All subdivisions and subdivision amendments shall comply with the provisions of this section. This section shall be administered by the planning director.
A. Preservation of Natural Features: all subdivisions and subdivision amendments shall be designed to preserve the natural features of a site as follows:
1. Rivers, streams and creeks shall not be piped or placed in any culvert or man-made channel;
2. Wetlands shall be protected and buffered as required within the underlying zoning district, overlay district, or as identified in the general plan;
3. Wooded areas within a subdivision shall be preserved. Lots that include wooded areas are allowed to exceed the maximum lot size of the underlying zoning district and may count towards any required landscaping, regardless of location of the wooded area or the required landscaped area;
4. Wildlife habitat shall be preserved when the general plan identifies areas to be protected or Title 21A specifically requires protection of habitat or buffers from wildlife habitat. Area preserved as wildlife habitat may count towards the landscaping requirements of the underlying zoning district, regardless of the location of the wildlife habitat or the required landscaped area; and
5. Natural features identified in this section shall be identified as undevelopable areas on the final plat. The size of the undevelopable area shall be determined by the general plan if the general plan provides an objective metric to determine the area to be protected or as required by Title 21A Zoning. If both the general plan and Title 21A include conflicting regulations regarding this provision, the smaller requirement shall take precedent. If the general plan or Title 21A does not provide a minimum requirement, the document that does indicate a minimum requirement shall take precedent.
B. Environmental Conditions of Land to Be Dedicated: Environmental Site Assessments (ESAs) and remediation must be conducted on any land that is to be dedicated to the public, as follows:
1. ESAs shall be performed in accordance with the most recent version of ASTM Standard E1527.
2. The city reserves the right to conduct ESAs using a city-contracted environmental consultant if needed to avoid legal liability, if there are concerns with the environmental work conducted to date, or other reasons as determined by the director of sustainability, other department directors as applicable, or their designees.
3. If remediation is required to clean up the land to the appropriate land use standards, the remediation shall be completed prior to dedicating the land.
4. All ESAs and remediation reports shall be reviewed and approved by the director of sustainability, other department directors as applicable, or their designees. (Ord. 73-23, 2023)