Chapter 18.75 DEVELOPMENT STANDARDS – ADEQUACY OF PUBLIC FACILITIES AND SERVICES

Chapter 18.75
DEVELOPMENT STANDARDS – ADEQUACY OF PUBLIC FACILITIES
AND SERVICES

Sections:

18.75.010 Purpose.

18.75.020 General requirements.

18.75.030 Adequate sewage disposal.

18.75.040 Adequate water supply.

18.75.050 Surface water management.

18.75.060 Adequate streets.

18.75.070 Adequate vehicular access.

18.75.080 Adequate fire protection.

18.75.090 School concurrency – Applicability and relationship to fees.

18.75.100 Findings, recommendations, and decisions regarding school capacities.

18.75.110 Submission of district capital facilities plan and data.

18.75.120 School concurrency standard.

18.75.130 Credit for improvements.

18.75.010 Purpose.

The purpose of this chapter is to ensure that public facilities and services necessary to support development are adequate or will be provided in a timely manner consistent with the public facilities and services planning goal of the Washington State Growth Management Act of 1990 by:

(1) Specifying the on-site and off-site facilities and services that must be in place or otherwise assured of timely provision prior to development;

(2) Allocating the cost of those facilities and services fairly; and

(3) Providing a general framework for relating development standards and other requirements of this code to:

(a) Adopted service level standards for public facilities and services;

(b) Procedural requirements for phasing development projects to ensure that services are provided as development occurs; and

18.75.020 General requirements.

(1) All new development proposals including any use, activity or structure allowed by Chapter 18.25 CMC that requires City of Covington approval shall be adequately served by the following facilities and services prior to the time of occupancy, recording or other land use approval, as further specified in this chapter:

(a) Sewage disposal;

(b) Water supply;

(d) Roads and access;

(e) Fire protection service; and

(f) Schools.

(2) All new development proposals for building permits, plats, short plats, urban planned developments, fully contained communities and binding site plans, that will be served by a sewer or water district, shall include a certificate of water availability and a certificate of sewer availability to demonstrate compliance with this chapter and other provisions of the City of Covington Municipal Code, the City of Covington comprehensive plan and the Growth Management Act.

(3) Regardless of the number of sequential permits required, the provisions of this chapter shall be applied only once to any single development proposal. If changes and modifications result in impacts not considered when the proposal was first approved, the City shall consider the revised proposal as a new development proposal. (Ord. 42-02 § 2 (21A.28.020))

18.75.030 Adequate sewage disposal.

All new development shall be served by an adequate public or private sewage disposal system, including both collection and treatment facilities as follows:

(1) A public sewage disposal system is adequate for a development proposal; provided, that:

(a) For the issuance of a building permit, preliminary plat or short plat approval or other land use approval, the site of the proposed development is or can be served by an existing disposal system consistent with CMC Title 13, and the disposal system has been approved by the Department as being consistent with applicable State and local design and operating guidelines;

(b) For the issuance of a certificate of occupancy for a building or change of use permit, the approved public sewage disposal system as set forth in subsection (1)(a) of this section is installed to serve each building or lot;

(c) For recording a final plat, final short plat or binding site plan, the approved public sewage disposal system set forth in subsection (1)(a) of this section shall be installed to serve each lot respectively; or a bond or similar security shall be deposited with the City of Covington for the future installation of an adequate sewage disposal system. The bond may be assigned to a utility to assure the construction of the facilities within two years of recording; and

(d) For a zone reclassification or urban planned development permit, the timing of installation of required sewerage improvements shall be contained in the approving ordinance as specified in CMC 14.35.300; and

(2) A private individual sewage system is adequate, if an on-site sewage disposal system for each individual building or lot is installed to meet the requirements and standards of the Department of Public Health as to lot size, soils and system design prior to issuance of a certificate of occupancy for a building or change of use permit. (Ord. 42-02 § 2 (21A.28.030))

18.75.040 Adequate water supply.

All new development shall be served by an adequate public or private water supply system as follows:

(1) A public water system is adequate for a development proposal; provided, that:

(a) For the issuance of a building permit, preliminary plat approval or other land use approval, the applicant must demonstrate that the existing water supply system available to serve the site:

