Preliminary Plat

The preliminary plat is much more than a concept plan, it is the basis for approval or disapproval of the proposed subdivision under the state and local requirements. The preliminary plat approval is the "project permit" that shows the location and extent of proposed development, site conditions, subdivision lines, and proposed improvements, and is the subject of review under the State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA) and local development regulations. Preliminary plat review is a quasi-judicial process – a public hearing must be held and decisions are made on the record. It provides the opportunity for public input and to impose new conditions/restrictions. The city or county legislative body must then make written findings that adequate provisions have been made regarding matters identified in RCW 58.17.110, including open spaces, drainage ways, streets or roads, alleys, other public ways, transit stops, potable water supplies, sanitary wastes, parks and recreation, and playgrounds (written findings). Preliminary plat approval provides permission to construct certain improvements prior to final plat approval, following approval of detailed engineering and design drawings. 

Final Plat

The final plat is the final drawing of the subdivision and dedication prepared for filing for record with the county auditor. Final plat approval probably is best characterized as an administrative decision - it is in the nature of a ministerial, nondiscretionary decision. If the final plat conforms to all of the conditions required by preliminary plat approval, then the board or council is required to approve the final plat.

The final plat is a check to determine that the terms and requirements of preliminary plat approval have been met and that required improvements have been constructed or bonded/guaranteed. The final plat is the means by which performance of preliminary plat requirements is enforced. It shows exact lot lines, streets, easements, and other elements required as conditions of preliminary plat approval. The final plat contains signatures of owners and of city or county officials attesting that various provisions of the preliminary plat have been fulfilled and comply with local regulations. The final plat secures the dedication of roads, parks, and other public spaces within the plat to the public.

The final plat must not differ substantially from the preliminary plat. If there are substantial changes, an amended or new preliminary plat application should be submitted. Since preliminary plats require a substantial investment of time and money on the part of the developer, many communities provide the opportunity for (or require) a concept plan review at the beginning of the process to flag potential problems or to design improvements before it becomes costly to make changes.

More Resources

Review the statutory definitions in RCW 58.17.020.

It may be helpful to look at examples of preliminary and final plat requirements in subdivision codes from other communities. Many examples are posted on the MRSC Subdivision Webpage, or within municipal codes. The subdivision webpage also provides another overview of subdivisions, and preliminary and final plat processes.

In addition, the following document provides a useful description of preliminary and final plat processes: "A Short Course on Local Planning," ver. 5.1, July 2009, Planning Association of Washington and State of Washington Department of Commerce (see "Chapter 5. Development Tools and Techniques," Part B – Platting and Permits: The Development Process (pp. 14-32)).

No. RCW 58.17.020(6) defines " short subdivision" as "the division or redivision of land into four or fewer lots, tracts, parcels, sites, or divisions for the purpose of sale, lease, or transfer of ownership" (emphasis added). Despite this definition, the county may not require a subdivision plat (or short plat) when property is leased for cell tower use since the subdivision statute was amended in 2002. In 2002, the following exemption was added to the subdivision/short subdivision requirements:

The provisions of this chapter shall not apply to: ...

(8) A division for the purpose of leasing land for facilities providing personal wireless services while used for that purpose. "Personal wireless services" means any federally licensed personal wireless service. "Facilities" means unstaffed facilities that are used for the transmission or reception, or both, of wireless communication services including, but not necessarily limited to, antenna arrays, transmission cables, equipment shelters, and support structures.

RCW 58.17.040(8).

Subdivisions and short plats are not defined as development under RCW 90.58.030(3)(d) & (e), so a short plat wouldn't require a substantial development permit. The authors of the "Shoreline, Coastal Zone & Watershed Management" chapter of Real Property Deskbook note that the shoreline permit requirement does not seem applicable to governmental actions merely prerequisite to shoreline development, such as platting or rezoning. They cite the Narrowsview Association v. Tacoma, 84 Wn.2d 416 (1974), case in which an act of rezoning that "does not involve any physical alteration of the land or irrevocable commitment to allow such a physical alteration" did not require a shoreline permit. Even so, any approved subdivision should be consistent with shoreline environment and shoreline use regulations adopted by a city or county, even if a permit is not required.

If the plat is conditioned on certain physical improvements being made which meet the definition of substantial development, a permit would be required for those improvements. Also, as noted in the Narrowsview case, the Washington Supreme Court has specifically upheld the right of a local jurisdiction to regulate nonsubstantial development through conditional use permits issued pursuant to a Shoreline Management Master Program.

The Washington courts have emphasized on a number of occasions that a zoning or land use permits cannot be denied on the basis of community opposition. For example, in Maranatha Mining v. Pierce County, 59 Wn. App. 795, 805 (1990), the state court of appeals stated with respect to a county council decision:

It is apparent that the Council gave little consideration to the merits of Maranatha's application, and that it disregarded the facts set forth in the examiner's findings. The Council seems to have heard clearly the citizen complaints and the comments of one of its own members while disregarding the record. We cannot escape the conclusion, in view of the evidence in support of Maranatha's application, that the Council based its decision on community displeasure and not on reasons backed by policies and standards as the law requires.

