REPORT IN BRIEF

The purpose for the study is to examine the aesthetic impacts of recreational type vehicles, trailers, and boats parked within the front yard of residential zones. The study is to determine whether the City's current municipal code requirements for front yard parking are sufficient or if the code requirements should be modified in order to meet other City goals and design guidelines.

Staff is recommending a modification to the existing Municipal Code §19.46.140 to require that all recreational vehicles, trailers, and boats, when parked or stored on property in all residential zones, shall be parked or stored perpendicular to the street.

BACKGROUND

At the April 30, 2002 City Council meeting, a citizen request was made for information on Sunnyvale regulations regarding the parking of RVs, trailers, and boats in the front yards of residential zones.  The City Council responded by placing an item on a future meeting agenda where the public could voice their thoughts and opinions publicly.  The Council also directed staff to report back to them with information regarding the Sunnyvale Municipal Code and the State Vehicle Code parking regulations.

At the August 20, 2002 City Council meeting, the Council heard from a number of citizens regarding the current City regulations.  A majority of the speakers shared the same opinion that the current regulations were sufficient to address the community's needs and that there should not be any changes made to the municipal code.  A minority of people spoke in favor of changing the current regulations to address the aesthetic impacts that recreational vehicles could have in residential neighborhoods.  The purpose for the meeting was for Council to receive feedback from the community and take their comments under advisement.  At the December 2003 Study Issue workshop, the City Council selected this item as a study issue for 2003 and ranked it number 3 for the Community Development Department.

On October 13, 2003, the Planning Commission reviewed this study issue and received testimony from approximately 20 members of the public.  The opinions of the speakers represented a wide range of ideas concerning this study issue.   The Planning Commission discussed the advantages and disadvantages of modifying the existing City code as well as discussed the possible ramifications to Sunnyvale residents resulting from any modifications.  There was also dialog regarding an amortization period for vehicles which do not comply with new regulations.  The Commission generally felt that there is a negative aesthetic impact that RVs, boats, and trailers can create in residential areas, which needs to be addressed at this time.  The Commission also stated that they did not believe this aesthetic impact had become a common problem throughout the City, but rather, there are only a small number of properties where larger vehicles are causing an impact on the neighborhood. 

Based on this, the Commission agreed with staff's analysis and recommended to the City Council to amend the existing Municipal Code §19.46.140 to require that all recreational vehicles, trailers, and boats, when parked or stored on property in all residential zones, shall be parked or stored perpendicular to the street.  The Planning Commission also added two conditions of approval.  The first is for the amortization period for vehicles which do not comply with the new parking requirement, to end on January 1, 2005.  The second condition is for staff to investigate the possibility of City-owned land to be used for long-term RV, boat, and trailer parking.  (See Attachment 4, Draft Planning Commission Minutes)

EXISTING POLICY

1.     Parking on private property

Current City Regulations in Title 9 and 19 do not prohibit the parking of RVs, trailers, boats, or any oversized vehicles in the front yard area.  City standards do not address the potential aesthetic impacts that RV, trailer, and boat parking could have on residential neighborhoods. The following sections from the City’s Municipal Code deal specifically with parking on private property:

·         The parking area shall not cover more than 50% of the required front yard area (SMC 19.46.140);

·         The front yard cannot be covered with more than 50% of impervious surface (SMC 19.32.060);

·         There is no parking allowed in the 40 foot corner lot vision triangle area (SMC 19.46.140);

·         All vehicles must be parked on a permanent paved surface such as asphalt, Portland Cement or other approved stabilized permanent surface (SMC 19.46.120);

·         Boats must be licensed and stored on a trailer that is operable and registered. Boats must also be covered (SMC 9.26.030 (19));

·         Inoperable vehicles parked on private property cannot be parked for longer than 72 consecutive hours (SMC 9.24.180).

Generally, as long as RVs, trailers, and boats are parked such that they are located on a paved surface, do not cover more than 50% of the front yard area, and do not block visibility at a driveway or intersection, then they are in compliance with current City regulations.

