A. 
PURPOSES
This ordinance applies to tracts of land within the corporate limits of the City of Haslet and its extraterritorial jurisdiction. Wherever this ordinance refers to “City” or the “City of Haslet” it shall also be deemed to refer to and shall apply to the City’s extraterritorial jurisdiction. This ordinance is designed, intended and is to be administered in a manner to: not contravene the provisions of the Zoning Ordinance of the City of Haslet; implement the Master Land Use Plan, the Master Water and Sewer Plans, the Master Drainage Plan, and Master Thoroughfare Plan; promote uniformity of the application of development-related regulations, policies, ordinances; discourage urban sprawl and prevent neighborhood deterioration; realistically and harmoniously relate new development of proximate tracts; provide for the establishment of necessary improvements, design standards and public spaces required for proper subdivision development; provide for the establishment of an equitable and expeditious review of plats; promote quality, flexibility and innovation in tract design, while assuring the safe, orderly and healthful development of land, and establish adequate and accurate records of land subdivision.
B. 
SHORT TITLE
This ordinance is known and may be cited as the “Subdivision Ordinance of the City of Haslet, Texas.”
C. 
JURISDICTION AND REQUIREMENTS FOR PLATTING
1. 
Jurisdiction.
a. 
Applicability.
Subject to the provisions of this section, the regulations of this Ordinance shall apply to all land within the corporate limits of Haslet and all land within the City’s extraterritorial jurisdiction.
b. 
Extraterritorial Jurisdiction.
When land is subdivided or developed within the City’s extraterritorial jurisdiction, approval by the City shall be required consistent with the standards and requirements of the Code of Ordinances of the City of Haslet.
c. 
Utilities.
The City shall be under no obligation to extend utilities beyond the limits of the area for which the City has a Certificate of Convenience and Necessity (CCN) from the Texas Commission on Environment Quality or its successor. For property located within the City’s CCN, the City shall extend utilities pursuant to the City’s adopted policies and the Code of Ordinances of the City of Haslet.
2. 
Platting Required; Exemptions.
a. 
Platting Required.
Platting is required for the following purposes:
(1) 
To create a building site and obtain a building permit on a single lot or tract; or
(2) 
To subdivide a lot or tract into two or more parcels for development of the parcels; or
(3) 
To combine lots or tracts; or
(4) 
To amend a plat.
b. 
Exemptions.
The following land divisions are exempt from the requirements of these regulations:
(1) 
A division of land created by order of a court of competent jurisdiction; or
(2) 
A division of land that results in the creation of two or more parcels, each of which is greater than five acres, when each parcel has direct access to an existing public street and no dedication or extension of public facilities is required; or
(3) 
To dedicate land to the City, or the acquisition of land by the City, for public purposes.
D. 
ADMINISTRATION
1. 
Commission and Council Powers.
Acknowledgment is hereby made of the prior creation, establishment and enumeration (by Ordinances of the City of Haslet) of certain powers and responsibilities of the City Planning and Zoning Commission, hereinafter referred to as the “Commission.” Such Commission shall exercise all of the powers of approval or disapproval of plats and vacations of plats, as heretofore or hereafter provided by state statute and City ordinances, including future amendments and revisions thereto, and as provided herein. Within the purview of such authority, the Commission may recommend and the City Council can adopt rules and regulations concerning platting procedures, requirements and development standards.
2. 
Commission Duty.
It shall be the duty of the Commission to endorse approval upon any plat submitted to it, if same conforms to the Comprehensive Plan of the City of Haslet and its streets, alleys, public transportation facilities, bikeways and walkways, parks, playgrounds, schools and other public facilities, including those which have been or may be laid out, and to the Master Land Use Plan and Master Thoroughfare Plan for the extension of the City of Haslet and of its roads, streets, public highways, public transportation facilities, bikeways and walkways within the City of Haslet and within its extraterritorial jurisdiction, regard being made for access to and extension of sewer and water mains, storm drainage facilities and the instrumentalities of public utilities and if same shall conform to the provisions of this ordinance and rules and regulations of such Commission, including future amendments and revisions thereto.
E. 
