Kern County Municipal Code Ch. 18.35 Lot Line Adjustments

The purpose of this chapter is to set forth the requirements for the submittal, review and approval of lot line adjustments.

(Ord. G-6533 § 3 (part), 1998)

A lot line adjustment, which is defined as a change in any lot line between four (4) or fewer adjoining parcels where land taken from one parcel is added to an adjacent parcel, and where a greater number of parcels than originally existed is not thereby created, shall not require a parcel or tract map. No conditions or exactions, except those required to achieve conformance with the Kern County general plan, any applicable specific plan, and the Kern County zoning and building ordinances, shall be required as a condition of approval of a lot line adjustment. Public access must be shown to each parcel that is the subject of the lot line adjustment, unless existing access to each of the affected lots is by approved private recorded access, in which case private recorded access may also serve the adjusted parcels.

(Ord. G-7629 § 66, 2007; Ord. G-6533 § 3 (part), 1998)

The application for a lot line adjustment shall include the following information:

A. A completed Kern County land division application form;

B. Legal description of each of the proposed parcels that has been prepared by a licensed land surveyor or registered civil engineer, authorized to perform land surveying, containing original signature and seal;

C. Two (2) copies of a preliminary title report for all properties whose lot lines would be altered by the proposed adjustment. Title reports shall name the current record owners and shall not be more than ninety (90) days old;

D. Hazardous Waste Verification Statement as required by Section 65962.5 of the California Government Code;

E. A lot line adjustment map, prepared by a licensed surveyor or a registered civil engineer authorized to perform land surveying, legibly drawn in ink and accurately to scale on one (1) sheet of paper eight and one-half (8½) by eleven (11) inches in size, and including all of the following information:

1. Lot lines, dimensions, bearings and distances (if not an aliquot division), and areas of the original parcel(s) and adjusted parcels. Gross area shall be shown for those parcels containing two and one-half (2½) acres or larger. Net area shall be shown for those parcels containing less than two and one-half (2½) acres. If parcel area is less than (1) acre, then area shall be expressed as net square feet. Acreage shall be shown to the nearest one-hundredth ( 1/100 ) of an acre, and square footage shall be shown to the nearest square foot. Each parcel created shall be designated on the map by a number or letter,

2. Locations and dimensions of each existing structure, including outbuildings, distances between structures, and distances between structures and property lines of both the original parcel(s) and the proposed parcel(s),

3. Names, locations, and widths of all existing streets and roads on or bounding the original parcel and of all new access routes being proposed,

4. Locations and dimensions of all existing and proposed easements, utility lines, rights-of-way, and underground utility structures of any kind,

5. Location of existing domestic water supplies and existing septic tanks and disposal fields on all affected lots,

6. Location of all watercourses, drainage channels, existing drainage structures, and springs,

7. Approximate high water lines in lakes, reservoirs, streams, and rivers,

8. Lot line adjustment number, as assigned by the planning department,

9. Name and address of the applicant, and of the person who prepared the map,

10. Scale of map (standard engineering scale), north arrow, and vicinity map,

11. Location of any earthquake fault zone delineated by the State Geologist pursuant to Alquist-Priolo Earthquake Fault Zone Act,

12. The following statement shall appear on the map:

"THIS MAP IS PROVIDED FOR ILLUSTRATION PURPOSES ONLY."

Item (E)(10) above may be shown on a second sheet that accompanies the map, and Item (E)(10) may be deleted from the map that is recorded with the certificate of compliance.

(Ord. G-7629 §§ 67, 68, 2007; Ord. G-6533 § 3 (part), 1998)

A. An applicant for a lot line adjustment shall submit an application and map and title reports to the planning director in the format and number of copies specified by the planning director. The map shall contain all the information specified by Section 18.35.030, unless the planning director waives any of the information requirements. When deemed complete, the application shall be accompanied by the fee established by resolution of the board of supervisors.

B. The planning director shall inform the applicant in writing within thirty (30) calendar days of receipt that the application is complete or that additional information is needed to complete the application.

(Ord. G-7629 § 70, 2007; Ord. G-6533 § 3 (part), 1998)

A. Review and Approval by the Planning Director. Upon a determination that the application is complete, the planning director shall act to approve or disapprove the lot line adjustment within fifty (50) calendar days. The time limits for acting on certain matters specified in this section may be extended by mutual consent of the applicant and the planning department evidenced in writing. These time periods shall commence after certification of the environmental impact report, adoption of a negative declaration, or upon a determination by the department that the project is exempt from the requirements of Division 13 of the Public Resources Code. In order to concurrently process a lot line adjustment where a general plan amendment, zone change, or other legislative act is required by the county board of supervisors prior to approval of the lot line adjustment, these time limits shall commence on the effective date of the required legislative action.

B. Reports and Recommendations. A copy of any report or recommendation on the lot line adjustment prepared by the planning department shall be mailed to the applicant or his authorized agent at least fifteen (15) days prior to the proposed date of action by the planning director.

C. Decision.

1. The planning director may approve or deny any application for lot line adjustment. Such decision shall include findings in accordance with the provisions of this title. The decision shall be final, subject to appeal in accordance with Section 18.35.050(D).

