§ 2.4. Procedures and Submission Requirements for Construction Plat Approval.
a.
Following the pre-submittal conference (as described in Section 2.1 above) regarding the overall general development strategy for the property, the applicant shall have prepared a construction plat together with full engineering plans for the construction of the subdivision and all associated public improvements and other supplementary materials, as required by this Ordinance or by the City.
b.
The construction plat with full engineering plans shall include all of the property which the applicant proposes to develop. Any portion of land not included in the construction plat whether or not it is contiguous or under the same ownership shall not be considered a part of the same project and a separate application shall be required to be submitted for approval at such time the owner proposes to develop the land.
c.
If any land subject to the construction plat is to be developed in phases, each phase shall then be approved for construction and after acceptance of the public infrastructure of such phase by the City a final plat shall then be submitted for approval in accordance with this ordinance.
d.
The applicant shall submit the construction plat, including full engineering plans and the appropriate assurances for the completion of all improvements, as per Article 6 [VI], to the Municipal Development Department. The Municipal Development Department shall schedule the construction plat for review and action by the Commission within thirty (30) calendar days following the "official submission date" unless the applicant has submitted a written waiver of the 30-day review/approval time pursuant to subsection 2.2(e)3. The City Council shall take action on the plat within thirty (30) calendar days following the Commission's action to recommend approval of the application (or approval with conditions). Affirmation of, or minor modifications to, the Commission's recommendation to approve the construction plat shall require a simple majority vote of the City Council members present and voting.
e.
Approval of a construction plat by the City Council shall be deemed general approval of the street and lot layout shown on the construction plat (approval for construction of the necessary streets, water lines, sewer lines, and other required improvements and utilities shall be authorized only through the City Engineer's approval of the engineering plans), and to the preparation of the final or record plat when construction of all required public improvements is nearing completion (or when appropriate surety for completion is provided to the City). Except as provided for herein, approval of the construction plat shall constitute conditional approval of the final plat when all conditions of approval and when all procedural requirements set forth in this Ordinance and State law have been met, and when construction of all improvements (or surety provided) are satisfactorily completed.
f.
Standards for Approval. No construction plat shall be recommended for approval by the Commission or approved by the City Council unless the following standards have been met:
1.
The plat substantially conforms with the Comprehensive Plan, Zoning Ordinance, and with other codes, studies and plans, as applicable;
2.
The layouts and engineering plans for required public improvements and City utilities have been submitted by the applicant for approval by the City Engineer (whether specifically stated or not, construction plat approval shall always be subject to any additions or alterations to the engineering plans as deemed necessary by the City Engineer, as needed, to ensure the safe, efficient and proper construction of public improvements within the subdivision); and
3.
The plat conforms to the Comprehensive Plan and to applicable zoning and other City regulations.
g.
No construction work shall begin on the proposed improvements in the proposed subdivision prior to approval of the construction plat by the City or prior to issuance of all appropriate construction permits by the City and other appropriate entities or agencies. The applicant shall also provide copies of letters from applicable local utility companies stating that each utility company has reviewed the construction plat and stating any requirements, including easements, they may have. (This requirement may be deferred until the final plat is submitted if such deferral request is submitted to the City in writing and approved by the Municipal Development Department prior to the Commission meeting at which the construction plat will be considered.) No excavation, grading, tree removal or site clearing activities shall occur prior to approval of the construction plat and the engineering plans. However, preliminary grading or site preparation activities, such as limited excavation, filling, and removal or clearing of brush, undergrowth or man-induced debris, may be authorized by the City Engineer (or designee), at his or her discretion, if such request is submitted in writing by the property owner or developer, if such activities are in conformance with all applicable City ordinances and codes, and if such activities will not be detrimental to the public health, safety or general welfare (also see Section 6.8.b.).
h.
Information Required Upon or With Construction Plat. The proposed construction plat and associated engineering plans shall show the following information (the construction plat itself shall only include those items marked in italics below — other physical and engineering data shall be included in the engineering plans or as separate documents):
1.
A vicinity, or location, map that shows the location of the proposed development plat within the City (or within its ETJ) and in relationship to existing roadways;
2.
Boundary lines, abstract/survey lines, corporate and other jurisdictional boundaries, existing or proposed highways and streets (including right-of-way widths and easements), bearings and distances sufficient to locate the exact area proposed for the subdivision, and all survey monuments (identified and labeled; see Section 5.2 for specifications) including any required concrete monuments (per the City's Planner and/or Engineer); the length and bearing of all straight lines, radii, arc lengths, tangent lengths and central angles of all curves shall be indicated along the lines of each lot (curve and line data may be placed in a table format); accurate reference ties via courses and distances to at least one recognized abstract or survey corner or existing subdivision corner shall be shown;
3.
