Code Enforcement FAQs

Measure C will provide funding that will stay 100% in Lafayette to be used for the maintenance and enhancement of the city's quality of life.  Measure C provides for an additional 1% general sales tax for a period of 29 years, providing $3 million annually.   A Citizen's Oversight Committee will be established to monitor the measure's revenues and expenditures.  The Lafayette Chamber of Commerce supports Measure C.

Passage of Measure C would provide funding to pursue projects in Lafayette that residents have asked for over the past two years via Community Conversations and surveys.  The approval of the Measure will also put Lafayette on an equal sales tax revenue basis compared with our neighboring cities and, along with Lafayette residents, the sales tax will be paid by people from other communities who shop in Lafayette.  The money will also be used by the City to leverage opportunities for matching funds, grants and private donations as they arise by using the funds from the Measure as seed money.

The City does have $8 million in reserves.  However, the Council has traditionally earmarked those funds for potential disaster recovery efforts.  When a disaster hits an area prone to wildfires and earthquakes, it is not uncommon for the jurisdiction to spend $1 million a day.   For this reason, Lafayette maintains a healthy reserve. 

It is also true that the City has generated surpluses for the last several years through prudent management and careful budgeting.  However, the Sales Tax Revenue Study Committee concluded that, while the City can cover expenses for existing programs with budget surpluses, there is very little additional revenue available for any new projects or programs without reallocating resources from current priorities.

YES.   State law gives cities the option to add sales tax increments but also provides limits.  In Contra Costa County, the maximum sales tax add-on rate for any jurisdiction may not exceed 2.5 percent above the State rate (i.e., 10%).  While this limit would not impede Measure C, it could impact future local sales taxes.  Here’s how.  If Lafayette voters choose not to approve the Measure C tax now and, in subsequent elections, county-wide agencies such as BART or the local transportation authority are successful with their own county-wide sales tax measures, those other agencies’ new tax rates could entirely “use up” Lafayette’s headroom under the tax cap.  In such a case, the higher sales tax increment paid at local stores could be used entirely for County-wide purposes instead of remaining in Lafayette.  Lafayette could be prohibited from seeking a higher sales tax rate for itself absent the sunset of an existing tax measure or the enactment of special State legislation.

Given the limitations of SB566 -- which imposes a maximum add-on sales tax rate of 2.5% -- the Sales Tax Revenue Study Committee recommended that in order to keep as much sales tax as possible specifically for Lafayette uses instead of for countywide purposes that the tax be levied for as much as for as long as possible.

NO.  Lafayette employee salaries are currently benchmarked every two years to the median of nine peer cities which guarantees that employees are not paid substantially more or less than employees in similar cities.  Furthermore, Lafayette is only one of 10 cities in California that offers a defined contribution retirement plan rather than a defined benefit plan.  That means no city employee receives a pension, that the City currently has no unfunded retirement debt, and that none of the sales tax will be used for that purpose.

While the City does have an extensive Hillside Ordinance in place, the City cannot prohibit owners of private parcels from building on their property.  Property owners do have certain development rights.  A notable example is the gateway parcel across the street from the Oakwood athletic club.  Many people do not realize that this 62 acre piece of open space, with its signature oak, is privately owned and not part of EBMUD’s reservoir property holdings – and that it is zoned for single-family housing.

If there are unique opportunities – such as the purchase of a rare piece of open space – that arise before the City has had time to accumulate significant funds, the City may choose to quickly issue a bond because, otherwise, the opportunity could be lost for good.  In addition, bonding will allow the City to start on some projects right away so that people can see tangible benefits of the tax sooner, without waiting 5 to 10 years. 

NO.  While the City’s long-term Downtown Specific Plan does suggest that City offices should be relocated to Lafayette’s historic core, Measure C funds were never planned to be used for this purpose, nor has that been suggested or proposed.  The City is well-managed, both operationally and financially, and has for twenty years been accumulating funds for a permanent City office building.  Lafayette currently has $5M in notes and assets that are earmarked for the construction of City offices and does not require additional funding from Measure C.

