(A) Improvements and performance bond.
(1) Completion of improvements. Before the final plat is approved by the City Council, all applicants shall be required to complete, in accordance with the City Council’s decision and to the satisfaction of the City Engineer, all street, sanitary, sewer, and other improvements, including lot improvements on the individual lots of the subdivision, as required by these regulations, as specified in the final subdivision plat and as approved by the City Council, and to dedicate the same to the local government free and clear of all liens and encumbrances on the property and on the public improvements thus dedicated.
(2) Performance bond.
(a) The City Council, in its discretion, may waive the requirements provided for in division (A)(1) above. As an alternative, the applicant may post cash, a certified check, a surety bond or a letter of credit at the time of application for final subdivision approval in an amount estimated by the City Engineer to be sufficient to secure to the local government the satisfactory construction, installation, and dedication of the incompleted portion of the required improvements. The surety shall also secure all lot improvements on the individual lots of the subdivision, as required in these regulations.
(b) Such surety shall comply with all statutory requirements and shall be satisfactory to the City Attorney as to form, sufficiency, and manner of execution, as set forth in these regulations. The period within which the required improvements must be completed shall be specified by the City Council in the resolution approving the final subdivision plat, shall be incorporated in the surety and shall not, in any event, exceed two years from the date of final approval.
(c) Such surety shall be approved by the governing body as to the amount and conditions that shall be satisfactory to the governing body. The City Engineer may, upon proof of difficulty, recommend to the governing body an extension of the completion date set forth in such surety for a maximum period of one additional year. The governing body may, at any time during the period of such surety, accept a substitution of principal or sureties on the bond, upon recommendation of the City Engineer or City Manager.
(3) Temporary improvements. The applicant shall construct and pay for all temporary improvements required by the City Council and shall maintain the same for the period specified by Council. Prior to construction of any temporary facility or improvement, the developer shall file with the local government a separate suitable surety for temporary facilities, which shall ensure that the temporary facilities will be properly constructed, maintained, and removed.
(4) Costs of improvements. All required improvements shall be made by the applicant, at his or her expense, without reimbursement by the local government or any improvement district therein.
(5) Failure to complete improvements. For subdivisions for which no performance bond has been posted, if the improvements are not completed within the period specified by the City Council in the resolution approving the final plat, the approval shall be deemed to have expired. In those cases where surety has been posted and required improvements have not been installed within the terms of such surety, the local government may declare the surety to be in default and require that all the improvements be installed regardless of the extent of the building development at the time the surety is declared to be in default.
(B) Inspection of improvements.
(1) General procedure and fees. The City Council shall provide for the inspection of required improvements during construction and ensure their satisfactory completion. The applicant shall pay to the local government an inspection fee of 2% of the amount of the surety or the estimated cost of the required improvements, and the subdivision plat shall not be approved by the City Council unless such fee has been paid at the time of application. These fees shall be due and payable upon demand of the local government and no building permits or certificates of occupancy shall be issued until all such fees are paid. If the City Engineer finds upon inspection that any of the required improvements have not been constructed in accordance with the local government’s construction standards and specifications, the applicant shall be responsible for completing or correcting the improvements. Wherever the cost of improvements is covered by a performance bond, the applicant, and the bonding company shall be severally and jointly liable for completing the improvements according to specifications.
(2) Release or reduction of performance bond.
(a) Certificate of satisfactory completion. The governing body will not accept the dedication of required improvements, nor release or reduce a performance bond, until the City Engineer has submitted a certificate stating that all required improvements have been satisfactorily completed and until the applicant’s engineer or surveyor has certified to the City Engineer, through submission of a detailed “as-built” survey plat of the subdivision, indicating location, dimensions, materials, and other information required by the City Engineer, that the layout of the line and grade of all public improvements is in accordance with construction plans for the subdivision, and that a title insurance policy has been furnished to and approved by the City Attorney indicating that the improvements have been completed, are ready for dedication to the local government, and are free and clear of any and all liens and encumbrances. Upon such approval and recommendation, the governing body shall thereafter accept the improvements for dedication in accordance with the established procedure.
(b) Reduction of performance bond. A performance bond shall be reduced upon the actual dedication of public improvements, but only in the ratio that the public improvement dedicated bears to the total public improvements for the plat. In no event shall a performance bond be reduced below 25% of the principal amount of such bond.
(C) Escrow deposits for lot improvements.
(1) Acceptance of escrow funds. Whenever, by reason of the season of the year, any lot improvements required by these subdivision regulations cannot be performed, the Building and Zoning Inspector may, nevertheless, issue a certificate of occupancy, provided there is no danger to health, safety, or general welfare, upon accepting a cash escrow deposit in an amount to be determined by the City Engineer for the cost of said improvements. The performance bond covering such lot improvements shall remain in full force and effect.
(2) Procedures on escrow funds. All required improvements for which escrow monies have been accepted by the Building and Zoning Inspector at the time of issuance of a certificate of occupancy shall be installed by the developer within a period of nine months from the date of deposit of such escrow monies and the issuance of the certificate of occupancy. In the event that the improvements have not been properly installed, at the end of the nine-month period specified herein, the Building and Zoning Inspector shall give two weeks’ written notice to the developer requiring him or her to install such improvements. In the event that the required improvements are not installed properly, in the discretion of the Building and Zoning Inspector, he or she may request the governing body to authorize the local government to proceed to contract out the work for the installation of the necessary improvements in a sum not to exceed the amount of the escrow deposit. At the time of the issuance of the certificate of occupancy for which escrow monies have been deposited with the Building and Zoning Inspector, the applicant shall obtain and file with the Building and Zoning Inspector, prior to obtaining the certificate of occupancy, a notarized statement from the purchaser or purchasers of the premises authorizing the Building and Zoning Inspector to install the improvements at the end of the nine-month period in the event that the same have not been duly installed by the developer.
(D) Maintenance of improvements.
(1) The applicant shall be required to maintain all improvements on the individual and subdivided lots and to provide for snow removal on streets and sidewalks, if required, until the acceptance of said improvements by the governing body. If there are any certificates of occupancy on a street not dedicated to the local government, the local government may, on 12 hours’ notice, plow the street or effect emergency repairs, and charge the same to the applicant.
(2) The applicant shall be required to file a maintenance bond with the governing body, prior to dedication, in an amount considered adequate by the City Engineer, and in a form satisfactory to the City Attorney, in order to assure the satisfactory condition of the required improvements, including all lot improvements on the individual subdivided lots, for a period of one year after the date of their acceptance by the governing body, and the dedication of the same to the local government.
(E) Deferral or waiver of required improvements.
(1) At the time of final plat approval and subject to appropriate conditions, Council may defer or waive the provision of any or all such improvements as in its judgment are not requisite in the interests of the public health, safety, and general welfare, or which are inappropriate because of inadequacy or lack of connecting facilities.
(2) Whenever it is deemed necessary by the Planning Commission to defer the construction of any improvement required herein because of incompatible grades, future planning, inadequate connecting facilities, or the lack thereof, or for other reasons, the applicant shall pay his or her share of the costs of the future improvements to the local government prior to the signing of the final subdivision plat by Council, or the applicant may post acceptable surety to ensure the completion of said improvements upon demand of the local government.
(Prior Code, § 1248.04)