City of Celina, TX General Subdivision Authority of the City

The development and subdivision of land, as they affect a community’s quality of life, are activities for which regulation is a valid function of municipal government. The regulations contained within this subdivision ordinance are intended to protect the interests of the public and of private parties by granting certain rights, privileges, and obligations. The requirements in this ordinance are also intended to establish a fair and rational procedure for developing and subdividing land such that land will be developed in accordance with existing physical, social, economic, and environmental conditions.

The provisions of this ordinance are intended to implement standards and requirements provided for herein, and shall be requirements for the platting and developing of subdivisions within the city and its ETJ.

The provisions of this ordinance are intended to implement the following objectives:

(A)

Promote the development and the utilization of land in a manner that provides an attractive and high-quality community environment in accordance with the comprehensive plan, the zoning ordinance, and other development-related ordinances of the city;

(B)

Assist orderly, safe, efficient, and coordinated development within the city’s limits and its ETJ;

(C)

Guide and assist property owners and applicants in the correct procedures to be followed, and to inform them of the required standards;

(D)

Protect the public interest by having standards that include, but are not limited to, the location, design, class and type of streets, sidewalks, trails, alleys, utilities, and essential public services;

(E)

Integrate the development of various tracts of land into the community and coordinate the future development of adjoining tracts;

(F)

Promote the most efficient and beneficial provision of public facilities and services for each tract being subdivided;

(G)

Provide for compatible relationships between land uses and buildings;

(H)

Provide for efficient traffic circulation throughout the municipality;

(I)

Provide for pedestrian and bicyclist movement that is appropriate within the context of various uses of land and buildings;

(J)

Minimize pollution of the air, streams, bodies of water, and aquifers; promote the adequacy of storm drainage facilities; minimize erosion; safeguard both surface and groundwater supplies, as well as natural resources and endangered or threatened plant and animal life; and encourage the wise use and management of natural resources throughout the municipality in order to preserve the integrity, stability, and beauty of the community and the value of the land;

(K)

Preserve the natural beauty and topography of public and private properties by encouraging the incorporation of natural features and land forms into developments as amenities;

(L)

Establish processes that ensure accurate records of land subdivision;

(M)

Provide for necessary infrastructure that will have sufficient capacity to serve existing and future developments as well as current and future citizens within the city and its ETJ;

(N)

Provide for adequate light, air, and privacy; safety from fire, flood, and other dangers; and prevent overcrowding of the land and undue congestion of population;

(O)

Encourage the development of residential areas that incorporate a range of housing and lifestyle choices.

(c)

Applicability.

The provisions of this subdivision ordinance apply to any non-exempt (see section 10.03.031(d), exemptions) division of land, combination of separate land parcels, and/or development of land within the corporate boundaries of the city and within its ETJ.

No permit shall be issued for any building or structure on a property until a plat has been approved unless specifically exempted herein.

Any land preparation requires a plat. The director of engineering may allow the submission of a site work or grading permit, for review and approval, in lieu of a plat.

(4)

The addition of a dwelling unit onto a tract of land that is not a lot of record. The director of development services may allow a minor modification for the first home on unplatted acreage in an estate residential homestead situation.

(5)

The provisions of this ordinance apply to all properties in the city limits and the ETJ, at all times, whether in conjunction with or absence of a plat application.

(d)

Subdivision rules.

The provisions of this subdivision ordinance, the standards governing constructed facilities applicable to plats in other portions of the Celina Code of Ordinances, and the technical standards contained in the engineering design standards, constitute the subdivision rules of the city, which apply to applications for plat approval inside city limits and within the city’s ETJ.

(e)

Engineering design standards.

The city has adopted engineering design standards and these standards, as they exist or may be amended, shall remain in force of law and effect and are herein incorporated into the subdivision ordinance. The engineering design standards may be drafted or revised, from time to time, at the discretion and determination of the director of engineering, with approval by the city council. As revised engineering design standards are approved and adopted by the city council, said standards shall be included and substituted for the existing engineering design standards, and shall thereafter have the same force of law and effect as if originally adopted hereby. Any individual may request to receive written notice of any new or amended provision to the engineering design standards by providing said request in writing to the director of engineering. A copy of the current engineering design standards shall be kept on file and available for review with the director of engineering’s office and on the city’s website.

(f)

Compliance with city plans and ordinances required.

Compliance with all city ordinances pertaining to the subdivision and development of land, and the comprehensive plan (where applicable), shall be required prior to approval of any application pursuant to this ordinance. All such ordinances and the comprehensive plan shall be construed to mean those documents as they exist or may be amended. It is the applicant’s responsibility to be familiar with, and to comply with, city ordinances, the comprehensive plan, and the provisions of this ordinance. Applicable city ordinances and plans with which all applications must comply include, but are not limited to, the following:

Comprehensive plan (Ordinance No. 2013-06), and as amended.

Zoning ordinance (Ordinance No. 2006-57), and as amended.

Engineering design standards

(4)

International building, residential, and fire codes

(5)

National Electrical Code

(6)

International Energy Conservation Code

(7)

Impact fee ordinance for water (Ordinance No. 2003-75), and as amended.

(8)

Impact fee ordinance for thoroughfares (Ordinance No. 2015-06), and as amended.

(9)

Drainage design manual

(10)

Neighborhood vision book for single family, multifamily, and commercial

(11)

Federal, state, and local environmental regulations.

(12)

Other applicable portions of the Celina Code of Ordinances.