The name, location and recording information of all adjacent subdivisions (or property owners of adjacent unplatted property), including those located on the other sides of roads or creeks, shall be drawn to the same scale and shown in dotted lines adjacent to the tract proposed for subdivision in sufficient detail to show accurately the existing streets, alleys, building setbacks, lot and block numbering, easements, and other features that may influence the layout of development of the proposed subdivision; adjacent unplatted land shall show property lines, the names of owners of record, and the recording information;
4.
The location, widths and names of all streets, alleys and easements (it shall be the applicant's responsibility to coordinate with appropriate utility entities for placement of necessary utility easements and for location of all streets and median openings on highways or arterial roadways), existing or proposed, within the subdivision limits and adjacent to the subdivision; a list of proposed street names shall be submitted (in the form of a letter or memo along with the application form) for all new street names (street name approval is required at the time the construction plat is approved);
5.
The location of all existing property lines, existing lot and block numbers and date recorded, easements of record (with recording information), buildings, existing sewer or water mains (can be shown on a separate sheet, if preferred), gas mains or other underground structures, or other existing features within the area proposed for subdivision;
6.
Proposed arrangement and square footage of lots (including lot and block numbers) and proposed use of same; proposed building lines; for nonresidential uses, the location and size of buildings (this information may be provided on a separate sheet, such as on an engineering plan or the final site plan; see the Zoning Ordinance);
7.
A title block within the lower right hand corner of the plat (and engineering plans) which shows the title or name under which the proposed subdivision is to be recorded; the name, address and phone number of the property owner(s); the name, address and phone number of the land planner, licensed engineer or registered professional land surveyor who prepared the plat/plans; the scale of the plat/plans; the date the plat/plan was prepared; and the location of the property according to the abstract or survey records of Kaufman County, Texas; the subdivision name shall not duplicate (or too closely phonetically replicate) the name of any other platted subdivision in Terrell, its ETJ, or other surrounding communities in Kaufman County or other recorded subdivisions in the official records of Kaufman County, but phasing identification is allowed to be similar to previous phases of that particular development (it is the property owner's responsibility to check the plat records of Kaufman County to ensure that the proposed subdivision name will not duplicate or sound too much like a subdivision name already in existence — the City may, at its discretion, require a different subdivision name if there is potential for confusion by public safety officials or the general public);
8.
Sites, if any, to be reserved or dedicated for parks, schools, playgrounds, other public uses or for private facilities or amenities;
9.
Graphic Scale, date, north arrow oriented to the top or left side of the sheet, and other pertinent informational data;
10.
Contours with intervals of two feet (2') or less shown for the area, with all elevations on the contour map referenced to sea level datum; and the limits of any portion of the 100-year flood plain (pursuant to the flood study, if required by the City Engineer) that may be within or adjacent to (i.e., within 100 feet of) the property (final monumentation of the flood plain shall occur, and shall be shown, on the final plat prior to approval and filing at the County) - if no flood plain present, then a note stating this shall be shown on the plat;
11.
Areas contributing drainage to the proposed subdivision shall be shown in the engineering plans; locations proposed for drainage discharge from the site shall be shown by directional arrows;
12.
All physical features of the property to be subdivided shall be shown, including the location and size of all water courses, 100-year flood plain according to Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) information, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers flowage easement requirements, ravines, bridges, culverts, existing structures, drainage area in acres or area draining into subdivisions (only in the engineering plans), the outline of major wooded areas or the location of major or important individual trees, and other features pertinent to subdivision;
13.
Engineering plans of water and sewer lines and other infrastructure (including sizes) to be constructed in the subdivision; the proposed connections to distribution mains shall be indicated;
14.
Proposed phasing of the development; where a subdivision is proposed to occur in phases, the applicant, in conjunction with submission of the construction plat, shall provide a schedule of development; the dedication of rights-of-way for streets and street improvements, whether on-site or off-site, intended to serve each proposed phase of the subdivision; the City shall determine whether the proposed streets and street improvements are adequate pursuant to standards herein established, and may require that a traffic impact analysis be submitted for the entire project or for such phases as the City determines to be necessary to adjudge whether the subdivision will be served by adequate streets and thoroughfares;
15.
All construction plats shall be submitted in a legible format and shall be reproduced on a good grade blue line or black line paper;
16.
Existing zoning of the subject property and all adjacent properties;
17.
Minimum finished floor elevations of building foundations shall be shown for all lots;
18.
Certificates and other language shall be included on the plat, pursuant to the following Subsections:
(a)
A statement that the subdivided area is legally owned by the applicant.
