Subdivision

Laws governing subdivisions: The Subdivision Map Act

The Subdivision Map Act applies to both general law and charter cities. Different from both the Subdivision Map Act and local subdivision ordinances is California's Subdivided Lands Law. This statute regulates offerings of land in a subdivision for sale or lease and is administered by the California Real Estate Commissioner, rather than a city or county.

Laws governing subdivisions: Local subdivision ordinances.

Every city and county must adopt a subdivision ordinance. This ordinance may address topics beyond those covered in the Map Act and some cities and counties do so. But the local ordinance may not be in conflict with the Map Act.

What is a subdivision?

Under the Subdivision Map Act, a subdivision is a division of land for the purpose of sale, lease, or financing. The provision regarding financing reflects the practice of using a portion of an existing parcel as security for a loan. In the event of foreclosure, that portion of land put up as security is transferred to the holder of the loan. The result would be creation of a legal parcel without the benefit of the subdivision process were it not for this provision. Subdivision results in a legally recognized parcel.

The significance of a legally created parcel.

A legally recognized parcel does not guarantee a right to develop it in a particular fashion. The ability to develop a parcel is a function of other land use regulations. It may also be affected by "property rights" protections. Note that while Assessor's Parcel Numbers are used for property taxation purposes, they do not establish parcels under the Subdivision Map Act and, therefore, should not be relied on to identify legally created parcels for land use planning and development.

Types of subdivision maps: parcel maps v. tentative and final maps

Generally, a subdivision that creates four or fewer parcels requires a "parcel map." A subdivision creating five or more parcels requires a "tentative map" and "final map." There are exceptions to this rule. For example, subdivisions creating five or more parcels, where each parcel created by the division has a gross area of 20 acres or more and has an approved access to a maintained public street or highway, require a parcel map rather than the more complex tentative and final maps.When both a tentative map and final map are required, the tentative map is where the real planning occurs. It is a "discretionary" approval, at which point the design and improvement of the subdivision are considered, the ultimate number of parcels that will be created determined, provisions for infrastructure and public facilities made, and environmental consequences considered. Final map approval is a ministerial act - a final map will be approved if it is in substantial compliance with the tentative map, including the conditions that were attached to tentative map approval.

Exceptions to mapping requirements

1. Industrial, commercial, apartment building and mobile home or trailer park leases.

2. Agricultural leases and, under certain circumstances, leases for agricultural labor housing.

3. Lot line adjustments when no new parcels are created.

4. Constructing or leasing accessory dwelling units, but not their sale or transfer.

5. Converting units in stock cooperative and community apartment projects to condominiums if certain requirements are met.

6. Movable commercial buildings having floor area of less than 100 square feet, if so provided by local ordinance.

7. Leasing of or granting an easement to land for wind powered electrical generation devices if the project is subject to discretionary action by the city.

8. Activities related to the use of land for cellular radio transmission facilities, if the project is subject to discretionary review by the city.

9. Conveyances to and from public entities and public utilities unless the city determines that public policy necessitates.

Procedures for subdivision map application, consideration, and approval or denial.

1. The applicant submits a proposed subdivision map, along with such additional information as the city requires

2. The city reviews the application for completeness, resulting in either a determination that the application is complete; a response regarding still-needed information; or, if the city fails to respond within 30 days, an application "deemed complete."

3. City staff reviews the application and conducts required environmental review under the California Environmental Quality Act

4. By local choice, the "advisory agency" (typically the planning commission or planning staff) or city council holds a public hearing on the application and approves it, denies it, or approves it with conditions (in some cities, the advisory agency makes a recommendation to the city council, which makes the decision on the application).

5. If the decision on the application is made by the advisory agency, any "interested party" (broadly defined, to include neighbors and others in the community, for example) may appeal the decision to city council.

6. If a tentative map is approved, it has a "life" of 24-36 months, by local choice; there are a variety of mechanisms to extend the life of the tentative map.

7. During the life of the tentative map, the applicant can file a final map for approval; failing to do so, the tentative map would expire and the applicant would need to obtain a new tentative map to restart the subdivision map approval process.

Map approval.

1. The subdivision is consistent with the general plan and any applicable specific plan, meaning that it is compatible with the plan's objectives, policies, general land uses, and programs.

2. For areas within a "state responsibility area" or "very high fire severity zone," a county generally must find that: (1) the design and location of the subdivision is consistent with applicable regulations adopted by the State Board of Forestry and Fire Protection; (2) structural fire protection and suppression services will be available; and (3) to the extent practicable, the subdivision meets the regulations regarding road standards for fire equipment access.

3. For subdivisions of 500 or more units (or, when the proposed public water provider has fewer than 5,000 service connections, a proposed residential development would account for a 10 percent increase in service connections), the city must condition the subdivision's tentative map on the availability of a sufficient water supply.

4. For a city or county within the Sacramento-San Joaquin Valley, in order to approve a subdivision located within a flood hazard zone, it must find either: (1) flood management facilities protect the subdivision to identified levels; (2) the city or county has imposed conditions on the subdivision that will protect the project to those levels; (3) the local flood management agency has made adequate progress on the construction of a flood protection system that will result in flood protection equal to those levels; or (4) the property in an undetermined risk area has met the urban level of flood protection.

Map denial.

1. The proposed subdivision is inconsistent with the general plan or any applicable specific plan.

2. The site is not suited for the proposed type or density of development

3. The design or improvement of the proposed subdivision is likely to cause substantial environmental damage or substantially and avoidably injure fish, wildlife or their habitats (unless mitigation measures are infeasible, in which case there is an override provision linked to CEQA) or cause serious public health problems.

4. The subdivision's design or improvements would conflict with public easements for access through or use of property within subdivision.

5. The property to be subdivided is subject to the agricultural land protections of the Williamson Act (subject to certain exceptions), an open space or conservation easement, or an agricultural conservation easement, and the resulting parcel would be too small to sustain agricultural use, subject to certain exceptions.

5. The map does not provide for public access to an adjacent river or stream, ocean or bay shoreline, or publicly owned lake or reservoir

Imposing conditions on subdivision approvals.

Subdivision approvals provide an opportunity to impose conditions to address the effects associated with new development.

Vesting tentative maps.

The Map Act provides for a special kind of tentative subdivision map that establishes a degree of certainty against changes in land use regulations at an earlier point than would otherwise be the case.