A.

Natural features and assets. In the subdividing of land, appropriate consideration must be given to all natural features, such as tree growth, watercourses, historic sites, or similar conditions which, if preserved, will add attractiveness to the proposed development and safety from hazards.

B.

Adequate buildable area required. Every platted lot except for lots devoted entirely to open space, private thoroughfares, or utilities shall contain an adequate building site outside the limits of required setbacks, buffers, flood plains, stream buffers, wetlands, steep slopes, and other site elements or requirements of this UDC that would make that area unbuildable.

C.

Flag lots.

1.

Intent. The creation of flag lots is strongly discouraged. however, subdivisions designed with one or more flag lots may be approved where conditions of hardship make standard design or frontage impossible or impractical due to the configuration of the lot to be subdivided.

2.

Denial if reasonable alternative exists. The zoning administrator (in the case of minor subdivisions, and farmette subdivisions) and the planning commission and city council (in the case of other subdivisions) shall have due cause to deny any plat that proposes any flag lot, when a reasonable alternative to such lot pattern is available.

3.

Panhandle (flag pole) length restriction. If permitted, no flag lot shall be allowed to be platted that has a "panhandle" portion (i.e., the narrow portion of the lot, designed for access rather than designed for building) that is more than 400 feet in length.

4.

Prohibition of abutting flag lots. If permitted, abutting flag lots shall share a single curb cut and driveway on an access easement.

D.

Side lot lines. Insofar as practical, side lot lines shall be at right angles to straight thoroughfare lines or radial to curved thoroughfare lines.

E.

Corner lots. Corner lots shall have adequate width to meet the front building setback requirements, if applicable, from all rights-of-way.

F.

Multiple frontage lots. Multiple frontage lots shall be avoided except where essential to provide separation of residential development from highways or boulevards or to overcome specific disadvantages of topography or orientation. Multiple frontage lots with frontage on a highway or boulevard thoroughfare shall have additional depth in order to allow space for screen planting along the lot line abutting a highway, avenue, or boulevard thoroughfare.

G.

Mortgage lots.

1.

Where a lending institution requires, for the purposes of a loan or mortgage, a description of property that encompasses less land area than a lot of record, one or two mortgage lots may be lawfully created from the lot of record without constituting a subdivision.

2.

The applicant shall be required to file with the zoning administrator a copy of the plat creating the mortgage lot, which may be recorded in the records of the county superior court.

3.

No mortgage lot shall be less than one acre or larger than ten acres in size.

4.

No mortgage lot shall be created unless it has a minimum 20-foot-wide access easement connecting to a public or private thoroughfare.

(Ord. No. 21-10-228, § 1, 10-5-2021)

A.

Where a watercourse, drainage way, channel, or stream traverses a subdivision, there shall be provided a stormwater or drainage easement of adequate width. Easements shall be provided for all drainage facilities as approved by the zoning administrator.

B.

Where easements are needed for utility locations, the subdivider shall provide them to the appropriate utility provider. Where easements are needed for public water and/or sanitary sewer lines, they shall be provided as determined appropriate by the zoning administrator.

C.

Where easements are needed to ensure public access on private thoroughfares, the subdivider shall provide them to the city. These easements shall be recorded with the county clerk of superior court.

D.

Where easements are needed to ensure private access on access ways or private drives, the subdivider shall provide them to the adjoining property owners affected. These easements shall be recorded with the county clerk of superior court and copies supplied to the zoning administrator as a part of the final plat application.

E.

All easements required pursuant to this section shall be shown on the preliminary plat, if required, and final plat.

(Ord. No. 21-10-228, § 1, 10-5-2021)

A.

For all subdivisions, a state registered land surveyor shall install permanent survey monuments at all property corners and land lot lines, prior to final plat approval. Lot corners shall be marked with metal rods not less than one-half inch in diameter and 18 inches in length and driven so as to be stabilized in the ground.

B.

Permanent survey monuments shall also be installed in accordance with the most recent edition of section 180-7-.05, Monument, of the Rules of State Board of Registration for Professional Engineers and Land Surveyors and the Georgia Plat Act (O.C.G.A. § 15-6-67).

(Ord. No. 21-10-228, § 1, 10-5-2021)

A.

The zoning administrator shall ensure that all subdivisions are designed in a manner that will:

1.

Enhance traffic circulation and other community needs;

2.

Encourage pedestrian traffic to schools, parks, existing and planned greenspace corridors, and neighborhood centers;

3.

