A. Purpose: Development plans are required with some property owner-initiated rezonings and are optional with other property owner-initiated rezonings. Their purpose is to depict a property owner's generalized plan for the type, amount and character of development proposed on the subject property. By providing greater certainty about development proposals, development plans provide review and decision-making bodies with additional information on which to base rezoning decisions.
B. Applicability:
1. Mandatory: Development plans are required (mandatory) for Planned Development (PD) zoning map amendments and for major amendments to existing Planned Unit Developments (PUDs). They are also mandatory when the provisions of this UDO expressly state that they are required. In acting on mandatory development plans, the Planning Commission is authorized to recommend, and the City Council is authorized to approve use and development limitations that comply with, are more restrictive than or are less restrictive than the base zoning district regulations and otherwise applicable regulations of this UDO.
2. Optional: Property owners may elect to submit a development plan with any zoning map amendment application. In acting on optional development plans, the Planning Commission is authorized to recommend and the City Council is authorized to approve use and development limitations that are at least as restrictive or are more restrictive than the base zoning district regulations and otherwise applicable regulations of this UDO. Optional development plans may not be used to obtain relief from otherwise applicable zoning regulations.
C. Application Filing: Complete applications for development plan approval must be filed with the City Clerk concurrently with a zoning map amendment application.
D. Review And Recommendation - Community Development Director: Following receipt of a complete application, including the required development plan, the Community Development Director must prepare a report and recommendation. The report must evaluate the proposed development plan in light of all applicable standards and approval criteria. The report must also include a description of any development plan modifications or conditions of approval that would help ensure the development plan complies with applicable standards and approval criteria. The Community Development Director's report must be transmitted to the Planning Commission before the required public hearing.
E. Notice Of Hearing: Notice of the Planning Commission's required public hearing must be provided as follows (see subsection 10-15-1E of this chapter for additional information on required newspaper, mail and posted notices).
1. Newspaper Notice: Notice must be published in the newspaper at least fifteen (15) days before the scheduled public hearing.
2. Mailed Notice: Notice must be mailed to the owner of the subject property and all owners of property within three hundred feet (300') of the subject property at least fifteen (15) days before the scheduled public hearing. Notice for straight zoning constitutes notice for optional development plans.
3. Posted Notice: Notice (signs) must be posted at least fifteen (15) days before the scheduled public hearing.
F. Hearing And Recommendation - Planning Commission:
1. Within sixty (60) days of the date of filing of a complete application for development plan approval, the Planning Commission must hold a public hearing to consider the proposed development plan. Following the close of the public hearing, the Planning Commission must act to recommend that the proposed development plan be approved, approved with modifications, or denied.
2. A development plan application recommended for approval or approval with modifications must be transmitted, with the report and recommendation of the Planning Commission, to the City Council within fifteen (15) days of the date of Planning Commission action.
3. A development plan application recommended for denial by the Planning Commission, will be deemed denied and will not be considered further unless the applicant, within fifteen (15) days of the date of the Planning Commission's action, files a written request with the City Clerk and with the Recording Secretary of the Planning Commission for a public hearing by the City Council. The request for hearing must be accompanied by the payment of the required filing fee. Upon notice of a request for a public hearing before the City Council, the Planning Commission must transmit the development plan application and its report and recommendations to the City Council.
4. If the Planning Commission arrives at a tie vote, the application must be forwarded to the City Council with a notation of the tie vote.
G. Final Action - City Council:
1. Following receipt of the Planning Commission's recommendation, the City Council must hold a public hearing on the development plan and act to approve the proposed development plan, approve the proposed development plan with modifications or deny the proposed development plan. The City Council is also authorized to remand the proposed development plan back to the Planning Commission for further consideration.
2. Development plans may be approved by a simple majority vote, except that any accompanying zoning map amendment may require a super-majority vote, as stated in subsection 10-15-3G of this chapter.
