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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1998-038-03/03/1998-APPROVING STIPULATED DETERMINATION OF VESTED RIGHTS BETWEEN THE CITY AND SILVERTHORNE, LLC RESOLUTION 98-38 OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS APPROVING THE STIPULATED DETERMINATION OF VESTED RIGHTS BETWEEN THE CITY AND SILVERTHORNE, LLC WHEREAS, on January 7, 1997, the City Council adopted Ordinance No. 161, 1996, which provided for the review and processing of pending land use applications and established a temporary delay in the acceptance of certain land use applications through March 28, 1997; and WHEREAS, as of the effective date of Ordinance No. 161, 1996, certain parcels of property upon which overall development plans had been previously approved could no longer apply to the City for approval of planned unit development plans in accordance with such overall development plans; and WHEREAS, in conjunction with the passage of Ordinance No. 161, 1996, said Ordinance established a vested rights determination procedure in order to prevent manifest injustice by providing a mechanism of identifying certain parcels of real property in the City that should be made exempt, or partially exempt, from the application of Ordinance No. 161, 1996; and WHEREAS, Silverthorne, LLC is a Colorado limited liability company which is the owner of a tract of land located on the west side of College Avenue and north of Crestridge Street in the City which parcel of property was included on an application for approval of a preliminary subdivision plat as provided in Section 29-642 of the City's Transititional Land Use Regulations filed on January 15, 1997; and WHEREAS, no site-specific development plan has been approved for the property upon which the development could occur; and WHEREAS, Silverthorne, LLC has filed an application for vested rights determination in accordance with the procedure established in Exhibit "A" of Ordinance No. 161, 1996, and in support thereof has presented evidence to the City showing the expenditure of substantial funds in the design and planning of the development of the property in reliance upon certain acts of the City all as more particularly stated in the Stipulated Determination of Vested Rights attached hereto as Exhibit"A"; and WHEREAS, upon examination of the Facts, Conclusions of Law and Determination contained in the Stipulated Determination of Vested Rights the 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 Silverthome, LLC,a Colorado limited liability company,dated February 6, 1998,attached hereto and incorporated herein by this reference as Exhibit "A," be and hereby is approved. Passed and adopted at a regular meeting of the City Council 1s?3rd day of A.D. 1998. avor ATTEST: City Clerk Exhibit A STIPULATED DETERMINATION OF VESTED RIGHTS E4,ea AcY This stipulated determination of vested rights is executed this f�day of�, 1998, by the City of Fort Collins ("City") and Silverthorne, LLC, a Colorado limited liability company ("Owner"). FINDINGS OF FACT 1. Silverthorne, LLC is the owner of a tract of land located in the City as described on Exhibit "A", attached hereto. Said parcel shall hereafter be referred to as the "Property". 2. An application for approval of a preliminary subdivision plat as provided in Section 29-642 of the City's Transitional Land Use Regulations was filed by the Owner with the City on January 15, 1997. This application was found by the City to be in compliance with the requirements of Section 29-642 and accepted for processing. Prior to the filing of said application and in response to the City's "Conceptual Review" comments given to the Owner, the Owner provided additional information regarding the Waterstone Apartments construction project contemplated to be constructed within the area to be subdivided. This request was made pursuant to Section 29- 642(6)(p) of the City's Transitional Land Use Regulations and also pursuant to the City's administrative requirements for the processing of an application for a building permit. The items that were requested by the City are as follows: a. Traffic study; b. Drainage plan and report; C. Plat; d. Utility plan; e. Application form and fee; f. List of property owners and mailing list ol'surrounding properties; g. Site plan; h. Landscape plan; i. Access plan; j. Building elevations of all sides of structure for each building. All of the foregoing items were submitted by the Owner to the City in a timely and diligent manner as part of the application. 3. Subsequent to January 15, 1997, the Owner has expended approximately One Hundred Sixty-one Thousand Dollars ($161,000.00) for the purpose of obtaining or continuing an option to purchase the property and for the purpose of obtaining professional services of architects, engineers, traffic engineers, surveyors and geotechnical engineers in pursuance of the application filed with the City. 4. On December 23, 1997, the Owner, through its agent, Wagner Architectural Team, Ltd., filed a request for a vested rights determination with the City. On December 30, 1997,the City responded to the application as incomplete and identified the additional information remaining to be provided, which information was provided by the Owner and received by the City on January 6, 1998. 