Bellflower Municipal Code Ch. 3.36 Dedication of Land or Fees in Lieu Thereof, for Park and Recreation…

A. Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, any person developing any new residential development of more than one unit or adding one or more units to any existing residential development shall be required to dedicate land, or pay fees in lieu thereof, or both, as set forth in this chapter. Except as set forth in this chapter, the determination as to whether the requirement shall be fulfilled by the dedication of land, the payment of fees, or a combination thereof, shall be solely that of the City.

B. The amount of land to be dedicated shall be equal to .0025 acres per person multiplied by the number of persons added to the City's population by the new residential development. The number of persons added to the City's population by the new residential development shall be determined by multiplying the number of new dwelling units being developed by the density factor determined pursuant to Subsection C of this section.

C. The "density factor" to be utilized to determine the number of persons added to the City's population by any new residential development shall be the number of persons per dwelling unit as determined by the most recently available Federal census or census taken pursuant to California Government Code Section 40200 et seq., for the type of residential development, i.e., single-family or multi-family. As of the date of adoption of the ordinance codified in this chapter, the density factor is 3.54 persons per unit for single-family dwellings and 2.65 persons per unit for multi-family dwellings.

D. Only the payment of fees shall be required if a development project contains 50 parcels or less except that when a condominium project, stock cooperative, or community apartment project, as those terms are defined in California Civil Code Section 1351, exceeds 50 dwelling units, dedication of land may be required notwithstanding that the number of parcels may be less than 50.

E. When a fee is to be paid in lieu of or in addition to land dedication, the amount of such fee shall be determined by multiplying the number of acres of land which would otherwise be required to be dedicated by the fair market value per acre of the land within the proposed residential development, as determined pursuant to Section 3.36.060.

F. The land dedication and/or payment of fees in lieu thereof shall be completed prior to the issuance of a building permit within a development. The fees shall be returned to the developer if both the following requirements are met: (1) no subdivision map has been recorded for the development, and (2) the building permit has expired without any construction having occurred.

(Prior code § 9-14.1)

A. Where private open space area is developed for active recreational facilities in a proposed development, the value of such open space may be partially credited against the land dedication/fee requirement established by this Chapter as set forth in this section.

B. The final decision-making authority on the residential development shall determine at the time the residential development is approved or conditionally approved the amount of credit, which may be up to 50% of the value of the private open space developed for active recreational facilities. The final decision-making authority shall consider factors such as the size, shape, topography, geology, access, and location of such private open space area within the development to determine whether the private open space adequately addresses some of the park and/or recreational needs of the occupants of the development and thus should be credited against the land dedication/fee requirement. The determination of the final decision-making authority shall be final.

C. Any yard areas, setback areas, or other open space areas required to be maintained by any zoning or building requirement shall not qualify for credit against the land dedication/fee requirement, regardless of how such area is developed.

D. To qualify for any credit under this Chapter, the private ownership and maintenance of the private open space area as active recreational facilities must be permanently assured by written agreement and the use of such area restricted by recorded covenants which run with the land and which cannot be defeated or eliminated without the consent of the City.

(Prior code § 9-14.3)

The requirement for the dedication of land or payment of a fee in lieu thereof shall be deferred for any new unit within a residential development which is restricted by covenant to occupancy for low- and moderate-income households or senior citizens during the period such unit remains restricted for such use. Upon termination of such restriction, the then current owner of the unit shall pay to the City a fee based upon the then current fair market value of the land and in accordance with the density factor in effect at the time the restriction terminates.

(Prior code § 9-14.4)

A. Fees paid pursuant to this Chapter shall be deposited into the Park Facilities Fund maintained by the City Treasurer and shall be used solely for the development of new and rehabilitation of existing neighborhood or community parks and recreational facilities within the City. The City Manager or his/her designee shall develop a schedule specifying how, when and where the City will use the land or fees or both which are in the Park Facilities Fund.

B. Fees paid into the Park Facilities Fund which are not committed within five years from the date of payment shall be returned to the then current owner(s) of the residential development project, with all interest actually earned thereon, in the same proportion as the size of their lot bears to the total area of all lots within the development project.

C. Notwithstanding the provisions of Subsection B of this section, no refund shall be required if the City Council determines any one of the following applies:

1. Fees were not paid with money but were satisfied by a letter of credit, bond, or other interest taken to secure payment at a future date, in which case, such security interest may expire; or

2. The administrative costs of refunding the uncommitted fees exceeds the amount to be refunded, provided, however, such determination shall not be made until after a public hearing is held thereon for which each of the dwelling units within the project has been delivered notice.

(Prior code § 9-14.5)