170.66 EASEMENTS REQUIRED.

Easements shall be required for several uses including, but not limited to, those noted in this chapter. Unless otherwise clearly indicated on the plat and attachments, all designated easements for essential services and infrastructure shall convey to the City, its successors, and assigns, the perpetual right within the designated easement area to construct, install, operate, maintain, and remove the said essential service and infrastructure located above or below grade, including the right to trim or remove vegetation within such easement area where necessary to secure a clearance of not less than four feet from wires or poles, and the right to extend to any private service provider the right to use, separately or jointly with the City, the areas in the easement for the purposes enumerated as detailed.

1.   Essential Services. Where alleys are not provided, or where otherwise required by the present or future placement of public and private utilities and for drainage purposes, easements of not less than 10 feet in width shall be granted by the owner along front, and where necessary, along rear and/or side lots lines for essential service requirements as agreed upon between the City and the same service providers. Except where prohibited by topography, the side and rear easements shall be centered on lot lines and the placement of all easements shall provide for continuity of alignment from block to block. Easements of greater width may be required along lot lines, or across lots when necessary for the placement of larger distribution lines or connections and access to, and maintenance of, all essential services.

2.   Easements Along Streams and Watercourses. Wherever any stream or surface watercourse is located in an area that is being subdivided, the subdivider shall, at their own expense, make adequate provisions for the proper drainage of surface water from the area being subdivided and shall provide and dedicate to the City an easement along said stream or watercourse, conforming substantially with the line of such watercourse and with a minimum width of 15 feet of contiguous access up on each bank, such width as approved by the City as necessary for the proper maintenance of the watercourse. Under some circumstances the City may require, as a condition for approval of the plat, easement dedication of an area larger than necessary to meet the drainage flow and maintenance needs of the platted area, but necessary to maintain the watercourses as it relates to the drainage flow of the area being platted and other upstream areas required to convey water flow from a 100-year storm event. All said drainage easements must be kept free of any obstructions including landscaping features, fences, berms, re-grading, or similar activities that alter or change the drainage patterns through the easement area.

3.   Miscellaneous Easements. Access and maintenance easements shall be provided for additional infrastructure needs including, but not limited to:

   A.   Pedestrian crosswalks near the middle of long blocks for improved circulation or access to schools and other community facilities.

   B.   Pedestrian walkways to parks or trails located in the interior of blocks.

   C.   Trails and accessories designated as part of private or public recreation facilities.

   D.   Placement of public or private essential services not otherwise provided by normal lot easements.

   E.   Screen planting as required between residential and commercial or industrial lots.

   F.   Other needs as detailed in this chapter or as required in other City ordinances.

170.67 OPEN SPACE REQUIRED.

Open space shall be required to be dedicated for public use within any new residential subdivision, resubdivision, and residential areas of mixed-use subdivisions to provide for parks, playgrounds, and recreational areas. The open space areas shall comply with public parkland, recreational trails, and other facilities as detailed on the Comprehensive Plan and other approved plans. The dedication of land to the City shall be accomplished by providing the City with a properly executed warranty deed conveying the required land to the City without cost to the City.

1.   Area Required. The minimum amount of land required for the parkland open space shall be based on the classification of the residential development. The dedication is required when the gross area of the subdivision or area involved would require open space of two or more acres. The determination of the area shall exclude the property to be dedicated for streets, alleys, easements, and other public ways as follows:

   A.   R-1 and R-1(60) Single Family Residential   Five percent of area

   B.   R-2 Two-Family Residential         Six percent of area

   C.   R-3 Multi-family Residential         Seven percent of area

   D.   R-4 Mobile Home Residential      Eight percent of area

2.   Waterways and Ponds. The open space dedication area may include waterways, ponds, and stormwater retention/detention areas with the maximum area of all the waterways, ponds, and stormwater retention/detention areas limited to 30 percent of the total required open space.

3.   Perimeter Open Area Location. Where proposed subdivisions abut undeveloped lands, open space shall be placed adjacent to the subdivision boundaries with the undeveloped land, to allow the open space area to be increased in size when the adjacent property is developed.

4.   Alternate Means of Dedication of Land, Master Agreement. If the land to be developed is a part of a larger area being developed by a single developer or by a group of developers who enter into a single agreement with the City, the developers may enter into a written agreement with the City providing for the dedication of the land relating to the present development in a future subdivision plat, which land shall be dedicated for open space serving the larger area under development by the developers. The written agreement between the City and the developers shall establish the timetable for the dedication of land by the developer.

5.   Design Considerations. The following shall be considered by the Commission and Council when determining the parameters of the open space to be dedicated:

   A.   The shape of the dedicated parcel should accommodate development of suitable facilities for the subdivision said parcel is intended to serve. In general, no parcel less than two acres shall be reserved for open space if it will be impractical or impossible to secure additional lands to increase its area. The open space shall form a single parcel of land except where two or more parcels would be in the public interest under the requirement that the parcels be connected by a path or strip of land not less than 15 feet wide.