In Kiewit Constr. Group v. Clark County, 83 Wn. App. 133 (1996), the court rejected a challenge to the county requirement of a supplemental EIS for a conditional use permit for an asphalt plant that included the claim that the decision to require the SEIS was based on community displeasure.  The court noted that, although the county did receive a number of negative comments on the proposed asphalt plant, the record did not demonstrate that its decision on these responses rather than on the facts and applicable standards.  The court observed: “For one thing, if the Board had been basing its decision solely on community displeasure, it would have denied the CUP outright instead of simply remanding for a supplemental EIS.”

In Sunderland Family Treatment Services v. Pasco, 127 Wn.2d 782, 797 (1995), the state supreme court, in remanding the city's denial of a special use permit for a group home crisis residential center for abused and neglected teenagers in a single-family residential zoning district, stated:

In fact, the City's denial appears to rest upon neighborhood opposition. At least one planning commissioner and one city council member so stated. While the opposition of the community may be given substantial weight, it cannot alone justify a local land use decision.

This principle also applies in the context of a preliminary plat decision. See Kenart & Assocs. v. Skagit County, 37 Wn. App. 295, 303, review denied, 101 Wn.2d 1021 (1984).

Statutory and case law is clear that a preliminary plat may be approved or denied only on the basis of competent evidence relating to the factors identified in RCW 58.17.110. This statute provides in relevant part:

A proposed subdivision and dedication shall not be approved unless the city, town, or county legislative body makes written findings that: (a) Appropriate provisions are made for the public health, safety, and general welfare and for such open spaces, drainage ways, streets or roads, alleys, other public ways, transit stops, potable water supplies, sanitary wastes, parks and recreation, playgrounds, schools and schoolgrounds and all other relevant facts, including sidewalks and other planning features that assure safe walking conditions for students who only walk to and from school; and (b) the public use and interest will be served by the platting of such subdivision and dedication. If it finds that the proposed subdivision and dedication make such appropriate provisions and that the public use and interest will be served, then the legislative body shall approve the proposed subdivision and dedication.

No, at least according to AGO 1975 No. 12. RCW 58.08.040 states in part as follows:

Prior to any person recording a plat, replat, altered plat, or binding site plan subsequent to May 31st in any year and prior to the date of the collection of taxes in the ensuing year, the person shall deposit with the county treasurer a sum equal to the product of the county assessor's latest valuation on the property less improvements in such subdivision multiplied by the current year's dollar rate increased by twenty-five percent on the property platted.

In AGO 1975 No. 12, the attorney general's office concluded "that the word 'plat' in the opening phrase of RCW 58.08.040 does not refer to short plats or short subdivisions filed pursuant to RCW 58.17.060."

No. The controlling statute, RCW 58.17.100, was amended in 1995, but that amendment did not change the planning commission's advisory role with regard to preliminary plats. The city council or board of county commissioners may delegate authority to hold a public hearing to the planning commission, but the commission still may only make recommendations on preliminary plat approval.

However, the 1995 amendments to the state law did change how the council or board may respond to a planning commission recommendation, if it disagrees with the recommendation. If the planning commission has held a public hearing, the council or board no longer must conduct a public hearing to take an action inconsistent with the planning commission recommendation. After considering the matter at a public meeting, the council or board may adopt its own recommendations and approve or disapprove the preliminary plat. Prior to the 1995 amendment, the council or board could only make a change in the recommendation of the planning commission after a full public hearing.

• Bainbridge Island - Commercial/Industrial/Multifamily Permit Application Requirement Checklist ()
• Bothell - Final Plat and Binding Site Plan ()
• Bothell - List of All Forms (includes several checklists)
• Covington - Online Documents (see “Building Forms” and “Land Use”)
• Edmonds - Final Subdivision – Preliminary, Development Information #P76 (includes checklist)
• King County - Engineering Review Checklist ( )
• King County - Short Subdivision Submittal Requirements Checklist ()
• Kirkland - Short Plat or Preliminary Subdivision Application ()
• Mercer Island - Land Use Forms and Handouts
• Pierce County - Application Submittal Standards and Checklists
• Port Townsend - Department of Public Works Permit Applications, Forms and Information Materials ()
• Shoreline - Subdivision Preliminary Submittal Checklist () 
• Shoreline - Subdivision Final Submittal Checklist ()  
• Shoreline - Commercial/Multi-Family Building Permit Submittal Checklist () 
• Snohomish County - Preliminary Short Subdivision Submittal Checklist ()
• Snohomish County - Final Short Plat Submittal Checklist ()
• Snohomish County - Preliminary Subdivision Submittal Checklist ()
• Snohomish County - Final Plat Submittal Checklist ()
• Tumwater - Preliminary Short Plat Submittal Checklist ()
• Woodinville - Preliminary Plat Application Checklist ()