Chapter 17.02 — GENERAL PROVISIONS

A.

The provisions of this title are intended to supplement, implement and work with the California Subdivision Map Act, referred to in this title as the Act, as specified in Government Code Sections 66410 et seq., for the purpose of regulating the design and improvement of divisions of land within the city, as those sections may be replaced or amended from time to time.

B.

This title is not intended to replace the Act but is expected to be used in conjunction with the Act in the preparation of subdivision applications, in conjunction with the review, approval and improvement of proposed subdivisions.

(Ord. No. 3159, § 3(Exh. A), 11-12-24)

This Title 17 shall be referred to as the city's "subdivision ordinance."

(Ord. No. 3159, § 3(Exh. A), 11-12-24)

The provisions of this chapter are adopted pursuant to the Subdivision Map Act (Section 66410 et seq. of the Government Code, hereafter "Act") for the purpose of regulating the design and improvement of subdivisions.

(Ord. No. 3159, § 3(Exh. A), 11-12-24)

17.02.040 - Applicability.

A.

Applicability of Chapter.

1.

No person shall divide any real property for the purpose of sale, lease, or financing except in compliance with the provisions of this title and the Act, Government Code Sections 66410 et seq.

2.

This title shall apply to all divisions of land, except those exempted by Government Code Sections 66412, 66412.1, 66412.2 and 66412.5.

3.

In the event of divisions of land not subject to this title and/or the Act, a certificate of compliance, as described in Government Code Section 66499.35, shall be issued on a form prescribed by the director.

B.

Each division of land within the city shall be authorized through the approval of a map, or a waiver, as appropriate, in compliance with this title.

C.

In the event of any conflicts between the provisions of this title and the Act, the Act shall control.

D.

The approval or conditional approval of a subdivision map shall not authorize an exception or deviation from any zoning regulation, or as an approval to proceed with any development in violation of other applicable provisions of the municipal code or other applicable ordinances or regulations of the city.

(Ord. No. 3159, § 3(Exh. A), 11-12-24)

Pursuant to the Subdivision Map Act, the following designations are made:

A.

Advisory Agency.

1.

The designated advisory agencies specified in this section shall have the duty of making investigations and reports on the design and improvement of proposed applications for the division of real property and

imposing requirements and conditions on these applications and shall have the authority to act upon the applications as specified below.

2.

The advisory agency shall have the authority to refer an application to the planning commission or council for action, as indicated in Table 17-1 (Subdivision Review Authorities), below.

3.

Notwithstanding the provisions of this section, any application filed in compliance with this title that has an associated permit application subject to action by the planning commission or council, the application shall also be subject to those same review and hearing requirements for the associated permit application, in compliance with Table 17-1 (Review Authority).

B.

Appeal Boards.

1.

The planning commission shall be the review authority for any appeal of a decision of the city engineer or director.

2.

The council shall be the review authority for any appeal of a decision of the planning commission.

C.

City Engineer. The city engineer shall be responsible for all of the following.

1.

Establishing subdivision and public improvement design and construction details, standards and specifications.

2.

Determining whether proposed subdivision improvements comply with the provisions of this title and the Act.

3.

Inspecting and approving subdivision improvements.

4.

Approval of amendments to recorded maps, subdivision improvement plans and waiver of parcel maps.

Providing assistance to the director on the review of certificates of compliance, final parcels maps, final tract maps and vesting final maps.

Notes:

1.

"Decision" means that the approval authority makes the final decision on the matter; "appeal" means that the approval authority may consider and decide upon appeals to the decision of an earlier decision-making body; "recommend" means that the review authority makes a recommendation to the decision-making authority.

2.

All decisions of the city council are final.

D.

Director. The director shall be responsible for all of the following:

1.

Accepting certificate of compliance, lot line adjustment, parcel map, vesting parcel map, parcel merger, reversion to acreage, tentative tract map, vesting tentative tract map and similar applications for processing; and distributing the application materials to appropriate agencies and City departments for review.

2.

