§ 12.301. GENERAL POWERS

A.

Generally. The Planning Commission is established by City of Galveston Home Rule Charter, Article 10, Planning. The Commission shall have final decision-making authority and shall make recommendations to City Council.

B.

Decisions. The Commission shall have the following powers:

1.

Review and Decision. The Commission shall review and decide the following types of development related applications:

a.

Preliminary and final plats;

b.

Replats, minor plats, and amendments to approved plats except for those which are handled administratively by the Development Services Director pursuant to Texas Local Government Code Section 212.0065 and these regulations;

c.

Approval of subdivisions with an alternative standard of compliance for any requirement of Article 6, Subdivision Design and Land Development;

d.

Appeals of decisions by City staff related to the subdivision regulations as provided in Article 13, Permits and Procedures;

e.

Permanent licenses to use (LTU) City right-of-ways and certain other LTUs as provided in Chapter 32-5 of the City Code;

f.

Beachfront Construction Certificates and Dune Protection Permits as specified by Chapter 29 of Galveston City Code, except for those which are handled administratively by the Development Services Director, as provided in these regulations; and,

g.

Any other actions specifically assigned by these regulations.

2.

Review and Recommendation. The Commission shall review and make a recommendation to the Council for the following types of applications:

a.

Rezoning of property including creation and/or amendment of historic overlay districts, specific use permit approval, and designation of GLs and NCDs;

b.

Determination and placement of new and unlisted uses within zoning districts;

c.

Amendments to the text of these regulations;

d.

Abandonment of any City rights-of-way;

e.

Any other review and recommendation responsibilities specifically assigned by these regulations and/or the City of Galveston Home Rule Charter; and

h.

Site Plans and all amendments to such plans as required in the Planned Unit Development District (PUD) and Specific Use Permits (SUP).

C.

Other Powers. The Commission is also empowered, on its own initiative or as requested by the City Council, to:

1.

Periodically review these regulations, the Comprehensive Plan, and other plans of the City, and make recommendations regarding updates and amendments;

2.

Submit reports and recommendations for the orderly growth, development, and redevelopment of the City;

3.

Initiate zoning map amendments, and

4.

Require information from City departments in relation to its work and responsibilities.

D.

Variances. The Planning Commission may authorize a variance from Article 6, Subdivision Design and Land Regulations when undue hardship will result from requiring strict compliance. In granting a variance, the Planning Commission shall prescribe only conditions that it deems necessary or desirable to the public interest; in making the required findings, the Planning Commission shall take into account the character of the proposed use of the land involved and existing uses of land in the vicinity, the number of persons who will reside or work in the proposed subdivision, and the probable effect of such variances upon traffic conditions and upon the public health, safety, convenience, and welfare in the vicinity. No variance shall be granted unless the Planning Commission finds:

1.

That there are special or unique circumstances or conditions affecting the land involved such that the strict application of this ordinance would deprive the applicant of the reasonable use of his land.

2.

That the granting of the variance will not be detrimental to the public health, safety, welfare, or injurious to other property in the area.

3.

That the granting of the variance will not have the effect of preventing the orderly subdivision of other land in the area in accordance with the provisions of this ordinance. Such findings of the Planning Commission, together with the specified facts upon which such findings are based, shall be incorporated into the official minutes of the Planning Commission meeting at which such variance is granted. Pecuniary hardship to the subdivider, standing alone, shall not be deemed to constitute hardship.

4.

Authorization for a variance under the conditions set forth herein shall require an affirmative vote by two- thirds of the Planning Commission members.

E.

Exaction Variances

1.

Definitions.

a.

Permit: For purposes of this section permit shall carry the meaning defined for that term by Chapter 245 of the Texas Local Government Code, as amended.

b.

Public facilities system: means the collection of public infrastructure facilities owned or operated by or in behalf of the City for the purpose of providing services to the public including existing and new developments.

c.

Public infrastructure improvement: means an improvement to a component part of the above-defined public facilities system required in whole or in part as a consequence of development.

