§ 13-7. Required improvements.
(a)
General.
(1)
Staff approvals of plat. No final plat shall be approved by the council without first receiving a report signed by the city engineer and the city attorney certifying that the improvements described therein, together with the agreements and documents required above, meet the requirements of the city and certification by the city clerk that all fees required to be paid to the city in connection with the plat have been paid.
(2)
Performance bonds. The city shall, where appropriate, require of a subdivider submission of a bond acceptable in form and surety to the city in the amount equal to one and one-half times the original cost of the improvements, which shall be in force for one year following the final acceptance of any required improvements and shall guarantee satisfactory performance of the said improvements.
(3)
"As built" drawings. Where improvements are not installed by the city, reproducible "as built" drawings shall be certified to be true and accurate by the registered engineer responsible for the installation of the improvement.
(4)
Improvements for drainage. No final plat shall be approved by the city council on land subject to flooding or containing poor drainage facilities, and on land which would make adequate drainage of the streets and lots impossible. However, if the subdivider agrees to make improvements which will, in the opinion of the city engineer, make the area completely safe for residential occupancy and provide adequate street and lot drainage and conform to applicable regulations of other agencies such as the U.S. Corps of Engineers, or the department of natural resources, the final plat of the subdivision may be approved. In addition, such plats may not be approved if the cost of providing municipal services to protect the flood plain area would impose an unreasonable economic burden upon the city.
(b)
Water and sewer facilities. Sanitary sewers, and water distribution facilities shall normally be installed by the city and costs assessed in accordance with the assessment procedures as regulated under Minnesota Statutes No. 429.
(c)
Monuments.
(1)
Placement of official monuments. Official monuments, as designated and adopted by the Hennepin County Surveyor's Office and approved by the Hennepin County District Court for use as judicial monuments, shall be set at all angle and curve points on the outside boundary of the final plat. The boundary line of the property to be included with the plat shall be fully dimensioned; all angles of the boundary excepting the closing angle shall be indicated; and all monuments and surveyor's irons shall be indicated.
(2)
Other monuments; preservation; plat detail. Pipes or steel rods shall be placed at all block and lot corners, at all intermediate points on the block and lot lines indicating changes of direction in the lines and witness corners, and at each intersection of street center lines. All United States, state, county or other official bench marks, monuments or triangular stations in or adjacent to the property shall be preserved in precise position and shall be recorded on the plat. All lot and block dimensions shall be shown on the plat and all necessary angles pertaining to the lots and blocks, as an aid to future surveys, shall be shown on the plat. No ditto marks shall be permitted in indicating dimensions.
(3)
Second monumentation required. To insure that all irons and monuments are correctly in place following the final grading of a plat, second monumentation shall be required. Proof of the second monumentation shall be in the form of a surveyor's certificate and this requirement shall additionally be a condition of the certificate of occupancy as provided for in chapter 4.
(4)
Delayed monumentation. All monuments required above shall be set by the time of the recording of the plat with the county. In the alternative, certain monuments required by subsection (2) above shall be set within one year after recording, provided the following conditions are met:
a.
Prior to the setting of any monuments, the developer shall obtain written approval from the city for any delay in monumentation, including the specific time delay and the specific monumentation to be delayed. A copy of this written approval shall be sent to the county surveyor's office prior to the setting of any monuments.
b.
All block corners and all angle and curve points on the block lines which indicate a change in direction must be monumented at the time of recording the plat.
c.
The city may specify a time shorter than one year for completion of delayed monumentation.
d.
The city may require the developer to post security, in a form acceptable for development contracts, of 150 percent of the cost of any monument installation for any delayed monuments.
e.
For any lot affected by delayed monumentation, no building permit for said lot shall be issued, and no conveyance of said lot shall be allowed until all monuments are in place and certified to by a land surveyor.
(d)
Street improvements.
(1)
Right-of-way grading. The full width of the right-of-way shall be graded, including the subgrade of the areas to be paved, in accordance with standards and specifications for street construction as outlined in subsection 13-8(d).
(2)
Street pavement. All streets shall be improved with pavement in accordance with the standards and specifications for street construction as required in subsection 13-8(d).
(3)
Street surface width; right-of-way surface. All streets to be surfaced shall be of an overall width in accordance with the standards and specifications for construction as approved by the city council. The portion of the right-of-way outside the area surfaced shall be sodded or riprapped by the developer if deemed necessary.
(4)
Curb and gutters. Curb and gutter will be required on all streets according to specifications for street construction as set forth in subsection 13-8(d). All curb corners shall have a radius of not less than 15 feet except at collector and marginal access streets where they shall be not less than 25 feet.
(5)
Grade and drainage requirements. The grade and drainage requirements for each plat shall be established by the city engineer at the expense of the applicant. Every plat presented for final signature shall be accompanied by a certificate of the city engineer that the grade and drainage requirements have been met. In an area not having municipal storm sewer trunk, the applicant shall be responsible, before platting, to provide for a stormwater disposal plan, without damage to properties outside the platted area, and said stormwater disposal plan shall be submitted to the city engineer who shall report to the city council on the feasibility of the plan presented.
(6)
Street trees. Street trees having a trunk diameter (measured 12 inches above the ground) of not less than two inches shall be planted along all streets where trees do not exist, one to a lot. This requirement will be satisfied, and it is preferable if an equivalent number of trees of the same size exist or are planted in a naturalistic way in the front yards of the adjoining lots. Street trees shall be planted in at least one cubic yard of growing soil. Boulevard sodding shall be planted in conformance with the standards and specifications as required in subsection 13-8(d).
