Windsor Municipal Code Art. 13 Enforcement of Article Provisions

a. No person shall sell, lease, or finance any parcel or parcels of real property; commence construction of any building for sale, lease, or financing, except for model homes; or allow occupancy, for which a final map is required by this Chapter or the Subdivision Map Act, until a map, in full compliance with the provisions of this Chapter and the Subdivision Map Act, has been filed with the County Recorder for record.

b. No person shall sell, lease, or finance any parcel or parcels of real property; commence construction of any building for sale, lease, or financing, except for model homes; or allow occupancy, for which a parcel map is required by this Chapter or the Subdivision Map Act, until a map, in full compliance with the provisions of this Chapter and the Subdivision Map Act, has been filed for record by the Recorder.

c. Conveyances of any part of a division of real property for which a final or parcel map is required shall not be made by parcel number, letter, or other designation, unless and until the final or parcel map has been filed for record with the County Recorder.

d. This Section does not apply to any parcel or parcels of a subdivision offered for sale or lease, contracted for sale or lease, or sold or leased in compliance with or exempt from any law regulating the design and improvement of subdivisions in effect at the time the subdivision was established.

e. Nothing contained in subdivisions (a) through (d), inclusive, shall prohibit an offer or contract to sell, lease, or finance real property or to construct improvements, the sale, lease, financing, or commencement of construction of which is expressly conditioned upon the approval and filing of a final or parcel map.

(Ord. No. 2009-253, § 2, 7-15-2009)

a. Within one (1) year after the date of discovery of the violation, any deed of conveyance, sale, or contract to sell real property, divided or resulting from a division in violation of the provisions of this Chapter or the Subdivision Map Act, is voidable at the sole option of the grantee, buyer, person contracting to purchase, heir, personal representative, or trustee in insolvency or bankruptcy. The deed of conveyance, sale, or contract to sell is binding upon any successor in interest of the grantee, buyer, or person contracting to purchase, other than those above enumerated, and upon the grantor, vendor or person contracting to sell, or his assignee, heir, or devisee.

b. Any grantee or successor in interest of real property, divided or resulting from a division in violation of the provisions of this Chapter or the Subdivision Map Act, may, within one (1) year of the date of discovery of such violation, bring an action in the superior court to recover any damages suffered by reason of the division of property. The action may be brought against the person who divided the property in violation and against any successors in interest who have actual or constructive knowledge of such division of property.

c. The provisions of this Section shall not apply to the conveyance of any parcel of real property identified in a certificate of compliance filed pursuant to Section 16-8-1320 (10-1.1303) or identified in a recorded final or parcel map, from and after the date of recording.

The provisions of this Section shall not limit or affect in any way the rights of a grantee or successor in interest under any other provision of law.

d. This Section does not bar any legal, equitable, or summary remedy to which the Town, other public agency, person, firm, or corporation may otherwise be entitled. The Town and such other entities and persons may file a suit in the superior court of Sonoma County to restrain or enjoin any attempted or proposed subdivision for sale, lease, or financing in violation of this Chapter.

e. The Town shall not issue a permit or grant any approval necessary to develop any real property that has been divided or that has resulted from a division in violation of the provisions of this Chapter or the Subdivision Map Act, if it finds that development of the real property is contrary to the public health or the public safety. The authority to deny a permit or approval shall apply whether the applicant was the owner of the real property at the time of the violation, or whether the applicant is the current owner of the real property, with or without actual or constructive knowledge of the violation at the time of the acquisition of interest in the real property.

The Town, in issuing a permit or granting approval for the development of any real property illegally subdivided, may impose those additional conditions that would have been applicable to the division of the property at the time the current owner of record acquired the property. If the property has the same owner of record as at the time of the initial violation, the Town may impose conditions applicable to a current division of the property. If a conditional certificate of compliance has been filed for record, only those conditions stipulated therein shall be applicable.

(Ord. No. 2009-253, § 2, 7-15-2009)

a. Any person owning real property may request the Town Engineer to determine whether the real property complies with the provisions of this Chapter and the Subdivision Map Act.

b. Upon making a determination that the real property complies with this Chapter and the Subdivision Map Act, the Town Engineer shall cause a certificate of compliance to be filed for record with the County Recorder. The certificate of compliance shall identify the real property and shall state that the division of land complies with the Subdivision Map Act and this Chapter.

c. If the Town Engineer determines that the real property does not comply with the provisions of the Municipal Code or Subdivision Map Act, the Town Engineer may, as a condition to granting a certificate of compliance, impose conditions according to Section 16-8-1310(e). Upon making a determination and establishing conditions, the Town Engineer or authorized representative shall file a conditional certificate of compliance for record with the County Recorder. The certificate shall serve as notice to the property owner who has applied for the certificate, a grantee of the property owner, or any subsequent transferee or assignee of the property that the fulfillment and implementation of the conditions shall be required prior to subsequent issuance of a permit or other grant of approval for development of the property.