2. Parking on public streets

The California Vehicle Code prohibits:

·         The "stopping, parking, or standing of vehicles, including, but not limited to, vehicles that are six feet or more in height (including any load thereon) within 100 feet of any intersection, on certain streets or highways, or portions thereof, during all or certain hours of the day." (Section 22507);

·         The parking of vehicles that block or partially block the sidewalk or a neighbor’s driveway (Section 22500 (E) and (F)).

City Municipal Code regulations control the following:

·         Vehicles parked on the street must be licensed and operable, and cannot be left in one location for more than 72 hours. (SMC 10.16.120);

3. Relationship to General Plan

The following goal and policy sections from the City's General Plan Elements show the relationship of this study issue with the General Plan:

·         Goal C: Ensure a high quality living and working environment.

·         Policy C.2: Continue to encourage and assist property owners to maintain existing developments in a manner that is aesthetically pleasing, free from nuisances, and safe from hazards.

·         Goal 7.3B: Assure that city policy is established, documented and enacted according to established procedures and legal principles.

·         Policy 7.3B.3: Prepare and update ordinances to reflect the current community issues and concerns in compliance with state and federal laws.

·         Action Statement 7.3B.3b: Consider changes to ordinances to reflect changes in community standards and state and federal laws.

·         Policy N1.1: Protect the integrity of the City's neighborhoods; whether residential, industrial or commercial.

·         Action Statement N.1.15: Establish and monitor standards for community appearance and property maintenance.

·         Policy N1.4: Preserve and enhance the high quality of residential neighborhoods.

DISCUSSION

This study issue is being conducted in response to issues that were raised by Sunnyvale residents who were concerned with RVs parked in their neighborhoods.  These concerns generally regarded RVs parked parallel with the street in the front yards of residential zones.  The City also received concerns about RVs parked perpendicular in the driveway, although these were only a minority of the concerns raised.  The City Council determined that there may be aesthetic and safety issues associated with RV, boat, and trailer parking in front yards and selected this study issue in order to gain a better understanding of the situation.

During the course of this study, staff received approximately 50 responses from the public via email, phone conversations, and letters (Refer to attachment #3, Letters from Residents).  The public's response could generally be categorized into two equivalent groups.  The first group is those citizens who do not want to see any change to the current City regulations.  They believe that the current regulations are sufficient in addressing any parking or aesthetic issues that the City may be facing.  They also believe that new regulations would place an economic burden on property owners if they were required to store their vehicles off-site.  This group of responses was similar to the feedback that the City Council received at their August 8, 2002 meeting.  The second group is those citizens who want a significant change to the current regulations. Generally these residents are concerned with aesthetic issues and stated that recreational vehicles are unsightly and out of place with the residential character of Sunnyvale neighborhoods.  Several people feel that only the larger recreational vehicles are of particular concern to them, not the smaller boats or trailers.

Six main topics are covered in the following discussion section:

1)  Definition of RVs, trailers, and boats,

2)  Recent trends in RV, trailer, and boat ownership,

3)  RV, trailer, and boat parking policies of surrounding cities,

4)  Projected number of RVs, trailers, and boats in Sunnyvale,

5)  Options for RV, boat, and trailer parking,

6)  An analysis of the options for RV, boat, and trailer parking,

7)  Effect on property values,

8)  Public outreach and feedback.

1.     Definition of RVs, trailers, and boats

For purposes of this study issue, the terms RVs, boats, and trailers are intended to refer to registered vehicles that are not considered passenger vehicles.  The following definitions, from the Department of Motor Vehicles, are used to classify the various types of vehicles:

2.     Recent trends

Staff researched recent trends in RV, trailer, and boat sales and found that sales have increased substantially in the past two years.  In 2002, manufacturers shipped 311,000 RV units in the U.S, a 21% increase over year 2001 sales of 256, 000 units.  This year sales are expected to rise at least another 3% up to 320,000 units according to the Recreational Vehicle Industry Association.[1] 

Staff interviewed several sources in the RV and boat industry, including RV sales associates and RV club representatives, and found that there are several reasons cited for this increase in sales: 1) the events of September 11, 2001 have encouraged travel within the US, 2) the aging baby boomer population is now becoming the typical demographic for all types of recreational vehicle ownership, and 3) lower interest rates are making purchasing RVs and boats more feasible.

