11-15-1984 Regular Meeting (2) - Laserfiche WebLink

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Minutes, Regula~eeting La Porte Planni b and Zoning Commission ' November 15, 1984, Page 3 DEVELOPMENT ORDINANCE During the remainder of the meeting, the Commission , led by • Mr. Speake, reviewed the platting process outlined in the proposed new Development Ordinance, concentrating on the Sketch Plan, General Plan, and Preliminary Plat procedures. Mr. Speake stated that only Final Plats are contemplated by the state law,. but that Preliminary Plats have been widely used for many years in Texas. General Plans are of more recent vintage, having come about to cover those situations where the developer acquires a large tract of land and market forces will only permit development of a portion at one time. The General Plan procedure is particularly important for La Porte to enables review of projects for conformance to the Comprehensive Plan. Sketch Plan Review, as proposed in the ordinance, is a new invention and most of the meeting was involved in discussing that process. Development Plats, also a new vehicle, will be discussed at the December 20 meeting., Mr. Speake furnished each member with new handout materials, specifically "Bluebook" pages F-4 through F-8 and I-1 through I-14. The Section F materials are for later discussion. The Section I handouts are a draft of Section 7 of the proposed new Public Improvements Criteria Manual (PICM). Section 7 deals with Platting Graphic Standards, many of which are now in the proposed new Development Ordinance. Mr. Speake recommends those standards be removed from the ordinance and incorporated by reference to the PICM. Mr. Speake then led the Commission through a discussion of the Sketch Plan review. SKETCH PLAN REVIEW Mr. Speake stated that he recommends upgrading the importance of the Sketch Plan review even more than has been previously recommended. His opinion is that the Sketch Plan review process encourages the freest exchange of ideas between the developer and the City staff. Beyond this stage, the developer has made a creative and financial commitment to a particular land use concept, as reflected in his proposed General Plan and/or Preliminary Plat. By using the La Porte Development Checklist (Bluebook pages I- 10 thru I-13), the developer can think his way through the entire development process without having to engage the expensive services of one or more consultants. He can disclose his full intentions to the staff, without elaborate plans or drawings, and he can •