Chapter 18.12
PRELIMINARY PLATS
Sections:
18.12.020 Submission requirements.
18.12.040 Technical review committee.
18.12.045 Modification of established standards.
18.12.060 Council review and approval.
18.12.010 General procedure.
Any property owner who wishes to divide his land into five or more lots shall conform to the regulations hereafter stated as they pertain to preliminary plats, subdivision design, improvements and final plats. These regulations also pertain to land that has had an approved short subdivision during the previous five years and also to lots being replatted due to street vacations. [Ord. 204 § 18.16.000, 1974.]
18.12.020 Submission requirements.
A preliminary plat submitted for approval shall be processed as a Class III action pursuant to the provisions of Chapter 16.01 EMC and shall contain the following items and information:
A. Name of plat;
B. Name, address and phone number of subdivider (owner) and the land surveyor;
C. The plat shall clearly show all lots, rights-of-way, open space, existing easements, and other features affecting the design of the plat;
D. Topography lines shall be required at an interval of five feet;
E. All parcels of land intended to be dedicated or temporarily reserved for public use and the conditions attached thereto shall be accurately indicated;
F. There shall be a vicinity sketch at a scale of not more than 800 feet to the inch showing the proposed plat in relation to surrounding land. All platted rights-of-way for a distance of at least a quarter of a mile shall be shown, and additional area shall be illustrated, if necessary, to show connecting streets or arterials;
G. The plat shall be prepared, drawn and certified by a land surveyor registered by the State of Washington;
H. The plat shall contain an accurate and complete legal description of the area being platted;
I. The horizontal scale shall be no less than 100 feet to the inch;
J. The plat shall conform with the design standards governing plats as required by this chapter;
K. Ten copies of the plat shall accompany the application for plat approval to permit distribution to the necessary persons, agencies, and organizations;
L. The filing fee scheduled in the City’s current master fee schedule adopted by resolution of the City Council shall be paid to the City Treasurer upon submission of a preliminary plat for approval;
M. Source of water supply, method of sewage disposal, and method of surface water disposal;
N. The land use classification, both present and proposed;
O. All existing conditions shall be delineated. The location, width and names of all existing or prior platted streets or other public ways, railroads and utility right-of-way, park and other public open spaces, permanent buildings and structures, and section and municipal corporation lines within or adjacent to the tract shall be shown. In the case of a replat, the lots, blocks, streets, alleys, easements, parks, of the original plat being vacated, shall be shown by dotted lines in their proper position in relation to the new arrangement of the plat; the new plat being clearly shown in solid lines so as to avoid ambiguity. Existing sewers and water lines, culverts or other underground facilities within the tract indicating pipe sizes, grades and exact location as obtained from public records shall be shown. Boundary lines of adjacent tracts of unsubdivided and subdivided land showing owners shall be indicated by dotted lines for a distance of 300 feet. Existing zoning of the proposed subdivision and adjacent tracts shall be shown;
P. A completed SEPA checklist shall be required in accordance with Chapter 43.21C RCW upon the submittal of a preliminary plat. [Ord. 842 § 2, 2023; Ord. 501 § 35, 1996; Ord. 204 § 18.16.010, 1974.]
18.12.030 Notification.
The following agencies and organizations shall be given notice of the preliminary plat application, as provided by EMC 16.01.100, and the notice shall be accompanied by a copy of the proposed plat:
A. The City Public Works and Utilities Departments;
B. Whatcom County Fire Protection District No. 1;
C. The applicable electrical power provider;
D. The applicable telephone services provider;
E. The applicable natural gas services provider;
F. The applicable cable television services provider;
G. The Whatcom County Council (if plat abuts unincorporated Whatcom County);
H. The City of Nooksack (if the plat abuts the City of Nooksack);
I. The Washington State Department of Transportation (if plat abuts State right-of-way); and
J. The Nooksack Valley School District. [Ord. 678 § 9, 2008; Ord. 501 § 37, 1996.]
18.12.040 Technical review committee.
At least five days prior to giving notice of the preliminary plat application under EMC 16.01.100, the Administrator and the Utilities Superintendent shall conduct an informal meeting with the applicant(s) for the purpose of reviewing and pointing out what, if any, corrections, additions, deletions, etc., should be made to the preliminary plat prior to the public comment period. The applicant may submit a revised preliminary plat within five days of the meeting, and the revised plat, if provided, shall replace the originally submitted plat in all subsequent processing of the application. [Ord. 501 § 38, 1996.]
