Title
Conduct a Public Hearing to Consider/Discuss/Act on a Request by the City of McKinney to Amend Section 146-41 Specific Use Permits of the Zoning Ordinance Pertaining to the Timeframe to Obtain a Building Permit
Summary
COUNCIL GOAL: Direction for Strategic and Economic Growth
MEETING DATE: July 12, 2016
DEPARTMENT: Planning
CONTACT: Brian Lockley, AICP, Director of Planning
RECOMMENDED PLANNING AND ZONING COMMISSION ACTION:
• Staff recommends approval of the proposed amendments to the Zoning Ordinance.
• The recommendation of the Planning and Zoning Commission will be forwarded to the City Council for consideration at the July 19, 2016 meeting.
ITEM SUMMARY:
• Staff is proposing to amend Section 146-41(6) (Specific Use Permits) to extend the length of time required to apply for and secure a building permit from 6-months to 12-months from the time of granting the specific use permit.
• Staff is also proposing to extend the expiration date of the specific use permit from 6-months to 12-months if no building permit is obtained. The applicant will still have the option to receive an extension of time from the City Council.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION:
• Recently, Staff has processed a number of extensions for Specific Use Permits due to the applicant not meeting the requirement to obtain a building permit within the required 6-month timeframe. While processing these extensions, applicants have cited insufficient time to comply with all of the requirements of the City to obtain a building permit. It is not unusual for an applicant to wait to receive approval of the specific use permit before investing in the cost to prepare plans and studies required for a building permit. In some instances, this may include flood studies, traffic studies, or other engineering studies that require significant time to prepare and submit.
• The impetus behind the current 6-month requirement is to ensure that projects are moving forward and that Specific Use Permits are not approved for a property when no development is proposed. However, the Zoning Ordinance contains a provision that states the Specific Use Permit shall expire if no building permit is obtained.
• The Zoning Ordinance currently states the following:
o A building permit shall be applied for and secured within six months from the time of granting the specific use permit; provided, however, that the city council may authorize an extension of this time upon recommendation by the planning and zoning commission, except in the case of a private street development, which shall have no limit regarding the application and securing of a building permit. A specific use permit shall expire six months after its approval or extension date if no building permits have been issued for the site, or if a building permit has been issued but has subsequently lapsed.
• The verbiage indicated above is being modified to clearly indicate that both, the timeframe for obtaining a building permit and the expiration of the specific use permit, will change from six (6) months to twelve (12) months.