AUTHORITY OF THE CITY ENGINEER
The City Engineer is hereby authorized, subject to the approval of the City Council and/or their designated representative, to promulgate, amend and enforce rules, regulations, standards or specifications for the construction, installation and engineering design of streets, traffic, water, sanitary sewer, curbs, gutters, watercourses, planting strip easements, sidewalks, bicycle/pedestrian ways, culverts, bridges, planting screens, monuments, criteria for drainage easement requirements, drainage facilities and crosswalk ways. Any such rule, regulation, standard or specification and/or amendment thereof shall be deemed to be in full force and effect upon the filing of three (3) copies of same in the office of the City Secretary, provided that there preceded substantial compliance with the following procedure:
The Commission and representative parties of particular industries or professions primarily concerned were provided written notice of any such proposed rule, regulation, standard or specification and/or amendment thereof and were permitted to submit written objections thereto within thirty (30) days of the mailing of such notice; and further provided that prior to such filing the City Council is advised of any such proposed rule, regulation, standard or specification and/or amendment thereto. No such rules, regulations, standards and specifications shall conflict with this or any other ordinance of the City. All public improvements shall be constructed, installed, designed, located and arranged by the owner or subdivider in accordance with such rules, regulations, standards and specifications.
In this capacity, the City Engineer will review all development and construction plans and plats for concurrence with the City’s standards and regulations.
The City Engineer will advise the Commission and the City Council in writing of his review and will specifically denote where he finds any proposed subdivision, lot, or public facility plat or construction plan which does not meet City standards or regulations.
The City Engineer shall have the authority to review and approve minor changes to the final plat, such as franchise easements, utility easements, drainage easements, etc. without Commission and/or City Council approval prior to the filing of the final plat.
F. 
IMPROVEMENTS
1. 
Contract for Community Facilities (Developer and City).
In any subdivision or tract of land where community facilities (to include by way of example, but not of limitation, water, sanitary sewer, storm drainage facilities, street lighting or street improvement) are required by this ordinance or by related policy, rule or regulation, no building permit shall be issued and no work shall be commenced for the installation of such community facilities unless and until the owner or developer has contracted with the City to provide for the installation of such improvements. Such contract shall be entered subsequent to approval of adequate subdivision development plans and specifications and preliminary subdivision plat. In preparing such contract, the Mayor or his appointee may require the owner or developer to take bids or otherwise obtain and furnish unit prices of such improvements, which prices shall be acceptable to the City.
2. 
Contract for Construction (Developer and Contractor).
Any contract providing for the actual construction of such community facilities shall include provisions defining that period within which the required improvements shall be installed; the guarantee against any failure of such improvements due to defective materials and workmanship; performance, payment and maintenance bonds in the amounts and forms prescribed by the City; construction sequence; detours and traffic control; City inspection policy and procedure; the application of City standards and specifications governing construction; the indemnification, defense and holding harmless of the City for any accidents or claims; and rules for public protection.
Where public funds are to be appropriated and expended for the actual construction of such community facilities, any contract between the owner or developer and contractor providing for such construction shall be awarded pursuant to the bid procedure prescribed by law and that City policy concerning the installation of such community facilities.
At least two (2) true and correct executed copies and two (2) conformed copies of such contract shall be supplied to the office of the City Secretary prior to the issuance of any building permit. No work shall be commenced unless and until such contract has been approved by the appropriate City officials.
3. 
Utilities.
Utilities not owned or operated by the City shall be designed and constructed in accordance with design standards and specifications of the appropriate utilities franchised to serve the area in which the subdivision is located. Should there be no such standards or specifications, then such utilities shall conform to applicable State and/or City laws or regulations.
All City-owned and operated utilities, including, but not limited to, water and sanitary sewers, shall be designed and constructed in accordance with City design standards and specifications.
4. 
Sanitary Sewers.
A sanitary sewerage collection system shall be installed to serve each lot in every subdivision. In subdivisions where connection cannot be made to a community disposal system or a public sewerage system concurrently with development, septic tanks may be installed on an interim basis until such connection can be made. The use of septic systems shall be prohibited without specific written approval of the Health Department of Tarrant County and State Health Department and shall be subject to any and all conditions of such written approval. Such special variance may be granted by the Commission and City Council if accompanied by a reputable Engineering Firm’s recommendation containing soil test, analysis and specific design recommendations.
No septic tank may be installed upon any lot unless a plat of the lot has been approved by the Commission and the City Council. If sanitary sewer lines are hereafter constructed on, adjacent to, or within 500 feet of any lot in any subdivision, or any lot required to be platted under this ordinance, or any lot located in any subdivision previously approved by the City Council under prior ordinance or laws, then the owner thereof shall connect to such sanitary sewer line within one year of availability and pay the established tap and impact fees thereof.
5. 
Water Lines.
Water lines adequate for domestic supply and for fire protection needs shall be installed to serve each lot, or tract, in every subdivision in accordance with City design standards and specifications. No water main or appurtenance thereto not in complete conformance with City design standards and specifications shall be permitted. In proposed subdivisions where City water system connection is not within 1,500 feet, the lots in the subdivision may be served by other sources of water or on-site water wells as long as said wells are in compliance with all city, county and state regulations concerning water wells.
