A lot may be divided into separately owned unit lots and common areas, provided the following standards are met:
A.
Process. Unit lot subdivisions shall follow the application, review, and approval procedures for a short subdivision regardless of the number of unit lots, except as otherwise outlined below:
1.
No public pre-decision meeting or hearing shall be held, nor any design review other than administrative design review, except for those required to comply with state law, including Chapter 90.58 RCW, the Shoreline Management Act, when applicable.
2.
The review and approval of a unit lot subdivision shall be logically integrated with the application, review, and approval procedures for the underlying housing development project, to the greatest extent possible.
3.
Review of a unit lot subdivision shall be subject to the time periods set forth in LMC § 18.36.105A.1 and 2, unless extended pursuant to project-specific mutual agreement as permitted by RCW 36.70B.080.
4.
A 14-day public comment period shall be noticed through the following methods:
a.
Publication in the official newspaper or the newspaper of general circulation in the city;
b.
Mailing to property owners within 250 feet of the subject site. Addressed, pre-stamped envelopes shall be provided by the applicant; and
c.
Posting by the applicant of notices furnished by the city at the Langley City Hall, Post Office, and Library and at least one notice on the subject property in a conspicuous location that is readily visible from adjacent roadways. The property notice shall stand until final action is taken by the city.
5.
Nothing prohibits the city from applying public health, safety, building code, and environmental permitting requirements to a development project that is subject to or integrated with a unit lot subdivision process.
6.
Nothing requires the city to authorize a development project or a unit lot subdivision in a location where development is restricted under other laws, rules or ordinances, such as in locations where development is limited as a result of physical proximity to on-site sewage system infrastructure, critical areas, or other unsuitable physical characteristics of a property.
B.
Applicability. A lot to be developed with duplexes, multifamily dwellings (Chapter 18.13 or 18.25 LMC), cottage housing (LMC § 18.22.180 or Chapter 18.13 LMC), multifamily tiny homes (LMC 18.22.290), accessory dwelling units (LMC § 18.22.155), or multiple detached single-family residences in which no dwelling units are stacked on another dwelling unit or other use, may be subdivided into individual unit lots as provided herein. Individual unit ownership for stacked units shall follow the condominium binding site plan process outlined in LMC § 18.22.220.
C.
Development as a whole on the parent lot, rather than individual unit lots, shall comply with applicable design and development standards.
D.
Subsequent platting actions and additions or modifications to structure(s) may not create or increase any nonconformity of the parent lot.
E.
Access easements, joint use and maintenance agreements, and covenants, conditions and restrictions (CC&Rs) identifying the rights and responsibilities of property owners and/or the homeowners' association shall be executed for use and maintenance of common garage, parking, and vehicle access areas; bike parking; solid waste collection areas; underground utilities; common open space; shared interior walls; exterior building facades and roofs; and other similar features shall be recorded with the Island County Auditor.
F.
Portions of the parent lot not subdivided for individual unit lots shall be owned in common by the owners of the individual unit lots, or by a homeowners' association comprised of the owners of the individual unit lots.
G.
Notes shall be prominently placed on the face of the plat or short plat as recorded with the Island County Auditor to state the following:
1.
The title of the plat shall include the phrase "Unit Lot Subdivision."
2.
Approval of the development (design and layout) on each unit lot was granted by the review of the development, as a whole, on the parent lot under file #.
3.
Subsequent subdivision actions, additions, or modifications to the unit lot housing development, including all structures, may not create or increase any nonconformity of the parent lot as a whole, and shall conform to the approved unit lot housing development project and to the applicable land use and development standards.
4.
If a structure or portion of a structure within the unit lot housing development project has been damaged or destroyed, any repair, reconstruction, or replacement of any structure shall conform to the approved unit lot housing development project or to the land use and development standards in effect at the time the proposed repair, reconstruction, or replacement project's permit application becomes vested.
5.
Additional development or redevelopment of the individual unit lots may be limited as a result of the application of development standards to the parent lot.
H.
Effect of Preliminary Approval. Preliminary approval constitutes authorization for the applicant to develop the required facilities and improvements, upon review and approval of construction drawings by the public works department. All development shall be subject to any conditions imposed by the city on the preliminary approval.
1.
By June 30, 2026, all unit lot subdivisions shall require notification to purchasers of their legal status as further described in RCW 58.17.060(3).
I.
Revision and Expiration. Unit lot subdivisions follow the revision and expiration procedures for a short subdivision.
J. "Lot, parent" "Lot, unit" "Unit lot subdivision"
Definitions.
means a lot which is subdivided into unit lots through the unit lot subdivision process.
means a lot created from a parent lot and approved through the unit lot subdivision process.
means a subdivision or short subdivision proposed as part of a residential development project that meets the development standards applicable to the parent lot at the time the application is vested, but which may result in development on one or more individual unit lots becoming nonconforming as to specified land use and development standards based on the analysis of the individual unit lot.
(Ord. 1139, 12/1/2025)