At the City Council’s discretion, Measure C funds could be used to incentivize a non-profit or public/private partnership to stimulate renovation of the Park Theater.  Once it is refurbished, Measure C monies could be used to fund the staging of community events and meetings at the refurbished Park Theater. 

The process was extensive and based on the opinions and thoughts submitted by Lafayette's citizens:

• In autumn of 2014, with the new library completed and the maintenance of our roads fully funded, the City Council sought input from residents on a 20-year vision for our city
• In winter of 2015, 725 people participated in an online and mail survey
• The survey results indicated that our residents want to preserve open space, enhance public safety, improve parking and traffic flow, and revitalize the Park Theater
• In spring of 2015, the City Council convened and held four "Community Conversations" meetings to review survey results. In these meetings, residents also called for the development of parks in the downtown and better pedestrian and bike paths.
• In fall of 2015, the City Council formed a sales tax exploration committee and retained a professional polling agency.  The Sales Tax Revenue Study Committee performed a comprehensive assessment of the current city budget and determined that projected future city revenues (without the additional Measure C revenues) would not be sufficient to implement and support the enhancements that residents indicated were important for the future of Lafayette.
• In spring of 2016, a representative sample of 436 likely voters suggested that the vast majority are satisfied with our municipal services and that 64% would support a sales tax increase if the funds were spent in Lafayette only.
• In summer of 2016, the City Council voted unanimously to place Measure C on the November 8, 2016 ballot.

You can see a visual of this process in the Summer 2016 Vistas.

YES.  A Citizen's Oversight Committee will keep Lafayette residents informed of the revenues and expenditures associated with the Measure C funds.  In addition, the Measure C funds will be placed in a specific fund within the City's budget that will make that oversight and reporting transparent and easy to follow.

OpenGov is a financial transparency website which displays government finances over a multi-year period.  The default view usually displays expenses broken down by department.

To focus on specific data – like a fund, department, expense type, or any combination – use the menu on the left side panel.  The “By” drop-down allows you to specify which breakdown you want the graphs and table rows to represent on the graph.  You can analyze the expense and revenues data by fund, department, or type.

Hover over any area of the graph to see the actual or budgeted amounts for that period.  Or, just scroll down to see a table with detailed information.

Yes.  Use the Data Filter on the left side panel to make specific selections within the data.  The Data Filter shows you the hierarchical relationships of Funds, Departments, and Account Types.  You’ll notice the title of the graph you are viewing on top along with the account type selector.  You can use the filter to see the data of most interest to you.

In the upper right-hand corner, you will see options for the different graphs and tables.  There are five graph types overall; an area graph, an area graph by percentage, a line graph, a pie graph, and a bar chart.  There is also always a table view below any chart or graph.  The table allows you to zoom-in on the detailed financial data selected in the chart or graph above.

In reviewing multiple years of data, you may see “spikes” in the individual years; this can be due to unexpected expenses, such as a hard winter, equipment failure, a capital project, or a specific event that required additional funds.  You can drill-down into our OpenGov site to learn more about what exactly those expense or revenues are.

Yes, there are Share and Download buttons in the upper right corner.  You can share any view on a social network or by email.  There are also options to download the displayed data in .csv spreadsheet and .png image formats.

Use the Help menu on the top right corner to navigate to the “Budget 101” primer to learn more about multi-fund accounting.

Use the Help menu on the top right corner to navigate to the “Contact” option to send your message to your organization.

