1-100
This Ordinance may be known and cited as the “River Oaks
Subdivision Ordinance.”
(Ordinance 1209-2018 adopted 11/27/18; Ordinance 1239-2019, sec. 46, adopted 8/13/19)
2-100
This Ordinance is adopted under the authority of the Constitution
and laws of the State of Texas, including particularly Chapter 212
of the Texas Local Government Code and the provisions of the Municipal
Annexation Act, codified as Chapter 43 of the Texas Local Government
Code.
(Ordinance 1209-2018 adopted 11/27/18; Ordinance 1239-2019, sec. 46, adopted 8/13/19)
3-100
1.
These subdivision
regulations of the city are designed and intended to achieve the following
purposes and shall be administered so as to:
a.
promote
the health, safety, morals and general welfare of the community and
the safe, orderly and healthful development of the City;
b.
establish
adequate policies and procedures to guide development of the City;
c.
provide
for the establishment of minimum specifications for construction and
engineering design criteria for public infrastructure improvements
to maintain land values, reduce inconveniences to residents of the
area, and to reduce related unnecessary costs to the City for correction
of inadequate facilities that are designed to serve the public;
d.
ensure
that development of land and subdivisions shall be of such nature,
shape and location that utilization will not impair the general welfare;
e.
ensure
against the dangers of fires, floods, erosion, landslides, or other
such disasters;
f.
preserve
the natural beauty and topography of the City and to ensure appropriate
development with regard to these natural features;
g.
ensure
that new development is performed in a manner that is harmonious to
adjacent properties;
h.
provide
the most beneficial circulation of traffic throughout the City, having
particular regard to the avoidance of congestion in the streets and
highways, and pedestrian traffic movements; and to provide for the
proper location and width of streets;
i.
ensure
that public facilities for water supply, drainage, disposal of sanitary
and industrial waste, and parks are available for every building site
and with adequate capacity to serve the proposed subdivision before
issuance of a certificate of occupancy or release of utility connections
or final inspection within the boundaries of the plat;
j.
assure
that new development adequately and fairly participates in the dedication
and construction of public infrastructure improvements that are necessitated
by or attributable to the development or that provide value or benefit
that makes the development feasible;
k.
help prevent
pollution, assure the adequacy of drainage facilities, control stormwater
runoff, safeguard the water table, and encourage the wise use and
management of natural resources throughout the City in order to preserve
the integrity, stability, and beauty of the community and the value
of land;
l.
provide
for open spaces through the most efficient design and layout of land,
while preserving the land use intensity as established in the Zoning
Ordinance of the City; and
m.
to require
the platting of land for the issuance of a building permit.
2.
To carry
out the purposes hereinabove stated, it is declared to be the policy
of the City to guide and regulate the subdivision and development
of land in such a manner as to promote orderly growth within the City.
3.
Land must
not be platted until proper provision has been made for dedication,
construction and/or improvement of adequate public facilities including
roadways, drainage, water, wastewater, parks, recreation facilities,
and other capital improvements.
4.
Proposed
plats or subdivisions which do not conform to the policies and regulations
shall be denied, or, in lieu of denial, disapproved conditioned on
conformance with required conditions.
5.
There shall
be an essential nexus between the requirement to dedicate rights-of-way
and easements and/or to construct public works improvements in connection
with a new subdivision and the need to offset the impacts on the City’s
public facilities systems created by such new development.
(Ordinance 1209-2018 adopted 11/27/18; Ordinance 1239-2019, sec. 46, adopted 8/13/19)
4-100
In the interpretation and application of the provisions of these
regulations, it is the intention of the City Council that the principles,
standards and requirements provided for herein shall be minimum requirements
for the platting and developing of subdivisions in the City of River
Oaks, and, where other ordinances of the City are more restrictive
in their requirements, or provide greater protection or control, such
other ordinances shall control. Minimum standards are appropriate
under optimum conditions, individual sites require specific analysis
and may need enhanced facilities.
