§ 38-5. Policy.

(a)

Approval of commission required. It shall be unlawful for any owner or agent of any owner of land to lay out, subdivide, plat or replat any land into lots, blocks and streets within the city, or within the extraterritorial jurisdiction of the city without the approval of the planning and zoning commission and the city council. It shall be unlawful for any such owner or agent to offer for sale or sell property therein or thereby, which has not been laid out, subdivided, platted or replatted with the approval of the planning and zoning commission and the city council.

(b)

City improvements to be withheld until approval. The city hereby defines its policy to be that the city will withhold all city improvements of whatever nature, including the maintenance of streets and furnishing of sewerage facilities and water service from all additions and subdivisions, the platting of which has not been approved by the planning and zoning commission and city council.

(c)

Street numbers and building permits to be withheld until approval. No street number and no building permit shall be issued for the erection of any building in the city on any piece of property other than the original or resubdivided lot on a duly approved and recorded subdivision without the written approval of the planning and zoning commission and city council.

(d)

Adequate public facilities policy.

(1)

Adequate service for areas proposed for development. Land proposed for development in the city and in the city's extraterritorial jurisdiction must be served adequately by essential public facilities and services, including water facilities, wastewater facilities, roadway and pedestrian facilities, drainage facilities and park facilities. Land shall not be approved for platting or development unless and until adequate public facilities necessary to serve the development exist or provision has been made for the facilities, whether the facilities are to be located within the property being developed or offsite.

a.

It is necessary and desirable to provide for dedication of rights-of-way and easements for capital improvements to support new development at the earliest stage of the development process.

b.

Requirements for dedication and construction of public infrastructure improvements to serve a proposed new development should be attached as conditions of approval of any development application that contains a specific layout of the development.

c.

There is an essential nexus between the demand on public facilities systems created by a new development and the requirement to dedicate rights-of-way and easements and to construct capital improvements to offset such impacts.

d.

The city desires to assure both that development impacts are mitigated through contributions of rights-of-way, easements and construction of capital improvements, and that a development project contribute not more than its proportionate share of such costs.

(2)

Conformance to plans. Proposed capital improvements serving new development shall conform to and be properly related to the public facilities elements of the city's adopted or approved master plans for public facilities and services, and applicable capital improvements plans, and shall meet the service levels specified in such plans.

(3)

City options. In order to maintain prescribed levels of public facilities and services for the health, safety and general welfare of its citizens, the city may require the dedication of easements and rights-of-way for or construction of on-site or off-site public infrastructure improvements for water, wastewater, road, drainage or park facilities to serve a proposed development, or require the payment of fees in lieu thereof. If adequate levels of public facilities and services cannot be provided concurrent with the schedule of development proposed, the city may deny the development until the public facilities and services can be provided; require a reduction in the intensity or density of use sufficient to ensure that the facilities systems serving the property have adequate capacity to mitigate the impacts to be generated by the development; or require that the development be phased so that the delivery of facilities and services coincides with the demands for the facilities created by the development. The city may impose any conditions relating the provision of public infrastructure specified by an ordinance establishing or amending the zoning for the property.

(4)

Property owner's obligation.

a.

Dedication and construction of improvements. The property owner shall dedicate all rights-of-way and easements for, and shall construct, capital improvements within the rights-of-way or easements for those water, wastewater, road or drainage improvements needed to adequately serve a proposed development consistent with the applicable master facilities plans, whether the facilities are located on, adjacent to or outside the boundaries of the property being platted.

b.

Facilities impact studies. The city may require that a property owner prepare a comprehensive traffic impact study, drainage study or other public facilities study in order to assist the city in determining whether a proposed development will be supported with adequate levels of public facilities and services concurrent with the demand for the facilities created by the proposed plat. The study shall identify, at a minimum, the adequacy of existing facilities and the nature and extent of any deficiencies, and the capital improvements needed to meet the adopted level of service assuming development at the intensity proposed in the plat application. The study shall be subject to approval by the city engineer. The city also may require, at the time of approval of a subsequent plat application, an update of a public facilities study approved in connection with a prior plat application.

(5)

Timing of dedication and construction.

a.

Initial provision for dedication or construction. The city shall require an initial demonstration that a proposed development shall be adequately served by public facilities and services at the time for approval of the first plat application that portrays a specific plan of development including, without limitation, an application for an application for a master plat, or an application for a preliminary or final plat. As a condition of approval of the plat application, the city may require provision for dedication of rights-of-way or easements for, and construction of, capital improvements to serve the proposed development.

b.

Deferral of obligation. The obligation to dedicate rights-of-way for or to construct one or more capital improvements to serve a new development may be deferred until approval of a subsequent phase of the subdivision, at the sole discretion of the city engineer, upon written request of the property owner, or at the city's own initiative. As a condition of deferring the obligation, the city may require that the developer enter into a facilities agreement pursuant to section 38-22, specifying the time for dedication of rights-of-way for or construction of capital improvements serving the development.

(6)

Appeals. A requirement or condition imposed upon a plat pursuant to this section is subject to a proportionality appeal pursuant to section 38-14.

(Code 1982, § 24-5; Ord. No. 78-20, § V, 8-7-1978; Ord. No. 05-41, § 1, 8-23-2005)