(g)

Governmental agency design standards.

The city, Celina Independent School district, and Prosper Independent School District, city departments, and any county governmental organization, when developing within the city limits, will be required to make best efforts to meet the city’s development regulations related to city infrastructure. However, when the overall benefit to the city is reduced due to full compliance with adopted development standards, modified development standards may be administratively approved. This administrative approval shall be conditioned upon meeting the overall intent of the subject ordinance as determined by the city manager, or his designee, whose decision may be appealed to city council.

(h)

Special provisions.

The city does not issue permits for the installation of septic tanks in the ETJ but may issue permits for installation of septic tanks within the corporate city limits. Permits for septic tanks are limited to lots that are greater than one (1) acre in size exclusive of the house footprint and not located within 600 feet of a city sewer line, unless otherwise allowed by the director of engineering based up projected loads and use. Citizens may elect to connect to a sewer line that is greater than 600 feet from the property, but must individually bear the cost of the installation. A septic system may not be installed upon any lot in a subdivision for which a final plat has not been approved and filed for record, or upon any lot in a subdivision in which the standards contained herein or referred to herein have not been complied with in full.

No building, repair, plumbing, or electrical permit shall be issued by the city for any structure on a lot in a subdivision for which a final plat has not been approved, nor for any structure on a lot within a subdivision in which the standards contained herein or referred to herein have not been complied with in full.

The city manager and the director of engineering may allow sectional development (i.e. phased development) of an approved final plat provided that the section of the final plat meets all the requirements of this ordinance in full as though it were a subdivision within itself.

(4)

The city shall not authorize any other person, nor shall the city itself repair, maintain, install, or provide any streets or public utility services in any subdivision for which the standards contained herein or referred to herein have not been complied with in full.

(5)

The city shall not authorize any other person nor shall the city itself sell or supply any water, gas, electricity, or sewerage service within a subdivision for which a final plat has not been approved, nor in which the standards contained herein or referred to herein have not been complied with in full.

(6)

On behalf of the city, the city attorney shall, when directed by the city council, institute appropriate action in a court of competent jurisdiction to enforce the provisions of this ordinance or the standards referred to herein with respect to any violation thereof which occurs within the city, within the extraterritorial jurisdiction (ETJ) of the city as such jurisdiction is determined under the Municipal Annexation Act, or within any area subject to all or a part of the provisions of this ordinance.

(7)

If any subdivision exists for which a final plat has not been approved or in which the standards contained herein or referred to herein have not been complied with in full, the city council shall pass a resolution reciting the fact that such noncompliance or failure to secure final plat approval, and reciting the fact that the provisions of subsections (1), (2), (4) and (5) of this section will apply to the subdivision and the lots therein. The city secretary shall, when directed by the city council, cause a certified copy of such resolution under the corporate seal of the city to be filed in the deed records of Denton or Collin County in which such subdivision or part thereof lies. If full compliance and final plat approval are secured after the filing of such resolution, the city secretary shall forthwith file an instrument, in the deed records of the county stating that subsections (1), (2), (4) and (5) no longer apply.

(8)

The provisions of this section shall not be construed to prohibit the issuance of permits to any lots upon which a residential building exists and was in existence prior to passage of this subdivision ordinance, or to prohibit the repair, maintenance, or installation of any street or public utility services for any residential building, or abutting any sale lot, the last recorded conveyance of which prior to passage of this ordinance was by metes and bounds, and/or any subdivision, or lot therein, recorded or unrecorded, which subdivision was in existence prior to the passage of this ordinance.

(Ordinance 2020-95 adopted 10/13/20)

(a)

Observation of construction.

The director of engineering, or his duly authorized representative, shall make periodic observation of the construction of improvements for subdivision. Inspection of improvements by the director of engineering or his representative, is not intended to and does not relieve the subdivider or his contractor, from ensuring that the improvements are constructed in accordance with the accepted plans and specifications. The subdivider or his contractor shall maintain contact with the director of engineering or his representative during construction of improvements.

No sanitary sewer, water, or storm sewer pipe shall be covered without approval of the director of engineering or his representative. No flexible base material, subgrade material, or stabilization shall be applied to the street subgrade without said approval. No concrete shall be poured nor asphaltic surface applied to the base without said approval of director of engineering.

The director of engineering or his representative, may at any time cause any construction, installation, maintenance, or location of improvements to cease when, in his judgment, the requirements of this article or the standards and specifications as hereinbefore provided have been violated. Any violation may require such reconstruction or other work as may be necessary to correct any such violation at the expense of the developer. The cost of materials testing shall be borne by the developer.

(b)

Maintenance bond.

The subdivider shall furnish a good and sufficient maintenance bond in the amount of one hundred percent (100%) of the contract price of all public improvements, with a reputable and solvent corporate surety in favor of the city, to indemnify the city against any repairs which may become necessary to any part of the construction of public improvements in connection with the subdivision, arising from defective workmanship or materials used therein, for a period of two (2) full years from the date of final acceptance of the improvements. Final acceptance will be withheld until said maintenance bond is furnished to the city and approved by the city attorney.

(c)

Filing, plat and other fees.

The fees and charges shall be paid to the city when any preliminary plat or final plat or other filing is tendered to the planning and zoning commission or any other authorized board or agency of the city. Each of the fees and charges provided herein shall be paid in advance and no action of the commission or any other board or agency of the city shall be valid until the fees and charges shall have been paid to the city.