(i) Complies with the applicable planning, operating and design requirements of Chapter 246-290 WAC; Chapters 12.60 and 12.65 CMC and CMC Title 15; coordinated water system plans; CMC Title 13 and other applicable provisions of the rules and regulations of the King County Board of Health; and any limitation or condition imposed by the City-approved comprehensive plan of the water purveyor; and

(ii) The proposed improvements to an existing water system have been reviewed by the Department and determined to comply with the design standards and conditions specified in subsection (1)(a)(i) of this subsection; or

(iii) A proposed new water supply system has been reviewed by the Department and determined to comply with the design standards and conditions specified in subsection (1)(a)(1) of this subsection;

(b) Prior to issuance of a certificate of occupancy for a building or change of use permit, the approved public water system and any system improvements set forth in subsection (1)(a) of this section shall be installed to serve each building or lot respectively;

(c) For recording a final plat, final short plat or binding site plan, either the approved public water supply system or system improvements set forth in subsection (1)(a) of this section shall be installed to serve each lot or a bond or similar security shall be deposited with the City of Covington and may be assigned to a purveyor to assure the construction of required water facilities in Group A systems as defined by Board of Health regulations, within two years of recording; and

(d) For a zone reclassification or urban planned development permit, the timing of installation of required water system improvements shall be included in the approving ordinance as specified in CMC 14.35.300.

(2) An on-site, individual water system is adequate and the plat or short plat may receive preliminary and final approval, and a building or change of use permit may be issued:

(a) In an urban area if:

(i) The buildings or lots to be served are located outside of a City approved water purveyor service area; or

(ii) The water purveyor has indicated that service cannot be provided in compliance with the purveyor’s approved comprehensive plan; and

(iii) The Seattle-King County Department of Public Health has approved the proposed method of water supply in accordance with the applicable King County Board of Health rules and regulations and this section. The applicant shall provide appropriate information to demonstrate to the Department and the Seattle-King County Department of Public Health that a private individual water system will be adequate. The Seattle-King County Department of Public Health may require installation of private individual water systems prior to final approval of a plat or short plat where information is insufficient to show an adequate water supply can be made available. (Ord. 42-02 § 2 (21A.28.040))

18.75.050 Surface water management.

All new development shall be served by an adequate surface water management system as follows:

(1) The proposed system is adequate if the development proposal site is served by a surface water management system approved by the Department as being consistent with the design, operating and procedural requirements of the surface water design manual and CMC Title 13, Division II;

(2) For a subdivision, zone reclassification or urban planned development, the phased installation of required surface water management improvements shall be stated in the approving ordinance as specified in CMC 14.35.300. Such phasing may require that a bond or similar security be deposited with the City of Covington; and

(3) A variance request from the requirements of the surface water design manual and CMC Title 13, Division II, shall be reviewed as set forth in CMC 13.25.050 and does not require a variance from this title unless relief is requested from a building height, setback, landscaping or other development standard set forth in Chapters 18.30 through 18.80 CMC. (Ord. 42-02 § 2 (21A.28.050))

18.75.060 Adequate streets.

(1) All new development shall be served by adequate roads. Streets are adequate if the development’s traffic impacts on surrounding public roads are acceptable under the level-of-service standards and the compliance procedures established in CMC Title 12.

(2) The renewal of permits or the issuance of a new permit for existing uses constitutes a new development proposal only if it will generate additional traffic above that currently generated by the use.

(3) A variance request from the road cross section or construction standards established by CMC Title 12, Streets, Sidewalks and Bridges, shall be reviewed as set forth in CMC 12.60.050 and does not require a variance from this title unless relief is requested from a building height, setback, landscaping or other development standard set forth in Chapters 18.30 through 18.80 CMC. (Ord. 42-02 § 2 (21A.28.060))

18.75.070 Adequate vehicular access.

All new development shall be served by adequate vehicular access as follows:

(1) The property upon which the development proposed is to be located has direct access to:

(a) A public or private street that meets City design and construction standards and specifications or is formally declared acceptable by the City Engineer; or

(b) The property has access to such a street over a private driveway approved by the City;

(2) The proposed circulation system of a proposed subdivision, short subdivision or binding site plan shall intersect with existing and anticipated streets abutting the site at safe and convenient locations, as determined by the Department and the City Engineer; and