H. Requirement For Filing Of Site Plan:
1. Unless a longer time period or a phasing plan is approved at the time of approval of a mandatory development plan, a complete application for site plan approval must be filed within five (5) years of the date of mandatory development plan approval. If an application for site plan approval is not filed within the time required, no further site plans may be approved for the project until the subject property owner has filed the original or amended development plan for re-review and reconsideration by the Planning Commission and City Council. Such re-review and reconsideration must follow the mandatory development plan review procedures of this UDO. Following re-review and reconsideration, the Planning Commission is authorized to recommend and the City Council is authorized to approve any of the following actions based on surrounding land use patterns and other relevant information presented at the time of reconsideration by the Planning Commission and City Council:
a. An extension of time for filing a site plan;
b. An amendment to the approved mandatory development plan; or
c. Rezoning to another zoning district in accordance with the zoning map amendment procedures of section 10-15-3 of this chapter.
2. The site plan filing deadline established in subsection H1 of this section does not apply to optional development plans.
I. Amendments To Approved Development Plans:
1. Minor Amendments:
a. The Planning Commission is authorized to approve amendments to approved development plans as minor amendments if the Planning Commission determines that substantial compliance is maintained with the approved development plan. The following is a non- exhaustive list of changes that may be considered as minor amendments:
(1) Any deviation expressly authorized at the time of development plan approval;
(2) The relocation or addition of customary accessory uses and structures;
(3) Adjustment of internal development area boundaries, provided the allocation of land to particular uses and the relationship of uses within the project are not substantially altered;
(4) Limitation or elimination of previously approved uses, provided the character of the development is not substantially altered;
(5) Modification of the internal circulation system that would not increase points of access from adjacent streets, change access to another street or increase projected traffic volumes;
(6) Lot splits that modify a recorded plat and that have been reviewed and approved, as required by the subdivision regulations;
(7) Modifications to approved signage, provided the size, location, number and type of signs is not substantially altered;
(8) Modification to approved screening and landscaping plans, provided the modification is not a substantial deviation from the original approved plan;
(9) Changes reducing the number of permitted dwelling units, the amount of nonresidential floor area or the area covered by buildings or paved areas; and
(10) Reductions in off-street parking or loading by more than ten percent (10%) or one space, whichever results in a greater reduction.
b. In those cases when the City Council has expressly imposed a condition more restrictive than recommended by the Planning Commission, any amendment of that City Council-imposed condition must be reviewed and approved by the City Council.
c. Notice of the Planning Commission's public hearing on a development plan minor amendment request must be provided at least ten (10) days in advance of the hearing by mailing written notice to all owners of property within a three hundred foot (300') radius of the exterior boundary of the subject property. Notice (signs) must also be posted on the subject property at least ten (10) days before the scheduled public hearing.
d. If the Planning Commission determines that the proposed development plan amendment, if approved, will result in a significant departure from the approved development plan or otherwise significantly change the character of the subject area or that the cumulative effect of a number of minor amendments substantially alters the approved development plan, then the amendment must be deemed a major amendment to the development plan and processed as a new development plan following the development plan approval procedure of this section, including all requirements for fees, notices and hearings.
2. Appeal Of Development Plan Minor Amendment Decisions: An appeal from any development plan minor amendment decision by the Planning Commission may be taken by any person aggrieved, or any taxpayer or any officer, department, board or bureau of the City. Appeals are made to the City Council by filing notice of appeal with the City Clerk and with the Recording Secretary of the Planning Commission within ten (10) days of the date of the decision being appealed. The appeal must specify the grounds of the appeal. No bond or deposit for costs are required for an appeal. Upon filing of the notice of appeal, the Planning Commission must transmit to the City Council, the original or certified copies of all the papers constituting the record in the case, together with the decision of the Planning Commission. The City Council must notify the applicant and all interested parties, as recorded in the minutes of the Planning Commission, of the appeal hearing location, date and time.
3. Major Amendments: Any amendment to an approved development plan that is not authorized as a minor amendment must be processed as a new development plan following the development plan approval procedure of this section, including all requirements for fees, notices and hearings. (Ord. 2018-16, 12-4-2018)