23.24.040

A. The Director shall, after conferring with appropriate officials, use the following criteria to determine whether to grant, condition, or deny a short plat: 1. Conformance to the applicable Land Use Code provisions, as modified by this Chapter 23.24 ; 2. Adequacy of access for pedestrians, vehicles, utilities, and fire protection as provided in Section 23.53.005 and Section 23.53.006 ; 3. Adequacy of drainage, water supply, and sanitary sewage disposal; 4. Whether the public use and interests are served by permitting the proposed division of land; 5. Conformance to the applicable provisions of Section 25.09.240 in environmentally critical areas and Section 23.60A.156 ; 6. For lots in the Shoreline District, conformance to the applicable provisions of Section 23.60A.168 ; 7. Whether the proposed division of land is designed to maximize the retention of existing trees; 8. Conformance to the provisions of Section 23.24.045 when the short subdivision is for the purpose of creating separate lots of record for the construction and/or transfer of title of single-family dwelling units, townhouse, rowhouse, and cottage housing developments, existing apartment structures built prior to January 1, 2013, but not individual apartment units, or any combination of the above types of residential development, as permitted in the applicable zones; and 9. Every lot, except unit lots and lots proposed to be platted for individual live-work units in zones where live-work units are permitted, shall conform to the following standards for lot configuration, unless a special exception is authorized under subsection 23.24.040.B: a. If a lot is proposed with street frontage, then one lot line shall abut the street for at least 10 feet; and b. No lot shall be less than 10 feet wide for a distance of more than 10 feet as measured at any point; and c. No proposed lot shall have more than six separate lot lines. The lot lines shall be straight lines, unless the irregularly shaped lot line is caused by an existing right-of-way or an existing lot line; and d. If the property proposed for subdivision is adjacent to an alley, and the adjacent alley is either improved or required to be improved according to the standards of Section 23.53.030 , then no new lot shall be proposed that does not provide alley access, except that access from a street to an existing use or structure is not required to be changed to alley access. Proposed new lots shall either have sufficient frontage on the alley to meet access standards for the zone in which the property is located or provide an access easement from the proposed new lot or lots to the alley that meets access standards for the zone in which the property is located. B. Special exception. The Director may modify the standards of subsection 23.24.040.A.9, as a Type II special exception decision, if the applicant demonstrates that the proposed plat meets the following criteria: 1. The property has one of the following conditions not created by the applicant: a. Topography, natural obstructions, configuration of existing lot lines prior to platting, existing platting patterns, or street alignment that prevent the platting of one or more lots according to the standards of subsection 23.24.040.A.8; b. Location of existing principal structures that are retained on lots existing prior to the proposed platting require a platting configuration of one or more lots that cannot reasonably meet the standards of subsection 23.24.040.A.8; c. Location of existing easements or feasibility of access to portions of the property prevents the configuration of proposed plat lines that meet the standards of subsection 23.24.040.A.8. 2. Modification of the standards of subsection 23.24.040.A.8 shall be the minimum necessary to allow platting of lots that each contain a building area for development meeting the development standards of the zone in which the proposed plat is located. 3. Lots created under the special exception standards of this subsection 23.24.040.B shall not have a configuration that requires a variance from setbacks and yard requirements of the Land Use Code or a variance or exception from Chapter 25.09 for any development that may be proposed on the lots. (Ord. 126685 , § 2, 2022 [cross-reference update]; Ord. 126157 , § 5, 2020; Ord. 125603 , § 3, 2018; Ord. 125272 , § 5, 2017; Ord. 124378 , § 6, 2013; Ord. 123809, § 2, 2012; Ord. 122615 , § 5, 2007; Ord. 121163 § 1, 2003; Ord. 120691 , § 4, 2001; Ord. 119791 § 4, 1999; Ord. 119239 § 3, 1998; Ord. 118414 § 2, 1996; Ord. 118409 § 176, 1996: Ord. 117570 § 7, 1995; Ord. 117430 , § 2, 1994; Ord. 117263 , § 2, 1994; Ord. 116262 , § 3, 1992; Ord. 111390 § 2, 1983; Ord. 110669 § 4, 1982; Ord. 110570 § 1(part), 1982.)