City Council

17. PROPOSED PERMIT FEE REDUCTIONS FOR EATON FIRE REBUILD SITES (Planning & Community Development Dept.) Recommendation: It is recommended that the City Council: (1) Find that the recommended fee reductions are exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (“CEQA”) pursuant to State CEQA Guidelines per Section 15061(b)(3); (2) Adopt a resolution amending the Fiscal Year (FY) 2026 General Fee Schedule to reduce or waive various Plan Check and Permit Fees for rebuilding eligible residential structures destroyed in the Eaton Fire; (3) Direct the City Attorney to prepare within 30 days an ordinance to amend Title 4 of the Pasadena Municipal Code (PMC) to exempt qualified reconstruction of eligible residential structures destroyed by the Eaton Fire from the City’s fees for Construction Tax; and (4) Direct staff to explore other means of recovering the foregone fees. Recommendation of the Economic Development & Technology Committee: On July 15, 2025, the Economic Development & Technology Committee (EdTech) recommended the City Council approve the proposed fee reductions for rebuilding eligible single-family structures destroyed in the Eaton Fire as follows: 1) Waive plan check and building permit fees collected into the Building Fund (204) and the General Fund (101) with a total estimated cost of $3,203,500; 2) Waive the Refuse Collection Administrative Fee and reduce the Deposit for the Construction & Demolition Waste Management collected in the Refuse Collection Fund (406) to a flat $1,000 per site reducing the overall funds collected from $1,500,000 to $125,000; 3) Waive Sidewalk Inspection and Repair Fees collected in the Project Management Fund (301) with a cost amount of $14,250 for the inspections and an estimated cost of $225,000 for the repairs for a total $239,250; 4) Waive Fire Sprinkler and Landscape Review Fees collected in the Building Fund (204) with a total cost amount of $303,625; 5) Waive Electric Service Fees collected in the Electric Service Fund (411) with a total estimated cost amount of $504,000; 6) Defer discussion for Pasadena Water and Power (PWP) fees collected in the Water Service Fund (412) with a total estimated cost of $3.5 million for PWP water service customers. The reductions outlined above would apply to projects that meet all of the following (eligible sites): 1) Single-family properties that were owner-occupied as of January 7, 2025, and the same owner (or a member of the same owner’s family) is the applicant; 2) The reconstruction of ‘like-for-like’ single-family properties as allowed under the City’s Rebuild Ordinance adopted March 24, 2025; and 3) The reconstruction of red-tagged structures (primary dwelling and required parking) and not to the construction of new detached structures such as an accessory dwelling unit (ADU) that did not exist prior to the fire. Since the EdTech Meeting of July 15, 2025 staff heard from rebuild property owners requesting that the fee waivers be expanded from the criteria above to include the following: 1) Owner-occupied condominium units; 2) Owners who select a relocated home or a prefabricated, modular home. This category may exceed the 10% or 200 square foot like for like square footage cap but must still meet all other like for like provisions (height, setbacks etc.) and meet the square footage requirements of the Zoning Code. Staff is supportive of the expanded eligibility criteria. Only four condominium units on the same site were lost and relocated or manufactured homes are based on floor plans that in most cases cannot be modified. With all other zoning requirements being met, there will be little to no impact.