(3) Every lot upon which one or more buildings are proposed to be erected or traffic-generating use is proposed to be established shall establish safe access as follows:

(a) Safe passage from the street right-of-way to building entrances for transit patrons and other pedestrians, in accordance with the City design and construction standards and specifications set forth in Chapter 18.50 CMC;

(b) Direct access from the street right-of-way, fire lane or a parking space to any part of the property as needed to provide public services in accordance with adopted City design and construction standards and specifications (e.g., fire protection, emergency medical service, mail delivery or trash collection); and

(c) Direct access from the street right-of-way, driveway, alley or other means of ingress/egress approved by the City of Covington, to all required off-street parking spaces on the premises. (Ord. 42-02 § 2 (21A.28.120))*

*Code reviser’s note: The 2002 Design and Construction Standards and Specifications, as adopted by Ordinance 44-02, may be found on file at the City Clerk’s Office.

18.75.080 Adequate fire protection.

All new development shall be served by adequate fire protection as set forth below:

(1) The site of the development proposed is served by a water supply system that provides at least minimum fire flow and a road system or fire lane system that provides life safety/rescue access, and other fire protection requirements for buildings as required by CMC Title 15, Buildings and Construction;

(2) For a zone reclassification or urban planned development, the timing of installation of required fire protection improvements shall be stated in the approving ordinance as specified in CMC 14.35.300, secured with a bond or similar security, and deposited with the City of Covington; and

(3) A variance request from the requirements established by CMC Title 15, Fire Code, shall be reviewed as set forth in CMC Title 15, and/or in Article 2 of the currently adopted edition of the International Fire Code and does not require a variance from this title unless relief is requested from a building height, setback, landscaping or other development standard set forth in Chapters 18.30 through 18.80 CMC. (Ord. 06-05 § 1; Ord. 23-04 § 17; Ord. 42-02 § 2 (21A.28.130))

18.75.090 School concurrency – Applicability and relationship to fees.

(1) The school concurrency standard set out in CMC 18.75.120 shall apply to applications for preliminary plat or urban planned development (UPD) approval, mobile home parks, requests for multifamily zoning, and building permits for multifamily housing projects which have not been previously evaluated for compliance with the concurrency standard.

(2) The City’s finding of concurrency shall be made at the time of preliminary plat or UPD approval, at the time that a request to actualize potential multifamily zoning is approved, at the time a mobile home park site plan is approved, or prior to building permit issuance for multifamily housing projects which have not been previously established for compliance with the concurrency standard. Once such a finding has been made, the development shall be considered as vested for purposes of the concurrency determination.

(3) Excluded from the application of the concurrency standard are:

(a) Building permits for individual single-family dwellings;

(b) Any form of housing exclusively for senior citizens, including nursing homes and retirement centers;

(d) Replacement, reconstruction or remodeling of existing dwelling units;

(e) Short subdivisions;

(f) Building permits for residential units in recorded planned unit developments approved pursuant to this code that have not yet expired;

(g) Any residential building permit for any development proposal for which a concurrency determination has already been made pursuant to the terms of this title.

(4) All of the development activities which are excluded from the application of the concurrency standard are subject to school impact fees imposed pursuant to Chapter 18.120 CMC.

(5) The assessment and payment of impact fees are governed by and shall be subject to the provisions in Chapter 18.120 CMC addressing school impact fees.

(6) A certification of concurrency for a school district shall not preclude the City from collecting impact fees for the district. Impact fees may be assessed and collected as long as the fees are used to fund capital and system improvements needed to serve the new development, and as long as the use of such fees is consistent with the requirements of Chapter 82.02 RCW and this chapter. Pursuant to Chapter 82.02 RCW, impact fees may also be used to recoup capital and system improvement costs previously incurred by a school district to the extent that new growth and development will be served by the previously constructed improvements or incurred costs. (Ord. 20-07 § 129; Ord. 42-02 § 2 (21A.28.140))

18.75.100 Findings, recommendations, and decisions regarding school capacities.

(1) In making a threshold determination pursuant to SEPA, the Director and/or the Hearing Examiner, in the course of reviewing proposals for residential development including applications for plats or UPDs, mobile home parks, or multifamily zoning, and multifamily building permits, shall consider the school district’s capital facilities plan as adopted by the Council.

