North Bend City Zoning Code

Providing an effective and predictable incentive process for property owners of critical areas in order to preserve these lands for the public benefit; and

Providing an efficient and streamlined administrative review process to ensure that transfers of development rights to receiving sites are evaluated in a timely manner, are balanced with city goals and policies, and are adjusted to the specific conditions of each receiving site.

The "sending site" means the portion of a lot or lots qualified under subsections (B)(1) through (B)(4) of this section. If the sending site consists of more than one tax lot, the lots must be contiguous. For purposes of this section, lots divided by a street are considered contiguous if the lots would share a common lot line if the street were removed.

Sending sites shall be qualified to transfer development rights if the sending site is in private ownership and is designated in the North Bend comprehensive plan under one of the following criteria:

NB-2 zone and resource land sending sites, excluding critical areas on the site, may transfer density consistent with a zoning classification as follows:

Critical area sending sites, including critical area portions of NB-2 and resource land sending areas, may transfer 25 percent of the density consistent with their zoning classification as outlined above.

For purposes of transfer of development rights, the transferable area of a sending site property shall be determined by subtracting from the total area of the sending site the areas of the sending site occupied by:

Sending site properties shall retain a minimum lot size of 5,000 square feet and a minimum of one dwelling unit (DU) of development on a parcel to provide an opportunity for continuing or future use of the site to provide a mechanism to maintain the property. The requirement to retain one dwelling unit (DU) on a parcel will be waived if:

Sending site properties within the NB-2 zoning district and the interchange mixed use (IMU) zoning district may transfer density consistent with the zoning classification as shown on the current city of North Bend official zoning map, subject to the limitation that all undeveloped density rights on a parcel shall be transferred, except as provided in subsections E and F of this section.

For the purposes of the TDR program, "acquisition" means obtaining fee simple rights in real property, or a less than a fee simple right in a form that preserves in perpetuity the public benefit supporting the qualification of the property as a TDR sending site.

A sending site property shall be eligible to transfer development rights if it is in private ownership and meets all of the following criteria:

Critical area sending sites shall be maintained in an undisturbed state subject to an approved native growth protection easement, except where modified to enhance the beneficial function of the critical area pursuant to an approved mitigation plan developed in compliance with the critical area ordinance. Agricultural or forest resource land sending sites designated in the comprehensive plan shall be maintained as resource lands subject to an approved resource management plan. Sending sites within the NB-2 zone shall be maintained in an undeveloped state subject to an approved open space plan.

If a sending site has any outstanding code violations, the person responsible for code compliance shall resolve these violations, including any required abatement, restoration, or payment of civil penalties, before a TDR sending site may be qualified. However, the community services director may qualify and certify a TDR sending site with outstanding code violations if the proposal is in the public interest.

Sending Site – Calculation of Gross Acreage.

Sending Site Calculations.

The city of North Bend eligible receiving sites are those designated areas of the city where new growth is encouraged under the Growth Management Act and the city of North Bend comprehensive plan goals and policies. The receiving sites have existing facilities and services or will have public investments in facilities and services in the near future. The eligible receiving site properties shall be limited in the TDR program to properties designated as receiving sites on the attached map (Exhibit A)[1].

Except as provided in this chapter, receiving site developments shall comply with all applicable zoning code provisions for the receiving zone site.

Receiving sites may accept development rights from one or more sending sites up to the maximum density permitted as follows:

Purchase of a TDR is not a guarantee of use; the use is subject to all other applicable development regulations.

The issuance of certificates of development rights with assigned serial number by the community services director;

The approval by the community services director and recording of a TDR conservation easement;

The recording of a deed transferring ownership of the development rights; and

The recording of an extinguishment document.

Certificate. The community services director, upon request of the sending site property owner, may issue a certificate of development rights to the landowners for the eligible land meeting the standards of this chapter.

The community services director shall be responsible for determining the qualification of sending sites. Determinations on sending site certifications made by the community services director may be appealed per Chapter 20.06 NBMC to the hearing examiner. The decision of the hearing examiner shall be final. The community services director shall be responsible for preparing a written report on the sending site determination and documenting the review and decision on the sending site qualification. The community services director shall issue a TDR certification letter in a timely manner after submittal of a completed sending site certification application.

Responsibility for preparing a completed application rests exclusively with the applicant.

