Fiscal Note
No City appropriation required.
Title
Amending Sections of Chapter 41 and associated references in Chapters 1, 28, and 31 of the Madison General Ordinances related to historic landmark buildings to update definitions and amend guidelines.
Body
DRAFTER’S ANALYSIS: This ordinance makes amendments to the following:
Computation of Time: Currently the ordinance specifies ten(10) days public notice for projects that require public noticing. But there is a separate provision on how to count those days that specifies not including weekends and holidays. This has led to fluctuating timelines for public notice, making it difficult for the public and staff to predict the correct deadlines. Shifting to counting all days rather than excluding some from the calculation and then making the public noticing fourteen (14) days will achieve the intent of the original provision while also making it more predictable for all users.
“Appropriate”: The word “appropriate” has a challenging history in urban planning and often represented a race-based exclusionary agenda. The text amendment would substitute Certificate of Approval to replace Certificate of Appropriateness (“CoA”). The CoA process is about meeting the design standards of approval and not a more subjective sense of appropriateness. It also clarifies what the document actually is. The CoA is not a declaration that a building is appropriate, but that the work is approved and construction can proceed. Certificate of Appropriateness is also referenced in Chapters 1, 28, and 31.
Size of Accessory Structures and Additions: The ordinance originally included a requirement that additions and accessory structures over one hundred (100) square feet needed a CoA, which aligned with the requirements for accessory structures that needed architect or engineer stamped plans for building permits. That size for the building permitting process has increased to one hundred and fifty (150) square feet. In order to provide cons...
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