The purpose of this chapter is to establish or reference the procedure and requirements for the application, review and approval of exempt land divisions, pursuant to WCC § 21.01.040, and boundary line adjustments. The procedure is intended to provide orderly and expeditious processing of such applications.
(Ord. 2000-056 § 1; Ord. 2009-007 § 1; Ord. 2013-040 Exh. 1; Ord. 2018-032 § 1 (Exh. E))
Repealed by Ord. 2009-007.
(Ord. 2000-056 § 1; Ord. 2001-027 § 1; Ord. 2003-033 Exh. A; Ord. 2003-058 Exh. A; Ord. 2004-031 § 1)
Applicants may request that their proposed exempt land division be reviewed by the subdivision administrator and pre-approved using forms supplied by the planning and development services department.
(Ord. 2000-056 § 1; Ord. 2009-007 § 1; Ord. 2013-040 Exh. 1; Ord. 2018-032 § 1 (Exh. E))
(1) 
A certificate of exempt land division shall be obtained from the planning and development services department for exempt land divisions under WCC § 21.01.040(2)(b) and (k). A certificate of exempt land division shall consist of a suitably inscribed stamp on the instrument conveying land title and shall be certified prior to the recording of the instrument with the county auditor. County review and/or a county certificate of exemption stamp shall not be required for WCC § 21.01.040(2)(a) and (c) through (j).
(2) 
A certificate of exempt land division shall be approved, approved with conditions, or denied as follows:
(a) 
Applications shall include information required by the department's administrative manual.
(b) 
The exempt land division results in a lot(s) that qualifies as a valid land use pursuant to the Whatcom County Code, including but not limited to lot area, lot width, building setbacks, critical areas protection or shorelines protection.
(c) 
The exempt land division will not detrimentally affect access, access design, sight distance, grade, road geometry or other public safety and welfare concerns.
(3) 
An exempt land division is not considered approved until said instrument has been duly stamped as exempt and is filed for record concurrently with all applicable disclosures of WCC § 21.03.045 within 12 months of pre-approval. Pre-approval shall be considered a final determination. Failure to record within 12 months of pre-approval means the exempt land division application is expired and must be resubmitted for review and approval. The time periods of this section do not include the time during which the exempt land division was not actually pursued due to the pendency of administrative appeals or legal actions or due to the need to obtain any other government permits and approvals for the development that authorize the development to proceed, including all reasonably related administrative or legal actions on any such permits or approvals.
(Ord. 2000-056 § 1; Ord. 2002-017 § 1; Ord. 2004-031 § 1; Ord. 2009-007 § 1; Ord. 2013-040 Exh. 1; Ord. 2018-032 § 1 (Exh. E))
The following disclosures, if applicable, shall be recorded in the county auditor's office and shall be filed concurrently with all conveyances of property subject to this title:
(1) 
Right to farm, right to practice forestry, or mineral resource disclosures.
(2) 
Boundary discrepancies.
(3) 
Protective covenants, conditions and restrictions.
(4) 
Latecomers' agreements.
(5) 
Significant pipeline in vicinity disclosure when the subject property is within 500 feet of a pipeline shown on Map 5.2, Chapter 5 of the Whatcom County Comprehensive Plan.
(Ord. 2002-017 § 1; Ord. 2004-031 § 1; Ord. 2009-007 § 1; Ord. 2013-040 Exh. 1; Ord. 2016-035 § 1 (Exh. A), 2016; Ord. 2018-032 § 1 (Exh. E))
For parcels that will access onto a state highway, the applicant shall provide evidence of an approved access from the State Department of Transportation prior to approval of the exempt land division.
(Ord. 2000-056 § 1; Ord. 2009-007 § 1; Ord. 2013-040 Exh. 1; Ord. 2018-032 § 1 (Exh. E))
The purpose of this section is to provide procedures and criteria for the review of applications for adjustments or alterations to boundary lines of existing lots of record which do not create any additional lot, tract, parcel, site or division nor create any lot, tract, parcel, site or division which contains insufficient area and dimension to meet minimum requirements for width and area for a building site.
