A notice goes up at a vacant lot a few blocks from you: the Emeryville City Council will consider an ordinance approving a "development agreement" with the owner. Or you own a large parcel yourself, and a consultant says the project might be worth negotiating one. Either way, you want to know what this agreement actually is, who can ask for one, and what the city can and cannot promise in it.
Short answer: in Emeryville, the formal agreement between the city and a property owner is a development agreement — a recorded contract that locks in the uses, density, height and building size for a project for a specified term. Only someone with a legal or equitable interest in the land can apply, the City Council approves it by ordinance, and the City Clerk records it within 10 days of signing (§ 9-7.1105, § 9-7.1103).
Key numbers
| Item | What the code says | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Who may apply | Only a person with a legal or equitable interest in the property | § 9-7.1105 |
| Who approves | City Council, by ordinance, after a Planning Commission recommendation | § 9-7.1103 |
| Recording deadline | Within 10 days after the City Manager signs | § 9-7.1103 |
| Term | A "specified initial term," which the agreement itself may allow to be extended | § 9-7.1106 |
| Improvement bond (subdivisions) | Performance bond for 100% of the improvement value, then a 1-year warranty bond | § 9-6.603 |
What a development agreement is
A development agreement is a binding contract between a city and a landowner. In plain terms, the owner gets certainty — the rules in force when the deal is signed keep applying to the project — and the city gets public benefits the zoning code alone could not require.
Emeryville says why it offers these agreements: the article exists "to facilitate large, phased projects" with "significant private participation in infrastructure, public facilities, open space and amenities" (§ 9-7.1101). So this is a tool for big, multi-stage developments, not for a kitchen remodel or a single backyard cottage.
The city's rules sit on top of a state law. California's Government Code lets any city or county enter into a development agreement with anyone holding a legal or equitable interest in real property (§ 65865), and requires every city to set up procedures for considering one when an applicant asks. Emeryville's article is that local procedure, and it cites the state law directly (§ 9-7.1101).
The city decides whether to say yes
Nobody is entitled to a development agreement. Emeryville states that the city "at its sole discretion, may enter into a binding agreement with any qualified applicant" (§ 9-7.1102). If the city does not want to negotiate, your project simply goes through the ordinary permit process instead.
Who counts as a qualified applicant
A "qualified applicant" is a person with a legal or equitable interest in the property — usually the owner, or a buyer under contract (§ 9-7.1105). The City Manager can ask for proof of that interest, and can require everyone with an interest in the land to sign on, so the whole property is bound.
The property itself must be inside city limits and be a parcel (or set of parcels) the City Manager considers appropriate in ownership, configuration, size and location to carry out the General Plan (§ 9-7.1105).
One detail matters for anyone buying land later: the agreement's burdens and benefits pass to "all successors in interest." If you buy property that carries a development agreement, you inherit its obligations along with its protections.
What the agreement must spell out
Both state and city law list the core contents. The state requires the agreement to state its duration, the permitted uses, the density or intensity of use, the maximum height and size of buildings, and any land reserved or dedicated for public purposes (§ 65865.2). Emeryville repeats that list and adds the location of public improvements (§ 9-7.1106).
The agreement may also:
- Set deadlines to start construction or finish the project or a phase.
- Include a promise by the developer to hold the city harmless and indemnify it against lawsuits over the agreement.
- Attach conditions to later discretionary approvals — but those conditions cannot block development at the uses and density the agreement already allows.
- Serve as a financing agreement under state law.
"Every development agreement shall be for a specified initial term." — § 9-7.1106
The code does not set a maximum length for that term. It is negotiated in each agreement.
How approval works
An application follows the city's common procedures for land-use applications. The Planning Commission makes a recommendation, and the City Council decides. Approval takes the form of an ordinance, which means it is subject to referendum — voters can challenge it the way they can challenge other ordinances (§ 9-7.1103).
After the ordinance takes effect, the City Manager signs for the city. The agreement's effective date is the later of the ordinance's effective date or the signing date, and the City Clerk records it with the County Recorder within 10 days. Recording is what puts future buyers on notice.
Changing or ending the agreement
A development agreement can be amended or canceled, in whole or in part, by mutual consent of the parties or their successors, or as the agreement itself provides (§ 9-7.1108). A substantive amendment or cancellation goes through the same approval process as the original, and a cancellation is recorded with the County Recorder.
The city also reviews agreements periodically. If the city skips a review, that does not cost it the right to enforce the agreement, and the developer cannot use the missed review as a defense (§ 9-7.1107).
A related agreement: subdivision improvements
If you are splitting land rather than signing a development agreement, you may still sign an agreement with Emeryville. When required street or utility improvements are not finished before the parcel map or final map is filed, the subdivider must enter an improvement agreement (§ 9-6.603). It covers the approved plans, completion dates, fees, and a performance bond for 100% of the improvements' value at prevailing wage, followed by a one-year warranty bond after the city accepts the work.
What this page does not cover
The search "business agreement Emeryville" can also mean a business license, a lease, or a contract with a city department. Those are not in the zoning code sections this page draws on. For those, contact the City of Emeryville directly. For more on the city's land-use rules, see the Emeryville code overview or browse the blog.
Sources
- Emeryville § 9-7.1101 — Purpose
- Emeryville § 9-7.1102 — Applicability
- Emeryville § 9-7.1103 — Procedures
- Emeryville § 9-7.1105 — Qualifications
- Emeryville § 9-7.1106 — Contents of Development Agreement
- Emeryville § 9-7.1107 — Periodic Review
- Emeryville § 9-7.1108 — Amendment or Cancellation
- Emeryville § 9-6.603 — Improvement Agreements
- California Government Code § 65865
- California Government Code § 65865.2