2.

Purpose, Applicability, and Designation.

a.

Purpose: The purpose of a proportionality appeal is to assure that a requirement to dedicate, construct, or pay a fee for a public infrastructure improvement imposed on a proposed plat or development as a condition of approval does not result in a disproportionate cost burden on the property owner, taking into consideration the nature and extent of the demands created by the proposed development on the City's public facilities systems.

b.

Applicability: An appeal under this section may be filed by a property owner to contest any requirement to dedicate land, to construct improvements, to pay development fees, or other than impact fees for a public infrastructure improvement which requirement is imposed under the City's Article 6, Subdivision Regulations to a plat application pursuant to this regulation, whether the requirement is applicable under uniform standards or is imposed pursuant to an individual evaluation of the proposed subdivision.

c.

Designation: The City Manager may designate and retain another licensed professional engineer to perform the duties assigned to the City Engineer by this section as needed to adjust workflow or to provide specific expertise.

3.

Proportionality Determination by City Engineer. Prior to consideration and approval of a final plat application or other requested permit requiring dedication or construction of a public infrastructure improvement, and upon receipt of a written request by applicant or platting entity, the City Engineer shall prepare a report affirming that each public infrastructure improvement to be imposed as a condition of plat or permit approval is roughly proportionate to the demand created by the development on the City's public facilities systems, taking into consideration the nature and extent of the development proposed. In making his proportionality determination, the City Engineer may rely upon data submitted by the developer or applicant as well as:

a.

Findings pertaining to on-site improvements;

b.

The proposed or potential use of the land;

c.

The timing and sequence of development in relation to availability of adequate levels of public facilities;

d.

Impact fee studies or other studies that measure the demand for services created by the development and the impact on the City's public facilities systems;

e.

The function of the public infrastructure improvements in serving the proposed development; the degree to which public infrastructure improvements to serve the subdivision are supplied by other developments;

f.

The anticipated participation by the City in the costs of such improvements or any reimbursements for the costs of public infrastructure improvements for which the proposed development is eligible; or

g.

Any other information relating to the mitigating effects of the public infrastructure improvements on the impacts created by the development on the City's public facilities systems.

The proportionality assessment must be based upon an individualized determination related both in nature and extent to the impact of the proposed development, but no precise mathematical calculation is required. Wherever feasible and appropriate, the determination may incorporate or consider:

a.

Applicable federal, state, local, or regional data, statistics, guidelines, standards, methodologies, or studies; or

b.

Generally accepted best practices of the profession.

Based upon his proportionality determination, the City Engineer shall affirm that the developer's portion of the costs required for infrastructure improvements does not exceed the amount that is roughly proportionate to the impacts of the proposed development.

The City Engineer may promulgate any application requirements that may assist in making the proportionality determination required by this Subsection.

4.

Commission Determination. The City Planning Commission shall take into account the City Engineer's report concerning the proportionality of public infrastructure improvement requirements to be applied to a proposed final plat application or permit approval, as the case may be, in making its decision on the plat application or permit approval and shall identify any variation to the requirements that are to be included as conditions to plat or permit approval.

5.

Appeals for Exaction Variance. An appeal to the City Council under this section may be filed by a property owner or the applicant for a final plat or permit, in which a requirement to dedicate land for, construct or pay a fee for a public infrastructure improvement has been applied or attached as a condition of approval by the Planning Commission for final plat approval or as grounds for recommending denial of the pending plat application.

a.

Time for Filing and Request for Extension of Time. The appeal shall be filed in writing within ten days of the date of the Planning Commission's final plat approval or denial. The appeal shall be filed with the Development Services Department, who shall place the item for consideration at an upcoming meeting of the City Council.

b.

Form of Appeal. An appeal under this Section shall allege that application of the standard or the imposition of conditions relating to the dedication, construction or fee requirement is not roughly proportional to the nature and extent of the impacts created by the proposed development on the City's public facilities systems, or does not reasonably benefit the proposed development.

c.