(Ordinance 1209-2018 adopted 11/27/18; Ordinance 1239-2019, sec. 46, adopted 8/13/19)
5-100
Accessory Building or Structure:
Administrative Officer:
Alley:
Building Setback Line:
City:
City Engineer:
Commission:
Comprehensive Land Use Plan:
Crosswalk Way:
Cul-de-sac:
Dead-End Street:
Director of Public Works:
Easement:
Engineer:
Exaction Requirement:
Facilities Agreement:
Final Plat:
Hammerhead:
Land Planner:
Lot:
Main (Principle) Building or Structure:
May, Shall:
Pavement Width:
Person:
Plan for Development:
Planning and Zoning Commission:
Plat:
Preliminary Plat:
Public Facilities System:
Public Infrastructure Improvement:
Replatting:
Sketch Plan:
Street:
Street Width:
Subdivide:
Subdivider:
Subdivision:
Surveyor:
Utility Easement:
Visibility Triangles:
Zoning Administrator:
For the purposes of this ordinance, the following terms, phrases,
words, and their derivations shall have the meaning ascribed to them
in this section. Words and terms not expressly defined herein are
to be construed according to their customary usage in the practice
of municipal planning and engineering. Words defined in the Zoning
Ordinance not defined in this Ordinance will have the meaning set
forth in the Zoning Ordinance.
A subordinate building having a use customarily incident
to and located on the same lot occupied by the main building. An accessory
structure is considered to be a part of the main building when it
has any part of a wall in common with the main building, or is under
an extension of the main roof and designed as an integral part of
the main building.
Any office referred to in this Ordinance by title, i.e.,
City Manager, City Attorney, City Secretary, City Engineer, Director
of Public Works, Zoning Administrator, etc., shall be the person so
retained in this position by the City, or their duly authorized representatives.
A minor public right-of-way, not intended to provide the
primary means of access to abutting lots, which is used primarily
for vehicular service access to the back or sides of properties otherwise
abutting on a street.
The line within a property defining the minimum horizontal
distance between a building or other structure and the adjacent prevailing
edge of the street or from the property line (side or rear yard) to
the established building line for the particular designated zoning
district that the building structure or sign is located in, measured
perpendicularly.
The City of River Oaks, Texas.
The Registered Professional Engineer or firm of Registered
Professional Consulting Engineers that has been specifically designated
as “City Engineer” by the City Council.
The Planning and Zoning Commission of the City.
The comprehensive plan of the City and adjoining areas as
recommended by the Planning and Zoning Commission and as adopted by
the City Council including all its revisions. This plan indicates
the general location recommended for various land uses, transportation
routes, public and private buildings, streets, parks, water, sewer,
and other public and private developments and improvements.
A public right-of-way, four (4) feet or more in width between
property lines, which provides pedestrian circulations.
A street having but one outlet to another street, and terminated
on the opposite end by a vehicular turn-around.
A street, other than a cul-de-sac, with only one outlet.
The individual appointed by the chief executive officer of
the city with the advice and consent of the city council to manage
and direct the public works operations of the city.
The word “easement” shall mean an area for restricted
use on private property upon which any public utility including the
City, shall have the right to remove and keep removed all or part
of any buildings, fences, trees, shrubs, or other improvements or
growths which in any way endanger or interfere with the construction,
maintenance, or efficiency of its respective systems on any of these
easements. Any public utility, including the City, shall at all times
have the right of ingress and egress to and from and upon easements
for the purpose of constructing, reconstructing, inspecting, patrolling,
maintaining and adding to or removing all or part of its respective
systems without the necessity at any time of procuring the permission
of the property owner. A public easement may be utilized for a utility
and/or drainage system.
A person duly authorized under the provisions of the Texas
Engineering Registration Act, as heretofore or hereafter amended,
to practice the profession of engineering and who is specifically
qualified to design and prepare construction plans and specifications
for subdivision development.
A requirement imposed as a condition for approval of a plat,
preliminary plat, building permit, planned development district or
other development permit application to:
The facilities agreement shall be a legally binding agreement
between the City and the developer specifying the individual and joint
responsibilities of both the City and the developer for the development
and construction of a subdivision project. Unusual circumstances relating
to a subdivision shall be considered in the facilities agreement such
that the purpose of this ordinance may be served for each particular
subdivision. Such facilities agreement may stipulate pro rata payments,
city participation in unusual facilities, escrow deposits or other
payments for future facilities, waivers granted to the ordinance and
other nonstandard agreements relating to the development. The facilities
agreement shall be recorded in the Tarrant County Courthouse at the
same time the Final Plat is recorded.
