Ordinance 21-011 amends 20.20.030 correcting codifers error CITY OF SPOKANE VALLEY
SPOKANE COUNTY,WASHINGTON
ORDINANCE NO. 21-011
AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF SPOKANE VALLEY, SPOKANE COUNTY,
WASHINGTON,AMENDING SPOKANE VALLEY MUNICIPAL CODE 20.20.030
RELATING TO GOOD FAITH PURCHASERS OF ILLEGALLY-CREATED LOTS;
AND OTHER MATTERS RELATING THERETO.
WHEREAS, pursuant to Ordinance 18-004, City Council adopted amendments to Spokane Valley
Municipal Code(SVMC) 20.20.030 relating to innocent purchasers of illegally-created lots; and
WHEREAS, staff brought forward proposed amendments in 2020 to various aspects of chapter 20.20
SVMC,and Council approved Ordinance 20-024 that included those amendments; and
WHEREAS, staff recently discovered that an erroneous and unrequested change was made by Code
Publishing Company to SVMC 20.20.030. Staff was unaware of this error when it presented Ordinance
20-024 for amendment,resulting in Council adopting the erroneous language. The error was obviously not
done in track change format, so would not have been noticeable to Council as an intended change; and
WHEREAS, the change removed the period at the end of SVMC 20.20.030(E), and added a semi-
colon and the word"or",fundamentally changing the relationship between subsections(E)and(F),making
them alternatives rather than subsection (F) conditioning subsection(E), as intended in Ordinance 18-004;
and
WHEREAS, the change to SVMC 20.20.030(E) was never intended by Council, fundamentally
changed the effect of subsections (E) and (F), and should be reversed back to that language adopted by
Council for subsection(E) in 2018 through Ordinance 18-004 to give effect to Council's policy intent; and
WHEREAS, this Ordinance does not represent any substantive or policy change by the Council and
thus need not be presented for consideration and recommendation by the Planning Commission, and is
further done to protect the health, safety, and welfare of the citizens of the City.
NOW,THEREFORE,the City Council of the City of Spokane Valley ordains as follows:
Section 1. Amendment of section 20.20.030 of the Spokane Valley Municipal Code. Section
20.20.030 of the Spokane Valley Municipal Code is amended as follows:
20.20.030 Legal lot.
Development shall be permitted only on legally created lots.A lot is created in compliance with
applicable state and local land segregation statutes or codes in effect at the time the lot was created or
binding site plan was approved including,but not limited to, demonstrating the lot was created through
one of the following:
A. Lots created through subdivision, on a plat approved by the City or Spokane County separately
describing the lot in question; or
B. Lots created through short subdivision, on a short plat approved by the City or Spokane County
separately describing the lot in question; or
Ordinance 21-011 Amending 20.20.030 SVMC—Innocent Purchasers of Illegally-Created Lots Page 1 of 2
C. Lots created pursuant to a binding site plan process in effect at the time the binding site plan was
approved by the City or Spokane County; or
D. A division of land prior to March 13, 1978;provided,that:
1. A tax segregation request was received by the Spokane County assessor's office prior to said date;
or
2.A legal instrument(s)pertaining to said division was filed on record prior to said date; and
3. All state and local land development regulations were met at the time the lot was created or can be
met prior to the issuance of a building permit; or
E. Development shall be allowed on a lot owned by an innocent purchaser. For purposes of SVMC
20.20.030(E), an"innocent purchaser"is an owner of the property, other than the original owner that
created the lot, and who did not have actual notice that the lot was created by a means other than specified
in SVMC 20.20.030(A)through (D).
F.In the event a lot was created by a means other than as specified in SVMC 20.20.030(A)through(D),
development shall be allowed on such lot if the development does not adversely affect the public interest.
When determining the impact on the public interest,the City shall consider the following criteria:
1. Whether the proposed development is consistent with the public health, safety, and general
welfare;
2. Whether the use meets the underlying zoning requirements and is consistent with the use of at least
one adjoining property; and
3, Whether the lot was created on or before December 31,2016. In the event an illegally created lot
does not meet the criteria of SVMC 20.20,030(A)through(F), a development permit shall not be
issued until such time that a legal lot is created.
Section 2. Severability. If any section, sentence, clause or phrase of this Ordinance is held to be
invalid or unconstitutional by a court of competent jurisdiction, such invalidity or unconstitutionality shall
not affect the validity or constitutionality of any other section,sentence, clause or phrase of this Ordinance.
Section 3. Effective Date. This Ordinance shall be in full force and effect five days after the date
of publication of this Ordinance or a summary thereof in the official newspaper of the City.
PASSED by the City Council this 7"'day of September, 2021.
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Ben Wick, Mayor
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pristine Bainbridge, City CIerk
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Offic f thiC AAttorne
Date of Publication: 9/10/2021
Effective Date: 9/15/2021
Ordinance 21-011 Amending 20,20.030 SVMC—Innocent Purchasers of Illegally-Created Lots Page 2 of 2