance establishing the Green Building Program for unincorporated San Mateo County. This ordinance went into effect on March 27, 2008. The regulations established the minimum standard of 50 GreenPoints or Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED®) certification for new construction or substantial remodels (major remodels - 50% valuation or greater as determined by the Building Official) of residential single-family, low-rise multi-family, commercial and industrial buildings. Incentives for projects submitted for 75 GreenPoints or higher or LEED® certification include expedited building permit processing for residential, commercial and industrial construction. In addition, projects submitted for 100 GreenPoints or higher or LEED® “silver” certification receive guaranteed building inspections within two working days of a request.

     
   

At the conclusion of the Board’s public hearing, it directed staff to return to the Board after six months and report on the effectiveness of the Program. Specifically, the Department was to report on the number of applications received that are subject to the Program’s requirements, expenses incurred by applicants for third-party raters, potential impacts on processing of other building permits (minor type building permit applications), community outreach, and implementation effectiveness. Each of these items is addressed below.

     
 

2.

Number of Applications

     
   

Since the Program went into effect in March through the end of August, 38 applications for construction have been submitted that require compliance with the new regulations. Thirty-seven applications are for new or remodel residential single-family dwellings and one application is for a new commercial building. There have been no applications for either low-rise multi-family or industrial construction. Thirteen applications were submitted at 75 GreenPoints or greater, or LEED Certification, thus qualifying for expedited building permit processing. Eight of those thirteen applications were submitted for 100 or more GreenPoints or LEED “Silver” Certification and are also guaranteed building permit inspections within two working days of a request. For a summary of this information, see Attachment D, Green Building Program – Permit Summary Chart. In each of these thirteen cases, the first round of comments on the building permit were received by the applicant within the 30 days as required by the ordinance. The range of days for the first round of comments was from 1 to 26 and is summarized in Attachment D.

     
 

3.

Third-Party Raters

     
   

The Planning and Building Department has contacted both applicants and third-party raters in an effort to obtain the most current information regarding the cost for third-party raters to provide GreenPoint or LEED ratings. Based on information available when the Program was initially proposed to the Planning Commission and Board, staff estimated that third-party raters were charging approximately $700 to $1,000 per project. This information was based on discussions with two Build It Green Certified Raters participating on the San Mateo County Green Building Task Force. In response to a suggestion from the Task Force, staff contacted other raters in San Mateo County and in the immediate Bay Area in June 2008. We have since determined that raters are currently charging between $1,000 and $1,400 per project. While these third-party rater fees are higher than originally estimated, the Green Building Task Force and the Planning and Building Department continue to support the third-party rating system as the most effective means for confirming green building materials and construction methods. While we acknowledge the expense for these consulting services, the Program provides long-term public and private benefits providing healthy, energy and resource efficient buildings in San Mateo County. The cost of the third-party rater remains a small percentage of the overall building costs.

     
 

4.

Potential Impacts on Building Permit Processing

     
   

Since March 27, 2008 through the end of August, the Planning and Building Department has received a total of 977 permits for all types of construction. The 38 green building applications subject to the Green Building Program represent less than 4% of this total workload and the 13 applications qualifying for expedited services is approximately 1% of the Department’s workload. As stated previously, the range of days for all County Departments to provide first round comments on applications receiving expedited services is between 1 and 26 days. There has been no appreciable impact on services to other applicants, processing times, or Departments as a result of implementing the Green Building Program. For a summary of this information, see Attachment D, Green Building Program – Permit Summary Chart.

     
 

5.

Community Outreach

     
   

During the past six months, Planning and Building Department staff have attended and made presentations at meetings with the public to provide information and answer questions about the County’s Green Building Program and regulations. These meetings included two Countywide forums sponsored by the Department of Public Works at the Green Building Exchange for architects, builders and city officials in San Mateo County. Both meetings were well-attended and generated a lot of interest in and questions about the County’s Program. Department staff also met with city officials from Redwood City and the City of Santa Cruz to discuss details of the County’s Program and implementation, and gave two presentations to the Midcoast Community Council. Staff will be continuing to participate in public outreach and answer questions upon request.

     
 

6.

Implementation Effectiveness

     
   

For the past six months, the Green Building Task Force has met on a monthly basis. At these meetings, staff has provided permit summary information, invited guests to attend and provide direct feedback to Task Force members about the Program, reviewed current proposals from Build It Green for its new GreenPoint Rated Existing Home Checklist, and discussed modifications to improve the effectiveness of the County’s Program.

     
   

During the June interviews with applicants, staff asked a number of questions regarding the status of the pending permits, availability of a third-party GreenPoint rater, cost for the third-party rater, and any additional feedback that would help the County understand how the Program could be improved. At the conclusion of the interviews, it was apparent there were two main issues the Department and Task Force needed to address.

