(A) Dedication generally; fee in lieu of dedication generally.
(1) All major residential subdivision proposals shall, prior to final approval of the preliminary plat, dedicate a portion of such land, as set forth in this chapter, for the purpose of public parks, recreation, greenways and open space sites to serve the residents of the neighborhood in which the subdivision is located as well as the town.
(2) As an alternative to the dedication of a portion of such land by the subdivider and where it is determined by the Town Council that a dedication of land is not feasible in a given plat or incompatible with the town’s Land Use Plan, the subdivider may make provision for an equitable amount of land in another location, or pay to the town a fee in lieu of dedication as provided in division (F) below.
(B) Criteria for dedication. All land dedicated for recreation and park development shall substantially meet the following criteria.
(1) Unity. The dedicated land shall form a single parcel of land, except where the Planning Board determines that a connecting path or strip of land is in the public interest and, in which case, the path shall not be less than 25 feet wide.
(2) Shape. The shape of the dedicated parcel of land shall be sufficiently square or round to be usable for recreational activities such as softball, tennis and the like.
(3) Location. The dedicated land shall be located so as to reasonably serve the recreation and open space needs of the subdivision for which the dedication was made and shall bear a reasonable relationship to the use of the area by the future inhabitants of the subdivision or residential development.
(4) Access. Public access to the dedicated land shall be provided either by adjoining street frontage or public easement of at least 30 feet in width.
(5) Topography. No more than one quarter of the gross land dedicated may be comprised of land deemed to be inaccessible per this chapter or within the 100-year floodplain. This requirement shall be waived if greenway trails are being proposed as part of the public open space dedication, so long as the requirements of § 154.052(B)(1) above are met.
(6) Usability. The dedicated land shall be usable for recreation; lakes may not be included in computing dedicated land area. Where the Planning Board determines that recreational needs are being adequately met, either by other dedicated parcels of land or existing recreational facilities, then land that is not usable for recreation may be dedicated as open space.
(7) Plans. Municipal and county plans shall be taken into consideration when evaluating land proposals for dedication.
(C) Criteria for determining dedication and fee. Whether the Town Council accepts the land dedication or requests payment of a fee in lieu thereof, or a combination of both, shall be determined by consideration of the following:
(1) Recommended improvements in the Parks and Recreation Master Plan and the Comprehensive Bicycle, Pedestrian and Greenway Plan;
(2) Topography, geology, soils, access and location of land in the subdivision available for dedication;
(3) Size and shape of the subdivision and land available for dedication; and
(4) The recommendation of the Planning Board and recommendations from the Parks and Recreation Advisory Board.
(D) Procedure for determining between dedication, combination of dedication and fee, and fee in lieu of dedication. The procedure for determining whether the subdivider is to dedicate land, pay a fee, or both, shall be as follows.
(1) Subdivider. At the time of filing a preliminary plat for approval, the owner of the property shall, as part of such filing, indicate whether he or she desires to pay a fee in lieu thereof. If the desire is to dedicate land for this purpose, the dedicated area shall be shown on the preliminary plat.
(2) Action of town. At the time of the preliminary plat approval, the Planning Board shall recommend, based upon staff recommendations, the Town Council shall determine as part of such approval, whether to require a dedication of land within the subdivision or accept payment of a fee in lieu thereof or a combination of both. In cases where the amount of open space is less than one-third acre (0.33 ac), the Planning Board may require fee payment as the only option.
(3) Prerequisites for approval of final plat. Where dedication is required, such dedication shall be shown upon the final plat submitted for approval. Where fees are required, the same shall be deposited with the town prior to the recording of any final plat.
(E) Computation of size of area required for dedication. The amount of land required to be dedicated is to be computed on the basis of the following formula: area to be dedicated (in acres) equals one-thirty-fifth of an acre times the number of dwelling units or lots, whichever is greater.
(F) Computation of fee payable in lieu of dedication. Where a fee is paid in lieu of dedication, the amount of such payment shall be the product of the number of acres to be dedicated and the average fair market value of the land being subdivided at the time of submission of the preliminary subdivision plat. Fair market value shall be determined by the Town Council on the advice of the Planning Board based upon current appraisals and acceptable to the subdivider.
(G) Use by town; sale by town; use of funds received in lieu of dedication.
(1) The land received by the town under this chapter shall be used only for the purpose of providing open space, park and recreational areas, but shall not be so restricted should the town decide to sell such land as provided by division (G)(2) below.
(2) The town shall have the right to sell any land dedicated to the town for park and recreation purposes on finding by the Planning Board and the Town Council that a particular piece of property is not feasible or incompatible with the town’s Parks and Recreation Master Plan.
(3) Fees collected in lieu of dedications and any proceeds from such transactions or sales shall be held in a special fund by the town, and the funds shall be used by the town for the purpose of acquiring or developing recreation, parks, greenways or open space areas as shown in the Parks and Recreation Master Plan or the Comprehensive Bicycle, Pedestrian and Greenway Plan, and for no other purposes.
(H) Special committee to settle disagreements between town and subdivider.
(1) In the event that the town and the subdivider of land cannot agree upon the location, terrain, size or shape of the land necessary to be dedicated for a neighborhood recreation area, or cannot agree upon the details of provisions for an equitable amount of land in another location or where there is any disagreement between the town and the subdivider, including the amount of the fee in lieu of land, such disagreement shall be determined by a special committee.
(2) One member of the committee shall be a professional land appraiser and shall be appointed by the Town Council. The second member shall be a professional land appraiser and shall be appointed by the subdivider. These two members shall appoint a third member. The committee shall view the land and hear the contentions of both the town and the subdivider. The decision of the committee shall be by majority vote and shall be certified to the Town Council within 45 days of the time of appointment of the third member of the committee. The decision of the committee shall be binding on both parties. The costs of the professional land appraiser appointed by the subdivider shall be borne entirely by the subdivider. All other costs shall be borne by the town.
Required Open Space for Subdivisions | |||
Zoning District(s) | Required Percentage of Open Space | Required Percentage of Open Space for Conservation Districts | Maximum Percent in Inaccessible Land* |
Required Open Space for Subdivisions | |||
Zoning District(s) | Required Percentage of Open Space | Required Percentage of Open Space for Conservation Districts | Maximum Percent in Inaccessible Land* |
C-B, G-B | N/A | N/A | N/A |
M-1, M-2 | N/A | N/A | 75% |
RA | N/A | 30% - 50% | N/A |
R-20, R-10 | 8% (0 - 2 units per acre)** | 30% - 50% | 25% |
10% (2.1 - 4 units per acre)** | |||
12% (greater than 4 units per acre)** | |||
NOTES TO TABLE: * “Inaccessible land” shall include: • any land where no zoning and/or building construction permits may be issued (such as dedicated easements and rights-of-way (except those existing to only protect underground utilities such as water or sewer lines), wetlands, bodies of water, storm water detention or retention facilities and the like as determined by the Administrator); or • land with a post-development slope greater than 3:1 which severely limits its usefulness as open space. ** Based on the proposed density of the project subject to the maximum density of the respective zoning district. Floodway areas shall not be included in calculating areas to be considered for open space. | |||
(Ord. passed - -, § 1.5E)