23-12 Protection of Common Areas

A. Maintenance of All Common Areas: If common areas are provided within a planned development, adequate guarantees shall be provided to maintain such common areas, and to protect such common areas from future development. Kanab City shall not be responsible for maintenance of any common areas. 1. Alleys and private streets; Kanab City will not be responsible for snow removal, street cleaning, street painting or any other street maintenance. 2. When repairing utilities within private streets, alleys and common areas it shall be the responsibility of the utility provider to restore the common area to its previous condition. B. Landscape Areas within the Public Right-of-Way: Maintenance of landscape areas within the public street right-of-way abutting the property shall be maintained under the same guidelines as the common areas. C. Approved Guarantees: No certificate of occupancy shall be issued for any structure in a planned development until all required guarantees have been submitted to and approved by the City. The developer of a planned development may elect any of the following to preserve common areas. 1. Fee Simple Donation: A fee simple donation of any portion of common area land may be made to the City so long as the City agrees to accept such donation. 2. Condominium Association: Common areas and facilities may be controlled by a condominium association as provided in the Utah Condominium Ownership Act. All common area land and facilities shall be held as a "common element." 3. Homeowners Association: Common area land and facilities may be owned by a homeowners’ association, subject to applicable provisions of state law. The developer shall provide the City with a description of the organization of the proposed association, including its by-laws, and all documents governing ownership, maintenance, and use restrictions for common facilities. The proposed association shall be established by the owner or applicant and shall be operating (with a financial subsidy from the developer if necessary) before the sale of any dwelling units in the planned development. The association documents shall include the following provisions: a. Membership in the Association shall be mandatory for each owner and its grantees, successors and assigns. b. Restrictions concerning common open space and/or facilities shall run with the land and not for a period of years. c. The Association shall be responsible for the maintenance of all common open space and/or facilities, liability insurance on all common open spaces and/or facilities and paying general property taxes on all common open spaces and/or facilities. d. In the event the Association does not maintain private common open space areas and facilities as shown on an approved site plan, the City may perform any required maintenance and may thereafter recover all costs incident to performing the required maintenance from the Association and/or each of its members. e. Members of the Association shall pay their pro rata share of costs of upkeep, maintenance, and operation of common open space and/or facilities and/or improvements not dedicated to the City. The association by-laws shall confer legal authority on the association to place a lien on the real property of any member whose dues become delinquent. The bylaws shall also provide that such delinquent dues and all accrued interest shall be paid before the lien may be removed. f. Written notice to all association members and to the City shall be provided no less than sixty (60) days prior to any proposed transfer of any common area land or facility, or the assumption of maintenance for common area land or facility. No such transfer shall be effective unless approved by the City, which approval shall not be unreasonably withheld so long as it is consistent with the provisions of this Chapter and applicable law. 4. Private Conservation Organization or the City: Fee simple title of common area land or conservation easements may be transferred to a private non-profit conservation organization or to the City having jurisdiction where the land is located. 5. Grant of Easements to the City: The City may, but shall not be required to, accept easements for public use of any portion of common area land or facilities. Such land shall be subject to a satisfactory maintenance agreement between the developer and the City. 6. Non-Common Private Ownership: Common area land and facilities may be located on one (1) or more privately-owned lots of at least five (5) acres provided that the lot is restricted from future development through a conservation easement, except uses allowed by an approved site plan.