Reduce impacts on streams and lakes;

4.

Reduce unwanted noise and lights on neighboring lots; and

5.

Discourage vehicular speeding on local streets.

(Ord. No. 21-10-228, § 1, 10-5-2021)

A.

Farmette subdivisions shall only be permitted in the rural (RL) zoning district and may be created by following the minor subdivision procedures when consisting of five or fewer lots. When a farmette subdivision results in six or more lots the major subdivision process must be followed.

B.

The subdivision shall provide an entrance on each road frontage but shall provide no more than one entrance per 1,500 feet of frontage on each road.

C.

Subdivisions with more than 20 lots must provide two entrances. The zoning administrator may waive the requirement for a second entrance if the applicant provides evidence that a second entrance is not possible due to the presence of natural constraints or limited frontage. The zoning administrator may require a 20-foot no-access easement and planting strip along the thoroughfare to ensure that lots fronting on the thoroughfare do not have access thereto.

D.

All lots shall meet the buffer requirements of subsection 5-8.E along all abutting external thoroughfares. Farmette lot layout should be designed in a way as to encourage an interconnected network of permanent open spaces.

E.

The maximum allowed land disturbance area for residential uses and residential accessory uses on each lot shall be ten percent of the lot area, not to exceed two acres. This does not include driveways.

F.

The maximum allowed land disturbance area for agricultural structures on each lot shall be four percent of the lot area, unless otherwise approved by the city council.

G.

A conservation easement pursuant to the Georgia Uniform Conservation Easement Act and the Conservation Easement requirements of section 13-11.A.2 of the City of Chattahoochee Hills, Georgia, Unified Development Code must be placed on the portion of the property that is not the residential use disturbance area.

H.

In farmette subdivisions, private drives serving more than five lots must be built to public thoroughfare standards. Gravel thoroughfares are acceptable.

(Ord. No. 21-10-228, § 1, 10-5-2021; Ord. No. 23-02-254, § 28, 2-7-2023; Ord. No. 25-08-287, § 4, 8-5-2025)

The intent of this section is to facilitate the continuation of the family farming unit and the legacy family character of the rural (RL) district.

Notwithstanding the requirements of this section and section 6-3, family lots maybe created in a farmette subdivision with the following limitations.

A.

No more than three family lots may be created from any property existing on January 1, 2007.

B.

No resulting lot may be less than three acres in size.

C.

The property owner or their ancestors must have had a recorded title to the property before January 1, 2007. The property owner must retain development rights necessary to permit the proposed lots.

D.

The owner of the lot may only lease or sell the family lot to an immediate family member, who then must abide by the original conditions. For the purposes of this section, an immediate family member must be a parent, biological or legally adopted child, stepchild, or child-in-law; sibling or step-sibling or sibling-in-law; grandparent; grandchild; uncle or aunt; or nephew or niece.

E.

Ownership of the family lot cannot be transferred within five years of the date of the approved creation of the lot, except to another immediate family member, or where the planning commission finds a hardship such as a death of the family member or a bona fide foreclosure of the mortgage or deed of trust.

F.

Any deed or other instrument conveying title from the owner of the property to a family member must be signed by both the grantor and the grantee. The grantor must clearly and conspicuously state, and the grantee must acknowledge, that the conveyed property is a family lot subject to the requirements of this section.

G.

Any family lot deed must include the following language:

For a period of five years from the approved creation of this lot, ownership may not be transferred to anyone that is not a parent, biological or legally adopted child, stepchild, or child-in-law; sibling or step-sibling or sibling-in-law; grandparent; grandchild; uncle or aunt; or nephew or niece.

(Ord. No. 21-10-228, § 1, 10-5-2021; Ord. No. 25-08-287, § 4, 8-5-2025)

A.

A property owners association, homeowners association, or equivalent body shall be established in all hamlet (HM) and village (VL) districts.

B.

The association shall be responsible for services and maintenance as described herein.

C.

The association shall annually assess each property owner an amount sufficient to maintain and replace infrastructure, as necessary.

D.

The association shall be responsible for all repair, maintenance, operation, and management of private infrastructure, including roads, stormwater infrastructure, shared wastewater infrastructure, and required open space, as applicable.

E.

The developer may reserve in the association governing documents a period of time during which the developer is entitled to appoint a majority of the board of directors. This period of developer control shall terminate no later than three months after 80 percent of the total approved number of dwellings in the development have been issued a certificate of occupancy.

(Ord. No. 21-10-228, § 1, 10-5-2021)