SECTIONS 50280-50290 - California Statutes

GOVERNMENT CODE

SECTION 50280-50290

50280. Upon the application of an owner or the agent of an owner of
any qualified historical property, as defined in Section 50280.1,
the legislative body of a city, county, or city and county may
contract with the owner or agent to restrict the use of the property
in a manner which the legislative body deems reasonable to carry out
the purposes of this article and of Article 1.9 (commencing with
Section 439) of Chapter 3 of Part 2 of Division 1 of the Revenue and
Taxation Code. The contract shall meet the requirements of Sections
50281 and 50282.

50280.1. "Qualified historical property" for purposes of this
article, means privately owned property which is not exempt from
property taxation and which meets either of the following:
(a) Listed in the National Register of Historic Places or located
in a registered historic district, as defined in Section 1.191-2(b)
of Title 26 of the Code of Federal Regulations.
(b) Listed in any state, city, county, or city and county official
register of historical or architecturally significant sites, places,
or landmarks.

50281. Any contract entered into under this article shall contain
the following provisions:
(a) The term of the contract shall be for a minimum period of 10
years.
(b) Where applicable, the contract shall provide the following:
(1) For the preservation of the qualified historical property and,
when necessary, to restore and rehabilitate the property to conform
to the rules and regulations of the Office of Historic Preservation
of the Department of Parks and Recreation, the United States
Secretary of the Interior's Standards for Rehabilitation, and the
State Historical Building Code.
(2) For the periodic examinations of the interior and exterior of
the premises by the assessor, the Department of Parks and Recreation,
and the State Board of Equalization as may be necessary to determine
the owner's compliance with the contract.
(3) For it to be binding upon, and inure to the benefit of, all
successors in interest of the owner. A successor in interest shall
have the same rights and obligations under the contract as the
original owner who entered into the contract.
(c) The owner or agent of an owner shall provide written notice of
the contract to the Office of Historic Preservation within six
months of entering into the contract.

50281.1. The legislative body entering into a contract described in
this article may require that the property owner, as a condition to
entering into the contract, pay a fee not to exceed the reasonable
cost of administering this program.

50282. (a) Each contract shall provide that on the anniversary date
of the contract or such other annual date as is specified in the
contract, a year shall be added automatically to the initial term of
the contract unless notice of nonrenewal is given as provided in this
section. If the property owner or the legislative body desires in
any year not to renew the contract, that party shall serve written
notice of nonrenewal of the contract on the other party in advance of
the annual renewal date of the contract. Unless the notice is served
by the owner at least 90 days prior to the renewal date or by the
legislative body at least 60 days prior to the renewal date, one year
shall automatically be added to the term of the contract.
(b) Upon receipt by the owner of a notice from the legislative
body of nonrenewal, the owner may make a written protest of the
notice of nonrenewal. The legislative body may, at any time prior to
the renewal date, withdraw the notice of nonrenewal.
(c) If the legislative body or the owner serves notice of intent
in any year not to renew the contract, the existing contract shall
remain in effect for the balance of the period remaining since the
original execution or the last renewal of the contract, as the case
may be.
(d) The owner shall furnish the legislative body with any
information the legislative body shall require in order to enable it
to determine the eligibility of the property involved.
(e) No later than 20 days after a city or county enters into a
contract with an owner pursuant to this article, the clerk of the
legislative body shall record with the county recorder a copy of the
contract, which shall describe the property subject thereto. From and
after the time of the recordation, this contract shall impart a
notice thereof to all persons as is afforded by the recording laws of
this state.

50284. The legislative body may cancel a contract if it determines
that the owner has breached any of the conditions of the contract
provided for in this article or has allowed the property to
deteriorate to the point that it no longer meets the standards for a
qualified historical property. The legislative body may also cancel a
contract if it determines that the owner has failed to restore or
rehabilitate the property in the manner specified in the contract.

50285. No contract shall be canceled under Section 50284 until
after the legislative body has given notice of, and has held, a
public hearing on the matter. Notice of the hearing shall be mailed
to the last known address of each owner of property within the
historic zone and shall be published pursuant to Section 6061.

50286. (a) If a contract is canceled under Section 50284, the owner
shall pay a cancellation fee equal to 12 1/2 percent of the current
fair market value of the property , as determined by the county
assessor as though the property were free of the contractual
restriction.
(b) The cancellation fee shall be paid to the county auditor, at
the time and in the manner that the county auditor shall prescribe,
and shall be allocated by the county auditor to each jurisdiction in
the tax rate area in which the property is located in the same manner
as the auditor allocates the annual tax increment in that tax rate
area in that fiscal year.
(c) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, revenue received
by a school district pursuant to this section shall be considered
property tax revenue for the purposes of Section 42238 of the
Education Code, and revenue received by a county superintendent of
schools pursuant to this section shall be considered property tax
revenue for the purposes of Article 3 (commencing with Section 2550)
of Chapter 12 of Part 2 of Division 1 of Title 1 of the Education
Code.

50287. As an alternative to cancellation of the contract for breach
of any condition, the county, city, or any landowner may bring any
action in court necessary to enforce a contract including, but not
limited to, an action to enforce the contract by specific performance
or injunction.

50288. In the event that property subject to contract under this
article is acquired in whole or in part by eminent domain or other
acquisition by any entity authorized to exercise the power of eminent
domain, and the acquisition is determined by the legislative body to
frustrate the purpose of the contract, such contract shall be
canceled and no fee shall be imposed under Section 50286. Such
contract shall be deemed null and void for all purposes of
determining the value of the property so acquired.

50289. In the event that property restricted by a contract with a
county under this article is annexed to a city, the city shall
succeed to all rights, duties, and powers of the county under such
contract.

50290. Local agencies and owners of qualified historical properties
may consult with the State Historical Resources Commission for its
advice and counsel on matters relevant to historical property
contracts.