2. Written notice of such decision shall be given by mail within seven (7) calendar days after the date of the decision to the applicant and any person filing a written request for notice of the decision. Notice of decision shall be deemed given when placed in the United States mail with postage prepaid, using the address set forth on the application or using such envelope, as the case may be. Such notice may also be given, at the discretion of the planning director, by personal delivery, with the same effect as if mailed.

3. The decision of the planning director shall be final upon expiration of ten (10) calendar days from and including the date of decision, unless a notice of appeal is filed with the planning director within such time.

D. Appeal.

1. Any decision of the planning director made pursuant to this section shall be subject to appeal to the board of supervisors.

2. The applicant or any other person aggrieved may appeal from such decision by filing a written notice of appeal with the planning director prior to the time the decision becomes final. The planning director shall furnish forms of notice of appeal. The appeal shall be accompanied by the fee established by resolution of the board of supervisors.

3. Notice of the hearing on the appeal shall be given in the manner and time provided in Section 18.30.050(D).

4. The board of supervisors may reverse, affirm wholly or partly, modify or attach other or additional conditions to the decision appealed from.

5. The decision of the board of supervisors on any such appeal shall be final upon adoption of an order or resolution containing its determination, and no notice thereof need be given.

E. Recordation. Upon approval of the request for lot line adjustment and expiration of the appeal period specified in Section 18.35.050(D) or final decision of the board of supervisors upon appeal, the planning director shall cause to be recorded with the county recorder a certificate of compliance and appropriate attachments reflecting the approved lot line adjustment, provided the following criteria have been met:

1. The applicant, or the applicant's title company or agent, has submitted the grant deed or deeds for the land proposed to be conveyed for the lot line adjustment, in recordable form, and the planning director has determined that the grant deed or deeds are in substantial compliance with the approved lot line adjustment map, and that such grant deed or deeds contain the words "FOR PURPOSES OF LOT LINE ADJUSTMENT NO. _______." In lieu of submitting the grant deed or deeds, the applicant's title company may issue a letter of intent to arrange simultaneous recording of deeds with the certificate of compliance.

2. In cases where deeds of trust are affected by the adjustment, the applicant's title company shall prepare partial reconveyances and supplemental deeds of trust in substantial compliance with the approved lot line adjustment, and shall arrange for their concurrent recording with the certificate of compliance.

3. All applicable fees have been paid, or arrangements have been made for all documents to be recorded by the title company.

4. The grant deed or deeds, partial reconveyances and supplementary deeds of trust, if applicable, shall be recorded concurrently and shall constitute constructive notice of the adjustment.

5. A guarantee of title, or a preliminary title report dated ten (10) days or less prior to concurrent recording of deeds and certificate of compliance, has been issued by a title company authorized to do business in California, showing that all parties having any record title interest in the land to be subdivided, or any part thereof, including, but not limited to, leaseholders, lienholders and owners of rights-of-way, showing the nature of each respective interest and reference thereto in the official records, by book and page, as of the date the lot line adjustment is filed with the county for recording. In addition, the liability of such guarantee, if one is issued, shall not be less than one thousand dollars ($1,000.00). In lieu of an updated preliminary title report, the title company may submit a written statement (letter of continuation) which certifies that no changes affecting the title of the subject property have occurred since the original issuance of the preliminary title report.

6. As provided for by the State Subdivision Map Act, the applicant may file a record of survey along with the required map and grant deed or deeds. If a field survey is made as part of the lot line adjustment, a record of survey shall be filed in accordance with Section 8764 of the Business and Professions Code, state of California.

7. All other conditions of approval for the lot line adjustment have been satisfied.

F. Expiration and Extensions.

1. An approval or conditional approval shall expire one (1) year from the date of approval of the lot line adjustment.

2. The subdivider or engineer may request an extension of the expiration date of the approved lot line adjustment by written application to the director of Kern County planning department. The application shall be filed prior to the expiration date and shall state the reasons for requesting the extension and the amount of time requested. The director of Kern County planning department shall approve or deny the request for extension. The maximum amount of time for each extension request shall not exceed one (1) year. Not more than three (3) extensions shall be approved for a lot line adjustment, and the total period of all extensions shall not exceed thirty-six (36) months.

G. Procedure for Over-the-Counter Approval.

1. The applicant's engineer or surveyor may request that the processing of an application be performed over-the-counter. The decision to grant the request for over-the-counter processing shall be at the discretion of the planning director. However, no application shall be processed over-the-counter where the approval of a development variation or limited design variation to this chapter is required in order to approve the design of the map. Additionally, the director must find that the project will be exempt from the requirements of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and that no other discretionary approval is required to approve the proposed map.

2. In such instances where the planning director grants a request for over-the-counter processing, the following listed sections of this chapter shall be inapplicable: Section 18.35.050(A), (B) and (C).

3. Upon a determination that the application is complete, the planning director shall make a determination if the processing of the application can continue through the over-the-counter process. If an affirmative determination is made, the planning director shall act to approve or disapprove the lot line adjustment within two (2) working days. The time limits for acting on certain matters specified in the section may be extended by mutual consent of the applicant and the planning department evidenced in writing.

