HomeMy WebLinkAboutArticle 4_38.410.060 Easements ARTICLE 4-COMMUNITY DESIGN
Sec. 38.410.060. - Easements.
A. Required easements.
Where determined to be necessary, public and/or private easements must be provided for private and
public utilities, drainage, vehicular or pedestrian access, etc.
1. In subdivisions, all easements must be described, dimensioned and shown on the final plat in their
true and correct location.
2. In all other developments, the proper easements documents must be prepared for review and
approval by the city, and filed at the county clerk and recorder's office. The easement documents
must be accompanied by an exhibit indicating the dimensions, and true and correct location, of
all easements.
3. No lot may be encumbered by a public or private utility easement in a way that would decrease
the amount of buildable land to less than the area required by this chapter for the applicable
zoning district.
4. The city may require use of its standard easement language and may require recording of
separate easement document and maps when in the city's sole discretion it is most appropriate.
B. Private utility easements.
Private utilities include, but are not limited to, natural gas, electricity, telephone, cable and fiber optic
lines. The developer must provide private utility easements necessary to extend private utilities to
the development, and to provide for the construction and maintenance of private utilities within the
development.
1. General.
a. Building setbacks must be coordinated with all provided utility easements. If a utility easement
will be greater than the building setback required by this chapter, a note to that effect must be
placed on the final plat and/or final site plan as appropriate.
b. Where a utility easement is to be located in an existing, dedicated right-of-way, an
encroachment permit must be obtained from the local or state street or road department
having jurisdiction.
c. If placed in a city right-of-way, easements must be in a location required by and agreed upon
in writing by all of the appropriate utility companies and the review authority.
2. Easement size.
a. Front setback utility easements.
Front setback utility easements must be ten feet wide, and must always be provided unless
written confirmation is submitted to the community development department from all utility
companies providing service indicating that front setback easements are not needed.
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b. Rear setback utility easements.
The provision of rear setback utility easements is not mandatory unless they are required
by any or all of the utility companies to adequately serve the development. If provided, rear
setback utility easements on each lot must be six feet wide if adjacent to a public alley and
ten feet if not adjacent to a public alley.
c. Side setback utility easements.
The provision of side setback utility easements is not mandatory unless they are required by
any or all of the utility companies to adequately serve the development. If provided, the width
of the side setback utility easement must be determined on a case-by-case basis based on
the needs of the utility companies.
3. Private utility plans.
a. When the concurrent construction option will be used, based on the provisions of
38.780.030.D, private utility plans must be included with the preliminary plan submittal.
b. Private utility plans must be provided with any plans and specification submittals for the
construction of new water, sewer or street infrastructure as specified in the City of Bozeman
Design and Construction Standards.
4. Encroachment.
No building shall be constructed that encroaches on a private utility easement unless written
approval from all utility companies is provided to the community development department.
C. Public utility easements.
Public utilities include water, sewer and stormwater facilities that are dedicated to and maintained
by the city. Public utility easements shall meet the requirements of the City of Bozeman Design and
Construction Standards.
1. A public utility easement must be granted for all public utility mains not located within public
street right-of-way. An easement must be at least 30 feet wide for two utility mains and at least
20 feet wide for a single utility main. An additional ten feet of width is required for each additional
main that occupies the easement. Wider easements may be required at the discretion of the city
for large utility lines.
2. Public utility easements must be provided for all meter pits and fire hydrants maintained by
the city. No permanent structures may be placed within public utility easements unless an
encroachment permit has been obtained from the city.
D. Easements for agricultural water user facilities.
1. Except as noted in 2. below, the developer must establish appropriate agricultural water user
facility easements that:
a. Are in locations of appropriate topographic characteristics and sufficient width to allow the
physical placement and unobstructed maintenance of active open ditches or below ground
pipelines. Easements may be required when an agricultural water user facility is on adjacent
property but an easement necessary to protect the function of the agricultural water user
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facility crosses onto the property to be developed. The easement must facilitate the delivery
of water for irrigation to persons and lands legally entitled to the water under an appropriated
water right or permit of an irrigation district or other private or public entity formed to provide
for the use of the water right;
(1) The easements must ensure the conveyance of water through the land to be developed
to lands adjacent to or beyond the development's boundaries in quantities and in a
manner consistent with historic and legal rights; and
(2) A minimum easement width of ten feet is required on each side of irrigation canals and
ditches.
b. Are a sufficient distance from the centerline of the agricultural water user facility to allow for
construction, repair, maintenance and inspection of the ditch or pipeline; and
c. Prohibit the placement of structures or the planting of vegetation other than grass within the
agricultural water user facility easement without the written permission of the facility owner.
