Calistoga Municipal Code Ch. 16.21 Parcel Mergers

A. Property Owner-Initiated Mergers.

1. Pursuant to California Government Code section 66499.20.3, a merger and certificate of merger of existing adjoining parcels of real property may be initiated by the record owner(s) if the Planning and Building Director makes all of the following findings:

a. The merger will not affect any fees, grants, easements, agreements, conditions, dedications, offers to dedicate or security provided in connection with any approvals of divisions of real property or lot line adjustments;

b. The boundaries of the parcels to be merged are well-defined in existing recorded documents or filed maps and were legally created or have certificates of compliance issued on them;

i. The Planning and Building Director may nevertheless authorize the merger of two or more parcels of land of which at least one was not created in compliance with the Subdivision Map Act and/or local ordinances as an alternative to the issuance of a conditional certificate of compliance after consultation with the Napa County Recorder's Office and Planning and Building Director.

c. The parcels are contiguous and form a single, unified site;

d. The merger will not alter the exterior boundary of the parcels to be merged;

e. The document used to effect the merger contains an accurate description of the exterior boundaries of the resulting parcel;

f. The merger complies with the building and zoning requirements for the zoning district in which the property is located;

g. All parties having any record title interest in real property affected have consented to the merger upon a form and in a manner approved by the Planning and Building Director, excepting all those interests that are excepted from the requirement to consent to the preparation and recordation of final maps under the provisions of California Government Code Section 66436 and according to the terms, provisions, reservations and restrictions provided therein for such consent; and

h. All necessary fees and requirements, including a fee for recording the documents, have been provided.

2. An application for a property owner-initiated merger shall include the following information:

a. Petition for Merger signed by the property owners,

b. Current Title Report,

c. Copy of document or map legally creating the parcels to be merged,

d. Certificate and Declaration of Merger signed by property owners,

e. Notary Statement for all signatories,

f. Exhibit A – Legal description of the original lots prior to merger per Title Report (less easement),

g. Exhibit B – Legal description of parcel in post-merger configuration,

h. Exhibit C – Exhibit map displaying the following items:

i. Merger Number.

ii. Assessor's Parcel Numbers.

iii. North arrow.

iv. Scale and Graphic scale.

v. Heavy lines denoting the exterior boundary of the merged parcel.

vi. Light dashed lines denoting the interior line(s) being deleted and noted as such.

vii. The Point of Beginning shall be labeled when bearing and distance are recited in Exhibit B.

viii. The name of the Licensed Land Surveyor or Registered Civil Engineer authorized to practice Land Surveying preparing the Exhibit including signature and seal.

ix. Exhibit C may also consist of a copy of a portion of the current Assessor's Map, clearly denoting the merged parcel by a heavy line (v). Items (v), (vi), and (vii) shall be reflected on the map. If prepared from a copy of the Assessor's Map, Exhibit C must be sufficiently reproducible and readable to meet the requirements of California Government Code Section 27361.6,

i. Certificate of Merger.

j. Modified Deed of Trust.

k. Agent Authorization Form (if applicable).

3. The Planning and Building Director or designee may waive any of the information required in this chapter if the Director finds that the information is not necessary to take action on the application. The Planning and Building Director or designee may also request any additional information or documents not listed in this chapter if the Director finds that the requested information is necessary to take action on the application.

4. Where a record of survey is deemed to be necessary by the county surveyor or the applicant in order to monument and define the boundaries of the merged parcel, such record of survey, otherwise in compliance with all requirements, may be filed at the same time as the merger and certificate of merger.

5. The filing of said merger and certificate of merger for record shall constitute a merger of the separate parcels into one parcel for the purpose of the Subdivision Map Act and local ordinances enacted pursuant thereto, and the parcels shall thereafter be treated in all respects as a single parcel.

6. No person shall record a document merging separate legal parcels into a single parcel for the purposes of the Subdivision Map Act and local ordinances enacted pursuant thereto except in conformity with the provisions of this chapter.

7. The City Council shall establish by resolution such fees as may be required for the review and processing of a proposal for voluntary merger.

8. The Planning and Building Director or designee shall review the application for consistency with the General Plan, zoning ordinance, and applicable development standards. Two nonconforming parcels may be merged if the merger does not result in a parcel that further deviates from the standards of this title.

9. If the merger results in a parcel that conforms to all applicable regulations, the Director may approve the merger without a public hearing.

10. The Planning and Building Director may impose conditions of approval to ensure compliance with applicable zoning, building, and development standards.

11. The merger shall be evidenced by recordation a Certificate of Merger or, where appropriate, a Notice of Merger, in the Napa County Recorder's Office.

12. If the merger of contiguous parcels is initiated by the record owner, the owner may waive the right to a hearing before the planning commission and to all notices required by this article. Upon receipt of the waiver, if the director and town engineer agree that the parcels should be merged, the director shall record a waiver of right of hearing and notice and a notice of merger or certificate of compliance simultaneously.

B. City-Initiated Mergers. Two or more contiguous parcels or units held by the same owner shall be considered as merged if any one of the contiguous parcels or units held by the same owner does not conform to the standards for minimum parcel size, under CMC Title 17 – Zoning, and if all the following requirements are satisfied:

1. At least one of the affect parcels is underdeveloped by any structure for which a building permit was issued, or for which a building permit was not required at the time of construction, or is developed only with an accessory structure or accessory structures, or is developed with a single structure, other than an accessory structure, that is also partially sited on a contiguous parcel or unit.

2. With respect to any affected parcel, one or more of the following conditions exists:

a. Comprises less than the minimum lot area at the time of the determination of merger.

b. Was not created in compliance with applicable laws and ordinances in effect at the time of its creation.

c. Does not meet current standards for sewage disposal and domestic water supply.

d. Does not meet slope stability standards.

e. Has no legal access which is adequate for vehicular and safety equipment access and maneuverability.

f. Its development would create health or safety hazards.

g. Is inconsistent with the General Plan and any applicable specific plan, other than minimum lot size or density standards.

3. For purposes of determining whether contiguous parcels are held by the same owner, ownership shall be determined as of the date that notice of intention to determine status is recorded.

4. Prior to recording a notice of merger, the Planning Director and Building Director shall mail, by certified mail, a notice of intention to determine status to the current record owner of the property. The notice shall state that the affected parcels may be merged and the owner may request a hearing before the Planning Commission within 30 days of the property owner's receipt of the notice of intention to determine status, to present evidence that the property does not meet the criteria for merger. The notice of intention to determine status shall be filed for record at the office of the Napa County Recorder on the same day that the notice is mailed to the property owner. The hearing shall be conducted not more than 60 days following the City's receipt of the property owner's request for the hearing, but may be postponed or continued with the mutual consent of the City and the property owner. Following the hearing, a determination of merger shall be recorded within 30 days provided that the Planning Commission finds that the criteria for merger in this subsection B are satisfied.