Written Request. The property owner of a qualified sending site shall prepare a written application for a certificate of development rights. The community services director shall review said application. Application for sending site certification shall include:

Quantity. The certificate of development rights shall state the quantity of development rights allocated to the sending property. The calculation of the quantity of development rights allocated to a sending site shall be based upon the existing use and condition as of the date of application.

Sale. Prior to or concurrent with development rights being offered for sale, lands with transferable development rights shall have a certificate of development rights issued. Upon receipt of the certificate of development rights, the property owner may transfer the development rights to any person or legal entity.

When an agreement has been reached between the seller and buyer of the development rights, the seller shall in writing inform the community services director of the pending sale.

Prior to the transfer of the development rights, the seller shall record a TDR conservation easement approved by the city of North Bend on the property from which the development rights are being sold. The TDR conservation easement shall include a legal description of the property from which the development rights will be transferred, be approved by the community services director and the city attorney, and be executed by the owners of the eligible sending area property. The approved TDR conservation easement shall be recorded in King County's real property records by the buyer with evidence of same transmitted to the city clerk of the city of North Bend.

After granting the TDR conservation easement to the city of North Bend the development and use of the property on which the TDR conservation easement is recorded shall comply with the TDR conservation easement.

The deed transferring development rights, as approved by the community services director, shall be executed by the selling and purchasing parties and recorded with the King County records and elections division. The purpose of the deed is to confirm that a developer or investor has purchased the development right. A copy of the recorded document shall be filed with the King County assessor's office and the city of North Bend city clerk.

The deed shall include the recording number(s) of the TDR conservation easement for the rights being transferred, and a legal description of the land from which development rights are taken.

The deed may verify the transfer of the development rights to a receiving parcel in lieu of the requirement for an extinguishment document.

The extinguishment document shall identify the development rights relinquished by sending property and the development rights acquired by receiving property.

The extinguishment document may be combined with the deed of transfer if the receiving site and project are identified.

Following review and approval of the sending site application by the community services director as described in this chapter, the director shall issue a TDR certificate letter of intent, agreeing to issue a TDR certificate in exchange for the proposed sending site conservation easement. The sending site owner may then market the TDR sending site development rights to potential purchasers. If a TDR sending site that has been reviewed and approved by the community services director changes ownership, the TDR certificate letter of intent may be transferred to the new owner if requested in writing to the community services director by the person or persons that owned the property when the TDR certificate letter of intent was issued; provided, that the documents evidencing the transfer of ownership are also provided to the director of community services.

An application for approval of a receiving site shall include one of the following:

An application for a receiving site shall be reviewed and approved or denied by the community services director.

When the receiving site development proposal requires a public hearing under this title or NBMC Title 20 or its successor, the reviewing authority shall have the sole authority to approve or deny the application for use of TDRs in conjunction with development of the receiving site. Any appeals of the TDR application shall be reviewed under the same appeal procedures applicable to the underlying development proposal.

When the development proposal does not require a public hearing under this title or NBMC Title 20, the TDR application shall be considered along with the development proposal, and any appeals of the TDR application shall be considered under the same appeal procedures applicable to the underlying development proposal.

Development rights from a sending site shall be considered transferred to a receiving site when a final decision is made on the TDR receiving area development proposal, the sending site is permanently protected by a completed and recorded land dedication or conservation easement, notification has been provided to the King County assessor's office and a TDR extinguishment document has been provided to the community services director for the city of North Bend.

Following land use permit approval on the receiving site, the TDR certificate shall be presented at the time of building permit application.

Following the transfer of development rights from a sending site, deed restrictions documenting the development rights transfers shall be recorded by the city of North Bend at the King County assessor's office and notice of the new development restrictions shall be noted on the title of the sending site parcel.

A conservation easement approved by and granted to the city of North Bend shall be required for land contained in the sending site. A map shall document the conservation easement. The conservation easement may be placed on the entire lot or lots or only the portion of the lot or lots that is qualified as the sending site. The conservation easement shall indicate the portion of the lot or lots restricted from future residential development, or limitations on future residential and nonresidential development within the conservation easement, whether or not the land is dedicated, as follows:

Keeping records of the dates, amounts and locations of private development rights purchases and sales;

Assisting private development rights purchases and sales and approve conservation easements; and

Providing annual summary reports of TDR program activity.