Appendix 3. MINOR SUBDIVISIONS

(A)

Definition ..... A minor subdivision shall mean all divisions of a tract or parcel of land into two (2) or more lots, building sites, or other divisions when any one or more of those divisions is created for the purpose of a gift, sale, or building development, whether immediate or future. All lots must comply with the lot size and area requirements of the Zoning Ordinance or any other applicable local or State land regulatory ordinances and meet any one of the following criteria:

(1)

Is a division of land where the entire area is greater than two (2) acres into not more than a total of three (3) lots, where no street right-of-way dedication is involved (see exception for industrial and commercial subdivisions in Section D.5(C);

(2)

Is created by a private access easement established in compliance with the Zoning Ordinance and consists of no more than a total of three (3) lots per tract which do not front on a public street (see exception for industrial and commercial subdivisions in Section D.5(C); or,

(3)

Is created by lots all of which front on an existing public street, provided that the subdivision would not impair ingress and egress to or from the rear or side of the subject tract or any adjacent property. All lots which front on a public street shall not be included in the provisions of Section D.3(A)(2). Lots which are approved must front on a public street with right-of-way which meets the standards of the North Carolina Department of Transportation and/or the applicable jurisdiction. Any portion of the lot lying within the required public street right-of-way must be quitclaimed, conveyed, and dedicated as public right-of-way before receiving Planning staff approval. The Planning staff can only require the dedication of standard right-of-way. Additional right-of-way for future widening of roads cannot be required.

(B)

Standards for Approval ..... The following are the standards for approval of minor subdivisions:

(1)

Minor subdivisions may be approved provided that the subdivision:

(a)

Does not violate any adopted plan, policy, or ordinance of the jurisdiction;

(b)

Does not create any new public streets;

(c)

Does not block or impede the extension of a public street located within a subdivision recorded on a final plat in the office of the Register of Deeds or a public street shown on a preliminary subdivision plat which is on file in the office of the Elected Body unless such extension is determined by staff to be unnecessary under one or more of the following circumstances:

(i)

The road cannot physically be extended due to topography;

(ii)

The road cannot be logically extended due to current lotting patterns;

(iii)

If staff determines improvements at the end of the street are needed, staff may require a standard or temporary turnaround in accordance with the North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT, or other appropriate jurisdiction requirements;

(iv)

If staff determines that a street closure petition is necessary, staff may require proper street closure documents be filed with the appropriate jurisdiction.

(d)

Is not located within the corridors of any planned or proposed street as shown on the adopted Transportation Plan of the jurisdiction;

(e)

Does not leave an implied division of property which would not meet the requirements of the Zoning Ordinance or any other land regulatory ordinances; or,

(f)

Does not land lock any tract of land.

(2)

If a minor subdivision lies within a preliminary subdivision which has been approved by the Elected Body, then official action must be taken by the Elected Body to withdraw the subdivision or any portion thereof in accordance with Section D.4(G) before a minor subdivision can be approved.

(3)

No lot of record as of March 4, 1985 which does not meet the standards of the Ordinance for the protection of the Salem Lake Watershed shall be subdivided by the minor subdivision process.

(4)

Flag lots may be created in compliance with Section 3-1.2(Q).

(5)

Sidewalks shall be provided in all residential subdivisions.

(6)

Where more than one property accesses a public road via a private access easement, said easement shall provide a ten (10) foot by seventy (70) foot line-of-sight triangle at its intersection with the public road. Vegetation within the line-of-sight easement shall not exceed thirty (30) inches in height.

(C)

Approval Process ..... Approval for a minor subdivision shall be presented to Planning staff at least five (5) working days prior to offering any portion for recording in the office of the Register of Deeds. Additional information may be needed by Planning staff in order to evaluate the proposed subdivision to see if the subdivision meets the requirements of this section. Once the additional information is received by Planning staff, the review period will begin. If the minor subdivision complies with the standards in Section D.3(B), Planning staff shall provide the approval in writing on the face of the plat. Once the plat has been approved, the owner or the owner's agent may record the deed or plat in the office of the Register of Deeds.