Most of Lafayette’s growth occurred in the 1960’s with the population nearly tripling from 7,000 to 20,000 by 1970. So it has been almost 40 years since most of Lafayette’s subdivisions and their roads were created. Roads that are not maintained will last for 12 to 15 years before the road condition declines steeply and many roads will fail at an age of about 40 years. When Lafayette incorporated in 1968, it did so as a “no property” tax city, therefore, the city subsisted primarily on sales taxes. In 1978, with the passage of Prop 13, the City began to collect a share of the 1% tax paid by property owners. The City now receives about 6.2% of the property taxes. That means that for a $1 million home with a property tax of $10,000, Lafayette receives only $600.  The rest goes to the State, BART, schools, etc.  While this is still relatively low compared to other communities in the county (e.g. Hercules – 33%, Brentwood – 11%, Martinez – 15%), the City has no mechanism by which it can capture a higher percentage.

In 1995 a tax measure raised $13 million and financed 41 specific projects that provided benefit to the most people: arterials and collectors such as Moraga Road, St. Mary’s Road, Mt. Diablo Blvd., Pleasant Hill Road, Acalanes Road and Reliez Station Road. In 2004 the City turned its focus toward finding funding to repair neighborhood roads.

• Measure N was an ad valorem tax that would have taxed property owners based on the current assessed value of their homes. The cost was approximately $19 per $100,000 in property value, so the tax on a home valued at $500,000 would have been $95 per year. That measure failed.

• The City tried again in 2007 with Measure C, this time with a flat parcel tax that would have cost $150 per residential unit. That also failed.

• In 2011, the City tried again with Measure G, another flat tax of $89 per residence. That did not pass either.

• In 2008 the City considered putting a local sales tax measure on the ballot which would have increased the sales tax rate by up to 1%. However, there was significant opposition expressed by the Lafayette Chamber of Commerce and the Lafayette Taxpayers Association and ultimately, the Council decided not to put a measure on the ballot.

• In 2010, a citizen’s Finance Committee recommended that the City increase the property tax transfer rate which would raise the rate of the current tax that is paid only when property is sold. However, in order to raise this rate, the City would have been required to change from a General Law city to a Charter City. There was significant concern expressed by residents about such a change, therefore the City Council chose not to put the charter city initiative on the ballot.

Setbacks are measured from property lines or access easements, whichever is more restrictive.  Each zoning district establishes minimum setback requirements for the front setback, side yard, aggregate side yard, and rear yards. Some lots, such as “flag lots” or oddly configured lots, require that planning staff make a determination with respect to where each setback applies.  Staff will consider the access to the lot and orientation of the house among other factors when making such a determination.

For properties located adjacent to creeks, click here to determine your creek setback.

Properties in the R-6 and greater zoning designations may maintain chickens on their property.

Additional questions regarding chickens?  Contact Papa John (925) 284-5497.

 For more information on regulations for keeping small farm animals click here.

Re-roof permits are generally exempt from review by the Planning & Building Department except when the project is located within a commercial, office, or multi-family zoning district. A Waste Management Plan is required for all non-residential projects. Additionally, proposed roofing color and material for re-roofs in a commercial, office, or multi-family zoning district must be reviewed by the planner-on-duty. A permit from the Contra Costa County Building Inspection Department is required in all circumstances.

What are sharrows?
“Sharrows” is short for “shared lane pavement markings” which indicate that motorists and bicyclists are to share the travel lane.

As a bicyclist, what should I do in the presence of sharrows?
We’ve placed the sharrows outside of the parked car’s “door zone.” Bicyclists should ride through the center of the sharrow with parked cars on their right and passing vehicles on their left.

As a motorist, what should I do in the presence of sharrows?
Slow down and drive carefully. Sharrows indicate that you are sharing the road with bicyclists. Because the travel lane is too narrow for safe side-by-side travel by motorists and bicyclists, motorists should slow down and either wait for the bicyclist to turn off the roadway, or wait until you can move safely into an adjacent lane.

Can I still drive in lanes where there are sharrows?
If there is not an accompanying white stripe with the marking then it is not a bicycle lane; it is a sharrow. You may still drive in that travel lane. You may encroach over the sharrow if there are no bicyclists next to you.

