Park and playground requirements for subdivisions

A. For the purposes of this section, the following definitions shall apply: "Approval" means the final approval granted to a proposed subdivision in accordance with chapter 18.12 where the actual division of land into smaller parcels is sought; provided, that where construction of a building or buildings is proposed without further subdividing an existing parcel of land, the term "approval" shall refer to the issuance of the building permit. "Council" means the Maui County council. "Dwelling unit" means a room or rooms connected together, constituting an independent housekeeping unit for a family and containing a single kitchen. "Lodging unit" means a room or rooms connected together, constituting an independent housekeeping unit for a family which does not contain any kitchen. "Parks and playgrounds" mean areas used for active or passive recreational pursuits. "Privately owned parks and playgrounds" mean parks or playgrounds and their facilities which are not dedicated to the County but which are owned and maintained by or on behalf of the ultimate users of the subdivision pursuant to recorded, perpetual restrictive covenants. Where the privately owned park is a part of the lot or lots on which a building or group of buildings containing or divided into three or more dwelling units or lodging units are constructed, it shall not be required that the private park or playground meet County subdivision standards nor shall the area of the private park or playground be deducted from the area of the lot or lots for purposes of zoning or building requirements. "Subdivider" means any person who divides land as specified under the definition of subdivision or who constructs a building or group of buildings containing or divided into three or more dwelling units or lodging units. "Subdivision" means the division of improved or unimproved land into two or more lots, parcels, sites, or other divisions of land and for the purpose, whether immediate or future, of sale, lease, rental, transfer of title to, or interest in, any or all such lots, parcels, sites, or division of land. The term includes: 1. A resubdivision, and when appropriate to the context, shall relate to the land subdivided; 2. A building or group of buildings, other than a hotel, containing or divided into three or more dwelling units or lodging units; 3. A building or group of buildings converted from hotel to residential use; 4. Dwelling units or lodging units added to a building or group of buildings, other than a hotel, where the total number of units is three or more; 5. Subdivisions within project districts; and 6. Dwelling units and apartments within, resulting from, or in any way relating to condominium property regimes. B. Park Dedication Requirements. 1. The director of parks and recreation shall require each subdivider, as a condition of approval of a subdivision, to: a. Provide land in perpetuity or shall dedicate land for park and playground purposes; or b. Pay the County a sum of money; or c. Provide improvement to a park in the community plan area; or d. Provide an equivalent combination thereof, pursuant to subsection C of this section. 2. The land provided or dedicated shall meet the following standards: a. Each subdivider shall convey the land to the County by warranty deed free and clear of any liens or encumbrances; pay for recordation of title to the County; and insure the County's title by providing a standard owner's title insurance policy for the County with coverage in the amount of the fair market value of the property dedicated herein; b. The land provided or dedicated shall be located in the community plan area in which the proposed subdivision is located, or, subject to council approval by resolution approved by a majority of its members, in the community plan area adjacent to the community plan area in which the proposed subdivision is located, excluding Molokai and Lanai; c. The land provided or dedicated shall have an area of five hundred square feet for each lot or unit, in excess of three, resulting from the subdivision; provided, for residential workforce housing lots or units within a subdivision, as defined in section 2.96.020 of this code, the land area provided or dedicated shall be two hundred fifty square feet for each such lot or unit; d. The subdivider shall improve the site with lot grading, grass planting, automatic irrigation, parking areas, adequate drainage, and comfort stations; provided, that the council may approve a park assessment agreement that does not incorporate some or all of these requirements if the director of parks and recreation determines that such improvements are available nearby, impractical, or unnecessary. 