2. The developer need not establish agricultural water user facility easements as provided above if
the following provisions were met or will be met via the subdivision or site plan process:
a. The average lot size is one acre or less and the developer provides for disclosure, in a manner
acceptable to the review authority, that adequately notifies potential buyers of lots that are
classified as irrigated land and may continue to be assessed for irrigation water delivery even
though the water may not be deliverable; or
b. The water rights are removed or the process has been initiated to remove the water rights
from the subdivided or developed land. If the water rights have been or will be removed
from the land within the development it must be so noted with the preliminary plat or plan
submittal. If removal of water rights is not complete upon filing of the final plat or approval
of the final site plan, the developer must provide written notification to prospective buyers
of the intent to remove the water right and must document that intent, when applicable, in
agreements and legal documents for related sales transactions.
c. Easements may be required to maintain an agricultural water user facility if the facility conveys
water to off-site users.
3. Stormwater from a development must not be discharged to an agricultural water user facility
without written approval from the owner of the facility and corresponding stormwater
conveyance easements.
4. If the developer demonstrates that easements have been extinguished pursuant to state law, or
the holder of the easement consents in writing to the extinguishment, or the easement is not
required per 2. above, the developer may remove ditch laterals from within the subdivision.
5. If agricultural water user facility easements are required, a notice must also be recorded with a
final plat or prior to final plan approval, stating that the easements are subject to the requirements
of MCA 70-17-112 restricting interference with canal or ditch easements and that irrigation works
are subject to MCA 85-7-2211 and 85-7-2212 regarding duties and liability. The notice must
include language to assure the duties are binding upon all successors in interest and remain in
effect until such time that the agricultural water user facility is abandoned in accordance with
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the requirements of Montana Law or alternative requirements are agreed to in writing by all
applicable parties. The easements must be prepared as documents separate from a final plat but
may be referenced on a final plat.
6. Any other mitigation of impacts to an agricultural water user facility identified during development
review must be coordinated with any required easement. Mitigation shall be reasonable, based on
site-specific conditions, and shall be developed with consideration of comments received from
the water users pursuant to 38.310.010.8.
E. Easements for City-owned Irrigation Systems.
Easements benefiting city must be provided for irrigation systems and components that will be
owned and maintained by the city for use in public rights-of-way and parks that are located on
private land pursuant to this section and 38.540.080.
F. Other easements.
Public access easements for streets and trails must be provided in accordance with the provisions of
divisions 38.400 and 38.420 of this chapter.
Sec. 38.410.070. - Municipal water, sanitary sewer and storm sewer
systems.
A. General.
All municipal water supply, sanitary sewer and storm sewer system facilities must comply with the
following requirements:
1. The developer must install complete municipal water and sanitary sewer system facilities, and
may be required by the city to install municipal storm sewer system facilities. These systems
must be installed in accordance with the requirements of the state department of environmental
quality and the city, and must conform with any applicable facilities plan. The city's requirements
are contained in the City of Bozeman Design and Construction Standards and the City of
Bozeman Modifications to Montana Public Works Standard Specifications, and by this reference
these standards are incorporated into and made a part of these regulations. The developer must
submit plans and specifications for the proposed facilities to the city and to the state department
of environmental quality and must obtain their approvals prior to commencing construction of
any municipal water, sanitary sewer or storm sewer system facilities.
2. The cutting of any city street must be done in compliance with the city's street cut policy and City
of Bozeman Design and Construction Standards.
3. When a proposed development adjoins undeveloped land, and municipal infrastructure mains
would reasonably pass through the new development to the undeveloped land, municipal
infrastructure mains must be arranged to allow the suitable development of the adjoining
undeveloped land. Municipal infrastructure mains within the proposed development must be
constructed to the boundary lines of the tract to be developed, unless prevented by topography
or other physical conditions. An exception to this standard may be granted upon written request
of the applicant if the applicant demonstrates during the development review process that more
efficient design can be accomplished without jeopardizing the public's health, safety and welfare,
the purpose of this chapter, or the purpose of the city's land use plan.
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