Why not just stripe bicycle lanes?
We’re using the sharrows because there isn’t enough room for bicycle lanes. This is because of a combination of a high demand for on-street parking and the inability to either eliminate a travel lane or narrow the existing travel lanes. It is also physically too difficult and prohibitively expensive to widen the roadway.

Why not just use sharrows instead of bicycle lanes?
Bicycle lanes are still the best solution for creating safe conditions for all roadway users on high vehicle volume streets. With bike lanes, motorists are not delayed by the presence of slower-moving bicyclists in front of them and bicyclists don’t feel intimidated by the presence of following motorists who wish to pass them. Sharrows will be added on roads where adding bike lanes is not feasible.

What does Lafayette hope to accomplish with the sharrows?
We want to create safer conditions for all roadway users on busy streets where we should have bicycle lanes but cannot. We hope to do this by moving bicyclists a little further away from parked cars than they would normally ride in the absence of sharrows and creating a little more awareness and separation between passing motorists and bicyclists than would normally exist.

Do sharrows work?
They seem to. A 2003 study in San Francisco showed that in the presence of sharrows, bicyclists moved further away from parked cars and passing motorists moved further away from cyclists than in the absence of sharrows. California has adopted sharrows as a standard roadway treatment, and San Francisco, Oakland, and Berkeley have already painted hundreds of them on their streets.

FAQ from the Portland sharrows fact sheet, adapted for Lafayette

After the work covered by your Encroachmernt Permit is complete (including theremoval of utility and construction identification markings), you must contact Lafayette City Offices, Engineering Department Encroachment Permit Hot Line (925) 299-3277 to request a final inspection.

Once your project has been inspected by the engineering staff and all conditions of the permit have been met, the deposit will be refunded in the same manner in which it was made. For check refunds the process may take 2-4 weeks for you to receive your refund; for credit card refunds, the process may take 1-5 days for you to receive your refund.

To obtain an Encroachment Permit, submit an Encroachment Permit application form, providing the address and detailed description of the project, to the Engineering Department. You may also need to provide plans, drawings, or sketches of the project. 

When the permit application is received, a staff person will visit the job site to determine conditions the City may place on the project. Some construction details and typical conditions are provided for reference on the back of the Encroachment Permit form. If more information is needed about your project, the staff will call you with questions. 

The staff will then determine the amount of the refundable deposit ($500 minimum, $2500 typical) as well as the permit fee to cover the initial staff time ($187.50 minimum). If applicable, additional inspection fees will be deducted from the security deposit when the project is complete.

Someone from the City offices will then contact you (typically within 1-2 days) and let you know that your Encroachment Permit has been processed. You can then submit your payment for the fees and deposit, and pick up your permit.

You are also required to contact the City’s offices at (925) 299-3277 (Encroachment Inspection Hotline) at least 24 hours prior to starting the work covered by your permit (see permit for details).

The City’s General Plan and zoning code establish maximum density limits for each of its residential districts. Developments that exceed these limits are allowed in two ways:

1. The State’s density bonus law mandates that a city allow densities exceeding that set by the General Plan if the development includes a certain number of affordable units. The City has no choice but to approve a project that complies with this law.
2. The General Plan can be amended to rezone a parcel of land; however, in order to do so the City Council must find that there is a community need for the change proposed.  For example, if a developer proposes clustering homes (e.g. condos instead of single family homes) that allows the City to keep more open space.

The best way to contact the council members is to send an e-mail message. You can send a message to the entire council here:  cityhall@lovelafayette.org.

To contact individual council members, click here.

Call Central Contra Costa Sanitary District at (925) 228-9500.

For emergencies call (925) 933-0990 or (925) 933-0955 (24 hours, 7 days a week).

For toxics, call (925) 689-3890.

Parking permits are available at the city offices through the accounting department. Make sure that your street has a Residential Parking Permit Program. Please be prepared to show proof of residency by showing two of any of the following:

• Recent phone, PG&E, water or other utility bill

• Recent receipt of rent payment