The procedures hereinafter specified provide for a preapplication procedure, for conditional approval of a preliminary plat and for the approval of a final plan. The preapplication procedure and the conditional approval of the preliminary plat are optional to the applicant and are not a prerequisite to the approval of the final plan. However, these optional procedures are strongly recommended in that they provide the applicant with an opportunity to resolve problems early in the proceedings and to make necessary modifications and revisions prior to incurring the expenses of preparing a final plan.