Boone County carefully revising subdivision regulations

When Moses descended from Mt. Sinai, he brought with him the only set of rules that has never been subject to change. Those rules created by a higher power might have been subject to interpretation, but they have never been revised or amended by mankind.
The same cannot be said for the laws and regulations created by mortal man and woman. The historical Code of Hammurabi, issued by the Babylonian King Hammurabi, included this edict: “If a builder builds a house for someone and does not construct it properly, and the house which he built falls in and kills its owner, then the builder shall be put to death.” General contractors are glad that rule has been revoked.   
In 1919, the 18th Amendment to the Constitution that banned the sale of alcohol became the law of the land. That is, until the 21st Amendment was adopted in 1933.     
Rules and regulations are under constant scrutiny for ways to improve or clarify them.  
Local governments have rules regulating everything from traffic control to the times you can put your refuse on the curb. In these days of diminishing resources, some of the most important rules deal with how land is developed. Boone County regulates how subdivisions are developed in much the same way as Columbia, Springfield, St. Louis or Independence.
Boone County has had regulations governing the subdivision of land since 1973. In 1995, the regulations underwent a major revision to align them more closely with Columbia’s regulations. This was in response to the suggestion that development regulations should be more consistent across artificial boundary lines. The 1995 regulations raised the bar on development outside the municipal limits of Boone County municipalities.
Just what are subdivision regulations? Very simply, subdivision regulations codify how land is divided in the unincorporated parts of Boone County. The regulations establish minimum standards for street widths, the location and width of utility and drainage easements, requirements for water systems and fire hydrants and sanitary waste water systems. The regulations do not provide design guidelines for a subdivision, but they do place certain restrictions on how land can be developed.           
The Boone County Subdivision Regulations are currently being revised, a somewhat arduous task. Any revision is not undertaken lightly. The planning staff has compiled a list of suggested revisions since the last major overhaul.
In 2007, the county contracted with an outside consultant for an unbiased review of the existing regulations. Shafer, Kline and Warren Inc., an engineering consulting firm with a strong land planning and government service background, reviewed the regulations. SKW Inc. was asked to review the regulations for currency with national practices, compliance with state law and comparison with similar jurisdictions, including the city of Columbia.
Once SKW completed its review, the report was evaluated by the planning staff and the Boone County Commission. In general, it was found that the current regulations reflect planning practices of other communities and provide a fair and reasonable set of standards governing how land is to be subdivided in Boone County.
The major drawback found in the regulations was clarity in presentation. SKW suggested that the most benefit would derive from a general reorganization of the various components contained within the regulations. SKW noted several instances of regulatory language being mixed into definitions, which can be confusing. Generally speaking, subdivision regulations are more technical in nature and have a target audience of registered land surveyors and professional engineers. Still, the regulations should be easy to follow.
The planning staff then undertook a review of the specific standards with the Boone County Commission. Every section of the regulations was scrutinized to see if the rationale was still valid or if it could be improved to better serve the public needs. Keep in mind that new subdivisions create additional infrastructure such as roads, sanitary sewer lines, water lines and fire hydrants that fall to various public bodies for future maintenance.
Developers are required to pay for or install all of the newly created infrastructure, but once the development is complete, ongoing maintenance is left to a public entity. Thus it is very important that appropriate design standards are met. There is no doubt that a growing community such as Boone County will experience an increase in cost of maintaining a growing road network, but there is no reason that new roads can’t be built to a standard that increases their longevity and provides adequate room for future maintenance or improvements.
One issue of ongoing discussion by the Boone County Commission is the creation of public roads. Prior to 1995, the subdivision regulations did not apply to lots larger than five acres, and there were no restrictions on the number of such lots that could share a private access easement. Over time, the commission has received numerous requests to provide road maintenance to such easements. Rarely are such easements built to a standard that can be maintained by the county without great expense, so the requests are generally denied.
Current subdivision regulations apply to any lot created smaller than 20 acres. The regulations allow up to four lots, larger than five acres each, to share a private access easement. Although the number of private access easements being created is significantly lower than it was prior to 1995, such easements continue to be a concern. Further restriction could take the form of increasing the tract size of land subject to regulation, limiting the number of lots that can use a common easement or even requiring a minimum standard of improvement for an access easement.
Weighty issues for consideration by the Boone County Commission take time to resolve as the implications and impact of changes are carefully reviewed by the commission.