No preview available
HomeMy WebLinkAbout2238 Allowing Summary Subdivision of Parcels Creating Two or Less Lots of 5,000 Sq. Ft.ORDIN~CE NO. AN ORDINANCE RELATING TO SUBDIVISIONS, AMENDING SECTION 18.38. 120 OF THE PORT TOWNSEND MUNICIPAL CODE TO AT.~)W FOR SUMMARY SUBDIVISION OF PARCELS CREATING TWO OR LESS LOTS OF 5000 SQUARE-FEET AREA WITHIN ESTABLISHED PARTS OF THE CITY THAT ARE COMPRISED OF LOTS OF SIMILAR SIZE . THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PORT TOWNSEND DOES ORDAIN AS FOLLOWS: Section 1. Section 18.38.120 of the Port Townsend Municipal Code is hereby amended to read as follows: 18,38.120 Design Criteria. A. Lots. 1. Ail lots shall conform with the requirements of any official control relating to land use or development which may be adopted to implement the city comprehensive plan; provided that in the event of a discrepancy between the standards established in this chapter and those contained in any other applicable control or ordinance, the higher standard should apply. 2. The design, shape, size and orientation of lots shall be appropriate to the use for which the lots are intended and the character of the area in which they are located. Lot areas in excess of minimum standards may be required for reason of sanitation, steep slopes, slide hazards, poor drainage, flood hazards, or other unique conditions or features which warrant protection of the public interest. 3.. For the pUrpose of this chapter, minimum lot area shall ((be)) meet 0ne of.the following standards ((as-~e~ews)): a. Lots served by community water and sanitary sewer, seven thousand two hundred square feet; or b.. Lots eliqible for summary approval pursuant to Section 18.38.040 ¢C.) shall have a minimum lot area of five thousand (5o000~ sGuare feet if both of the following conditions ~re met: i. such eliqible lots abut platted property which is divided into lots of less than seven thousand two hundred (7.200) sGuare feet in r a - ~, _ ii. Such eligible %0.ts do not abut ~nv unDlatted pr0Dertv, excluding publicly-owned DroDerties. ProPerties separated by a public street right-of-way shall not be considered abutting properties for the purposes of this section. c. Property in s~nqte ownership on the effective date of this ordinance and which property is less than 14.400 scuare feet in area shall have a minimum lot area of five thousand ((B)) ~. All other lots shall meet requirements of the Jefferson County health department and the Washington State Department of Social and Health Services. B. Roads. 1. Roads shall be designated with appropriate consideration for existing and projected roads, anticipated traffic patterns, topographic and drainage conditions, public convenience and safety, and the proposed uses of land served. 2. Minimum roadway design standards shall be in conformance with "city Design Standards," published by the Washington State Department of Transportation, January, 1980, or latest revision. 3. Cul-de-sacs shall have right-of-way diameters of one hundred feet at the closed end. 4. Where necessary to join with existing roads, or to provide for future overall are circulation, roads may be required to extend to the outside boundaries of short subdivision. 5. Half-width roads shall be prohibited except adjacent to existing half-width roads. 6. Design and construction of public roads shall conform with "1984 Standard Specifications for Road, Bridge, and Municipal Construction," prepared by Washington State Department of Transportation and American Public Works Association, or latest revision thereof. 7. Road grades, curves, and intersections shall provide adequate sight distances for traffic safety. 8. Short subdivisions shall incorporate limited access provisions where they are adjacent to arterial or collector roads. C. Parks, Open Space, Community Sites and Facilities. The provision of parks, open space , and/or community facilities is not required, but is optional on the part of the subdivider, and may weigh in consideration of the application. D. Easement. 1. Easements shall be provided for utility installation and maintenance and shall conform to standard width of five feet on each side of interior lot lines and five feet along front lot lines. 2. Where a subdivision is traversed by a watercourse, a drainage channel, or a stream, provision shall be made for a drainage easement conforming substantially with the alignment of the watercourse and an adequate width for maintenance and erosion control purposes. This requirement shall not entail any responsibility for watercourse maintenance on the part of the city and arrangements for maintenance may be required to the satisfaction of the city public works director. 3. Where configuration of the land in a short subdivision is such that it is not feasible to dispose of road and lot drainage by means of a natural watercourse and where volume of runoff anticipated could cause damage if disposed of over neighboring property, suitable easements and necessary drainage works and maintenance arrangements shall be provided over the neighboring property to the satisfaction of the city public works director. 4. Buffer strips or protective easements may be required and the minimum lot depth requirement may be increased where a plat is adjacent to a railroad, an arterial road, a commercial or industrial development, tidelands, shorelands, marshes or streamways, or other land use from which separation or screening is deemed advisable. E. Unsuitable Land. Marshes, swamps, streamways, tidelands, aquifer-recharge areas, and land subject to flooding or having bad drainage, and land having steep slopes, or geological hazards and such other land as the city public works department of Jefferson County health department find unsuitable for the purpose of building sites, may be included in the boundaries of a short plat as community property, recreation area, or other similar open space, or may be included as part of a lot; except any lot containing such unsuitable land must also contain sufficient land of suitable characteristics to meet city standards for construction of a dwelling. (Ord. 2049 S.10, 1986: Ord. 1806, S.1.30, 1978). Section 2. SeverabilitY. In the event any one or more of the provisions of this ordinance shall for any reason be held to be invalid, such invalidity shall not affect or invalidate any other provision of this ordinance, but this ordinance shall be construed and enforced as if such invalid provision had not been contained therein; provided, that any provision which shall for any reason be held by reason of its extent to be invalid shall be deemed to be in effect to the extent permitted by law. Section 3. Effective Date. This ordinance shall become effective five days after its passage and publication. Read for the first time on ~ 7; .~l. , and for the second and third time and passed by the City Council of the City of day of ~ 1991. Attest: David A. Grove, City Clerk Appro~ed as tg form: Keith C. Harper, City Attorney ((Be~eee~-~e~)) ,added text