(b)
An accurate legal, such as by metes and bounds, description by bearings and distances (including necessary curve and line data), accurate to the nearest one hundredth of a foot, for all boundary, with descriptions correlated to permanent survey monument.
(c)
A statement signed by the property owner(s) and acknowledged before a Notary Public as to the authenticity of the signatures, saying that the property owner(s) adopts the plat as shown, described and named, and that he/she does dedicate, in fee simple, to the public use forever the streets, alleys and easements shown on the plat. The property owner(s) further reserves any easement areas shown for mutual use of all public utilities desiring to use the same. Any public utility shall have the right to remove and keep removed all or any part of any vegetative growth or other appurtenance for construction or maintenance, or efficiency of its respective system in these easements and all or any part of, any growth or construction which in any way hinders or interferes with the right of ingress and egress to these easements for any necessary use without asking anyone's permission.
(d)
The registered professional land surveyor's certificate, with a place for his or her signature.
(e)
A place for plat approval signature of the Mayor (or Mayor Pro Tem, in the Mayor's absence) of the City Council, a place for the City Secretary to attest such signature, and the approval dates by the Planning and Zoning Commission and City Council.
(f)
Following are similar certificates and languages to be used on the plat to accommodate the above requirements:
(1)
Property Owner's Certificate (required):
STATE OF TEXAS
COUNTY OF KAUFMANWHEREAS, [name] is the Owner of a tract of land situated in the [name] Survey, Abstract No. [number], Kaufman County, Texas; said parcel being (all of, a portion of, out of, etc.) a called [number] acre tract conveyed to [him by type of deed or other instrument] of record in Volume [number], Page [number], of the [type] records of Kaufman County, and being more particularly described by metes and bounds as follows:
(Enter property boundary description and area here.)
NOW, THEREFORE, KNOW ALL BY THE PRESENTS:
THAT I, [owner's name], as owner of the above described property, do hereby adopt this plat designating the tract as the [subdivision name], an addition to the City of Terrell (or 'Kaufman County' if the tract is outside the Terrell city limits), and do hereby dedicate to the use of the public forever the rights of way, public use areas and other easements shown thereon for the purposes indicated; THAT no buildings, fences or other obstructions shall be constructed or placed upon, over or across the said easements, except as may be permitted by the said City; THAT said easements may be for the mutual use and accommodation of all public utilities serving the property, unless an easement limits the use to particular utilities, with all uses being subordinate to that of the City of Terrell's; THAT the said City and public utilities shall have the right to remove and keep removed all or parts of any buildings, fences, trees, shrubs or other improvements or growths, which may in any way endanger or interfere with the construction, maintenance or efficiency of their respective systems located within said easements; and THAT the said City and public utilities shall at all times have the right of ingress to and egress from their respective easements for the purpose of constructing, reconstructing, inspecting, patrolling, maintaining, reading meters, and adding to or removing all or parts of their respective systems without the necessity at any time of procuring permission from anyone; and
THAT this plat is subject to all of the requirements of the subdivision regulations of the City of Terrell and the County of Kaufman, Texas.
WITNESS my hand this ________ day of ________, 20___.
_____
(signature of property owner)
(NOTE that if the name of the person who signs the plat is not that of the property owner, as indicated by the preamble preceding the above legal description of the tract, then, the name of the person who is to sign the plat should be printed here, along with the signer's relationship to the property owner.)
(2)
Surveyor's Certificate (required):
KNOW ALL MEN BY THESE PRESENTS:
That I, ___________, do hereby certify that I prepared this plat from an actual and accurate survey of the land and that the corner monuments shown thereon as "set" were properly placed under my personal supervision in accordance with the Subdivision Ordinance of the City of Terrell.
(seal) _____ Registration No. _____ Date: _____ (3)
Approval Block (required):
CONSTRUCTION PLAT
Approved by the City of Terrell for preparation of final plat following construction of all public improvements (or appropriate sureties thereof) necessary for the subdivision shown on this plat.
P&Z COMMISSION RECOMMENDATION: (Approval or Denial)
Signature of Chairperson Date of Action
APPROVED FOR CONSTRUCTION BY CITY COUNCIL:
Signature of Mayor Date of Approval
ATTEST:
City Secretary Date
REVIEWED FOR TECHNICAL CORRECTNESS BY:
City Engineer Date
(4)
Special Notice (required):
NOTICE: Selling a portion of this addition by metes and bounds is a violation of City ordinance and State law, and is subject to fines and withholding of utilities and building permits.