   B.   The open space shall be so located so as to be reasonably accessible to all inhabitants of the subdivision it is intended to serve. Public access to the open space shall be provided either by adjoining street frontage or public easements with the area. The easements shall be sufficiently wide so that maintenance equipment will have reasonably convenient access to the land.

   C.   A minimum of 60 percent of the open space shall be suitable for dry ground recreational use. Fifty percent of the dry ground area should not exceed three percent grade, and the remainder of such area should not exceed five percent grade. Exceptions may be given in cases of exceptional topography and natural amenities in cluster PUD subdivisions.

   D.   Existing or proposed open space and recreational facilities in adjoining lands may serve in whole or in part the open space area needs of the proposed subdivision with suitable agreement with the City.

170.68 SCHOOL AND PARK SITES RESERVED.

When a tract of land within a proposed subdivision is designated in the Comprehensive Plan or other official plans for a park or recreation site and/or open space area which is in excess of the dedication requirements for the subdivision provided in this chapter, or is a proposed school site, the subdivider shall reserve such sites, designate the same on the plat, and honor the options to purchase for a limited time. Park and other public recreation sites shall be reserved for purchase within two years of the approval of the Preliminary Plat. School sites shall be reserved for three years after the approval of the same. The purchase price in all cases shall be the raw land value prior to the subdivision planning as established by a certified land appraiser. In addition, the price shall include one-half of the cost for grading and paving, including curbs, of the portion of any streets contiguous to the site, and any taxes and interest incurred by the subdivider between the date of reservation and the date of purchase by the public agency. If the reserved sites are not acquired by the City or other public agencies within the specified time periods, the subdivider may subdivide the sites and revise the plat. The appropriate public body may release the reserved sites before the specified time periods by certifying to the Council that it does not intend to acquire such sites within the specified time period.

170.69 SITE AND AREA PROTECTION.

1.   Preservation of Natural Features. Existing features which would add value to a proposed residential development, the surrounding area, or to the City as a whole, such as trees, watercourses, scenic features, ground cover, environmentally sensitive areas, and similar irreplaceable assets, shall be preserved and retained to the maximum extent possible in the design of the proposed subdivision. No trees shall be removed from any proposed subdivision nor any change of grade of the land affected until approval of the Preliminary Plat and construction plans has been granted. When a proposed subdivision contains such features, the subdivider shall prepare and present a protection or preservation plan with the construction plans for approval. The City may require the subdivider to proceed under a cluster PUD Subdivision, described herein.

2.   Soil Erosion and Sediment Control. The subdivider shall prepare plans and submit copies of permit applications for the pollution control measures to be implemented during the construction activities. A General Stormwater Permit No. 2 application shall be prepared for the Iowa Department of Natural Resources when applicable. Such pollution prevention plans shall be submitted with the grading plans included with the construction plans. A subdivider shall grade any portion of the area within the proposed subdivision only in conformity with the approved grading plan and install the erosion control measures as detailed.

170.70 RESERVED.

ENFORCEMENT AND OTHER PROVISIONS

170.80 ENFORCEMENT AND PENALTIES.

No plat or subdivision in the City or within the described extraterritorial jurisdiction or as per a subdivision 28E agreement with the County thereof shall be recorded or filed with the County Auditor or County Recorder, nor shall any plat or subdivision have any validity until it complies with the provision of this chapter and has been acted upon by the Council as prescribed herein. In addition to other remedies or penalties prescribed by the law, the provisions of this chapter shall be enforced as follows:

1.   No person who is the owner, subdivider, or representative working on behalf of the owner of real estate located within the jurisdiction of this chapter shall divide a tract of land into two or more parcels or lots without the preparation of the appropriate plat and submission of said plat in accordance with the provisions of this chapter.

2.   Any person who shall dispose of or offer for sale, or lease any lot or lots within the area of jurisdiction of this chapter, until the plat shall have been approved, acknowledged and recorded, as provided by this chapter, or waived as per the 28E agreement, and Chapter 354 of the Code of Iowa, shall incur a civil infraction charge for each lot or part thereof sold, disposed of, leased, or offered for sale.

3.   The owner, subdivider, or other person representing or working on behalf of the owner whose actions do not comply with any provision of this chapter shall incur the charge of a civil infraction and be subject to the penalties as detailed in this Code of Ordinances. Nothing contained herein shall in any way limit the City’s right to any other remedies available to the City for the enforcement of this chapter.

4.   No public improvements over which the Council has control shall be made with City funds, nor shall any City funds be expended for street maintenance, street improvements or other services in any area that has been subdivided after the initial adoption of Ordinance 170 (February 6, 1967) unless such subdivision has been approved in accordance with the provisions of this chapter and the required improvements accepted by the City as detailed in this chapter.

5.   No building permit shall be issued for construction on any lot, parcel, or tract where a subdivision is required by this chapter, unless and until the plat for such subdivision complies with the provisions of this chapter and the required improvements accepted by the City as detailed in this chapter.

170.81 SEVERABILITY.

If any section or provision of this chapter is adjudged invalid or unconstitutional, such adjudication shall not affect the validity of the chapter as a whole, or any section or part thereof not adjudged invalid or unconstitutional.