Title
Consider public testimony regarding, and an ordinance amending the Zoning and Development Code Chapter 4, Article I, Section 4-9, Code of Ordinances (2018 Edition) regarding the addition of a platting exemption for certain single-family dwellings. (First Reading)*
Body
The City’s Zoning and Development Code requires that no building permit, certificate of occupancy, or any other permit shall be issued by the City for the construction or development of any parcel of land until a plat has been recorded. There are limited exceptions to the platting requirement including: cell towers, buildings for agricultural use, building modifications, and free standing signage.
The code amendment proposes to exempt a single family home from platting within the downtown area bounded by IH35, Brushy Creek, S AW Grimes Blvd, and the Union Pacific Railroad. This area contains many properties that are described by an unrecorded subdivision, or are described by a combination of partial lots from a recorded subdivision. The proposed code amendment shall only apply to properties where the current boundaries have existed in the same configuration since the proposed code amendment adoption date, ultimately to prevent illegal subdivisions of land and constructing multiple homes on a single property. A plat will continue to be required for facilitating any other development or redevelopment within the described downtown development area.
The existing layout of downtown Round Rock has been largely unchanged for over a century. Additionally, City utilities that service the downtown area are available, without extension, to virtually every property. The purpose of platting is to guide future growth and plan for orderly development when utility scenarios and subdivision layout are in the planning stages. It is staff’s opinion that requiring a plat for infill single-family home construction within downtown when streets, easements, and utilities already exist is excessive and unnecess...
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