(Also Record Plat or Filing Plat). The one official and authentic
map of any given subdivision of land prepared from actual field measurement
and staking of all identifiable points by a surveyor or engineer with
the subdivision location referenced to a survey corner and all boundaries,
corners and curves of the land division sufficiently described so
that they can be reproduced without additional references. Angular
measurements and bearings shall be accurate to the nearest minute.
Distances shall be accurate to the nearest tenth of a foot. Only a
final plat shall be recorded in the plat records of Tarrant County,
Texas. Short form plats and amending plats meeting the requirements
of this ordinance are considered to be final plats.
Alternative turnaround that is an approved turnaround area
designed to Fire Department standards[.]
Persons other than Surveyors or Engineers who also possess
and can demonstrate a valid proficiency in the planning of residential,
commercial, industrial and other related developments; such proficiency
often having been acquired by education in the field of landscape
architecture or other specialized planning curriculum and/or by actual
experience and practice in the field of land planning.
An undivided tract or parcel of land having frontage on a
public street and which is, or in the future may be offered for sale,
conveyance, transfer or improvement; which is designated as a distinct
and separate tract; and which is identified by a tract or lot number
or symbol in a duly approved plat which has been properly filed of
record.
The building or buildings on a lot which are occupied by
the primary use.
The word “may” is merely discretionary. The word
“shall” is always mandatory.
The portion of a street available for vehicular traffic.
Where curbs are laid, it is the portion between the faces of the curbs.
Any individual, association, firm, partnership, corporation,
governmental agency, political subdivision or other entity of any
kind.
A plan outlining the proposed use(s) of a tract or tracts
of land, which provides fair notice of the project and the nature
of the permit sought. It includes an application for approval of a
plat or an application for approval of a zoning change or a site plan,
which contains, at a minimum, a graphic depiction of the tract and
describes the proposed uses of land and their location within the
tract(s) and the general layout of streets and parks or other open
spaces. It does not include any information or exhibit presented to[:]
(1) City staff for the purpose of seeking information regarding the
applicable regulations or (2) the Planning and Zoning Commission or
City Council unless the information or exhibit is required to be submitted
with the permit application.
Same as Commission.
A preliminary plat, final plat, replat, short form (amending)
plat, filing plat, record plat, or other plat established and provided
for in this Ordinance.
The graphic expression of the proposed overall plan for subdividing,
improving and developing a tract shown by superimposing a scale drawing
of the proposed land division on a topographic map and showing in
the plan existing and proposed drainage features and facilities, street
layout and direction of curb flow, and other pertinent features with
notations sufficient to substantially identify the general scope and
detail of proposed development.
With respect to water, wastewater, roadway, drainage or parks,
the facilities owned or operated by or on behalf of the City to provide
services to the public, including existing and new developments and
subdivisions. The public facilities system includes improvements to
roads owned by the County or the State to the extent such improvements
are necessitated by and attributable to a proposed development or
subdivision.
A water, wastewater, roadway, drainage or park facility that
is a part of one or more of the City’s public facilities systems.
The resubdivision or redesign, or amendment of any part or
all of a previously platted subdivision, addition, lot or tract.
A sketch drawing of initial development ideas superimposed
on a topographic map to indicate generally the plan of development
and to serve as a working base for noting and incorporating suggestions
of the City Manager, Director of Public Works, City Engineer, Zoning
Administrator or others who are consulted prior to the preparation
of the preliminary plat.
A public right-of-way, however classified or designated,
which provides vehicular access to adjacent land.
In the event it is necessary to ascertain the permitted width,
it shall be the shortest distance between the lines which delineate
the rights-of-way of a street.
The act of creating a subdivision.
Any person or any agent thereof, dividing or proposing to
divide land so as to constitute a subdivision or who is otherwise
required to submit a plat as required in this ordinance. The term
“subdivider” shall include the owner, equitable owner
or authorized agent of such owner or equitable owner, of land sought
to be subdivided.