3. Subdividers seeking to satisfy this section by providing privately owned and maintained parks and playgrounds, providing land in perpetuity, or dedicating land for park and playground purposes shall enter into a park assessment agreement with the County, subject to council approval by resolution. The subdivider shall consult with the director of parks and recreation regarding the park assessment agreement and the director of parks and recreation shall approve the park assessment agreement before submission to the council. The agreement shall include the following: a. Number of lots in the proposed subdivision; b. Calculation of park assessment requirement; c. Land area to be provided or dedicated; d. If applicable, any request for credits for lands in excess of what is required; e. Map(s) showing location of the land in relation to the subdivision; f. List of improvements to be made to the land; g. Estimated time for improvements to be completed; h. Proposed uses of park; i. Conceptual rendering of the park; j. Statement as to whether the park is intended to be conveyed to the County; k. Duration of agreement; and l. Any additional information required to be provided by the director of parks and recreation. Any amendments to the agreement shall be subject to council approval by resolution. 4. The director of parks and recreation may, pursuant to section 3.44.015 (F), and after completion by the subdivider of all required improvements to the reasonable satisfaction of the director of parks and recreation, accept conveyance of a park or playground when the conveyance is made in accordance with a park assessment agreement approved by council resolution pursuant to paragraph (3). 5. If a subdivider desires approval before completion of required park improvements, the subdivider shall file, with the department of parks and recreation, a surety bond or other security in an amount equal to the cost to complete any unfinished park improvements, as estimated by the director of parks and recreation, or the amount required by subsection (C)(1). Upon dedication of the improved park site, or in the case of land provided in perpetuity, upon completion of all park site improvements to the reasonable satisfaction of the director of parks and recreation, the director of parks and recreation shall release the surety bond or other security filed with the department of parks and recreation. C. In-lieu Payment and Dedication. In lieu of providing land in perpetuity or dedicating land, the director of parks and recreation must require the subdivider to: 1. Pay to the County a sum of money equal to the number of square feet that would have been required by subsection 18.16.320(B)(2)(c), multiplied by the average of the following values, determined at subdivision approval, under the most recent certified assessment for real property tax purposes in the respective community plan area where the subdivision is located: a. The average value per square foot of lands classified as non-owner-occupied; and b. The average value per square foot of lands classified as apartment. 2. Combine the payment of money with land to be provided or dedicated, as required by subsection 18.16.320 (B)(2)(c); or 3. Provide improvement to parks and playgrounds in the community plan area where the subdivision is located. The value of the improvements must be at least equal to the sum of money required to be paid under this section. The estimate for the cost of the improvements provided must be based upon cost estimates certified by an engineer licensed to practice in the State of Hawaiʝi. For subdivisions that qualify as affordable housing or residential workforce housing projects under chapter 2.96 , this park assessment fee may be deferred for either one year from the date of final subdivision approval or until 50 percent of the dwelling units of the affordable housing project are sold or rented, whichever occurs first. D. The County shall use the money received pursuant to this section for the purpose of providing parks and playgrounds for the use of purchasers or occupants of lots or units in the subdivision. The money received in connection with a subdivision shall accrue to a park assessment fund, and shall be appropriated in the County budget for parks and playgrounds in the community plan area where the subdivision is located. The estimated amount available for appropriation in each community plan area shall be set forth in the operating budget and capital program proposed by the mayor. E. A subdivider shall receive a credit of one hundred per cent of the area of privately owned and maintained parks and playgrounds, if the director of parks and recreation determines that the park or playground fulfills the conditions set forth below: 1. Setbacks and other areas required by law shall not be included in the computation of the credit; 2. The size, shape, topography, geology, access, use, and location of the site shall be suitable for park and playground purposes, as determined after consultation with the director of parks and recreation; 3. The physical improvements provided shall meet the needs of the occupants of the subdivision, as determined after consultation with the director of parks and recreation; 4. Such parks and playgrounds shall not include golf courses, marinas, or other similar uses for which a fee is charged; 5. The subdivider shall improve the site with lot grading, grass planting, automatic irrigation, parking areas, adequate drainage, and comfort stations; provided, that the council may approve a park assessment agreement that does not incorporate some or all of these requirements if the director of parks and recreation determines that such improvements are available nearby, impractical, or unnecessary. 