Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOUNCIL - AGENDA ITEM - 06/05/2012 - RESOLUTION 2012-042 APPROVING THE STIPULATED DETERDATE: June 5, 2012 STAFF: Darin Atteberry Steve Roy AGENDA ITEM SUMMARY FORT COLLINS CITY COUNCIL 22 SUBJECT Resolution 2012-042 Approving the Stipulated Determination of Vested Rights Between the City and Dry Creek, LLC. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Dry Creek, LLC is the developer of Dry Creek Subdivision, First Replat, and has completed most of Phases Two and Three of the project, but the public sidewalks remain to be constructed. The plan expired on November 2, 2011. Accordingly, Dry Creek, LLC has filed an application for a Determination of Vested Rights under Division 2.13 of the Land Use Code and the City Manager and City Attorney agree that the application for Determination of Vested Rights should be granted. The proposed resolution would formalize the determination of vested rights. BACKGROUND / DISCUSSION Division 2.13 of the Land Use Code of the City establishes a procedure whereby the City can provide relief, where appropriate, to persons who claim that the application of the Land Use Code has interfered with their vested rights to develop property. This procedure has been established in order to prevent manifest injustice in cases where application of the "lapse" provisions of the Land Use Code would work an undue hardship. Vested rights determinations are allowed where: 1. Some authorized act has been performed by the City; 2. There has been reasonable good faith reliance upon such act by the applicant; and 3. There has been a substantial change in position or expenditure by the applicant such that it would be highly inequitable and unjust to destroy the rights acquired. Dry Creek, LLC owns a parcel of property at the western terminus of International Boulevard in the City which has been developed in the City under the name of "Dry Creek Subdivision”. The subdivision has been largely developed, but the public sidewalks remain to be constructed. This development has lapsed under the expiration provisions of the Land Use Code because the sidewalk infrastructure has not been completed. Because of this lapse, Dry Creek has sought relief under the vested rights determination process set out in Division 2.13 of the Land Use Code. Section 2.13.5 provides that if the Director and the City Attorney agree, based on the review and evaluation of the application, that the application should be granted, then they may enter into a written stipulation with the applicant, in lieu of the hearing which would otherwise be required under Division 2.13. Any such stipulated determination must be approved by the City Council by resolution and must include findings of fact and conclusions of law upon which the determination is based. Following the annexation of the project into the City, a final development plan was approved and the applicant proceeded to construct Phase One to completion and partially completed the construction of Phases Two and Three (the “Project”). The lack of public sidewalks in the Project resulted in those phases not being considered vested. A one-year extension was granted by the Director of Community Development and Neighborhood Services which extended the Project to November 1, 2011. However, a second extension was requested and denied because the Project failed to comply with Section 4.5(D)(2) “Mix of Housing Types” of the Land Use Code because of an intervening amendment to that section of the Land Use Code by Ordinance No. 036, 2011 which was adopted by the City Council on March 5, 2011. This change in Section 4.5(D) of the Land Use Code resulted in a substantial impediment to the developer’s ability to continue in compliance and the Project expired on November 2, 2011. The public sidewalks remain to be constructed in the Project. The applicant has expended $701,482 for the construction of Phase Two and $452,974 for the construction of Phase Three. The applicant estimates that an additional $660,050 will be necessary to complete Phase Two and $557,538 will be necessary to complete Phase Three. The applicant has also dedicated rights-of-way at the request of the City in order to provide future connectivity to properties located west and east of the Project. Except for the sidewalks, all basic infrastructure has been installed and the cost associated with the installation of these improvements is $1,154,456. The sidewalks have not been installed and the cost associated with the installation of the sidewalks is $1,217,588. June 5, 2012 -2- ITEM 22 From the perspective of the staff and the City Attorney's office, it appears that the applicant has incurred substantial expenditures in reliance upon the City's approval of the plans and that the applicant has been diligent in trying to develop the property to completion and that Dry Creek should be afforded an additional three years within which to completely install the infrastructure improvements for the remaining portion of the property. STAFF RECOMMENDATION Staff recommends adoption of the Resolution. ATTACHMENTS 1. Application for Determination of Vested Rights, March 30, 2012 2. Vicinity Map S TIMBERLIN E RD N LINK LN I N TERNATIONAL BLVD B ANN O C K ST S LINK LN COMMERCE DR DUFF D R AIRWAY AVE E VINE DR RACQUET T E DR ZURICH DR HEATH PKWY AIRPA R K DR E LINCOLN AV E E MULBE R RY ST Dry Creek 02012 0.07 0.14 0.21 0.28 Vicinity Map Printed: May 22, Miles Scale010 1:9, © Phase 1 Phase 2 Phase 3 GWR North Yard ATTACHMENT 2 RESOLUTION 2012-042 OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS APPROVING THE STIPULATED DETERMINATION OF VESTED RIGHTS BETWEEN THE CITY AND DRY CREEK, LLC WHEREAS, Division 2.13 of the Land Use Code contains a vested rights determination procedure in order to prevent manifest injustice by providing a mechanism for identifying certain parcels of real property in the City that should, by reason of general principles of common law vested rights, be exempt from the “lapse” provisions contained in Section 2.2.11 of the Land Use Code; and WHEREAS, Dry Creek, LLC is the owner of a tract of land located at the western terminus of International Boulevard in the City, which parcel of property has obtained City approval of a Final Plan for Dry Creek Subdivision, First Replat, Phases Two and Three (the “Final Plan”); and WHEREAS, Dry Creek, LLC has, in reliance upon the approval by the City of the Final Plan, expended substantial sums of money and otherwise substantially changed its position in reasonable good faith reliance upon the authorized acts of the City in approving the plan, all as more particularly stated in the Stipulated Determination of Vested Rights attached hereto and incorporated herein by this reference as Exhibit “A”; and WHEREAS, upon examination of the facts, conclusions of law and determination contained in the Stipulated Determination of Vested Rights, the City Council has determined that it is in the best interest of the City that said Stipulated Determination of Vested Rights should be approved. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS that the Stipulated Determination of Vested Rights between the City and Dry Creek, LLC, dated May 30, 2012, attached hereto and incorporated herein by this reference as Exhibit "A" is hereby approved. Passed and adopted at a regular meeting of the Council of the City of Fort Collins this 5th day of June A.D. 2012. Mayor ATTEST: Interim City Clerk