Evaluating tentative map applications for conformity to the general plan, zoning ordinance, and applicable specific plans, and in consultation with other city departments and agencies, recommending action to the planning commission.

3.

Conducting environmental analyses related to proposed applications in compliance with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) specified in Public Resources Code Section 21000 et seq.

4.

Review authority on tentative tract maps, vesting tentative tract maps, tentative parcels maps and vesting tentative parcel maps.

Approval authority for lot line adjustments, parcel mergers and certificates of compliance and extensions of time.

E.

Planning Commission. The planning commission shall be responsible for all of the following:

1.

Hearing appeals of decisions of the city engineer and director.

2.

Approval authority on tentative parcel and maps, reversion to acreage, tentative tract maps and vesting tentative tract maps.

F.

Council. The city council shall be responsible for all of the following:

1.

Accepting offers of dedication and improvements for divisions of land resulting in five or more parcels.

2.

Hearing appeals of decisions of the city engineer, director and planning commission.

3.

Approval authority on all final parcel maps, final tract maps, and reversion to acreage.

4.

Taking action to approve, conditionally approve, or deny any application referred by another review authority or by appeal, or any land division application with an associated permit application.

(Ord. No. 3159, § 3(Exh. A), 11-12-24)

Any subdivision of an existing parcel into two or more parcels shall require approval by the city in compliance with this title and the Act. In general, the procedure for subdivision first requires the approval of a tentative map, and then the approval and recordation in the office of the county recorder, after clearance of all conditions of approval, of a final map to complete the subdivision process. The city's review of a tentative map evaluates the compliance of the proposed subdivision with applicable city standards, and the appropriateness of the proposed subdivision design. Final maps are precise surveying documents that detail the location and dimensions of all parcel boundaries and public improvements in an approved subdivision.

A.

Tentative Map Requirements.

1.

Parcel Map. The filing and approval of a tentative parcel map is required for a subdivision of four or fewer parcels, as authorized by Government Code Section 66428; and

2.

Tract Map. The filing and approval of a tentative tract map is required for a subdivision of five or more parcels, except those subdivisions excluded by Government Code Section 66426.

B.

Final Map Requirements. A final map (Chapter 17.08) shall be required as follows.

1.

Final Parcel Map. The filing and approval of a final parcel map (Chapter 17.08) shall be required for a subdivision creating four or fewer parcels, with or without a designated remainder in compliance with Government Code Article 2, Chapter 1, unless a waiver is authorized pursuant to 17.08.050.

2.

Final Tract Map. The filing and approval of a final tract map (Chapter 17.08) shall be required for a subdivision of five or more parcels, except a subdivision that is otherwise authorized to have a final parcel map by Government Code Section 66426.

(Ord. No. 3159, § 3(Exh. A), 11-12-24)

By resolution, the city council shall set appropriate filing and processing fees which shall apply to all subdivisions and other divisions of land contemplated by the Act.

(Ord. No. 3159, § 3(Exh. A), 11-12-24)

A.

Exemptions. Those activities specified by Government Code Sections 66411, 66412, 66412.1, 66412.2 and 66426.5, or other applicable Act provision not subject to the requirements of the Act, and/or not considered to be divisions of land for the purposes of the Act, shall be exempt from the subdivision approval requirements of this title.

(Ord. No. 3159, § 3(Exh. A), 11-12-24)

Chapter 17.04 - DEFINITIONS

17.04.010 - General.

This chapter provides definitions of the technical and other terms and phrases used in this title as a means of providing consistency in its interpretation. Where any definition in this chapter may conflict with definitions in other titles of the Whittier Municipal Code, these definitions shall prevail for the purposes of this code. If a word is not defined in this title or in other provisions of the municipal code, the most common dictionary definition is presumed to be correct.

(Ord. No. 3159, § 3(Exh. A), 11-12-24)

17.04.020 - Definitions.

"Advisory agency" means a designated official, or an official body charged with the duty of making investigations and reports on the design and improvement of proposed divisions of real property, the imposing of requirements or conditions thereon, or having the authority to approve, conditionally approve, or disapprove maps.