(2) Documentation which the district is required to submit pursuant to CMC 18.75.110 or CMC Title 14, Division I, shall be incorporated into the record in every case without requiring the district to offer such plans and data into the record. The school district is also authorized to present testimony and documents demonstrating a lack of concurrency in the district and the inability of the district to accommodate the students to be generated by a specific development.

(3) Based upon a finding that the impacts generated by the plat, manufactured home park or the multifamily development were generally not anticipated at the time of the last Council review and approval of a school district capital plan and were not included in the district’s long-range forecast, the Director may require or recommend phasing or provision of the needed facilities and/or sites as appropriate to address the deficiency or deny or condition approval, consistent with the provisions of this chapter, the State Subdivision Act, and the State Environmental Policy Act.

(4) Determinations of the Examiner or Director regarding concurrency can be appealed only pursuant to the provisions for appeal of the development permit process for which the determination has been made. Where no other administrative appeal process is available, an appeal may be taken to the Hearing Examiner using the appeal procedures for variances. Any errors in the formula identified as a result of an appeal should be referred to the Council for possible modifications.

(5) Where the Council has not adopted an impact fee ordinance for a particular school district, the language of this section shall not affect the authority or duties of the Examiner or the Director pursuant to the State Environmental Policy Act or the State Subdivision Act. (Ord. 42-02 § 2 (21A.28.150))

18.75.110 Submission of district capital facilities plan and data.

(1) On an annual basis, each school district shall submit the following materials to the City:

(a) The district’s capital facilities plan adopted by the school board, which is consistent with the Growth Management Act.

(b) The district’s enrollment projections over the next six years, its current enrollment and the district’s enrollment projections and actual enrollment from the previous year.

(d) An inventory and evaluation of district facilities which address the district’s standard of service.

(e) The district’s overall capacity over the next six years, which shall be a function of the district’s standard of service as measured by the number of students which can be housed in district facilities.

(2) To the extent that the district’s standard of service reveals a deficiency in its current facilities, the district’s capital facilities plan must demonstrate a plan for achieving the standard of service, and must identify the sources of funding for building or acquiring the necessary facilities to meet the standard of service.

(3) Facilities to meet future demand shall be designed to meet the adopted standards of service. If sufficient funding is not projected to be available to fully fund a capital plan which meets the standard of service, the district’s capital plan should document the reason for the funding gap.

(4) If an impact fee ordinance has been adopted on behalf of a school district, the district shall also submit an annual report to the City showing the capital improvements which were financed in whole or in part by the impact fees. (Ord. 42-02 § 2 (21A.28.152))

18.75.120 School concurrency standard.

(1) Schools shall be considered to have been provided concurrently with the development which will impact the schools if:

(a) The permanent and interim improvements necessary to serve the development are planned to be in place at the time the impacts of development are expected to occur; or

(b) The necessary financial commitments are in place to assure the completion of the needed improvements to meet the district’s standard of service within three years of the time that the impacts of development are expected to occur. Necessary improvements are those facilities identified by the district in its capital facilities plan as reviewed and adopted by the City of Covington.

(2) Any combination of the following shall constitute the “necessary financial commitments” for the purposes of subsection (1) of this section.

(a) The district has received voter approval of and/or has bonding authority;

(b) The district has received approval for Federal, State, or other funds;

(c) The district has received a secured commitment from a developer that the developer will construct the needed permanent school facility, and the school district has found such facility to be acceptable and consistent with its capital facilities plan; and/or

(d) The district has other assured funding, including but not limited to school impact fees which have been paid.

(3) Compliance with this concurrency requirement of this section shall be sufficient to satisfy the provisions of RCW 58.17.060 and 58.17.110. (Ord. 42-02 § 2 (21A.28.160))

18.75.130 Credit for improvements.

Whenever a development is granted approval subject to a condition that the development proponent actually provide a school facility acceptable to the district, the development proponent shall be entitled to a credit for the actual cost of providing the facility, against the fee that would be chargeable under the formula provided by CMC Title 14, Division II. The cost of construction shall be estimated at the time of approval, but must be documented and the documentation confirmed after the construction is completed to assure that an accurate credit amount is provided. If construction costs are less than the calculated fee amount, the difference remaining shall be chargeable as a school impact fee. (Ord. 42-02 § 2 (21A.28.180))