Any adjustment of boundary lines must be approved by the subdivision administrator prior to the transfer of property ownership between adjacent lots.
(1) 
Procedures. Boundary line adjustments shall be approved, approved with conditions, or denied according to the procedures in Chapter 22.05 WCC and the following:
(a) 
Applications shall include information required by the department's administrative manual.
(b) 
A title insurance certificate updated not more than 60 days prior to application, which includes all parcels within the adjustment, must be submitted to the subdivision administrator with boundary line adjustment applications.
(c) 
All persons having an ownership interest within the boundary line adjustment shall sign the final recording document in the presence of a notary public.
(2) 
Decision Criteria. In reviewing a proposed boundary line adjustment, the subdivision administrator or hearing examiner shall use the following criteria for approval:
(a) 
The boundary line adjustment shall not result in the creation of an additional lot.
(b) 
The boundary line adjustment shall result in lots which contain sufficient area and dimensions to meet minimum requirements for width and area for a building site pursuant to this title, except as provided in WCC § 20.40.254(5) (Division or Boundary Line Adjustment for Agricultural Purposes Only).
(c) 
The boundary line adjustment shall be consistent with any restrictions, depictions or conditions regarding the overall area in a plat or short plat devoted to open space, environmental mitigation or conservation.
(d) 
The boundary line adjustment shall be consistent with any restrictions or conditions of approval for a recorded plat, short plat, zoning permit, or development permit.
(e) 
The boundary line adjustment shall not cause boundary lines to cross on-site sewage disposal systems or their reserve areas, prevent suitable area for on-site sewage disposal systems, or prevent adequate access to water supplies unless suitable mitigation including, but not limited to, the granting of utility easements is provided to the satisfaction of Whatcom County; provided, however, in the agricultural zone only those lots with existing on-site sewage disposal systems or potable water supplies are subject to this provision.
(f) 
The boundary line adjustment will not create a new access which is unsafe or detrimental to the existing road system because of sight distance, grade, road geometry or other safety concerns, as specified in adopted Whatcom County road development standards.
(g) 
The boundary line adjustment on lots without an existing farmstead home site shall demonstrate adequate septic and potable water suitability. Applicants shall demonstrate adequate potable water availability per Chapter 24.11 WCC. Applicants shall demonstrate septic suitability approval pursuant to Chapter 24.05 WCC.
(3) 
Final Approval and Recording Required. To finalize an approved boundary line adjustment, the applicant must submit to the subdivision administrator within one year of preliminary approval final review documents meeting the requirements of approval.
(a) 
All persons having an ownership interest within the boundary line adjustment shall sign the final recording document in the presence of a notary public.
(b) 
Certified legal descriptions of the lots after the boundary line adjustment, together with conveyance document(s) and language clearly binding the property which is conveyed to the remainder portion of the property, shall be prepared by a title company or licensed surveyor for all lots affected by the boundary line adjustment.
(c) 
A title insurance certificate updated not more than 60 days prior to recording of the adjustment, which includes all parcels within the adjustment, submitted to the subdivision administrator with boundary line adjustment final review documents.
(d) 
A final boundary line map, prepared by a licensed surveyor, along with legal descriptions, shall be prepared and submitted for review and approval. Two map copies shall be provided for review demonstrating compliance with the preliminary boundary line adjustment approval.
(e) 
A boundary line adjustment is not considered approved until the conveyance documents have been duly stamped as exempt and is filed for record concurrently with all applicable disclosures of WCC § 21.03.045 within 12 months of preliminary approval. Preliminary approval is considered a final determination. Failure to record within 12 months of preliminary approval means the boundary line adjustment application is expired and must be resubmitted for review and approval.
(Ord. 2000-056 § 1; Ord. 2009-007 § 1; Ord. 2009-030 § 1 (Exh. 1); Ord. 2013-040 Exh. 1; Ord. 2018-032 § 1 (Exh. E); Ord. 2020-045 § 1 Exh. A)