Manchester City Zoning Code
ARTICLE XV
Commercial or Industrial Improvements
Section 405.670 General Provisions.
[Ord. No. 99-1145 Art. 7 §1, 9-20-1999; Ord. No. 20-2290, 3-2-2020]
A.
Improvement Guarantee Required. After the improvement plans have been approved and all fees paid, but before issuance of any building permits, the developer of any commercial or industrial development shall guarantee the proper and timely completion of site improvements associated with the development as shown on the approved improvement plans and in conformance with City specifications and standards. To provide the City with such guarantee of completion, the developer must enter into an improvement guarantee agreement backed by a surety bond, letter of credit or cash escrow, in the City's standard form developed and approved by the City Attorney of Manchester (the "guarantee agreement"). The guarantee agreement will insure to the City that the improvement will be completed by the developer within the time period set forth in the guarantee agreement. The amount pledged to guarantee completion of the improvements shall not be less than the estimated cost of the improvements plus a 10% contingency, and the amount of the estimated cost of the improvements must be approved by the Director of Planning. The estimate shall be prepared by the developer of the commercial or industrial project. If the improvements are not completed within the specified time, the Director of Planning may use the bond, letter of credit or funds in escrow, or any necessary portion thereof, to complete the same per Subsection (E) below.
B.
City's Bond Form. Should the developer of the commercial or industrial area desire to provide a surety bond, the bond form should be approved by the City Attorney of Manchester.
C.
Authorization to Execute Guarantee Agreement. All guarantee agreements properly submitted, compliant with this Section and fully executed by the developer of a commercial or industrial project may be executed by the Director of Planning on behalf of the City of Manchester.
D.
Minimum Improvements. The minimum improvements to be included in improvement plans and installed as part of any commercial or industrial area are as follows:
1.
The developer of the commercial or industrial area shall grade and improve all new streets and alleys (if any) within the commercial or industrial area. The Building Official shall be provided with sample corings of the streets in said commercial or industrial area, along with a report by an accredited testing laboratory recognized by the St. Louis County Highway Department as competent to perform such tests, establishing that said streets meet the requirements of ordinances of the City of Manchester applicable thereto. The paving on such new streets shall be concrete and the paving on such streets are to have a minimum thickness of concrete as required by City ordinance in a minimum width as required by the Building Official.
2.
The developer of the commercial or industrial area shall grade and improve all parking lots and service drives in compliance with requirements of the City of Manchester ordinances, consisting of the following: vertical concrete curbs, granular base with asphalt overlay and/or poured concrete, striping and appropriate marking and concrete bumper blocks.
3.
All commercial or industrial areas shall be served by public water system. The developer shall show to the Commission prior to approval of the final plat that mains and hydrants have been installed or security provided in lieu thereof to the satisfaction of the public utility, and that required hydrants have been located by the standards of the Missouri Inspection Bureau and the Manchester Fire Protection District.
4.
The developer of the commercial or industrial area shall install sanitary sewers and provide a connection for each commercial or industrial location. Industrial users shall be serviced by individual manholes for each building. Such installations shall be in accordance with the standards and specifications of the St. Louis County Public Works Department, the Commission, Building Official, and Missouri Department of Natural Resources.
5.
Storm sewer improvements shall be designed and constructed to standards and specifications approved by the Commission with the advice of the Building Official.
6.
Street lights shall be installed along all streets in the commercial or industrial area. Location, type and number of lights required shall be as set by the Commission after receiving recommendations from Ameren UE. Street lights shall be supported only on concrete standards and all cables and connections shall be installed underground. Developers or builders shall pay installation cost and the first (1st) year rental on street lights installed within their respective business location where the street will be dedicated to the City of Manchester.
7.
Sidewalks shall be required for pedestrian circulation and access to all business locations within the commercial or industrial area. Sidewalks four (4) feet wide, four (4) inches thick except at entrances shall be constructed on both sides of streets where the development fronts on existing or new streets to be constructed. Such sidewalks or foot paths shall be kept open for pedestrian circulation and their continuous maintenance shall be guaranteed by the property owner.
8.
All commercial or industrial developments shall have an appropriate cover of undisturbed existing vegetation, seed with straw, fresh cut sod, plugs or spot sod as may be provided by the ordinances of the City of Manchester. Existing trees shall be preserved, if possible, while making improvements and grading. One (1) three-inch hardwood tree shall be planted for each two thousand five hundred (2,500) square feet of improved surface area.
9.
The Commission shall review the plans submitted against the standards and requirements governing the review of architecture and site planning of subdivision regulations.
10.
