A. Vested application. Type I, II, or III applications shall be considered under this chapter and the zoning, development and other land use control ordinances contained in the VMC, and any uncodified ordinances modifying the same, in effect on the date a fully complete application is filed with the city. For the purposes of this section, a vested application shall mean that the applicant is entitled to implement the development proposal described in the application, under the zoning, development and land use ordinances applied by the city in its review of the application without being subject to changes in development regulations subsequent to the submittal date except to the extent allowed by the city’s police power to protect the public health, safety, and welfare.

Once an application is approved and if the approval contains a detailed description of the uses, including a detailed site plan drawn to scale, specifying the location of all buildings and improvements to be constructed in conjunction with the use(s), and such site plan is consistent with all laws and regulations in effect at the time the original application vested, then all land use applications in connection with the approved use(s) and/or site plan are vested to the laws and regulations in effect at the time of the vesting of the original permit application, until the land use approval expires.

B. Contingent vesting. An application which is subject to a pre-application conference shall contingently vest on the date a complete pre-application is filed, if a fully-complete application for substantially the same proposal is filed within 180 calendar days of the date the review authority issues its written summary of the pre-application conference, and provided the pre-application submittal met the requirements of 20.210.080(C).

C. Subsequent Regulations. An applicant may have the option of subjecting its development to any subsequently enacted land use ordinances. However, should an applicant choose to subject its development to a subsequently enacted land use ordinance, this shall have the effect of subjecting the development to all land use ordinances enacted after the application is vested, unless the city and applicant agree otherwise. In order for the planning official to grant such a request, the applicant must demonstrate how later enacted ordinance(s) will benefit both the project, and the city while maintaining consistency with the comprehensive plan. Applicant must also demonstrate that use of later enacted ordinances will not conflict with other ordinances the development remains subject to and will not be significantly detrimental to the health, safety, or general welfare of the city. Planning official shall review and either approve the request or determine if a new application must be submitted.

D. Exception to vesting. Unless expressly authorized elsewhere in this title, vested rights shall apply only to development regulations and shall not be applied to development review fees or impact fees. (Ord. M-3643, 01/26/2004)