INSTRUCTIONS:

Subdivisions on Existing County & State Roads or Private Roads & Drives – 

No Public Improvements Required by Developer

Utah Code 17-27a-603 states that whenever any land is laid out and platted, the owner of the land shall provide an accurate plat, that the plat conforms to the county’s ordinances and has been approved by the culinary water authority and sanitary sewer authority, that the land has tax clearance, that the owner of the land is authorized to convey the real estate, and that the plat has been properly recorded in the county recorder’s office. The Utah Code does allow exemptions from the plat requirement for agricultural land divisions:

17-27a-605. Exemptions from plat requirement.

(1) Notwithstanding Sections 17-27a-603 and 17-27a-604, the land use authority may approve the subdivision of unincorporated land into ten lots or less without a plat, by certifying in writing that:

(a) the county has provided notice as required by ordinance; and

(b) the proposed subdivision:

(i) is not traversed by the mapped lines of a proposed street as shown in the general plan and does not require the dedication of any land for street or other public purposes;

(ii) has been approved by the culinary water authority and the sanitary sewer authority;

(iii) is located in a zoned area; and

(iv) conforms to all applicable land use ordinances or has properly received a variance from the requirements of an otherwise conflicting and applicable land use ordinance.

(2)

(a) Subject to Subsection (1), a lot or parcel resulting from a division of agricultural land is exempt from the plat requirements of Section 17-27a-603 if the lot or parcel:

(i) qualifies as land in agricultural use under Section 59-2-502;

(ii) meets the minimum size requirement of applicable land use ordinances; and

(iii) is not used and will not be used for any nonagricultural purpose.

(b) The boundaries of each lot or parcel exempted under Subsection (1) shall be graphically illustrated on a record of survey map that, after receiving the same approvals as are required for a plat under Section 17-27a-604, shall be recorded with the county recorder.

(c) If a lot or parcel exempted under Subsection (2)(a) is used for a nonagricultural purpose, the county may require the lot or parcel to comply with the requirements of Section 17-27a-603.

(3) (a) Documents recorded in the county recorder's office that divide property by a metes and bounds description do not create an approved subdivision allowed by this part unless the land use authority's certificate of written approval required by Subsection (1)(a)(ii) is attached to the document.

(b) The absence of the certificate or written approval required by Subsection (1) does not affect the validity of a recorded document.

(c) A document which does not meet the requirements of Subsection (1) may be corrected by the recording of an affidavit to which the required certificate or written approval is attached in accordance with Section 57-3-106.

Carbon County is interested in streamlining the subdivision review process for Subdivisions which do not require public improvements to be installed by the developer. Under Utah Law and Carbon County Ordinance, anytime a property is split or divided, a subdivision plat or an agricultural waiver must be filed in the Recorder’s office. Even if you are only giving a lot to relatives for a home, a subdivision plat must be filed before Carbon County will issue a building permit for that home.

When dividing up farm or other agricultural land, by Utah law, an agricultural waiver must be applied for and approved if there are areas of land “left over” in your parcel after the division to create a lot. To qualify for this exemption to the state subdivision laws, the land must be taxed as Farmland or “Greenbelt”.

If your small subdivision will result in land being left out of the plat, you must also show that land on a separate plat and ask the Zoning Administrator for An Agricultural Waiver application to be administered concurrently with the subdivision plat. Call the County Assessor, if you have questions at 435-636-3248.

Carbon County currently allows this type of subdivision to be approved in the following way:

Subdivisions up to 9 lots may be approved by the Planning Commission which generally meets the     first Tuesday of each month at 4:30 PM.