Street names shall be erected at all street intersections on diagonally opposite corners so that they will be on the far right-hand side of the intersection for traffic on the more important streets. Signs indicating both the streets should be erected at each location mounted as close to the corner as practical, facing traffic on the cross street, with the nearest portion of each sign not less than one (1) foot nor more than ten (10) feet back from both curb lines. The street names shall be on extruded aluminum signs six and one-half (6½) inches wide, double faced with four (4) inch white upper case street names and two (2) inch white upper case standard abbreviation letters on green engineer grade Scotchlite or equal background.
11.
The developer of the commercial or industrial area shall pay to the City of Manchester an amount equal to two percent (2%) of the estimated cost of improvements consisting of: paving, storm drainage, sanitary sewers and site grading to defray the cost of processing the developer's application and reviewing plans and for inspection of improvements during the construction. Such review shall be good for a period of two (2) years from date of escrow agreement acceptance. Inspection shall be made by the Building Official.
12.
All telephone/power/cable lines shall be located underground in easements which shall be provided for that purpose. The location of transformers and similar facilities shall be shown with screening on drawings submitted for approval by the Commission.
13.
Before the final plan for the development shall be approved, the developer shall submit to the Commission a statement from the local Postmaster approving the names of the proposed streets and the proposed system of postal addresses along such streets located within the development. Extensions of existing streets shall continue the names of such streets as they presently exist.
E.
Improvement Guarantee Releases; Deficiencies; Appeals.
1.
Release. After an inspection of any specific improvements, the Director of Planning will release the developer from further obligation under the guarantee agreement when they are deemed complete. All improvements shall be deemed complete only when:
a.
Each and every component and line item within a category for the entire development has been constructed and completed as required;
b.
The developer has notified the Director of Planning in writing of the completion of all improvements, provided all necessary or requested documentation, and requests an inspection;
c.
The developer is not in default or in breach of any obligation to the City under this Section; and
d.
The inspection has been completed and the results of the inspection have been approved in writing by the City and/or its agents.
2.
Effect Of Release — Continuing Obligations. The developer shall continue to be responsible for defects, deficiencies and damage to public streets and other required improvements during development of the commercial or industrial project. No inspection approval or release of guarantees shall be deemed to be City approval of improvement or otherwise release the developer of its obligation relating to the completion of the improvements until the final release of all improvements is issued declaring that all improvements have in fact been constructed as required. Inspection and approval of any or all required improvements shall not constitute acceptance of the improvement by the City as a public improvement for which the City shall bear any responsibility.
3.
Deficient Improvements. No approval of required improvements shall be granted for improvements that fail to meet the specifications established herein or otherwise adopted by the City.
4.
Appeals. If the developer believes that a release or certificate of completion has been improperly denied, an appeal shall be filed pursuant to the City' s zoning administrative review procedure (Section 405.700 et seq.), and no such denial shall be deemed final until such appeal procedure has been exhausted.
F.
Failure To Complete Improvements.
1.
The obligation of the developer to construct, complete, install and maintain the improvements indicated on the approved improvement plans shall not cease until the developer shall be finally released by the City. If, after the initial improvement completion period, or after a later period as extended pursuant to this Section, the improvements indicated on the approved improvement plans are not constructed, completed, installed, accepted, and maintained as required, or if the developer shall violate any provision of the guarantee agreement, the City may notify the developer to show cause within not less than ten (10) days why the developer should not be declared in default. Unless good cause is shown, no occupancy or other permit shall be issued to the developer during any period in which the developer is in violation of the guarantee agreement or this Section. If the developer fails to cure any default or present a compelling reason why no default should be declared, the City shall declare the developer in default and may take any one (1) or more of the following steps:
a.
Deem the guarantee agreement sum as forfeited to the City, to be then placed in an appropriate trust and agency account subject to the order of the City for such purposes as letting contracts to bring about the completion of the improvements indicated on the approved improvement plans or other appropriate purposes in the interest of the public safety, health and welfare; or
b.
Require the surety, developer or lender to pay to the City the balance of the guarantee to the City; or
c.
Require the developer to submit an additional cash sum sufficient to guarantee the completion of the improvements indicated on the approved improvement plans after recalculation in order to allow for any inflated or increased costs of constructing the improvements.
2.
The failure of a developer to complete the improvement obligations within the time provided by the agreement (or any extension granted by the City), and including the payment of funds to the City due to such failure or an expiration of a letter of credit, shall be deemed an automatic act of default entitling the City to all remedies provided in this Section without further or prior notice. It shall be the sole responsibility of the developer to timely request an extension of any guarantee agreement if the improvements are not completed in the original time period provided by the guarantee agreement, and no right to any extension shall exist or be assumed.