California Surveyors Forums

SMA section 66463.5 (b) states

"... Once a timely filing is made, subsequent actions of the local agency, including, but not limited to, processing, approving, and recording, may lawfully occur after the date of expiration of the tentative map. Delivery to the county surveyor or city engineer [surveyor] shall be deemed a timely filing for purposes of this section."

Our City has a situation where a final map was submitted for approval last year, and the Certificate of Acceptance of tax bonds pursuant to SMA section 66492 and 66493 has not been issued. The planners are desirous of returning the signed mylars to the developer's surveyor in order to stop the tolling of the tentative map approval.

My initial reaction, as City Surveyor, is to continue to keep possession of the mylars. The technical aspects of the final map are complete. Planning's concern is that the developer may withold executing the tax bonds indefinitely. The final map will, of course, not be submitted for City Council approval without the tax bonds being in place.

Is this a scenario anyone else has encountered during this slow economy?

Warren

Sonoma County's take is that the tax collector certificate must be signed and any taxes paid to stop the clock. Our policy is IF the recording package is submitted to the County Surveyor's Office prior to the expiration date with all of the required outside signatures (owner, beneficiaries, tax collector. etc.) and only requires the County Surveyor, County Recorder and Clerk of the Board's signatures, and IF the improvement plans and subsequent agreements are signed and ready to go, THEN the clock stops and the above three signatures, Board approval and filing can occur after the expiration date.

Gov't Code 66452.6(d) allows a city/county to take action on a final map, after the expiration of the tentative map, so long as the final map was delivered to the city engineer/county surveyor prior to the tentative map's expiration. Based on McPherson and Ailanto Properties, the permissible scope of the actions that can be taken after tentative map expiration cannot include substantive corrections to the filed final map or actions by the developer to satisfy tentative map conditions. Once a tentative map has expired, the only action on a “Timely Filedâ€￾ final map that can occur is the unilateral processing by the city/county. If the final map is approvable as submitted, the city/county's unilateral processing can lawfully result in the ultimate approval of the final map. However, if the final map, as submitted, is deficient in some manner, the unilateral processing would necessarily result in rejection or denial. For more details refer to: McPherson v. City of Manhattan Beach 78 Cal.App.4th 1252, 93 Cal.Rptr.2d 725, (Cal.App. 2 Dist.2000) and Ailanto Properties, Inc. v. City of Half Moon Bay, 142 Cal.App.4th 572, 48 Cal.Rptr.3d 340, (Cal.App. 1 Dist. 2006).

In your particular example, I don't think the subdivider has made a "timely filing" since he has not executed the tax bond. Isn't the tax clearance/tax bond a "Condition of Approval"? If the subdivider has not submitted all of the documents, signed agreement and security to allow the City/County to commence their internal process to sign the SMA 66492 & 66493 tax certificate/statements prior to the tentative map expiration date, the map expires.

So it appears that the best procedure is to not accept the signed mylars until all conditions are cleared and bonds are in place.
Sounds prudent - it just had not been an issue till now ...

Thanks, guys