(also “Addition”) A division of any land, whether
vacant or improved, by metes and bounds, deed, contract for deed,
lease, or by any other instrument or method, into two or more lots,
parcels, sites, units, plots, parts, or interests, for the purpose
of offer, sale, lease, development, or establishment of record ownership.
Subdivision includes re-subdivision and includes any division of land
under [section] 212.004 of the Texas Local Government Code. Subdivision
shall not include the division of land into parts greater than five
acres which are exempted from platting under [section] 212.004 of
the Texas Local Government Code.
A licensed State Land Surveyor or a Registered Public Surveyor,
as authorized by the State statutes to practice the profession of
surveying.
An interest in land granted to the City, to the public generally,
and/or to a private utility company, for installing and maintaining
utilities and/or drainage across, over or under private land, together
with the right of ingress and egress thereon with machinery and vehicles
necessary for the maintenance of said utilities.
No fence shall extend into the triangular area formed by
the extension of the two curb lines to a point measuring 20 feet from
the intersection of two streets, and connecting the points to form
a 45 degree triangle.
A position appointed by the City Manager, as specified by
the Charter of the City of River Oaks to enforce and administer the
terms of the municipal zoning ordinance; the individual whose decisions
and interpretations are appealed to the board of adjustment.
(Ordinance 1209-2018 adopted 11/27/18; Ordinance 1239-2019, sec. 46, adopted 8/13/19)
6-100
Any person, firm or corporation who shall violate any of the
provisions of this Ordinance or who shall fail to comply with any
provision hereof shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction,
shall be subject to a fine not to exceed Five Hundred ($500.00) Dollars,
and each day that such violation continues shall constitute a separate
offense and shall be punishable accordingly. Prosecution or conviction
under this provision shall never be a bar to any other remedy or relief
for violations of this Ordinance.
(Ordinance 1209-2018 adopted 11/27/18)
7-100
The Planning and Zoning Commission may recommend and the City
Council may authorize a waiver from these subdivision regulations
when, in its opinion, an unnecessary hardship will result from requiring
strict compliance.
7-101
In granting
a waiver, the City Council may prescribe conditions that it deems
necessary or desirable to protect the public interest. In making the
findings herein below required, the City Council shall take into account
the nature of the proposed use of the land involved, existing uses
of land in the vicinity, and the probable effect of such waiver upon
traffic conditions and upon the public health, safety, convenience
and welfare in the vicinity. No waiver shall be granted unless the
Council finds that all of the following conditions exist:
1.
That there
are special circumstances or conditions affecting the land involved
such that the strict application of the provisions of this Ordinance
would deprive the applicant of the reasonable use of his land; and
2.
That strict
application of the provisions of this Ordinance is not necessary to
promote the public health, safety and welfare; and
3.
That the
granting of the waiver will not be detrimental to the public health,
safety or welfare, or injurious to other property in the area; and
4.
That the
granting of the waiver will not have the effect of preventing the
orderly subdivision of other land in the area in accordance with the
provisions of this ordinance.
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Such findings of the City Council, together with the specific
facts upon which such findings are based, shall be incorporated into
the official minutes of the Council meeting at which such waiver is
granted. Waivers may be granted only when in harmony with the general
purpose and intent of this Ordinance so that the public health, safety
and welfare may be secured and substantial justice done. Pecuniary
hardship to the subdivider, standing alone, shall not be deemed to
constitute unnecessary hardship; and
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5.
That the
granting of the waiver will be in harmony with the spirit and purpose
of this Ordinance.
7-102
The Planning
and Zoning Commission, in the recommendation of a waiver to the City
Council, shall submit all the specific facts and pertinent data upon
which such a waiver has been recommended. Any waiver granted by the
City Council, after considering the material submitted by the Planning
and Zoning Commission, shall be final.
7-103
The Planning
and Zoning Commission and the City Council may grant a waiver of an
exaction requirement pursuant to Article 13.A [sic] hereof.
(Ordinance 1209-2018 adopted 11/27/18)
8-100
A final plat shall not be filed of record until it has been
approved by the City Council.
8-101
No construction
work other than site grading and rough cutting of streets shall begin
in any proposed subdivision prior to the final plat being approved
by the City Council and being filed with the County Clerk of Tarrant
County, Texas.