"Certificate of compliance" means a determination made by the city indicating that a property complies with Government Code Section 66410 et seq (Subdivision Map Act)

"City" means the city of Whittier.

"City clerk" means the city clerk of the city.

"City council" means the city council of the city.

"City engineer" means the city engineer of the city.

"Director" means the director of community development, unless otherwise noted.

"Encroachment" means any physical obstruction other than a motor vehicle and includes any structure or object of any kind or character placed, without the authority of law, either on, in, under or over any public right-of-way or public property. "Authority of law" includes any applicable local, state, or federal law or regulation.

"Improvements" means any street work and utilities to be installed, or agreed to be installed, by the subdivider on the land to be used for public or private streets, highways, and easements, as are necessary for the general use of the lot owners in the subdivision and local neighborhood traffic and drainage needs as a condition precedent to the approval and acceptance of the final map thereof. Improvement also refers to any other improvements, the installation of which, either by the subdivider, by public agencies, by private utilities, or by any other entity, is necessary to ensure consistency with, or implementation of, the general plan or any applicable specific plan.

"Lot." See "parcel."

"Lot line adjustment" means an adjustment or relocation of a property line between two to four existing adjacent parcels that does not result in the creation of additional parcels.

"Map Act" or "Act." See "Subdivision Map Act."

"Monuments" means an object or mark employed by a surveyor to fix or to establish boundaries or land location.

"Parcel" or "lot" means:

1.

A parcel of real property shown on a subdivision or plat map, required by the Subdivision Map Act or this title to be recorded before sale of parcels shown on the map or plat, at the time the map was recorded;

2.

A parcel of real property that has been issued a certificate of compliance as provided by Government Code Section 66499.35 and Section 18.06.200 et seq. of this title; or

3.

A parcel of real property not described in (1) or (2) of this definition, provided the parcel resulted from a separate conveyance or from a decree of a court of competent jurisdiction which was record before the requirement of the filing of the subdivision map by the Subdivision Map Act or this title.

"Parcel map" means the map described by Article 3, Chapter 2 of the Subdivision Map Act, which is required by this title to complete subdivision of four or fewer lots.

"Parcel merger" means a merger between two or more existing legal parcels, where the land taken from one parcel is added to an adjacent parcel.

"Public right-of-way" means all or any part of the entire width of a street, alley, sidewalk, lane, trail, floodcontrol channel, railroad line, owned or controlled by the federal, state, or local government, irrespective of the rights-of-way use.

"Reversion of acreage" means the recombining of land which was previously subdivided. The process may be used to nullify rights and/or obligations effected by a previous subdivision of the property, including vacation of streets.

"Subdivider" means a person, firm, corporation, partnership or association, a governmental agency, public entity or public utility, or the grantor to any such agency, entity, utility or subsidiary, who proposes to subdivide for him or herself or for others, except employees and consultants or such persons or entities acting in such capacity.

"Subdivision" means the division, by any subdivider, of any unit or units of improved or unimproved land, or any portion thereof, shown on the latest equalized Los Angeles County assessment roll as a unit or as contiguous units, for the purpose of sale, lease or financing, whether immediate or future. Property shall be considered as contiguous units, even if it is separated by roads, streets, utility easement or railroad rightsof-way.

"Subdivision Map Act" or "Map Act" or "Act" means Division 2, Title 7 of the California Government Code, commencing with Section 66410 as presently constituted, and any amendments thereto.

"Tentative map" means a map made for the purpose of showing the design and improvement of a proposed subdivision and the existing conditions in and around it.

"Tract map" means the process of subdividing real property into smaller lots. Typically, the tract map is used to create five or more residential lots.

"Vesting tentative map" means a map that is filed and processed in the same manner as a tentative map except as otherwise provided by this title or the Subdivision Map Act. At the time a vesting tentative map is filed it shall have the words "vesting tentative map" printed conspicuously on its face.

(Ord. No. 3159, § 3(Exh. A), 11-12-24)

Chapter 17.06 - TENTATIVE MAP FILING PROCEDURES