No water connection to a water line may be made upon any lot unless a plat of the lot has been approved by the Commission and the City Council. If water lines are hereafter constructed on, adjacent to, or within 500 feet of any lot in any subdivision or required to be platted under this ordinance, or any lot located in any subdivision previously approved by the City Council under prior ordinances or laws, then the owner thereof shall connect to such water line within one year of availability and pay the established tap and impact fees.
6. 
Paving and Drainage Facilities.
All streets, alleys and other improvements within the public right-of-way shall be designed, constructed and paved in accordance with City design standards and specifications.
All drainage facilities shall be designed and constructed in accordance with City design standards and specifications.
7. 
Supervision and Inspection of Construction.
All improvements shall be inspected by the appropriate City officials to determine compliance with all applicable laws, ordinances, rules and regulations of the City pertaining to such improvements. Upon satisfactory completion of the project and such compliance, the City Engineer shall issue a letter of acceptance of the project whereupon the City shall accept the public improvement for ownership and perpetual maintenance subject to the provisions of the developer’s maintenance bond.
8. 
Financing and Installation.
The owner or developer shall make appropriate arrangements with the City and/ or utility companies for the division, if any, of construction costs of streets and alleys, utility lines and other public improvements. Underground utilities to be located in those portions of streets intended for vehicular traffic shall be installed before such streets shall be paved.
No lot shall be occupied and no municipal services shall be extended thereto unless and until the specified utilities and improvements have been constructed and connected as required.
9. 
Withholding of Clearances and Permits.
Before the issuance of building permits, the owner or developer shall comply with all provisions of this ordinance to include by way of example, but not of limitation, the provisions relating to contracts for community facilities and contracts for construction of community facilities.
The Director of Public Works shall withhold building permits or final clearances until the required public improvements are installed in accordance with such provisions.
No occupancy permit shall be issued for any structure or building on any lot and no structure or building on any lot shall be occupied unless and until all required public improvements have been accepted by the City and such improvements have been installed, connected and are functioning properly.
(Ordinance 0903-04 adopted 9/27/04; Ordinance 012-2016 adopted 5/16/16)
ACCEPTANCE, REFUSAL OF PROPOSED DEDICATIONS
A. 
Approval Not Acceptance of Proposed Dedication.
Approval of any plat by the Commission and Council shall not be deemed an acceptance of any proposed dedication and shall not impose any duty upon the City concerning the maintenance or improvement of any such dedication until the proper authorities of the City have made actual appropriation of the same by entry, use or improvement.
B. 
Refusal of Proposed Dedication.
If any plat is disapproved by the Commission and City Council, such disapproval shall be deemed a refusal by the City of the offered dedication shown thereon.
C. 
Vacation of Dedication.
All dedications to the City of Haslet, to include by way of illustration but not of limitation streets, alleys, rights-of-way, easements, and park lands, shall be vacated only by written application to the Commission, review of same by those agencies or departments designated by the Commission, Commission approval or conditional approval and City Council approval or conditional approval by ordinance adoption.
(Ordinance 0903-04 adopted 9/27/04)
VARIANCES SUBJECT TO CITY COUNCIL APPROVAL
A. 
Findings Required.
The Commission may, following written request by an applicant detailing justification therefore, recommend to the City Council that the Council grant a variance from the application of the provisions of this ordinance when, in the Commission’s opinion, undue hardship will result from requiring strict compliance therewith. Pecuniary hardship, alone, to the applicant shall not be deemed to constitute undue hardship in making the findings herein below required. Commission considerations in making its recommendation to the City Council shall include the general purpose and intent of this ordinance, the nature of the proposed use of the land involved, existing uses of land in the vicinity, the number of persons who will reside or work in the proposed subdivision and the probable effect of said variance upon traffic conditions. No variances shall be granted unless the Commission finds:
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 that such variance is necessary for the preservation and enjoyment of a substantial property right of the applicant; and
That the effect of granting such variance will neither be detrimental to the public health, safety, convenience, welfare nor injurious to other property; and
That the effect of granting of such variance will not prevent the orderly use or development of other tracts of land.
B. 
Findings, Entered in Minutes.
Such findings, together with the specific fact upon which said findings are based, shall be entered as a part of the official minutes of the Commission meeting at which such variance is considered, as shall be entered as a part of the official minutes of the City Council meeting at which such commission recommendations for variance is heard.
C. 
Reconsideration.