8-102
No changes,
erasures, modifications or revisions shall be made in any plat after
approval has been given by the City Council unless said change, revision
or modification is first submitted to and approved by the City Council.
8-103
No building
permit shall be issued by the City for any building on any land in
the City which is not served by a sewage collection system connected
to an approved community treatment plant or public sewage facility,
unless an approved on-site sewage disposal system such as a septic
tank and subsurface drainage field, spray irrigation/aerobic disposal
system or other system designed and constructed in accordance with
the methods and standards approved by the Tarrant County Department
of Health and the city’s plumbing code and other applicable
city ordinances is installed.
Any section of the city where sanitary sewer shall exist and
where the property line of such premises approaches or extends to
within one hundred (100) feet of any such sewer shall not construct,
use or maintain, or permit to be constructed, used or maintained,
on such premises, any privy, cesspool, water closet, urinal basin,
slop sink, slop drain, bathtub, or water waste drain from dwellings,
laundries, livery stables, garages, filling stations or other places,
or any receptacle whatever used or to be used for the purpose of receiving
or removing sewage matter, or slop of any kind, unless the same shall
be connected with the system of sanitary sewers of the city.
(Ordinance 1209-2018 adopted 11/27/18)
9-100
No person shall subdivide any tract of land which is located
within the city or its extraterritorial jurisdiction, as defined by
Chapter 42 of the Texas Local Government Code, unless a plat of the
tract has been prepared, approved and filed of record as provided
in this ordinance. Land held in separate ownership which was recorded
in the deed records of Tarrant County as of May 10, 1949 may be platted
as a single lot of record without platting the entire tract out of
which it was subdivided.
9-101
No Building
Permit for residential or nonresidential construction shall be issued
for any building on any land unless a Final Plat has been filed in
the Plat Records of Tarrant County, except as follows:
1.
Where a
primary residential structure exists, a building permit to construct
an addition to, or renovation of, the existing residential structure
may be issued on unplatted land, provided that the value of such proposed
construction, including the cumulative value of any proposed and all
previously permitted construction permits on the primary structure,
does not exceed fifty (50) percent of the current value of the existing
structure, excluding the value of the land. Construction permit as
used herein does not include electrical, plumbing or similar nonconstruction
activities.
2.
Public
Facilities Available.
No building permit for a primary
building shall be issued until all necessary public facilities have
been installed and have been approved by the City Engineer.
9-102
The owner
of any land which is required to be platted as provided herein shall
be required to dedicate to the City a reasonable portion of the land
as is necessary for the orderly development of streets, drainage,
utilities, emergency access or other public purposes. Any required
dedications shall meet the rough proportionality standard set forth
in the Local Government Code, Chapter 212.904. If such dedication
requirements are imposed, it shall be a prerequisite of approval.
A dedication shown on a plat shall be considered an offer of dedication
which may be withdrawn before approval by the City Council. Upon approval
of the plat by the City Council, the offered dedication shall remain
open until refused by the City.
The approval of a plat is not considered an acceptance of any
proposed dedication and does not impose on the City any duty regarding
the maintenance or improvement of any dedicated parts until the appropriate
city authorities have made actual appropriation of the dedicated parts
by entry, use or improvement.
Prior to acceptance of a dedication, the dedication may be refused
or rejected by the vacation of the plat or by the approval of a replat
in accordance with this ordinance. After acceptance of a dedication,
the public improvement and dedication may only be vacated by adoption
of a resolution or ordinance by the City Council in accordance with
city policies and state laws.
The disapproval of a plat is considered a refusal of the offered
dedication by the City Council.
9-103
The City
shall not authorize any other person or entity nor shall the City
itself supply any water, gas, electricity, sewerage or other utility
service to a property for which a final plat has not been approved
and filed of record, nor in which the standards contained herein or
referred to herein have not been complied with in full. The provisions
of this section shall not prohibit the provision of electric service
for security lighting only on unplatted property.
9-104
The City
shall not authorize any person or entity 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.
