HomeMy WebLinkAboutOrd 258 Declaring a 120 day moratorium regarding rezoning petitionsORDINANCE NO. c� � F
AN ORDINANCE OF THE TOWN OF WESTLAKE, TEXAS, PROVIDING
FOR A ONE -HUNDRED TWENTY (120) DAY MORATORIUM FOR THE
ACCEPTANCE, PROCESSING OR APPROVAL OF REZONING PETITIONS
FOR PLANNED DEVELOPMENT DISTRICTS FOR ANY REAL PROPERTY
WITHIN THE TOWN OF WESTLAKE, TARRANT AND DENTON
COUNTIES, TEXAS; SAID MORATORIUM BEING FOR THE PURPOSE OF
STUDYING AND AMENDING ZONING REGULATIONS APPLICABLE TO
PLANNED DEVELOPMENT DISTRICTS; PROVIDING AN EXEMPTION
AND APPEAL PROCESS; PROVIDING DEFINITIONS; PROVIDING A
SEVERABILITY CLAUSE, AN EFFECTIVE DATE, AND TERMINATION
DATE.
WHEREAS, the Town of Westlake anticipates that substantial new residential and non-
residential development will occur within the Town within the immediately foreseeable future,
much of which may be in the form of planned developments; and
WHEREAS, the Town's procedures and standards for planned development districts in
the existing Unified Development Code are outdated and hence inadequate to address the public
health, safety and welfare concerns occasioned by such growth; and
WHEREAS, the Town Planning and Zoning Commission is in the process of reviewing
amendments to the Unified Development Code applicable to planned development districts; and
WHEREAS, the Town reasonably anticipates that petitions to rezone land to Planned
Development Districts may occur within the immediate future and prior to the time that the
Town has enacted new regulations governing planned developments; and
WHEREAS, the Board of Aldermen finds that it is in the Town's best interests to
ensure that future development complies with the procedures and standards of the amendments
being reviewed in the public workshops and hearings conducted by the Town Planning and
Zoning Commission; and
WHEREAS, upon full review by the Board of Aldermen of all matters related thereto,
the Board of Aldermen is of the opinion that the public interest will be served by the provision
of a one- hundred -twenty (120) day moratorium on the acceptance or processing of all petitions
to rezone land to Planned Development Districts under existing provisions.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE BOARD OF ALDERMEN
OF THE TOWN OF WESTLAKE, TEXAS:
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Section I. Intent.
A. It is the purpose of this ordinance temporarily to limit, except as otherwise
provided herein, the acceptance or processing of petitions to rezone land to "PD" Planned
Development District or to amend existing planned development districts in anticipation of
adoption of new planned development regulations, in order to promote the public health, safety
and general welfare of the citizens of the Town of Westlake. It is not the intent of this
ordinance to deny development rights protected by statute or the Constitution.
B. It is the further intent of the Town of Westlake to enact new regulations
governing planned development districts in the most expeditious manner, and to consider any
appeals on the basis of criteria contained herein.
Section H. Definitions.
A. "Development Application" means any non-exempt request for authorization to
develop property within the Town of Westlake which is required by Town rule, regulation or
ordinance in order to perform an action or initiate or continue a project for which the permit is
sought, including without limitation the following types of applications and modifications or
amendments thereto: preliminary and final site plans, building permits and certificates of
occupancy.
B. "Rezoning Petition" means any request or application to rezone property to a
"PD" planned development district or to amend any conditions or requirements adopted by an
ordinance establishing an existing PD planned development district.
Section I11. Limitation on Processing of Applications.
A. Except as otherwise provided herein, after the effective date of, and extending
for the duration of this ordinance, no Town employee, officer, agent, bureau, department or
commission of the Town shall accept for filing any rezoning petition for a planned development
district nor take any action to process such applications, including but not limited to acceptance
of fees, review or evaluation of the applications, scheduling such applications for public review
or hearing, formulation of conditions or issuance of preliminary or final approvals of such
applications, except as hereinafter may be provided for.
B. The Town official responsible under Town regulations for reviewing
development applications shall first determine whether the development application or rezoning
petition is for a planned development district for which no exemption is provided pursuant to
this ordinance. In the event that the application is for a rezoning petition, the official shall take
no further action on the rezoning petition and shall return all documents submitted, together
with any proffered application fee, to the applicant with notification that the application or
petition will not be accepted for filing or further processing for the duration of this ordinance.
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Section IV. Exemptions.
This ordinance shall not apply to the following applications:
A. Any development application within a planned development district which was
established by the Town prior to the time of passage of this ordinance, other than a rezoning
petition;
B. Any subsequent development application, other than a rezoning petition, within a
planned development district following approval of an initial development application within the
district;
C. Any development application or rezoning petition initiated by the Town.
Section V. Appeals.
A. An applicant for a development application or rezoning petition aggrieved by the
Town's decision not to accept for filing or to further process such application may appeal for
relief to the Board of Aldermen. The appeal shall be in writing and shall be transmitted to the
Town Attorney within ten (10) days of the date of notification that the development application
or rezoning petition will not be accepted for filing or will not be further processed for the
duration of this ordinance.
B. The appeal shall be considered by the Board of Aldermen within thirty (30) days
of the date the appeal is received by the Town Attorney. The Board of Aldermen shall not
release the applicant from the requirements of this ordinance, unless the applicant first presents
credible evidence from which the Board of Aldermen can reasonably conclude that the delay in
accepting or processing the rezoning petition substantially deprives the applicant of vested
property rights protected by state lava or constitutional provision. The Board of Aldermen shall
also consider whether such potential deprivation outweighs the potential harm to the public
health, safety and general welfare resulting from rezoning of the land prior to the adoption of
new planned development regulations. If the applicant makes such showing, the Board of
Aldermen may reasonably formulate conditions on the authorization to proceed with the
application to achieve the following objectives.-
The
bjectives:
The suitability of the proposed land uses within the planned development
district in light of land uses allowed in the zoning districts on property
adjacent to the proposed site;
2. Adequacy of public facilities and services for development within the
proposed planned development district;
3. Prevention of negative impacts of the proposed planned development on
adjacent neighborhoods and community infrastructure.
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C. The Board of Aldermen may take the following actions:
Deny the appeal, in which case the rezoning petition shall not be accepted
or further processed;
2. Grant the appeal, and direct that the Town officials responsible for
reviewing the rezoning petition accept the petition and take steps to
further process the application;
Grant the appeal subject to conditions consistent with the criteria set
forth in this section, and direct that the Town official responsible for
reviewing the rezoning petition accept the petition and take steps to
further process the application.
Section VI. Term of Ordinance.
Unless extended by the Board of Aldermen, this ordinance shall continue in effect for a
period of one -hundred twenty (120) days from the date of adoption hereof, or until such time as
the Town enacts new planned development district regulations, whichever date shall first occur.
Section VII. Severability.
The terms and provisions of this ordinance shall be deemed to be severable and if the
validity of any section, subsection, sentence, clause or phrase of this ordinance should be
declared to be invalid, the same shall not affect the validity of any other section, subsection,
sentence, clause or phrase of this ordinance.
Section VIII. Effective Date.
This ordinance shall become effective immediately from and after its passage.
PASSED AND APPROVED BY THE BOARD OF ALDERMAN OF THE TOWN
OF WESTLAKE, TEXAS, this / day of O'c.A,-her 1996.
IZ�Ii�►,.Ilir1::1�i
Scott Bra ey, Mayor
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ATTEST:
roger ' oss(w ,Town retary
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
Paul Isham, Town Attorney
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