In order for the Planning Commission to approve your proposed subdivision, you must submit to the Zoning Administrator the following information at least 2 weeks before the meeting:

1. Application fee for the proposed Subdivision paid to Planning Department
   • Final subdivision application fee-$100.00 plus $50.00 per extra lot
   • Plat review fee-$160.00 or actual cost per plat review
2. A plat, prepared to County standards, by a Licensed Professional Surveyor of the land to be divided. The surveyor must survey the land before preparing the plat, so it is best to make contact and arrangements as soon as possible.
3. A letter or other evidence must be obtained either from Price River Water Improvement District or the water company which will provide water to your lot(s) showing that you have met their requirements for connection to their system. Normally you must also provide a Scofield Reservoir water share to be eligible for a culinary connection. If you are in an outlying area, you must either meet the requirements of the Health Department for the proper installation of  a cistern, turn over a share of Scofield water and haul the water, or meet the requirements of the State Engineer for development of a well or spring.
4. You must submit a fire flow test from the Price River Water Improvement District, or the local fire department serving the area of the proposed development. The County requires a minimum flow of 500 gallons per minute, with a reduction allowed to 250 gallons permitted for the installation of an automatic fire sprinkling system, or when approved by the fire chief.
5. A letter or other evidence must be obtained from Price River Water Improvement District showing that you have met the District’s requirements for connection to their central sewer system or, a letter from the from the Southeastern Health District if sewer is not available, stating a suitable private or central wastewater disposal system (septic) is approved for the development.
6. The plat must show how you will obtain access to your proposed lot(s). Carbon County regulations do allow Private Common Drives in some cases. If you plan a Private Drive, you must either actually install it to County Standards prior to approval of the subdivision, or you must execute a Development Agreement to ensure the installation, or obtain a financial guarantee to ensure the construction of the drive in the form of a letter of credit or performance bond.
7. A storm drainage plan prepared by a Professional Engineer, Contractor or qualified design professional for the proposed subdivision.
8. Approval from the County Roads Administrator, County Road Supervisor or Utah Department of Transportation regarding permanent access to your lot(s). Call (435) 636-3268 for County roads, or (435) 636-1470 for State Roads
9. Approval from the County Weed Supervisor for control of noxious weeds. Call (435) 636-3270

After you have met with a representative of the County Planning Department and you understand the requirements of the zone in which your subdivision will be located and all items have been completed and received, you will be put on the agenda for the Planning Commission for review of your application.  Please feel free to contact us between the hours of 8 AM and 5 PM for further information. After your proposed subdivision has been scheduled for a meeting and approved by the proper authority, the plat must be recorded in the Office of the County Recorder at your expense and will be a permanent record of the land division.

You should plan on 60 to 90 days to obtain final approval and filing or recording of your Subdivision before you may obtain a building permit. Remember, these regulations are the minimum standards which must be met to comply with State and County Laws. You may exceed these standards if you wish to develop a higher standard subdivision. Many subdivisions contain special features such as trails, landscaping, open space, or other improvements and attractions. Carbon County does not supply electrical energy for street lighting. If you plan lighting or other special features, you will need to form a homeowners association to maintain them. We are administering your request in this manner because of the information you have given us. If it is later found to be incorrect, it may be that we will not be able to administer your request, or it may need to be reviewed as a Subdivision with public improvements. We cannot administer incomplete applications.

Contact this office at (435) 636-3260 for Minimum Standards for Subdivision Plats if your Surveyor is not familiar with our Requirements

Signature Blocks on Subdivision Plats

The following signature block shall be used for subdivisions up to 9 lots approved by the Planning Commission:

Agency Contacts

Price River Water Improvement District
District Manager
(435) 637-6350

Southeastern Utah Health District
(435) 637-7515

Utah Division of Water Rights
Regional Engineer
(435) 613-3753

County Road Administrator
(435) 636-3268

Carbon County Engineer
(435) 636-3231

Local Professional Land Surveyors:

Cody Ware
(435) 637-2620 / (435) 820-4335

Jones & DeMille
(435) 637-8266

Johansen & Tuttle
(435) 381-2523

Ben Grimes
(435) 609-1963

Evan Hansen
(435) 637-5748 / (435) 630-6661

Albert Spensko
(435) 472-5596

You may also find licensed Surveyors at dopl.utah.gov.