Applicants or any person directly affected by a final decision of the Commission concerning any plat to be filed of record may initiate within ten (10) days after the date of the decision, an appeal or request for reconsideration as per Commission rules and regulations.
D. 
Council Hearing of Commission Recommendation.
The City Council shall hear the recommendation of the Commission on a date not less than ten (10) days after the date of the Commission decision.
(Ordinance 0903-04 adopted 9/27/04)
A. 
APPROVAL TO PRECEDE PLAT RECORDING
No party shall file for record or have recorded in the official records of any county, any plat of a subdivision of real estate without first having secured approval thereof as provided by this ordinance. No party so subdividing any real estate shall employ or refer to any description of a subdivision in any deed or conveyance or contract of sale unless and until the map or plat of such subdivision has been so approved and such map or plat has been filed for record with the clerk of each county in which such real estate is situated.
B. 
NOTICE OF NONCOMPLIANCE
For any subdivision existing for which a plat to be filed for record has not been approved or which fails to meet the standards contained or referred to herein, the City Council may adopt a resolution concerning such failure or lack of approval and indicating that same is a violation of the provisions of this ordinance. The City Council may cause a certified copy of such resolution to be filed in the Deed Records of the county or counties in which said subdivision or part thereof lies. If compliance and approval are secured following the filing of said resolution, the City Council shall file in the Deed Records of such county or counties an instrument which, in effect, rescinds such earlier filed resolution.
(Ordinance 0903-04 adopted 9/27/04)
A. 
PERIODIC REVIEW BY COMMISSION.
The Commission shall periodically review the effectiveness of this ordinance in accomplishing the objectives stated herein and those of the Master Land Use Plan, Master Thoroughfare Plan, Master Water and Sewer Plan, and the Master Drainage Plan.
B. 
PROPOSAL FOR AMENDMENT.
Amendments to this ordinance may be proposed by the City Council, the Commission or by any interested party.
(Ordinance 0903-04 adopted 9/27/04)
Prosecution and/or conviction pursuant to the provisions of this ordinance shall not constitute a bar to any other remedy or relief for violation of this ordinance, and all pending litigation and existing violations, both civil and criminal, whether pending in court or not, under codes or ordinances of the City of Haslet regulating subdivision development and amendments thereto superseded by this ordinance shall not be affected by this ordinance but may be prosecuted until final disposition by the courts.
(Ordinance 0903-04 adopted 9/27/04)
This ordinance shall and does hereby amend and/or repeal every prior ordinance or rule or regulation or policy in conflict herewith, but as to all other ordinances or rules or regulations or policies or sections of ordinances or rules or regulations or policies not in conflict herewith, this ordinance shall be and is hereby made cumulative.
(Ordinance 0903-04 adopted 9/27/04)
It is hereby declared to be the intention of the City Council that the phrases, clauses, sentences, paragraphs and sections, of this ordinance are severable, and if any phrase, clause, sentence, paragraph or section of this ordinance shall be declared void, ineffective or unconstitutional by the valid judgment or final decree of a court of competent jurisdiction, such voidness, ineffectiveness or unconstitutionality shall not affect any of the remaining phrases, clauses, sentences, paragraphs and sections hereof, since the same would have been enacted by the City Council without the incorporation herein of any such void, ineffective or unconstitutional phrase, clause, sentence, paragraph or section.
(Ordinance 0903-04 adopted 9/27/04)
Any person, firm, association of persons, company or corporation, or their agents, servants or employees, who violate, disobey, omit, neglect or refuse to comply with any provision of this ordinance within the corporate limits of the City of Haslet or its Extraterritorial Jurisdiction shall be punished by a fine not to exceed five hundred dollars ($500.00), and each day that a violation exists is hereby declared to be a distinct and separate offense and punishable as such.
(Ordinance 0903-04 adopted 9/27/04)
The City Secretary is hereby authorized to publish this ordinance in book or pamphlet form for general distribution among the public, and this ordinance as so published in book or pamphlet form shall be admissible in evidence.
(Ordinance 0903-04 adopted 9/27/04)
The City Secretary of the City of Haslet is hereby directed to publish the caption and penalty clause of this ordinance in one issue of the official newspaper of the City of Haslet, which is a weekly paper, as authorized by Section 52.011 of the Texas Local Government Code.
(Ordinance 0903-04 adopted 9/27/04)
The City Secretary is hereby directed to engross and enroll this ordinance by copying the caption and penalty clause of same in the minutes of the City Council and by filing the ordinance in the ordinance records of said City.
(Ordinance 0903-04 adopted 9/27/04)