Supporters of the LUVE initiative say they have gathered enough signatures to qualify the proposal for the November ballot and plan to submit signatures to the City Clerk in the coming days.
LUVE will require voter approval for all development agreements, any development above the Tier 1 standard (about 32 feet) and any major amendment/update to significant zoning documents.
Residocracy drafted the initiative and the organization's founder, Armen Melkonians, said signatures could be delivered to City Hall this week.
Ballot initiatives have 180 days from the time of their filing to gather signatures and LUVE needs about 6,500 valid signatures to qualify. Once submitted to the Clerk's office, the clerk has up to 30 business days to verify the signatures. If enough signatures are gathered, the initiative must then be put before City Council who can adopt the ordinance, schedule it for the next municipal election or request staff prepare a study on the topic. That study can take up to 30 days and then return to Council a second time to be adopted or placed on the ballot. If council chooses to send the item to voters, the County Board of Supervisors must then approve the ballot measure to be placed on the next County election.
LUVE is one of two initiatives that began the process this December. Supporters of the second, the City Attorney Accountability Initiative, have said they hope to have their signatures ready to submit by May 20.
- Matthew Hall, Daily Press Editor