6. The use of the site shall be restricted to park and playground purposes by recorded, perpetual covenants, and which shall be enforceable by the owners and occupants of the subdivision, and by the County; 7. The perpetual maintenance of the site by the owners and occupants of the subdivision shall be assured by the recorded, perpetual covenants, which shall obligate the owners and occupants of the subdivision to maintain the site in perpetuity, and which shall empower the County to enforce the covenants or cause the maintenance to be performed and subject the properties in the subdivision to a lien until the cost of the maintenance is reimbursed; and 8. Prior to approval of the subdivision, the subdivider shall execute and record a unilateral agreement in favor of the County to assure that such parks and playgrounds shall be privately and adequately maintained in perpetuity, and that the provisions of this section shall be observed. F. A subdivider shall receive credit for lands dedicated or provided for park and playground purposes in excess of what is required to be dedicated or provided pursuant to section 18.16.320.B, if the director of parks and recreation has approved the credit and determined: 1. The lands provided or dedicated comply with the requirements of this section; 2. The lands are dedicated or provided before subdivision approval; and 3. At the time of dedication of the lands, the subdivider states the intention to obtain a credit for the excess lands. G. Credits obtained pursuant to subsection F may be applicable to a subdivision. 1. The available credit applicable to a subdivision shall be the area of lands dedicated or provided within the appropriate community plan area, reduced by the land area which would have been dedicated or provided if this section were then in effect, and reduced further by the portion of the credit applied to other subdivisions before the subdivision approval; 2. The portion of the available credit applicable to the subdivision shall not exceed fifty per cent of the land area required to be provided or dedicated for that subdivision; and 3. The credit shall not be transferable, but may be apportioned among members of a joint venture subdivider by an agreement filed with the central coordinating agency within sixty days of the date the lands were dedicated or provided. H. Upon the dedication of land by the subdivider as may be required under this section, the County shall thereafter assume the cost of improvements and their maintenance, and the subdivider shall accordingly be relieved from such costs. I. The following exemptions and exclusions shall apply: 1. Subdivisions by agencies of the federal, state, and County governments shall be exempt from this section. 2. Subdivisions of land into three or less residential lots shall be exempt from this section. The land so subdivided shall not thereafter qualify for this exception with respect to any subsequent subdivision of any of the resulting parcels. 3. A lot resulting from a subdivision, the purpose of which is to dedicate the lot to a federal, state, or County government agency, shall be excluded from consideration for the purposes of this section. 4. Subdivisions for nonresidential use shall be exempt from this section. 5. Subdivisions in which one hundred per cent of the lots or units resulting from the subdivision qualify as residential workforce housing units, as defined in section 2.96.020 of this code, shall be exempt from this section. J. An appeal from a determination by the director of parks and recreation, the director of public works or the director of planning pursuant to this section shall be heard by the board of variances and appeals, in accordance with chapter 91, Hawaii Revised Statutes. Within sixty days after hearing the appeals the board shall affirm, modify, or reverse the determination of the relevant director, giving its reasons for its decision and shall report its decision to the council. K. The department of parks and recreation may promulgate rules in accordance with Hawaii Revised Statutes, chapter 91, to clarify and implement this section. L. The director of parks and recreation shall transmit to council a semiannual report regarding park dedications for each community plan area within thirty days after the end of the first and third quarter of the fiscal year. The report shall include, for each subdivision within the community plan area, the name of the subdivision, the number of units in the subdivision, and a description of the land area, sum of money, or park improvements, or combination thereof, dedicated or provided. ( Ord. No. 5666 , § 2, 2024; Ord. No. 4053, § 32, 2013; Ord. No. 3793, § 1, 2010; Ord. No. 3766, § 3, 2010; Ord. 3512 §§ 7—9, 2007; Ord. 3307 § 1, 2005; Ord. 3158 § 1, 2004: Ord. 2981 § 1, 2001: Ord. 2956 §§ 1, 2, 2001; Ord. 2470 § 1, 1996: Ord. 2442 §§ 1, 2, 1995; Ord. 2375 § 1, 1994; Ord. 2043 § 1, 1991: Ord. 1874 § 1, 1989; Ord. 1686 § 1, 1988; Ord. 1649 § 1, 1987: Ord. 1539 § 1, 1986: Ord. 1487 § 1, 1985: Ord. 789 § 1 (part), 1974: prior code § 11-1.9(j))