Study Required. The appellant shall provide a study in support of the appeal that includes the following information within 30 days of the date of appeal unless a longer time is requested in writing not to exceed 60 days total:

i.

Total capacity of the City's roadway, drainage, or park system to be utilized by the proposed development, employing standard measures of capacity and equivalency tables relating the type of development proposed to the quantity of system capacity to be consumed by the development. If the proposed development is to be developed in phases, such information also shall be provided for the entire development proposed, including any phases already developed.

ii.

Total capacity to be supplied to the City's roadway, drainage, or park facilities system by the dedication of an interest in land, construction of improvements, or fee contribution. If the Plat application is proposed as a phased development, the information shall include any capacity supplied by prior dedication, construction, or fee payments.

iii.

Comparison of the capacity of the City's public facilities system(s) to be consumed by the proposed development with the capacity to be supplied to such system(s) by the proposed dedication of an interest in land, construction of improvements, or fee payment. In making this comparison, the impacts on the City's public facilities system(s) from the entire development shall be considered.

iv.

The amount of any City participation in the costs of over sizing the public infrastructure improvement to be constructed in accordance with the City's requirements.

v.

Any other information that shows the alleged disproportionality between the impacts created by the proposed development and the dedication, construction, or fee requirement imposed by the City.

d.

Evaluation; Recommendation. The City Engineer shall evaluate the appeal and supporting study and shall make a recommendation to the City Council based upon the information contained in the study and the City Engineer's analysis based upon the same factors considered in making his original proportionality determination.

e.

Decision. The City Council shall decide the appeal and may take one of the following actions:

i.

Deny the appeal and impose the standard or condition on the plat or permit application in accordance with the City Engineer's recommendation or the Planning Commission's decision on the plat;

ii.

Deny the appeal upon finding that the proposed dedication, construction, or fee requirements are inadequate to offset the impacts of the subdivision on the public facilities system for water, wastewater, roadway, drainage, or park improvements and either deny the plat or permit application or require that additional public infrastructure improvements be made as a condition of approval of the application;

iii.

Grant the appeal and waive in whole or in part any dedication, construction, or fee requirement for public infrastructure improvements to the extent necessary to achieve proportionality; or

iv.

Grant the appeal and direct that the City participate in the costs of acquiring land for or constructing the public infrastructure improvement under standard participation policies.

f.

Criteria for Approval. In deciding an appeal under this section, the City Council shall determine whether the application of the standard or condition requiring dedication of an interest in land for, construction of, or payment of a fee for public infrastructure improvements is roughly proportional to the nature and extent of the impacts created by the proposed subdivision on the City's public facilities systems for water, wastewater, roadway, drainage, or park facilities and reasonably benefits the development. In making such determination, the Council shall consider the evidence submitted by the appellant, the City Engineer's report, and recommendation.

g.

Action Following Decision. If the relief requested under the proportionality appeal is granted in whole or in part by the City Council, the dedication, construction, or fee requirement initially recommended by the Planning Commission as a condition of plat or permit approval shall be modified accordingly and the standards applied or the conditions attached to approval of the plat or permit application shall be conformed to the relief granted.

h.

New Study Following Modification. If the plat or permit application is modified to increase the number of residential units or the intensity of non-residential uses, the responsible official may require a new study to validate the relief granted by the City Council.

i.

Expiration of Relief. If an applicant for plat or permit approval prevails on a proportionality appeal but fails to conform the Plat or Permit application to the relief granted by the City Council within the 90 day period provided, the relief granted by the City Council on the appeal shall expire.

j.

Extensions. The Council may extend the time for filing the revised plat or permit application for good cause shown, but in any event, the expiration date for the relief granted shall not be extended beyond one year from the date relief was granted on the appeal.

k.

Subsequent Application. If the Plat application for which relief was granted is denied on other grounds, a new petition for relief shall be required on any subsequent application.

( Ord. No. 18-037, § 2, 6-21-18 )