HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOUNCIL - AGENDA ITEM - 08/15/2000 - RESOLUTION 2000-109 ESTABLISHING THE MEANING OF A AGENDA ITEM SUMMARY ITEM NUMBER: 38
DATE: August 15, 2000
FORT COLLINS CITY COUNCIL STAFF:
Greg Byrne
SUBJECT:
Resolution 2000-109 Establishing the Meaning of a"Valid Development Application" for the City
of Fort Collins Under Proposed Initiative#256, "Citizen Management of Growth".
RECOMMENDATION:
Staff recommends adoption of the Resolution.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:
Staff recommends that the Council establish a local interpretation of the term"valid development
application", for the specific purpose of applying the provisions of the Citizen Management of
Growth Initiative in case the Initiative is approved by the voters. This Resolution would interpret
"valid development application" as meaning either an application for approval of an Overall
Development Plan, an application for approval of any subsequent plan under the Land Use Code
(Project Development Plan,Final Plan,Development Construction Permit,Building Permit),and/or
any application for plan approval filed under prior law (known as the Transitional Land Use
Regulations) which remains viable under the provisions of Ordinance No. 161, 1996, as amended.
This would have the effect of including properties covered by such applications into "committed
areas" under the Initiative.
ACKGROUND:
Proponents of the Citizen Management of Growth Initiative have gathered signatures in an effort to
have it placed on the November 2000 ballot.
The Initiative, if adopted, would require local jurisdictions to establish "committed areas" where
local governments could issue development approvals without submitting those areas to a vote of
the electorate. The initiative contains specific criteria to be used by local government in delineating
these committed areas. One of these reads as follows:
A valid development application as to such land, the approval of which would
result in development that shall be served by central water and sewer services,has
been submitted to the appropriate local government, as of the date on which the
2000 General Election Ballot was certified by the Colorado Secretary of State.
The date in this section is assumed to be September 13,2000(the deadline for the Secretary of State
to certify the ballot);thus,the initiative,if adopted by the voters in November will apply this section
retroactively.
DATE: August 15, 2000 2 ITEM NUMBER: 38
The term"valid development application" is defined in the initiative as:
...an application that substantively meets all of the rules for submission applicable
to a proposal and that has been accepted as timely and complete by the local
government regulating the use of land covered by the application.
This definition defers to the local government to determine what is timely and complete. Local
jurisdictions across the State are being questioned about how this section will be interpreted locally,
particularly since development review processes vary significantly from jurisdiction to jurisdiction.
Under the Fort Collins Land Use Code,the development review process may be pursued in phases,
including the submittal of an Overall Development Plan (ODP) for the entire site, and subsequent
phasing of portions of the site with more detailed Project Development Plans and Final Plans. The
staff is authorized to establish Submittal Requirements, to review and to log in development
applications, and to accept application fees for each of these steps in the development review
process.
Earlier steps in the development process, including annexation and rezoning, involve applications
and fees, but they do not specify development type and density. A Conceptual Review, often
conducted prior to a formal development application, includes land use and density, but does not
require an application fee or rigorous submittal requirements. The staff comments at conceptual are
general and non-binding.
The staff recommends that the Council establish the Overall Development Plan as the first step in
the review process when the City of Fort Collins would consider that a valid development
application has been submitted It follows that any more specific plan application under the Land Use
Code,including applications for approval of Project Development Plans,Final Plans,Development
Construction Permits and Building Permits should also be included in the term'valid development
application", as should any plan filed under prior law that remains viable under the provisions of
Ordinance No. 161, 1996,as amended. Staff makes this recommendation for the following reasons:
1. The City has a well-developed Comprehensive Plan and Land Use Code, recently updated
by the City Council (March 1997). The Plan includes a Growth Management Area(GMA),
and the City does not accept applications for property outside the GMA. All development
applications now being accepted by the City fall under the provisions of this new Plan and
Code.
2. Several large projects, both residential and non-residential, are proceeding in phased
developments. If the ODP is not established as a"valid development application", phases
of the developments could be subjected to unnecessary and costly delays, even though the
City has approved the ODP, and is prepared to continue to process the development in
phases. If they do not qualify as"committed areas"they could be forced to wait until voter-
approved growth areas are established, no sooner than November 2001. Examples of this
type of project include the Rigden Farm, Harmony Tech Center (H-P and Celestica), and
others.
3. Establishing committed areas that include ODPs will allow development review to proceed
smoothly, but will not commit the City to approve any development application. The City
will retain full review authority, and can approve, deny, or condition these applications. If
DATE: August 15, 2000 1 3 ITEM NUMBER: 38
an application is denied, the subject property would remain in a committed area, and could
be the subject of later, new development applications.
4. The City's adequate public facilities (APF) requirements in the Land Use Code assure that
these new developments will be served by central water and sewer as called for in the
Initiative. The City begins to apply these standards at the ODP stage of review.