18.12.045 Modification of established standards.
A. Purpose. It is hereby recognized that circumstances may exist so as to justify modification of established subdivision development standards where application is made in conjunction with the platting of innovative subdivisions and in particular cluster subdivisions as provided for pursuant to EMC 18.16.030. Such modification shall only be authorized where it is found that the interests of the immediate community will be better served by the modification of such standards through the utilization of alternative land development and utilization techniques.
B. Procedure. In the event the Planning Commission, in its review of the preliminary plat proposed as provided for in EMC 18.12.050, finds that variances from the literal requirements of EMC 18.20.020, Streets and roadways – Standards, and EMC 18.16.010(E), Street Trees, would better serve the needs of the ultimate occupants of the subdivision, as well as the adjacent community and the City generally, it shall make a specific recommendation specifying the alternative standards to be met and the reasons for such proposal. Such variances shall thereafter become part of the preliminary plat proposal and, unless modified by the City Council, shall become a part of the preliminary plat.
C. Limitation. In no event shall the street standards contained in EMC 18.20.020 be modified so as to diminish the quality of required streets. Where an applicant is authorized to reduce the width of a proposed street, such street shall nevertheless be placed in the standard width right-of-way. Where such proposal contains a request for street standard modification, it shall further be the responsibility of the applicant to prepare for the Planning Commission and City Council consideration a diagram showing a cross-section of the roadway as proposed.
In the event the Planning Commission proposes some alternative to standard sidewalks, adequate provision shall nevertheless be made for the adequate movement of pedestrians within the plat. [Ord. 501 § 39, 1996.]
18.12.050 Commission action.
A. The Commission shall review each preliminary plat to assure conformance with the policies as reflected by the comprehensive plan and with the planning standards and specifications of the City. The Commission shall make a written recommendation to the City Council as to their findings with regard to determining if appropriate provisions have been made for relevant features necessary to serve the public interest, as listed in EMC 18.12.060. Such recommendation shall be advisory only.
B. The recommendation of the Commission on a preliminary plat shall be submitted to the Administrator prior to the close of the public comment period under EMC 16.01.100(A)(5). [Ord. 501 § 40, 1996; Ord. 204 § 18.16.050, 1974.]
18.12.060 Council review and approval.
Upon conclusion of the public hearing related to the preliminary plat, the City Council shall determine if appropriate provisions have been made for open spaces, drainage ways, streets or roads, alleys and other public ways, transit stops, potable water supplies, sanitary wastes, parks and recreation, playgrounds, schools and school grounds and all other relevant facts, including sidewalks and other planning features that assure safe walking conditions for students who only walk to and from school. They shall determine that the plat makes adequate provisions for the public health, safety and general welfare and that the public interest will be served by the platting of the subdivision. After making the above determinations the City Council may then approve the plat. The City Council shall make written findings and conclusions to support its decision. [Ord. 501 § 41, 1996; Ord. 204 § 18.16.060, 1974.]
18.12.070 Time limits.
A final plat meeting all requirements of this title shall be submitted to the City Council for approval within five years of the date of preliminary plat approval. Upon application by the subdivider the City Council shall have discretionary authority to grant an extension for a maximum period of one additional year. The extension shall be conditioned upon the plat meeting all subdivision requirements which are in effect at the time the extension is granted.
In the event a portion of an approved preliminary plat is developed and recorded as a final plat and the remainder of the overall plat is undeveloped upon expiration of the five-year period specified above, the approval of the preliminary plat shall expire. The time limit may be extended as provided for in the foregoing paragraph. [Ord. 501 § 42, 1996; Ord. 204 § 18.16.070, 1974.]