Chapter 20.84
BOUNDARY LINE ADJUSTMENTS

Sections:

20.84.010    Purpose – Scope.

20.84.020    Decision type.

20.84.030    Application requirements.

20.84.040    Review procedures and limitations.

20.84.050    Final approval and recording.

20.84.010 Purpose – Scope.

The purpose of this chapter is to provide procedures and criteria for the review and approval of adjustments to boundary lines of legal lots or tracts in order to rectify defects in legal descriptions, to allow the enlargement or merging of lots to improve or qualify as a building site, to achieve increased setbacks from property lines or sensitive areas, to correct situations wherein an established use is located across a lot line, or for other similar purposes. A boundary line adjustment shall not be used to subdivide land, i.e., it shall not create any new or additional lot, tract or parcel. (Ord. 019-17 § 18 (Exh. 1)).

20.84.020 Decision type.

A boundary line adjustment is a Type I application and shall be processed in accordance with the procedures for such applications as set forth in Chapter 20.22 POMC. (Ord. 019-17 § 18 (Exh. 1)).

20.84.030 Application requirements.

The following materials shall be submitted to the city, pursuant to any additional application rules, policies, or procedures issued by the department in order to constitute a complete application for a boundary line adjustment:

(1) Completed master land use application form and payment of associated fees pursuant to Chapter 20.24 POMC;

(2) A vicinity map that clearly marks the site in relation to the nearest major streets, roads, and waterways in the area;

(3) A separate map that depicts the proposed property configuration, including all lot line dimensions and existing roads, structures and easements, with lines marking the original boundaries of the site;

(4) A separate map that depicts the proposed property configuration, including all lot line dimensions, names and locations of existing or proposed roads and easements within or adjacent to the tract, the location(s) of existing structures within the tract, and the location(s) of all utilities;

(5) A legal description of the existing property configuration and proposed property configuration, prepared by a licensed professional land surveyor; and

(6) A verified statement by the applicant(s) that the property affected by the application is in the exclusive ownership of the applicant(s), or, if the property is not in the exclusive ownership of the applicant, a verified statement that the applicant has submitted the application with the consent of all owners of the affected property.

(7) A title report prepared not more than 60 calendar days prior to application submittal, prepared by a title company licensed in the state of Washington. (Ord. 010-18 § 15; Ord. 019-17 § 18 (Exh. 1)).

20.84.040 Review procedures and limitations.

(1) Optional Preapplication Conference Meeting. Prior to submitting a boundary line adjustment application, an applicant may request an optional preapplication conference meeting, pursuant to Chapter 20.24 POMC. At that time the department will perform a conceptual review based upon the information brought in by the applicant.

(2) Applications for the adjustment of boundary lines between adjacent lots shall be reviewed pursuant to the following criteria and limitations:

(a) Examination for consistency with:

(i) This title; and

(ii) Applicable county public health regulations; and

(b) Any adjustment of boundary lines must be approved by the department prior to the transfer of property ownership between adjacent legal lots;

(c) Any adjustment of boundary lines may require modification or sharing of access, to be approved by the city engineer, in which case additional permits may be required.

(d) A boundary line adjustment proposal shall not:

(i) Result in the creation of an additional lot;

(ii) Result in a lot that does not qualify as a building site pursuant to this title;

(iii) Reduce conforming lot dimensions such as area or width to nonconforming dimensions;

(iv) Reduce the overall area in a plat or short plat devoted to open space;

(v) Result in a lot that previously met sewer/water district standards for sewer/water service no longer meeting district standards;

(vi) Be inconsistent with any restrictions or conditions of approval for a recorded plat or short plat;

(vii) Involve lots that do not have a common boundary;

(viii) Circumvent the subdivision or short subdivision procedures set forth in this subtitle;

(ix) Create an unbuildable lot; or

(x) Increase the likelihood of future applications for critical area buffer reductions or variances due to the creation of lots, parcels or tracts that are undevelopable or unusable without a buffer reduction.

(3) The elimination of lines between two or more lots for the purpose of creating a single lot that meets requirements as a building site in all cases shall be considered a minor adjustment of boundary lines and shall not be subject to the subdivision and short subdivision provisions of this subtitle.

(4) Recognized lots in an approved site plan for a conditional use permit, special use permit, or binding site plan shall be considered a single site and no lot lines on the site may be altered by a boundary line adjustment to transfer density or separate lots to another property not included in the original site plan of the subject development without additional conditional use permit, special use permit, or binding site plan review and approval.

(5) Lots that have been subject to a boundary line adjustment process that resulted in the qualification of an additional building site shall not be permitted to utilize the boundary line adjustment process again for five years to create an additional building site. (Ord. 019-17 § 18 (Exh. 1)).

20.84.050 Final approval and recording.

(1) Prior to final approval, documentation authorizing the transfer of property ownership shall be placed on the original boundary line map along with the legal descriptions of those portions of land being transferred when lots are under separate ownership. Lot lines within lots under the same ownership will be adjusted upon the recording of the boundary line adjustment.

(2) A title insurance certificate updated not more than 30 days prior to recording of the adjustment, which includes all parcels within the adjustment, must be submitted to the department with boundary line adjustment final review documents. All persons having an ownership interest within the boundary line adjustment shall sign the final recording document in the presence of a notary public.

(3) The final record of survey document must be prepared by a land surveyor in accordance with Chapter 58.09 RCW. The document must include all of the elements set forth in RCW 58.09.060(1) and contain a land surveyor’s certificate as set forth in RCW 58.09.080, as well as approval blocks for the public works and department of community development directors, finance director, and county auditor as set forth in POMC 20.80.060.

(4) After approval, the applicant shall deposit a recording fee for the boundary line adjustment with the city, and the city shall cause it to be recorded with the county auditor. (Ord. 056-19 § 21; Ord. 019-17 § 18 (Exh. 1)).