9-105
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 seek an injunction or enforce the provisions of this Ordinance
or the standards referred to herein and/or to seek appropriate damages
as authorized by law
(Ordinance 1209-2018 adopted 11/27/18)
10-100
The City Council may from time-to-time amend this Ordinance,
in accordance with appropriate procedures provided by law.
(Ordinance 1209-2018 adopted 11/27/18)
11-100
The subdivider shall furnish, install and/or construct the water
and sewerage systems and the street and drainage facilities necessary
for the proper development of the subdivision. All such facilities
shall be designed and constructed in accordance with the Design Provisions
contained in this Ordinance, and other standards, specifications,
and drawings as may be adopted by the City Council.
11-101
Where
shown on the master plan, or considered necessary by the City Council
in order to protect the public health, safety or welfare, public facilities
shall be sized in excess of that dictated by the design criteria to
provide for future growth and expansion. The City Council shall establish
policies whereby the City will participate in the construction of
such oversized facilities or reimburse the subdivider for the costs
of same.
11-102
1.
Pursuant
to the provisions of Section 245.002, of the Texas Local Government
Code, the City shall consider the approval, disapproval or conditional
approval of any application or permit required by this Ordinance on
the basis of any regulations, ordinances, rules or expiration dates,
or other properly adopted requirements in effect at the time:
2.
Rights
to which a permit applicant is entitled under this provision accrue
on the filing of an original application or plan for development or
plat application that gives the City fair notice of the project and
the nature of the permit sought. An application or plan is considered
filed on the date the applicant delivers the application or plans
to the City or deposits the application or plans with the United States
Postal Service, by Certified Mail, addressed to the City. A certified
mail receipt obtained by the applicant at the time of deposit is prima
facie evidence of the date the application or plan was deposited with
the United States Postal Service.
3.
If a series
of permits is required for a project, the orders, regulations, ordinances,
rules, expiration dates, or other properly adopted requirements in
effect at the time the original application for the first permit in
that series is filed, shall be the sole basis for consideration of
all subsequent permits required for the completion of the project.
4.
If the
City should adopt new orders, rules or regulations relating to an
activity covered by this Ordinance during the development process
for a project, the developer/applicant may elect to operate under
the newly adopted regulations or may proceed with the complete development
under the rules in effect at the beginning of the project.
5.
If a developer/applicant
believes that their project/subdivision plat is eligible to be reviewed
under a set of regulations not currently controlling in the City,
it shall be the responsibility of the developer/applicant to provide
the City with written notice that the developer/applicant believes
that a different set of regulations would be applicable. The developer
shall provide the City with written notice of the date that the initial
application or notice was given to the City, provide a copy of any
written instrument constituting such notice and shall identify to
the City the specific regulatory provisions that the developer/applicant
believes should be applied to the current project. The developer/applicant
must provide the City with this required written notice in order to
avail themselves of a different set of regulations because the City
staff cannot independently determine whether the developer/applicant
has simply chosen to comply with the then current regulations applicable
to the project.
6.
Once the
City has been provided written notice by a developer/applicant seeking
to proceed with the development under regulations from a prior initial
project submittal, the City shall review the request and provide a
written response to the developer/applicant within fourteen (14) days
of receipt of the written request. The City may request additional
information or documentation to fully investigate the regulatory provision
in question. If the City staff should deny the request to apply the
regulation requested by the developer/applicant, the developer/applicant
may file an appeal to the City Council by written instrument within
fourteen (14) days following the notice that the alternate regulations
will not be applied.
7.
The City
Council shall afford the developer/applicant a hearing upon which
evidence may be introduced to support the applicant’s claim
that the project is entitled to the protections accorded by Chapter
245.002 of the Texas Local Government Code. At the conclusion of the
hearing, the City Council will determine whether to approve the request,
deny the request or modify the request to allow the project to proceed
under a noncurrent set of development regulations.
8.