(D)

Application Requirements ..... Application requirements for approval of minor subdivisions are the same as Section D.2(C).

(E)

Minor Subdivision Exception Requests ..... An exception request to the Minor Subdivision Ordinances may be submitted to the Elected Body for approval. Application requirements shall be the same requirements specified in Section D.1(K). In addition to the application requirements specified in Section D.1(K), the owner or owner's agent shall state the hardship as it relates to the property for the exception request. Financial hardships will not be considered by the Elected Body. The scheduling of the exception request and the hearing procedures for the Elected Body meeting are the same requirements as specified in Section D.1(K). If the exception request is denied, the Elected Body shall state the reasons to the owner or owner's agent. If the exception request is approved, the Elected Body shall state the hardship under which the exception request is approved to the owner or owner's agent. In approving the exception request, the land involved in the exception request be recorded on a final plat in the office of the Register of Deeds with a statement limiting future subdivision of the property without Elected Body approval. The Elected Body may require other conditions of approval as deemed necessary.

(F)

Exception Divisions of Property ..... Any division of property which is less than the size required for a building lot in the applicable zoning district and is not intended to become any part of a new building lot, shall be exempt from the Planning staff review and approval as a subdivision of land. This exception includes a division of property from a deeded lot of record or a lot recorded on a final plat. Said division of property may be conveyed by deed in the office of the Register of Deeds provided the division of property does not create any zoning deficiencies, e.g., lot area, lot width, or lot setbacks, on either of the existing lots of record.

(G)

Public Recordation of Landfills ..... Developer shall file in the Register of Deeds a record of use of any site for a landfill and a rehabilitation/reuse plan for the site, prior to the issuance of a zoning or grading permit.

(H)

Subdivided Zoning Lots With Written Agreement ..... When a zoning lot existing as of the effective date of this Ordinance is proposed to be subdivided into two or more zoning lots, the other requirements of the Unified Development Ordinances shall be applied to each of the subdivided lots, provided, however, that the residential density requirements of this Ordinance and the limits of floodway fringe encroachment provisions of Section C.2-3.2(A) may be applied, in whole or in part, to any one or more of the subdivided lots and not to the other lot(s) when such original zoning lot is subdivided under the following conditions:

(1)

Floodplain. ..... The original zoning lot encompasses property with designated floodplain area per Section C.2.

(2)

GMAs. ..... The original zoning lot lies partially or completely within GMAs 1, 2, 3 or 4, as designated in Legacy.

(3)

Allocation of Development Rights Between Seller and Purchaser. ..... The owner of the original zoning lot and the purchaser(s) of a subdivided part have in writing allocated development rights between or among themselves concerning the development of the original zoning lot whereby a right, or any portion thereof, to develop all, or any portion of, a subdivided part of the original zoning lot as permitted in this Ordinance is transferred to, or is retained by, the remaining portion of the original zoning lot. Development of each subdivided part pursuant to the terms of the writing shall meet or exceed the requirements of this Ordinance. The writing shall further provide that the allocation of development rights shall be appurtenant to and run with the land so benefitted and have the effect of imposing a negative easement or restriction upon the servient land.

(4)

Director of Inspections Approval of Plat. ..... The writing constituting the reallocation of development rights must include, or be represented by, a plat illustrating the reallocation. To be effective, the writing and plat shall be reviewed for compliance with this Ordinance by the Director of Inspections, and if the writing and plat complies with this Ordinance, the Director of Inspections shall stamp his approval upon its face, and the writing and plat must then be recorded at the Forsyth County Register of Deeds. A violation of these requirements shall be a violation of this Ordinance and unlawful.

(WA-UDO-11, § 7, 12-18-08; WA-UDO-15, § 1, 2-24-11)