4. A copy of any report or recommendation on the proposed lot line adjustment prepared by the planning department shall be given to the applicant's engineer or surveyor at the counter prior to taking final action on the proposal.

5. The planning director may approve, conditionally approve or deny any application. Such decision shall include findings in accordance with the provisions of this title. The decision shall be final subject to appeal in accordance with Section 18.35.050(D).

6. Written notice of such decision shall be given to the applicant's engineer or surveyor at the counter or given in a manner mutually agreeable to the director and the applicant's representative.

7. The decision of the planning director shall be final upon expiration of ten (10) calendar days from and including the date of decision, unless a notice of appeal is filed with the planning director within such time.

8. All conditions of approval shall be final, and a subsequent request to delete or modify a condition to make it less restrictive shall only be considered after a written request is submitted and accompanied by the applicable fee. Consideration of the request shall be in accordance with Section 18.35.050(G) unless such conditions are appealed pursuant to Section 18.35.050(D).

(Ord. G-6533 § 3 (part), 1998)

A. Subject to the provisions of the California Environmental Quality Act of 1970, the state CEQA guidelines and the county guidelines, the planning director shall review and consider any applicable environmental documents.

B. The lot line adjustment may be approved by the planning director if he/she finds that the proposed lot line adjustment is consistent with the general plan, any applicable specific plan, and all applicable provisions of the Kern County Ordinance Code.

C. The lot line adjustment may be denied by the planning director on any of the grounds provided by the California Subdivision Map Act or this title. The planning director shall deny approval of the lot line adjustment if he/she makes any of the following findings:

1. That the proposed lot line adjustment is inconsistent with the general plan, any applicable specific plan, or any applicable provisions of the Kern County Ordinance Code;

2. That the site is not physically suitable for the proposed type of development;

3. That the site is not physically suitable for proposed density of development;

4. That the lot line adjustment is likely to cause substantial environmental damage or substantially and unavoidably injure fish or wildlife or their habitat. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the planning director may approve such a lot line adjustment if an environmental impact report was prepared with respect to the project and necessary findings were made pursuant to Section 21081(a), (b) and (c) of CEQA;

5. That the lot line adjustment is likely to cause serious public health problems;

6. That the lot line adjustment will conflict with easements acquired by the public at large for access through or use of property within the proposed lot line adjustment. In this connection, the planning director may approve a lot line adjustment if he/she finds that alternate easements for access or for use will be provided, and that these will be substantially equivalent to ones previously acquired by the public. This section shall apply only to easements of record or to easements established by judgment of a court of competent jurisdiction, and no authority is granted to the planning director to determine that the public at large has acquired easements for access through or use of property within the proposed subdivision.

D. That method of sewage disposal, water supply and measures for preservation of environmental health are inconsistent with Division Five of the Kern County environmental health services department standards and rules and regulations for land development. However, the requirements may be waived by the environmental health services director in the exercise of his/her reasonable discretion. In no event shall any requirements be waived if, in the opinion of the fire chief, such waiver would adversely affect the fire protection capabilities of the fire department.

(Ord. G-6533 § 3 (part), 1998)

A. The applicant may file a petition requesting one (1) or more development variations. Such variation requests should be filed with the request for lot line adjustment. Application for development variation shall include the applicant's justification for approval of the request and may include a requirement for submittal of a design sample.

B. The planning director is authorized to approve or conditionally approve a variation if he/she finds that:

1. Special circumstances exist with respect to the property or the proposed subdivision design that warrants the requested development variation; and

2. Approval of the variation will not be materially detrimental to the public health, safety, or welfare or to property or residents in the vicinity.

C. The planning director may conditionally approve a variation as he/she deems necessary to substantially secure the objectives of this title and to conform to the requirements of this section.

D. The planning director shall give notice and, if requested, conduct a hearing on each proposed variation, after notice, in the manner provided in Section 18.30.050(D) and shall make the determinations mentioned in Section 18.30.070(B). The hearing on a variation may be conducted at the same time as the hearing on a request for lot line adjustment, or at a different time. If the variation is disapproved, it shall not be applied for or heard again, except on appeal, in connection with the same request for lot line adjustment unless it is shown there has been a substantial change in circumstances or a substantial redesign of the request for lot line adjustment.

(Ord. G-7629 § 72, 2007; Ord. G-6533 § 3 (part), 1998)

A. Minor revisions to an approved lot line adjustment may be approved by the planning director as being in substantial conformity with the originally approved lot line adjustment upon application by the subdivider or his/her authorized agent, provided that:

1. Such changes are consistent with the intent of the original approval; and

2. There are no resulting violations of the Kern County Ordinance Code.

B. Approved revisions shall be denoted on the approved lot line adjustment map and/or in writing to the subdivider, whichever is appropriate.

C. No revision shall affect the original expiration date of the approved lot line adjustment.

D. The planning director may require a new application in lieu of the above procedure when, in his/her opinion, requested changes are substantial enough to warrant refiling and reprocessing.

(Ord. G-7629 § 75, 2007; Ord. G-6533 § 3 (part), 1998)