If a permit
for any development activity is issued by the City, it shall be valid
for a period of two (2) years from its issuance date. If a developer/applicant
initiates construction activity to implement the rights created by
the permit within twenty-four (24) months following its issuance,
the rules or regulations relating to that permit shall be applicable
for the completion of the construction for which the permit has been
issued. If no activity is initiated by the developer/applicant to
initiate construction within the 24-month period, any rights created
pursuant to Chapter 245 of the Texas Local Government Code shall lapse
and expire and the developer/applicant shall be required to proceed
with the regulations then in full force and effect to continue the
construction activity. If a developer/applicant places the City on
full and fair notice of a development plan or proposal for a project,
the developer/applicant shall have the right to proceed with that
project (and all of its associated elements) under the rules and regulations
applicable at the time that notice was provided to the City. If the
developer/applicant takes steps to initiate construction relating
to the project within the sixty (60) month period following initial
notice, the project and its associated elements shall be allowed to
proceed under the rules and regulations then in effect at the time
that initial notice was given. If the developer/applicant does not
initiate construction activity on the project within sixty (60) months
following notice to the City, then the developer/applicant shall have
waived any rights conferred under Chapter 245 of the Texas Local Government
Code to proceed with the project under any development regulations
other than those then currently in effect for other comparable projects
in the City.
11-103
Homeowners’ and Property Owners’ Associations.
1.
When a
development contains common areas, common property, open space, private
streets, required private drainage facilities, or other improvements
not intended to be dedicated to the City for public use, a homeowners’
or property owners’ association shall be created, and the duties
and responsibilities shall be established in a declaration consistent
with state law.
2.
The common
areas shall be shown on the final plat and dedicated to the homeowners’
or property owners’ association.
3.
An association
shall be an incorporated nonprofit organization operating under recorded
land declarations through which:
a.
Each
lot owner in a described land area is automatically a member; and
b.
Each
lot is automatically subject to a charge for a proportionate share
of the expenses for the association’s activities, such as maintenance
of common areas, common open spaces or the provision and upkeep of
common recreational facilities.
4.
To assure
the establishment of a permanent homeowners’ or property owners’
association, including its financing and the rights and responsibilities
of the owners in relation to the use, management and ownership of
common areas or common property, the plat, dedication documents, covenants,
and other recorded legal agreements must provide for the following:
a.
Creation
of an automatic membership, nonprofit home or property owners’
association;
b.
Placement
of title to the common property in the homeowners’ or property
owners’ association or definite assurance that it automatically
will be so placed within a reasonable, definite time;
c.
Appropriate
limitation of the uses of the common property;
d.
The grant
to each owner of a lot within the development of the right to the
use and enjoyment of the common property;
e.
Placement
of responsibility for operation and maintenance of the common property
with the association;
f.
Imposition
of an association charge or assessment on each lot in a manner which
will assure sufficient association funds to maintain the common property
or improvements;
g.
The grant
to each owner voting rights in the association; and
h.
Identification
of the land area within the association’s jurisdiction including,
but not limited to, the following:
5.
Protective
covenants shall be developed which shall make the homeowners’
association responsible for the maintenance and operation of all common
property, and include provisions for assessments, to be enforced by
lien.
6.
The articles
of incorporation of the homeowners’ or property owners’
association, its bylaws, and the restrictive covenants shall be submitted
to the Director of Planning for approval along with the final plat.
Prior to filing the plat, the developer shall create an incorporated
nonprofit association, and record the covenants in the deed records.
7.
The homeowners’
or property owners’ documents must indicate that the facilities
referenced in Paragraph 1 of this section shall be privately owned
and maintained by the association, and that the City has no obligation
to maintain said facilities. If the homeowners’ or property
owners’ association fails to maintain said facilities, and the
parkway between a screening wall, fence or device and a street, the
City shall have the right to levy an assessment for the expense of
the needed repairs or maintenance. Said assessment shall constitute
a lien upon each lot against which the assessment is made. The City
shall be the sole judge of whether repair or maintenance is needed.
8.
If a subdivision
proposal contains five or fewer lots, the developer may determine
that the creation of a Homeowners’ Association is not the most
effective method for ensuring long term maintenance of a screening
wall. The developer will remain responsible for ensuring that some
long-term maintenance system is created to meet the intent of this
section. The developer shall be free to propose to the Director of
Planning, in writing, an alternate approach which may involve any
method that provides at least as much guarantee of long term maintenance
as the requirement of creating a homeowners’ association would
provide.
(Ordinance 1209-2018 adopted 11/27/18)
