14 - Laserfiche WebLink

BACKGROUND On January 5, 2016, the Council adopted Ordinance No. 2133, approving the application of GHC Lund Ranch, LLC for a planned unit development (PUD) rezoning and development plan for 43 single-family homes and 174 acres of open space project (PUD- 25). The project would be located on a 195 acre site located at 1500 Lund Ranch Road in the southeast area of the community. On February 5, 2016, the proponents of the referendum submitted to the City Clerk a petition containing approximately 6,086 signatures. The petition was then delivered to the Alameda County Registrar of Voters (ROV) for signature verification. The City expects to receive from the ROV by February 26th confirmation that the petition has sufficient valid signatures. A Certificate of Petition from the ROV will be provided before the March 1st meeting. As the petition is expected to contain signatures of more than 10% of the qualified Pleasanton voters and be found sufficient by the ROV, the elections official must certify the results of the petition examination to the Council. DISCUSSION The City Clerk, as the City's elections official, will present to the Council the verified Certification of Petition (which is expected to be received on February 26th). As provided in Elections Code §9241, once the elections official certifies the sufficiency of the number of signatures for a referendum petition, the Council accepts that certification, and then the Council must either: (a) repeal the ordinance against which the referendum petition has been filed; or (b) submit the ordinance to the voters at the next regular municipal election occurring not less than 88 days after the order of the Council, or at a special election called for the purpose not less than 88 days after the order of the Council. The ordinance shall not be effective until a majority of the persons voting on the ordinance vote in favor of it. Because the Pleasanton Municipal Code does not set a date for the City's municipal election, Pleasanton, as a general law city, relies on the election dates established by State law.' The Elections Code provides that a general municipal election shall be held on a date defined in Elections Code §§1000 and 1301, which includes the Statewide Primary Election on June 7, 2016, and the Statewide General Election on November 8, 2016.2 With these two election dates available in 2016, staff does not recommend a special stand-alone election on another date (at lSeast 88 days from Council action). Although a special election is allowed by law, it would be costly to have the ROV hold a special stand-alone election (e.g. August 2016) just for Pleasanton, when the City can consolidate with the already scheduled June primary or November general election dates. ' Government Code§36503 provides, in relevant part, that: "...a general municipal election shall be held on a date prescribed by Section 1301 of the Elections Code. ...." 2 Elections Code§§1000 and 1301. The Elections Code uses the terms general municipal election and regular municipal election interchangeably. •