§ 57-3. General regulations and jurisdiction.

(a)

Plat required. It shall be unlawful for any person being the owner, agent, or person having control of any land within the city, to subdivide or lay out such land in lots unless by a plat, in accordance with the regulations contained herein. No lots shall be sold nor any plat recorded until such plat has been approved as herein provided.

(b)

No sale without plat. No lot, parcel, or tract of land within any subdivision shall be offered for sale, contract for sale, or option be given until said subdivision plat has been officially approved by the city planning commission and board of aldermen and recorded in the office of the county recorder.

(c)

Improvements, plat required. No improvements, other than grading with the appropriate permit shall be made within any subdivision by any owner or owners, or his or their agent, or by any public service corporation at the request of said owner or owners or by his or their agent, until the final plans have been officially approved by the planning and zoning commission and board of aldermen.

(d)

Street access required. Each lot shall abut on a street right-of-way with a minimum lot frontage appropriate to the zone in which it is located.

(e)

Street plan compliance. The city shall not accept, lay out, open, improve, grade, pave or light any street, lay or authorize the laying of water mains, sewers, connections or other utilities in any street within the city unless the street has received the legal status of a public street prior to the adoption of the comprehensive plan; or unless the street corresponds in its location and lines with a street shown on a subdivision plan approved by the board of aldermen or on a street plan made by and adopted by the planning commission. The board of aldermen may locate and construct or may accept any other street if the ordinance or other measure for the location and construction or for the acceptance is first submitted to the city planning commission for its approval and approved by the commission or, if disapproved by the commission, is passed by the affirmative vote of not less than two-thirds ( 2/3 ) of the entire membership of the board of aldermen.

(f)

Master plan. Where a tract of land is proposed to be subdivided in two (2) or more stages over a period of years, and the subdivider requests approval in parts, he shall, at the time of submission of the preliminary plat of the first phase, submit a master plan of the entire tract to be eventually developed. The master plan shall include, at a minimum, the appropriate sectioning and street and lot layouts to demonstrate to the planning commission that the total design as proposed for the entire subdivision is feasible. The developer may, at his option, submit a detailed master plan in compliance with sections 57-5 and 57-6. Such detailed master plan will serve as the preliminary plat for all phases. The planning and zoning commission and board of aldermen shall give approval or disapproval to the master plan and/or preliminary plat(s) and final plats of phases as submitted from time to time. In the event of disapproval of the preliminary plat or any phase thereof, the planning and zoning commission and board of aldermen shall act in accordance with this chapter and the reason for refusal of any plat or part thereof shall be written upon the records of the planning and zoning commission stating the specific regulation or regulations of nonconformance.

(g)

Exclusions. Excluded from these regulations are:

(1)

The division of land into not more than four (4) lots or parcels in which all lots or parcels are three (3) or more acres in area is exempted from the provisions for preparing and filing a plat, but shall be certified by the planning and zoning commission.

(2)

The division of land for cemetery usage.

(3)

The sale or exchange of parcels of land between owners of adjoining property for the purpose of correcting or adjusting lines or increasing the size of property already owned by one of the parties, provided that additional lots are not thereby created and that the original lots are not reduced below the minimum size required by the zoning ordinance. The exchange of such land shall be certified by the planning and zoning commission.

(4)

The transfer, exchange, or sale of adjoining property to improve ingress or egress to existing lots, tracts, and areas. The exchange of such land shall be certified by the planning and zoning commission.

(5)

The combination or recombination of all or portions of previously platted lots where the total number of lots is not increased and the resulting lots comply with all provisions of this chapter. The combination of such land shall be certified by the planning and zoning commission.

(h)

Minimum requirements. The provisions of this chapter shall be held to be the minimum requirements necessary for land subdivision within the jurisdiction of this chapter.

(Ord. No. 02-45, § 1, 7-1-02)