(7)
Street signs. Street signs of the standard design as specified in subsection 13-8(d) shall be installed at each street intersection.
(8)
Driveway approaches, sidewalks. Driveway approaches and/or sidewalks of standard design or pedestrian pathways as may be required by the city council shall be installed in conformance with the standards and specifications contained in subsection 13-8(d).
(9)
Street lighting. Street lighting fixtures as may be required by the city council shall be installed.
(e)
Public utilities.
(1)
Placement of lines. All the utility lines for telephone and electric service shall be placed in rear line easements when carried on overhead poles.
(2)
Underground lines. Where telephone, electric and gas service lines are placed underground entirely throughout a subdivided area, conduits or cables shall be placed within easements or dedicated public ways in a manner which will not conflict with other underground services. Further transformer boxes shall be located so as not to be hazardous to the public. All drainage and underground utility installations which traverse privately owned property shall be protected by easements.
(f)
City election to install improvements. The city may, in its discretion, elect to install all or any part of the improvements conditioned upon the developer providing a bond guaranteeing payment for the cost or assessments as acceptable to the city, except that the city shall install all sanitary sewer and water distribution facilities as provided in subsection 13-7(b).
(g)
City topographic map. The subdivider shall revise the city topographic map at his expense to conform with elevations as revised for subdivision purposes.
(h)
Railroad crossings. No street dedications will be accepted which require a crossing of a railroad unless sufficient land is dedicated to provide for a clear and safe approach view as determined by the city council and Minnesota Public Service Commission.
(i)
Park dedication.
(1)
Dedication required. As a condition of approval of any plat, replat, subdivision or lot division allowing development of land for residential, commercial, industrial or other uses or combination thereof, a reasonable portion of the buildable land to be divided must be dedicated to the public or preserved for public uses as parks, playgrounds, trails or open space. This requirement applies to plats, replats, subdivisions or lot divisions that (i) create at least one additional lot or provide for at least one additional dwelling unit, or (ii) combine lots for the purpose of development involving changes or mixed land uses or the intensification of uses, or (iii) consist of a planned unit development as defined and regulated by the zoning code. The city shall reasonably determine if the buildable land proposed for dedication is suitable for public recreational use based on the following factors. Further, the dedication required by this section is in addition to dedication required for streets, roads, utilities, storm waterponding areas or similar utilities and improvements.
a.
The land must be conveniently located to the intended users being served by the dedication.
b.
The dedicated buildable land must be adequate in size, shape, topography, geology, hydrology, tree cover, access and location for future park needs consistent with the city's comprehensive park plan.
c.
Wetlands, ponding areas and drainage ways are not suitable for park dedication credits. Dedicated park land must be above the ordinary high water level as determined by the city engineer.
d.
Land with grades exceeding 12 percent is not suitable for park dedication.
e.
Land contaminated by any pollutants or containing trash, junk and/or unwanted structures is not suitable for park dedication.
(2)
Amount required. The amount of land required for dedication is based upon the gross land area to be subdivided and equals the land the city reasonably finds it will need to acquire for park or other recreational purposes as a result of approval of the land division. Generally, ten percent of the gross land area to be subdivided must be dedicated for residential subdivisions and five percent for commercial and industrial subdivisions.
(3)
Cash payment in lieu of dedication. The city may require a cash payment in lieu of land dedication. In determining to require payment or dedication, the council will consider such factors as whether the land is needed in the proposed location, whether the proposed dedication is suitable for the intended use and whether a cash payment would be more beneficial to development of the entire park system.
(4)
Amount of cash payment. The cash payment in lieu of dedication is set forth in the fee schedule.
(5)
Park and open space fund. Cash payments in lieu of dedication are payable at the time of final subdivision approval. The payment must be placed in a special fund established by the city to be used solely for the purposes of acquisition, development or improvement of parks, playgrounds, trails, open space or as otherwise provided by Minnesota Statutes.
(6)
Partial dedication. The city may accept a dedication of land in an amount less than that specified in subsection (i)(2) and require a cash payment equivalent to the balance of the dedication requirement. The partial cash payment is determined by subtracting the percentage of land actually dedicated from the percentage of land required to be dedicated under subsection (i)(2), and applying the resulting percentage to the fair market value of the proposed subdivision.
(7)
Credit for private land. A credit of up to 25 percent of the dedication requirements may be awarded for park and open space that is to be privately owned and maintained by the future residents of the subdivision. A credit will not be awarded unless the following conditions are met:
a.
Private open space may not be occupied by non-recreational buildings and must be available for the use of all the residents of the proposed subdivision;
b.
Required building setbacks will not be included in computation of private open spaces;
c.
Use of the private open space must be restricted for park, playground, trail or open space purposes by recorded covenants that (i) run with the land in favor of future owners of property within the subdivision and (ii) cannot be defeated or eliminated without the consent of the city council;
d.
The private open space will be of a size, shape, location, topography and usability for park or recreational purposes, or contain unique features which are important to be preserved; and
e.
The private open space must reduce the demand for public recreational facilities or public open space occasioned by development of the subdivision.
(Code 072684; Ord. No. 92-16; Ord. No. 03-13, § 1, 6-23-2003; Ord. No. 07-01, § 2, 7-23-2007; Ord. No. 17-13, § 1, 12-11-2017)