Agenda - Planning Commission - 07/11/2007

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All planned unit development districts should be recorded on the zoning map, and all documents associated with the planned unit development, including the development plan, should by filed with a recordkeeping office in the land-use agency. These documents should include agreements with other public agencies, sLlch as the highway agency, which may not be part of the public record for the planned unit development. Computer and GIS programs can be installed that can organ!z:" and maintain these documents. Staff must, however, provide overview and supervision if this system of monitoring is to be effective, The following is an outline of a possible recordkeeping: .. Assign each planned unit development a planning case number, create a project file, and place any documents relating to the development in that file, -$- Record all planned unit development districts on the zoning map, ... Fiie all documents associated with the planned unit development in a public recordkeeping office in the land-use agency .. Record, to the extent possible, the final development plan and any associaTed documents, such as subdivision pial and common open space documents, with the recorder's office so they will show up in the chain of title. ... Consider site plan review for developments within the planned unit development as thl?y occur. . Monitor development of the project and do inspections through building, grading, and other permits for compliance with the development plan and other requirements. ... InstaU a computar program to keep track of project development and relate it to building permits, because this plan does not usually include the engineering details for streets and other facilities that are required by the subdivi- sion ordinance. Many developers prefer not to provide these details at this stage, and prefer to deal with subdivision issues at a later stage under the subdivision ordinance. Engineering plans of this kind are expensive to produce, and there may not be enough commitment to the project even at the pre- liminary development plan approval stage to justify their preparation. DEVELOPMENT AGREEMENTS It is common in many areas for local govern- ments to execute development agreements with developers of planned unit develop- ments, especially for master planned commu- nities. There are a number of reasons for doing this. One of the most important is that, unlike a rezoning ordinance ora'development plan, a development agreement establishes obligations that cannot be modified unless the agreement authorizes this. Another is that the agreement can give the developer an enti- tlement, or a vested right, to complete the development under the land-use regulations in effect at the time the development plan was approved. Subsequent changes in the regulations would not apply. The agreement can also establish other obligations, includ- ing developer exactions, allowable uses and other project elements, the formation of spe- cial districts to finance infrastructure, and the preservation of natural resources. A develop- ment agreement can be long-50 to 70 pages or more. Coordination with provisions in the 122 development plan and with conditions attached to the rezoning, if any, is necessary. DEVELOPMENT PlAN AMENDMENTS Change is inevitable, and one ofthe most important issues in the drafting of ordinances for planned unit developments is to provide authority for the amendment of development plans. Changes in the market, or changes in the developer's objectives for the develop- ment,can require changes in an approved plan. Change can also occur because neigh- bors or residents who move in early in the project may object to nonresidential develop- mentthat was in the plan from the beginning but which they believe is not compatible with their residential living environment. A restrictive approach to amendments would limit them only to unforeseen circumstances. This type of provision does not allow for changes required by proposals to mod- ify the development. The usual approach for an ,ordinance that authorizes this kind of change is to distinguish between major changes, which require new legislative action, and minor changes that do not.An ordinance can simply state that a change is major if it is "substantial," or it can provide a list of changes and indicate which are substantial and which are not. A detailed listing is preferable because it removes the need to exercise discretion on what is and what is not "substantial," and provides pre- dictability on what can and cannot be changed and how such determinations will be made. Minor changes can be approved administratively by the planning director and staff, or they can be approved by the planning commission. If approval is required by the planning commission, an application should be required but the com- pleteness, notice, hearing, and decision proce- dures need not apply, Chapter 10 of the Legislative Guidebook has a provision in for administrative review without a record hearing that can be used for these decisions. ZONINGPRACTlCE 6.07 AMERICAN PLANNING ASSOCIATION I page 6