County Staff to Supervisors: Deny Rosemont Plaza Appeal

The owners of Rosemont Plaza aren't likely to find any sympathy from Sacramento County staffers.

Last month, the county's Code Enforcement Department told the Bay Area-based property owners of the Kiefer Boulevard shopping center .

Currently, the only thing separating the shopping center from the houses behind it is a hodgepodge of wooden fences of various heights.

The property owners appealed the decision, and the matter will come before the Sacramento County Board of Supervisors at 2 p.m. on Tuesday. In a staff report released Friday, county staff recommend the supervisors deny the appeal and force the property owners to build a masonry wall.

The staff report states that as far as the code enforcement officer who visited Rosemont Plaza could tell, the shopping center owners have never built a fence of their own.

"Staff does not believe the existing fence at the shopping center is in compliance with the 1977 (zoning code) as there are many sections in disrepair and overall the fencing is not well maintained," the staff report states. "It appears that the homes were constructed first with the residential wood fencing, and the shopping center was not required to build a new fence when it was constructed in 1977."

The staff report states that the requirement for a masonry wall between a commercial or industrial property and a residence was enacted in 1987. Fences built before that are generally allowed to remain, but wood fences "deteriorate over time even with continuous maintenance, and often the only solution is to completely replace the wood fence," according to the staff report.

The report notes the decision might create precedent for the county to require other older shopping centers to build new fences–if not for the fact that the property owners never built a fence behind Rosemont Plaza in the first place. The staff report also recommends amending the zoning code to specify that a fence built before the masonry wall requirement can remain as long as it's maintained.

Many Rosemont residents have also urged the county to deny the appeal, and a total of 43 pages of emails from residents are attached to the staff report.

"RCA is working hard at revitalizing our community," an email from Rosemont Community Association President Doug Haaland says. "The Plaza is, or should be, the commercial heart of Rosemont. Instead, presently it is a serious cancer that we need help in curing.

"We urge you and the Board of Supervisors to not merely deny the appeal of the County's requirement to construct an effective fence shielding the Plaza from its neighbors, but to more closely inspect the entire Plaza for other code violations that need correction by the owners."

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Hearing on appeal of Rosemont Plaza code violation:
2 p.m.
Tuesday, Feb. 28
Sacramento County Board of Supervisors Chambers
700 H St., Suite 1450
Sacramento