Compliance with the conditions shall not be required until a permit or other grant of approval for development of the property is issued.

d. A recorded final or parcel map shall constitute a certificate of compliance with respect to the parcels of real property described therein.

e. A fee to be charged at actual cost shall be charged to the applicant for making the determination and processing the certificate of compliance. A deposit may be required to be applied toward the fee.

f. Each certificate of compliance or conditional certificate of compliance shall include information the Town Engineer deems necessary, including, but not limited to, all of the following:

1. Name or names of owners of the parcel.

2. Assessor parcel number or numbers of the parcel.

3. The number of parcels for which the certificate of compliance or conditional certificate of compliance is being issued and recorded.

4. Legal description of the parcel or parcels for which the certificate of compliance or conditional certificate of compliance is being issued and recorded.

5. A notice stating as follows: "This certificate relates only to issues of compliance or noncompliance with the Subdivision Map Act and local ordinances enacted pursuant thereto. The parcel described herein may be sold, leased, or financed without further compliance with the Subdivision Map Act or any local ordinance enacted pursuant thereto. Development of the parcel may require issuance of a permit or permits, or other grant or grants of approval."

6. (A)

Any conditions to be fulfilled and implemented prior to subsequent issuance of a permit or other grant of approval for development of the property, as specified in the conditional certificate of parcel compliance.

(B) The Town Engineer may process applications for certificates of compliance or conditional certificate of compliance concurrently and may record a single certificate of compliance or a single conditional certificate of compliance for multiple parcels. Where a single certificate of compliance or conditional certificate of compliance is certifying multiple parcels, the single certificate of compliance or conditional certificate of compliance shall clearly identify, and distinguish between, the descriptions of each such parcel.

(Ord. No. 2009-253, § 2, 7-15-2009)

a. If the Town Engineer or authorized representative has knowledge that real property has been divided in violation of the provisions of this Chapter or the Subdivision Map Act, a notice of intention to record a notice of violation shall be mailed by certified mail to the current owner of record. The notice shall describe the property in detail, name the owner, describe the violation, and state that the owner will be given opportunity to present evidence. The notice shall specify the date, time, and place for a meeting at which the owner may present evidence to the Town Engineer why a notice of violation should not be recorded.

b. The meeting shall be held no sooner than thirty (30) days and no later than sixty (60) days from the date of mailing. If, within fifteen (15) days of receipt of the notice, the owner fails to notify the Town Engineer of his/her objection to the recording of the notice of violation, the Town Engineer shall record it. If, after the owner presents evidence, the Town Engineer determines that the property has in fact been illegally divided, the Town Engineer shall record the notice of violation. If, after the owner presents evidence, the Town Engineer determines that there has been no violation, the Town Engineer shall mail a clearance letter to the owner.

c. The notice of violation, when recorded, shall be constructive notice of the violation to all successors in interest in the property.

(Ord. No. 2009-253, § 2, 7-15-2009)

a. Each violation of this Chapter by a person who is the subdivider or an owner of record, at the time of the violation, of property involved in the violation shall be punishable by imprisonment in the county jail not exceeding one year or in the state prison, by a fine not exceeding ten thousand dollars ($10,000), or by both fine and imprisonment. The Town may alternatively, in its discretion, charge such a violation as a misdemeanor. Every other violation of this Chapter is a misdemeanor.

b. Any person convicted of a misdemeanor under the provisions of this Chapter shall be punishable by imprisonment in the county jail not exceeding six (6) months, by fine not exceeding one thousand dollars ($1,000), or by both.

c. Except as otherwise provided in this Chapter, each person shall be guilty of a separate offense for each and every day during any portion of which any violation of any provision of this Chapter is committed, continued, or permitted by such person and shall be punishable accordingly.

(Ord. No. 2009-253, § 2, 7-15-2009)

Any action or proceeding to attack, review, set aside, void, or annul the decision of the Town Engineer, Planning Director, Planning Commission, or Town Council concerning a subdivision or any of the proceedings, acts, or determinations taken, done, or made prior to such decision, and any action or proceeding to determine the reasonableness, legality, or validity of any condition attached thereto shall not be maintained by any person, unless the action or proceeding is commenced and service of summons effected within ninety (90) days after the date of the decision. Thereafter, all persons are barred from any such action or proceeding or any defense of invalidity or unreasonableness of the decision or of the proceedings, acts, or determinations. Any such proceeding shall take precedence over all matters of the calendar of the court, except criminal, probate, eminent domain, forcible entry, and unlawful detainer proceedings.

(Ord. No. 2009-253, § 2, 7-15-2009)