5. The Owner has requested,through the vested rights determination process, that it be found to possess a common law vested right to proceed with its application for platting of the property and for development of the Waterstone Apartment complex on a portion of the property in accordance with the provisions of the Transitional Land Use Regulations and administrative procedures thereunder. CONCLUSIONS OF LAW 1. Authorized Act of the City. By accepting the application for the approval of a preliminary plat for the property and by requesting additional information concerning the construction project contemplated on a portion of the property,and by circulating the application and the additional information both for review of the application for preliminary plat approval and for building permit issuance, the City performed authorized acts upon which the Owner might have relied. 2. Reasonable Good Faith Reliance. The Owner acted reasonably and in good faith by relying upon the authorized acts of the City in moving forward with the application by engaging professional and financial services and by the subsequent filings with the City of additional information as requested by the City. 3. Substantial Change in Position or Expenditure. By investing approximately One Hundred Sixty-one Thousand Dollars($161,000.00) in the preparation of professional reports, in the obtaining of an extension of its option to purchase contract and by obtaining financial services, the Owner incurred a substantial change in position or expenditure such that it would be inequitable or unjust to destroy the rights acquired by reason of the City's acceptance of the application. This is so because the City followed a course of action which reasonably led the owner to believe that Ordinance No. 161, 1996, authorized both the processing of an application for preliminary subdivision plat consideration but also for consideration for the issuance of a building permit under the laws of the City then in effect. However, Section 29-642(6)(p), together with the City's administrative procedures for the review and approval of applications for building permits makes clear that the approval of a final subdivision plat does not authorize a specific "use" upon the property unless such use is part of the construction project contemplated within the area to be subdivided and is processed pursuant to the submittal requirements of the City for the issuance of a building permit for such use. Accordingly, the balance of the property not affected by the construction of the Waterstone Apartments is not to be deemed authorized for any specific use without first being processed through the City's Land Use Code. DETERMINATION. 2 Even though no Site Specific Development Plan has been approved for the Property upon which private development could occur, and even though Ordinance No. 161, 1996 might be construed to prevent the Owner from proceeding with the process for the consideration of the issuance of a building permit under prior law,the Owner,reasonably, and in good faith, relied upon an authorized act or acts of the City in making such a substantial change in position or expenditure that it would be highly inequitable and unjust to destroy the rights (if any) acquired by the Owner in the application which was filed with the City regarding the property on January 15, 1997, as well as the further information which was submitted for the processing of a building permit application as requested by the City. Accordingly, the Owner may continue to process the application for preliminary subdivision plat approval as well as its corresponding application for building permit issuance for the Waterstone Apartments. However, the balance of the property is not affected by the Waterstone Apartments and no construction projects are presently contemplated within that area. Accordingly, the Land Use Code shall govern the development of any improvements to be constructed on the balance of the property outside of the parcel proposed to be developed as the Waterstone Apartments. Additionally,the application for preliminary plat approval and for issuance of building permit(s) for the Waterstone Apartments must be measured against the criteria of the Transitional Land Use Code Regulations and the City's regulations of the issuance of building permits before approval thereof. CITY OF FORT COLLINS, COLORADO, a mu corporation By: F• " City Manager By: City A orney ATTEST: City Clerk SILVERTHORNE, LLC, a Colorado limited liability c mpany LI le By: Managing Partner 3 Approved by the City Council by Resolution No.gU-3 dated , 1998. Wanda Krajicek, City'CIA 4