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CONVEYANCE OF TITLE BY WARRANTY DEED FROM THE CITY OF NORMAN TO CEDAR LANE HOMEOWNERS ASSOCIATION TO TRANSFER 2.0522 ACRES OF REAL PROPERTY LOCATED ADJACENT TO THE CEDAR LANE PARK SITE THAT WAS IN EXCESS OF PARK LAND DEDICATION REQUIREMENTS.
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BACKGROUND: In 2005, a portion of the land south of Cedar Lane Road and west of the BNSF Railroad Tracks was platted for development of Cedar Lane Addition. The Board of Park Commissioners accepted the staff recommendation at that time to accept an estimated 5 acres of park land from the developer to satisfy the Park Land Dedication ordinance of the City of Norman. As time passed, the preliminary plat for Cedar Lane Addition split into two final plats-one for Monterey Addition, and one for Cedar Lane Addition. Each addition was responsible for their portion of the required park land as development continued; which totaled 4.69 acres, once all final plats were filed. In 2010, we received a deed for 0.3258 acre of land from Monterey, which covered their obligation. The remaining acreage was to come from Cedar Lane. However, in 2011, the deed we received from Cedar Lane included not only the 4.3729 acres of required park land, but also an additional 2.0522 acres of land around and including the pond south of the park site which is shown on the plat as the Cedar Lane Common Area “C” & D/E. The deed filed at that time was a total of 6.4508 acres. It is not common practice to accept ponds and the slopes around them as a public park; as such land is prohibited by the park land ordinance from being counted as “usable park land”. The remainder of the land on the 2011 Cedar Lane Addition deed north of the pond, combined with the contiguous land deeded from Monterey is all in a very good location and condition to use as a large neighborhood park for the residential developments in this section of town.
On 13 October 2015, the citizens of Norman voted to fund the Norman Forward Quality of Life projects with a limited term ½% sales tax increase for 15 years. This initiative included a number of high priority projects identified in the 2014 Library Master Plan Update, the 2009 Norman Parks and Recreation Master Plan and additional projects designed to provide recreational opportunities for Norman residents. One such project was the development of new neighborhood parks in areas where land had been acquired and we had access to the site with streets and utilities. Cedar Lane Park is one such site; and we are now ready to develop that park. Park Planning staff is in the process of distributing a survey to the local Home Owner Associations to get residents’ input on what they would like to see built in the new park. Once that input is used to create a park design and that plan is presented to the public for their final input and approval, we will proceed with park construction.
DISCUSSION: The Parks and Recreation Department has contacted the developer of Cedar Lane Addition (who still operates the Cedar Lane HOA), and they have produced the property description for the Common Area “C” & D/E land that was deeded in excess of the required park land in 2011. That area is described in the Exhibit attached to the deed. Also, City of Norman survey crews have visited the site and staked the property line of the park, so residents can clearly see what is included in the neighborhood park when they are completing their preference survey to help plan the park development. Cedar Lane Park’s development is funded in the FYE 2019 NORMAN FORWARD budget; and will be supplemented with any additional funds collected from building permits and fee-in-lieu of land payments from other developments in the area over the years.
RECOMMENDATION: It is recommended that City Council execute a Warranty Deed to convey 2.0522 acres of detention pond and land adjacent to the Cedar Lane Park site from the City of Norman to the Cedar Lane HOA as part of the initial development of the Cedar Lane neighborhood park.