(5)
Visibility, Access and Maintenance Easements (to be used if applicable):
The area or areas shown on the plat as "VAM" (Visibility, Access and Maintenance) Easement(s) are hereby given and granted to the City, its successors and assigns, as an easement to provide visibility, right of access for maintenance upon and across said VAM Easement. The City shall have the right but not the obligation to maintain any and all landscaping within the VAM Easement. Should the City exercise this maintenance right, then it shall be permitted to remove and dispose of any and all landscaping improvements, including without limitation, any trees, shrubs, flowers, ground cover and fixtures. The City may withdraw maintenance of the VAM Easement at any time. The ultimate maintenance responsibility for the VAM Easement shall rest with the owners. No building, fence, shrub, tree or other improvements or growths, which in any way may endanger or interfere with the visibility, shall be constructed in, on, over or across the VAM Easement. The City shall also have the right but not the obligation to add any landscape improvements to the VAM Easement, to erect any traffic control devices or signs on the VAM Easement and to remove any obstruction thereon. The City, its successors, assigns, or agents shall have the right and privilege at all times to enter upon the VAM Easement or any part thereof for the purposes and with all rights and privileges set forth herein.
(6)
Fire Lanes (to be used if applicable):
That the undersigned does hereby covenant and agree that he (they) shall construct upon the fire lane easements, as dedicated and shown hereon, a hard surface in accordance with the paving standards for fire lanes of the City of Terrell's TCSS and adopted Fire Code, and that he (they) shall maintain the same in a state of good repair at all times and keep the same free and clear of any structures, fences, trees, shrubs, or other improvements or obstruction, including but not limited to the parking of motor vehicles, trailers, boats or other impediments to the accessibility of fire apparatus. The maintenance of paving on the fire lane easements is the responsibility of the owner, and the owner shall post and maintain appropriate signs in conspicuous places along such fire lanes, stating "Fire Lane, No Parking or Standing." The local law enforcement agency(s) is hereby authorized to enforce parking regulations within the fire lanes, and to cause such fire lanes and utility easements to be maintained free and unobstructed at all times for fire department and emergency use.
(7)
Access Easements (to be used if applicable):
The undersigned does covenant and agree that the access easement may be utilized by any person or the general public for ingress and egress to other real property, and for the purpose of general public vehicular and pedestrian use and access, and for fire department and emergency use in, along, upon and across said premises, with the right and privilege at all times of the City of Terrell, its agents, employees, workmen and representatives having ingress, egress, and regress in, along, upon and across said premises.
(8)
Other Plat Language. The plat shall include any other applicable language, such as for drainage, floodway or other special types of easements, or such as for a private street subdivision, as deemed appropriate and necessary by the City for the purpose of protecting the public health, safety and welfare. Applicable plat languages are available upon request at the City.
i.
Engineering Plans. Along with the construction plat application, the applicant shall submit the required number of sets of the complete engineering plans for all streets, alleys (if any), storm sewers and drainage structures, water and sanitary sewer facilities, screening and retaining walls, landscaping and irrigation, and any other required public improvements for the area covered by the construction plat. The engineering plans shall also contain any plans deemed necessary to show or document compliance with the City's ordinances pertaining to nonpoint source pollution control, and any other applicable codes and ordinances of the City that are related to development of a land parcel. The engineering plans shall be on sheets no larger than 24" by 36" in size. Cost estimates for the completion of all public improvements shall also be submitted with the engineering plans for review (and approval, if necessary) by the City's Engineer.
For the purposes of this Ordinance, complete sets of engineering plans shall include the following plans or sheets (generally in this order), as well as any additional plans or sheets deemed necessary and requested by the City Engineer:
—
Cover or title sheet (with list of all plans)
—
Construction plat
—
Final site plan (for nonresidential and multi-family projects only - see the Zoning Ordinance for specific requirements and approval procedures)
—
Existing conditions plan (unless these items are shown on the construction plat itself), which shows existing topography, vegetation, tree inventory, existing natural and man-made physical features, etc.
—
Existing tree and vegetation protection plan
—
Grading, erosion control, and water quality control plans (including a SWPPP)
—
Paving and storm drainage plans
—
Utility plans for water, sanitary sewer, etc.