5. By setting forth the City's interpretation of"valid development application", the City will
not be altering its long-standing practice of treating a Final Plan approval as a"site specific
development plan" under the provisions of Colorado Statutes. This means that ODPs will
not be granted any new vesting; the City will continue to vest projects only upon the
completion and approval of Final Plans.
6. By interpreting the Initiative for the local development industry,the Council may be able to
reduce the industry's uncertainty associated with continuing to pursue development proposals
under the ambiguous language of the Initiative.
The staff finds that the City is well-prepared to continue to process multi-phase developments within
the GMA and city limits, and that any approvals granted under current Overall Development Plans
will result in development served by essential urban services as called for in the provisions of the
Initiative.
RESOLUTION 2000-109
OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS
ESTABLISHING THE MEANING OF A "VALID DEVELOPMENT APPLICATION"
FOR THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS UNDER PROPOSED INITIATIVE#256,
"CITIZEN MANAGEMENT OF GROWTH"
WHEREAS, on July 3, 2000, the Colorado Supreme Court upheld the ballot title "The
Citizen Management of Growth" for Proposed Citizen Initiative#256 (the "Initiative"); and
WHEREAS, proponents of the Initiative are presently gathering signatures to place the
measure on the ballot for the November general election; and
WHEREAS,if approved by the voters,the Initiative would add anew article to the Colorado
Constitution that would be applicable to Colorado counties having a population of greater than
10,000 residents,as well as to all municipalities within such counties that have a population of 1,000
or more; and
WHEREAS, the Initiative would limit the circumstances under which new development
applications could be approved in such counties and cities to:(1)land within"committed areas,"that
is, land where development has already occurred or is under review pursuant to the timely filing of
a"valid development application"as defined in the Initiative; (2)land shown on "growth area maps"
prepared by the local government and approved by the voters; or(3) development not included in
a committed area or an approved growth area but permitted under one of the exceptions set forth in
the Initiative,which exceptions include development or subdivision of land consistent with a timely
filed "valid development application;" and
WHEREAS, the Initiative defines "valid development application" as an application that
substantively meets all of the rules for submission applicable to a proposal that has been accepted
as timely and complete by the local government regulating the use of land covered by the
application; and
WHEREAS,the City of Fort Collins'Land Use Code provides for the review of various kinds
of development applications,namely, an application for approval of an Overall Development Plan;
an application for approval of a Project Development Plan;an application for the approval of a Final
Plan;an application for approval of a Development Construction Permit;an application for approval
of a Building Permit; and/or an application for approval of any plan filed under prior law (known
as the Transitional Land Use Regulations) which remains viable under the provisions of Ordinance
161, 1996, as amended; and
WHEREAS,the City has received numerous inquiries from property owners as to which of
the foregoing applications would be considered by the City as a "valid development application"
within the meaning of the Initiative; and
WHEREAS,the City Council believes it to be in the best interests of the City to identify the
particular kind of application that will be considered by the City of Fort Collins as a "valid
development application," so as to clarify the meaning of the Initiative as applied to the City of Fort
Collins, subject to any subsequent judicial interpretation of such phrase; and
WHEREAS, the City Council further believes it to be in the best interests of the City to
liberally construe the meaning of said term so as to maximize the amount of property that may be
subject to land use regulation by the City as a committed area or future growth area.
NOW,THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT
COLLINS as follows:
Section 1. That the term"valid development application," as applied to the City of Fort
Collins, is hereby determined by the Council to mean: (a) an application for approval of an overall
development plan,(b)an application for approval of any subsequent plan under the Land Use Code
(Project Development Plan,Final Plan,Development Construction Permit,Building Permit),and/or
(c) any application for plan approval filed under prior law (known as the Transitional Land Use
Regulations) which remains viable under the provisions of Ordinance No. 161, 1996, as amended
(and any plats required by the foregoing applications),provided,however,that all such applications
must meet all of the submittal requirements contained in the City's Land Use Code or other
applicable ordinance or regulation.
Section 2. That nothing herein shall be construed as creating any entitlement to the
approval of a particular development application, and all such applications shall be processed and
reviewed pursuant to all relevant provisions of the Land Use Code, and shall be subject to approval
or denial by the City without regard to the provisions of this Resolution, which approval or denial
shall be based solely upon the provisions of the Land Use Code.
Section 3. That all persons filing development applications with the City are hereby
notified that the City's ability to locally establish the meaning of a"valid development application"
as referenced in the Initiative may be limited by law and may be subject to being overturned by a
court of competent jurisdiction and/or by implementing state legislation,and,forthat reason,no such
applicant should make expenditures or otherwise rely upon the provisions of this Resolution to his
or her detriment, and any such applicant should consult with competent private legal counsel with
regard to his or her rights and obligations under the Initiative.
Passed and adopted at a regular meeting of the City Council held this 15th day of August,
A.D. 2000.
Mayor
ATTEST:
City Clerk