     
   

One issue was how to find and contact third-party raters. Applicants indicated some difficulty in obtaining contact information. In response, staff contacted Build It Green and obtained a list of raters located in and around San Mateo County. This list is now distributed at the Development Review Center to assist the public in contacting third-party raters. The list was also revised and updated on September 12, 2008.

     
   

The second issue applicants registered concern with was in regard to the $10,000 bond required to process a project at the 75 point, or above, level. Because of the bonding requirements, many applicants decided to forgo any expedited processing (75 points) or expedited processing and two-day building permit inspections (100+ points) because they could not afford to post a $10,000 bond at the time of application. For projects submitted at the 50-point minimum level, only $5,000 is required prior to the issuance of the building permit. Staff and the Task Force concluded that the $10,000 bonding requirement is an impediment to effective Program implementation. As a result, the Task Force and staff recommended to the Planning Commission that the bonding requirements for projects be modified such that the bond would be $5,000 for all green building projects (50 points or more) and would only be required as part of a temporary occupancy approval if an applicant cannot obtain final verification from Build It Green or United States Green Building Council (USGBC) prior to a final County building permit inspection. This will simplify administration of the Program and remove applicant identified impediments to implementation of the Program. In addition, the Planning Commission and staff believe this may provide the incentive and opportunity for applicants to reinvest the bond monies into their projects and include additional products, materials, etc., and to obtain a higher number of points to receive the incentives offered by the regulations at either the 75 or 100 GreenPoint levels. Proposed amendments to the regulations are included in Attachments B and C in Sections 1402, 1403, 1404, 1405, and 1407.

     
 

7.

Summary of Proposed Amendments

     
   

Proposed amendments to the building regulations are identified in the Draft Ordinance, Attachment B of this staff report with strikeout (deletions) and underlined (additions) text, Attachment C is a proposed ordinance without strikeouts and underlines. The modifications include updated definitions, clarified standards, and reduced bond amount (from $10,000 to $5,000) and changed timing. All projects would require Build It Green Certification or United States Green Building Council (USGBC) Certification or a $5,000 bond to be posted prior to a final County building permit inspection and certificate of occupancy.

     
   

If the proposed modification changing the bonding requirements is adopted, the Planning and Building Department proposes this modification be retroactive and will return any bond or financial instrument submitted to-date by applicants.

     
 

8.

Program Monitoring

     
   

The Planning and Building Department will continue to monitor projects and meet with the Green Building Task Force on a monthly basis. The Planning Commission requested that Planning and Building staff and the Task Force research and discuss potential “fee bate” alternatives and additional types of projects to include for compliance with the Green Building Program and regulations. Staff will continue its efforts to improve the effectiveness of the Program. Another update will be provided to the Planning Commission and Board of Supervisors in March 2009.

     

B.

ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW

   
 

The Green Building Program is categorically exempt from CEQA pursuant to Section 15308 of the California Code of Regulations (State CEQA Guidelines). Section 15308 exempts actions by regulatory agencies for enhancement or protection of the environment. The proposed regulations are intended to protect and enhance the environment by encouraging the construction of single-family, low-rise multi-family buildings, commercial and industrial buildings in a more environmentally friendly manner.

   

C.

REVIEWING AGENCIES

   
 

Building Inspection Section

 

County Counsel

   

FISCAL IMPACT

 

The fiscal impact on the County is negligible.

 

ATTACHMENTS

 

A.

Recommended Findings

B.

Proposed Amended Ordinance: Green Building Program (with strikeout and underline)

C.

Proposed Amended Ordinance: Green Building Program (without strikeout and underline)

D.

Green Building Program – Permit Summary Chart

E.

Letter from Midcoast Community Council

Attachment A

 

COUNTY OF SAN MATEO

PLANNING AND BUILDING DEPARTMENT

 

RECOMMENDED FINDINGS

 
 

Board Meeting Date: October 7, 2008

 

Prepared By:

Jim Eggemeyer, Deputy Director

For Adoption By: Board of Supervisors

 

Lisa Grote, Director

 
   
 

RECOMMENDED FINDINGS

 

Regarding the Amendments to Chapter 14 of the Building Regulations, Find:

 

1.

That the proposed amendments will continue to provide incentives to encourage construction of more environmentally friendly buildings by improving the processing of building permits in an expedited manner, without negatively impacting the ability to process other building permits, as discussed in the staff report.

   

2.

That the construction of more environmentally friendly buildings will benefit the overall health, safety, and welfare of the public, as discussed in the staff report.

   

3.

That the amendments to Chapter 14 of the Building Regulations, attached hereto as Attachment C, should be approved and adopted.