—
Traffic control plans (if necessary)
—
Screening and retaining wall plans
—
Landscaping and irrigation plans (irrigation plan can be generalized, and must show 100% coverage of required landscape areas and use of double-check valves, automatic controllers, and automatic moisture- and freeze-sensors)
The applicant shall have these plans prepared by their own professional engineer(s), subject to approval of the plans by the City Engineer. The City Engineer (or designee) shall review, or cause to be reviewed, the plans and specifications and if approved, shall mark them "approved" and shall return one set to the applicant, and at least two (2) sets shall be retained in the City's files. If not approved, then one set shall be marked with the objections noted (on the plans themselves and/or in memo format, a copy of which shall also be retained by the City) and returned to the applicant for correction, whereupon the applicant's engineer shall correct the plans as requested and shall resubmit them back to the City Engineer for re-review. Once the engineering plans are approved by the City Engineer (as documented by an approval memo addressed to the applicant and copied to the City), the property owner shall provide additional sets of the approved plans to the City, as specified by the City Engineer, for use during construction. A full set of the City-approved and stamped engineering plans must be available for inspection on the job site.
After approval of the construction plat by the City Council, approval of the engineering plans and specifications by the City Engineer, and following procurement of all applicable permits from other appropriate agencies (such as TXDOT, TQEC, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, FEMA and/or Kaufman County), the applicant shall cause a contractor(s) to install or construct the public improvements in accordance with the approved plans and the City's TCSS and at the applicant's expense (also see Article 6 [VI]). The applicant shall employ engineers, surveyors or other professionals as necessary to design, stake, supervise, perform and complete the construction of such improvements, and shall cause his or her contractor to construct the said improvements in accordance with this Ordinance and with the City's, and any other applicable agency's design standards. Verification of compliance with adopted Technical Construction Standards and Specifications (TCSS) shall be through inspections conducted by the City Engineer (or designee), approved third party consultants, qualified testing laboratories, or other approved qualified persons. If the project will require a FEMA map revision, then the proposed plans shall also be reviewed for compliance with the City's Flood Plain Management Regulations (Chapter 4 of the City's Code of Ordinances, as amended) prior to approval of the construction plat and prior to any construction activities (including, but not limited to, grading, clearing, grubbing, brush removal, etc.) on the site.
Engineering plans shall be prepared by or under the direct supervision of a professional engineer licensed in the State of Texas, as required by State law governing such professions and in accordance with this Ordinance and the City's Technical Construction Standards and Specifications (TCSS). All engineering plans submitted for City review shall be dated and shall bear the responsible engineer's registration number, his or her designation of "professional engineer" or "P.E.", and the engineer's original seal. Engineering plans shall be approved by the City Engineer only when such plans meet all of the requirements of this Ordinance and the TCSS.
Engineering plans shall be in conformance with the Technical Construction Standards and Specifications (TCSS) and with the requirements set forth herein. Engineering plans (in complete sets, as described above) showing paving and design details of streets, alleys, culverts, bridges, storm sewers, water mains, sanitary sewers and appurtenances, sidewalks, screening and retaining walls, landscape and irrigation plans (if appropriate), and other engineering details of the proposed subdivision at a scale of one inch equals 40, 50 or 100 feet (1" = 40', 50' or 100') horizontally and one inch equals 4, 5, or 10 feet (1" = 4', 5' or 10') vertically shall be submitted to the City Engineer (or designee) along with a copy of the construction plat of the subdivision. The scale and font size shall be such that when plans are produced in 11" by 17" half-size format, the plans are legible. The number of copies as specified by the City shall be submitted along with the construction plat submittal.
As part of the engineering plans, a drainage plan showing how the drainage of each lot relates to the overall drainage plan for the plat under consideration shall be submitted. The drainage plan shall be made available to each builder within the proposed subdivision and all builders shall comply with the drainage plan.
k.
Effect of Approval. Approval of a construction plat authorizes the property owner, upon fulfillment of all requirements and conditions of approval and upon construction of all required improvements (or submission of the proper assurances for construction of same, per Article 6 [VI]), to submit an application for final plat approval (see Section 2.5).
l.
Revisions to Approved Construction Plat. It is generally recognized that minor revisions to the construction plat will probably be needed before the final plat is approved and filed at the County. Such minor revisions as slight enlargement or shifting of easements or lot lines, addition of private or franchise utility easements, correction of bearings or distances, correction of minor labeling errors, addition of erroneously omitted informational items and labels, etc. may occur on the final plat without having to re-approve the construction plat. Whether or not revisions are "minor" in nature is shall be determined by the Development Review Team. Major revisions, such as obvious reconfiguration of lot lines or easements, relocation of driveways or access easements or fire lanes, any modification to the perimeter or boundary of the property, and relocation or addition or deletion of any public improvement (including corresponding easement), shall necessitate re-submission and re-approval of the plat as a "revised construction plat" unless otherwise approved by the Municipal Development Department. The procedures for such re-approval shall be the same as for a construction plat, and such re-approval shall constitute a new project thus necessitating submission of a new application form, payment of new fees, compliance with amendments to this Ordinance which occurred since original construction plat approval, and other requirements.