Staff also contacted several RV, trailer, and boat storage facilities in the area and found the following information:

The 40 foot spaces are necessary for longer RV units or larger boats, while the 30 foot spaces can accommodate small and medium sized motor homes and boats.

The storage facilities contacted all stated that the vacancy rate had become very low in the recent years.  Typically, the vacancy rate had been higher, around ten percent, prior to September 11, 2001.  Since that time, they have received more requests for storage than they have space available.  Of the three facilities that provide 40 foot spaces, two currently no have 40 foot spaces available and the third had one available.  All three stated that there is a waiting list for spaces. 

3.     Comparison of surrounding cities

The following table displays the current policies regarding parking in the required front yard areas for 11 surrounding cities. 

A direct comparison of surrounding cities is not entirely possible since most cities have different standards for lot sizes, lot dimensions, and minimum square footages. Generally, the larger the parcel, the more likelihood that parking in the front yard is not allowed.  Five cities, Los Altos, Los Altos Hills, Mountain View, Palo Alto, and Saratoga do not allow parking in the front yards.  Los Gatos only allows parking in the front yard if the vehicle is greater that 50 feet from the street, so only larger parcels in the hillside area could meet this requirement.  The cities of San Jose and Cupertino require recreational vehicles to be parked perpendicular to the street.  Four cities, Campbell, Milpitas, Santa Clara, and Sunnyvale, have no significant restrictions on parking RVs, trailers, and boats in the front yard.  Eight of the twelve cities have a maximum paved surface area in the front yards and ten of twelve require parking to be on impervious surfaces.  This impervious surface requirement may change as cities implement new stormwater permit requirements.

Most recently, in August 2002, the City of San Jose updated their Nuisance Ordinance, which addresses RV, trailer, and boat parking on private property.  At the time, San Jose was exploring the possibility of restricting any recreational vehicle parking in the front yard of residential zones.  San Jose staff determined that if all front-yard parking were prohibited, there would not be sufficient space available in private storage facilities to accommodate the number of vehicles requiring off-site storage.  Therefore, the restriction of front yard parking was not imposed.  The revised ordinance did include the following restrictions pertaining to recreational vehicles:

·         Trailers, boats, and all motor vehicles must be parked on a paved surface;

·         Recreational vehicles must be parked or stored perpendicular to the street.

4.    Projected number of RVs, trailers, and boats in Sunnyvale

It is important to establish the total number of boats, trailers, and RVs located in Sunnyvale in order to determine the number of residents who could be affected by this study issue.  Staff contacted several governmental agencies, private organizations, and conducted a field survey while attempting to uncover this information.  The following three sources were the most relevant in terms of data projections specifically for Sunnyvale.

Good Samaritan Club:  The Good Sam Club is the largest organization in the nation for RV owners, with membership now exceeding one million families.  The club was able to provide RV ownership information specifically for Sunnyvale using zip codes from their membership records.  The club confirmed that they currently have 400 members registered in Sunnyvale.[2]  The club estimates that nationwide, 20% of all RV owners belong to Good Sam.  This would mean that there are approximately 2,000 RVs in Sunnyvale.  Based on a field survey, staff found that almost all RVs are located in single-family zones, therefore about 10% of the 21,000 single-family homeowners have RVs.

Field survey conducted by staff:  In September 2003, Staff conducted a windshield survey of four single-family residential neighborhoods in Sunnyvale to determine the number of RVs, boats, and trailers which are parked in the front yard areas.  The purpose for the survey was to use a representative sampling from different neighborhoods in order to approximate the total number of vehicles parked in the front yards throughout Sunnyvale.  The information is not intended to be a projection of vehicle ownership by Sunnyvale residents since many vehicles are not visible or parked off-site.  The areas selected were in the R0 and R1 zones.  The following table shows the total number of trailers, boats, and RVs that were visible in the front yard areas: