(a)
Prior
to a decision by the planning and zoning commission or city official
on an application for plat approval or any other application for which
an exaction requirement is approved as a condition of approval, the
city engineer shall prepare a written statement affirming that each
exaction requirement to be imposed as a condition of plat approval
or permit approval is roughly proportionate to the demand created
by the subdivision or development on the applicable public facilities
system of the city, taking into consideration the nature and extent
of the development proposed. In making this determination, the city
engineer may consider:
(1)
Categorical findings and recommendations of the North Central Texas
Council of Governments in developing standard specifications for public
infrastructure improvements and stormwater management;
(2)
The proposed and potential use of the land;
(3)
The timing and sequence of development in relation to availability
of adequate levels of public facilities systems;
(4)
Impact fee studies, traffic impact studies both geometric and capacity
oriented, drainage studies or other studies, fire protection, consumption
and irrigation water needs, liquid water collecting disposal or standards
that measure the demand for services created by developments and the
impact on the city's public facilities system;
(5)
The level of service and functionality of both on-site and off-site
of the public infrastructure improvements in serving the proposed
subdivision or development;
(6)
The degree to which public infrastructure improvements necessary
to serve the proposed subdivision are supplied by other developments;
(7)
The anticipated participation by the city in the costs of necessary
public infrastructure improvements;
(8)
The degree to which acceptable private infrastructure improvements
to be constructed and maintained by the applicant will offset the
need for public infrastructure improvements;
(9)
Any reimbursements for the costs of public infrastructure improvements
for which the proposed subdivision is eligible; and/or
(10)
Any other information relating to the impacts created by the proposed
subdivision or development on the city's public facilities systems.
(b)
Based
upon the proportionality determination, the city engineer shall affirm
that the exaction requirements of this article or other ordinance
requiring the permit, as applied to the proposed subdivision or development,
do not impose costs on the applicant for public infrastructure improvements
that exceed those roughly proportionate to the impact of the proposed
subdivision or development.
(c)
The
city engineer may require that the applicant, at its expense, submit
any information or studies that may assist in making the proportionality
determination.
[Ord. No. 1063-06, § 21, 8-22-2006]
(a)
The
planning and zoning commission and city council shall consider the
city engineer's report concerning the proportionality of the exaction
requirements in making a decision on a plat application. The commission
and the city council may consider the city engineer's report in granting
a variance to the requirements of this article.
(b)
The
city official responsible for issuing a permit for which an exaction
requirement is imposed as a condition of approval shall consider the
city engineer's report concerning the proportionality of the exaction
requirements in making its decision as to whether to grant the permit.
[Ord. No. 1063-06, § 21, 8-22-2006]
(a)
An
applicant for a preliminary or final plat or for a permit which imposes
an exaction requirement as a condition of approval may file an appeal
to contest any exaction requirement, other than impact fees, imposed
as a condition of approval or in which the failure to comply is grounds
for denying the plat application pursuant to this article.
(b)
The
purpose of a proportionality appeal is to assure that an exaction
requirement imposed on a proposed plat or development as a condition
of approval does not result in a disproportionate cost burden on the
applicant, taking into consideration the nature and extent of the
demands created by the proposed subdivision or development on the
city's public facilities systems.
[Ord. No. 1063-06, § 21, 8-22-2006]
(a)
An
applicant for a preliminary or final plat or an applicant seeking
approval for any other permit or zoning for which an exaction requirement
is imposed shall file a written appeal with the city secretary within
ten days of the date the planning and zoning commission or the city
official responsible for issuing the permit takes action applying
the exaction requirement. This may include denial of the permit or
plat. The applicant shall submit 15 copies of the appeal.
(b)
A separate
appeal form shall be submitted for each exaction requirement for which
relief is sought. The city secretary shall forward the appeal to the
city council for consideration.
(c)
The applicant may request postponement of consideration of the applicant's plat application pending preparation of the study required by subsection (f), in which case the applicant shall also waive the statutory period for acting upon a plat for the time necessary for the city council to decide the appeal.
(d)
No
developer's agreement may be executed by the city until the time for
appeal has expired or, if an appeal is filed, until the city council
has made a determination with respect to the appeal.
(e)
The
appeal shall state the reasons that application of the exaction requirement
is not roughly proportional to the nature and extent of the impact
created by the proposed subdivision or development on the city's public
facilities systems and does not reasonably benefit the proposed subdivision
or development.
(f)
The
appellant shall submit to the city engineer 15 copies of a study in
support of the appeal that includes, with respect to each specific
exaction requirement appealed, the following information within 30
days of the date of appeal, unless a longer time is requested:
(1)
Total capacity of the city's water, wastewater, roadway, drainage,
or park system, as applicable, to be utilized by the proposed subdivision
or development, employing standard measures of capacity and equivalency
tables relating the type of development proposed to the quantity of
system capacity to be consumed by the subdivision. If the proposed
subdivision is to be developed in phases, such information also shall
be provided for the entire development, including any phases already
developed;
(2)
Total capacity to be supplied to the city's public facilities systems
for water, wastewater, roadway, drainage or parks, as applicable,
by the exaction requirement. This information shall include any capacity
supplied by prior exaction requirements imposed on the development;
(3)
Comparison of the capacity of the applicable city public facilities
systems to be consumed by the proposed subdivision or development
with the capacity to be supplied to such systems by the proposed exaction
requirement. In making this comparison, the impacts on the city's
public facilities systems from the entire subdivision or development
shall be considered;
(4)
The amount of any city participation in the costs of over-sizing
the public infrastructure improvements to be constructed by the applicant
in accordance with the city's requirements;
(5)
Comparison of the minimum size and capacity required by city standards
for the applicable public facilities systems to be utilized by the
proposed subdivision or development with the size and capacity to
be supplied by the proposed exaction requirement; and
(6)
Any other information that shows the alleged disproportionality between
the impacts created by the proposed development and the exaction requirement
imposed by the city.
(g)
The
city engineer shall evaluate the appeal and supporting study and shall
make a recommendation to the city council based upon the city engineer's
analysis of the information contained in the study and utilizing the
same factors considered by the engineer in making the original proportionality
determination.
[Ord. No. 1063-06, § 21, 8-22-2006]
(a)
The
city council shall decide the appeal within 30 days of the date of
final submission of any evidence by the applicant. Upon receipt of
notice from the applicant that all evidence has been submitted, the
city secretary shall schedule a time and date for the city council
to consider the appeal and shall cause the applicant to be notified
at the address specified in the appeal form of the time, date and
location at which the city council shall consider the appeal.
(b)
The applicant shall be allotted time, not to exceed 30 minutes, to present testimony at the city council meeting. The council shall base its decision on the criteria listed in subsections 74-291(a) and 74-293(f) and may:
(1)
Deny the appeal and impose the exaction requirement in accordance
with the city engineer's recommendation or the planning and zoning
commission's decision on the plat or other development application;
or
(2)
Grant the appeal, and waive in whole or in part an exaction requirement
to the extent necessary to achieve proportionality; or
(3)
Grant the appeal, and direct that the city participate in the costs
of acquiring land for or constructing the public infrastructure improvement.
(c)
In
deciding an appeal, the city council shall determine whether application
of the exaction requirement is roughly proportional to the nature
and extent of the impact created by the proposed subdivision on the
city's public facilities systems for water, wastewater, roadway, drainage,
or park facilities, as applicable, and reasonably benefits the subdivision.
In making such determination, the council shall consider:
(d)
The
city council may require the applicant or the city engineer to submit
additional information that it deems relevant in making its decision.
[Ord. No. 1063-06, § 21, 8-22-2006]
(a)
If
the city council finds in favor of the applicant and waives the exaction
requirement as a condition of plat approval, or modifies the exaction
requirement to the extent necessary to achieve rough proportionality,
the applicant shall resubmit the plat application to the planning
and zoning commission or city official responsible for issuing the
permit within 30 days of the date the city council takes action, with
any modifications necessary to conform the plat with the city council's
decision. Failure to do so shall result in the expiration of any relief
granted by the city council.
(b)
If
the city council finds in favor of an applicant for any other permit
and waives the exaction requirement as a condition of permit or zoning
approval, or modifies the exaction requirement to the extent necessary
to achieve rough proportionality, the applicant shall resubmit the
permit application to the responsible official within 30 days of the
date the city council takes action, with any modifications necessary
to conform the application with the city council's decision. Failure
to do so will result in the expiration of any relief granted by the
city council.
(c)
If
the city council denies the appeal and the applicant has executed
a waiver of the statutory period for acting upon a plat, the city
shall place the plat application on the agenda of the planning and
zoning commission within 30 days of the city council's decision.
(d)
If
the rough proportionality appeal was submitted appealing the imposition
of an exaction requirement for a plat application, and city council
grants relief to an applicant but the applicant fails to conform the
plat to the city council's decision within the 30-day period provided,
the relief granted by the city council on the appeal shall expire.
(e)
If
the plat application is modified to increase the number of residential
dwelling units or the intensity of nonresidential uses, the city engineer
may require a new study to validate the relief granted by the city
council.
(f)
If
the plat application for which relief was granted is denied on other
grounds, a new appeal shall be required on any subsequent application.
(g)
The
applicant shall not be deemed to have prevailed in the event that
the city council modifies the exaction requirement.
[Ord. No. 1063-06, § 21, 8-22-2006]
An applicant may appeal the decision of the city council to
the county or district court of the county in which the development
is located within 30 days of the date that the council issues its
final decision. In the event that the applicant prevails in such action,
the applicant will be entitled to attorneys' fees and costs, including
expert witness fees.
[Ord. No. 1063-06, § 21, 8-22-2006]
