The Public Works Department Engineering Division is available to assist you with your abandonment project from the outset. The following information may answer many of the questions you might have regarding such a project.

Preliminary Review

The first step in the abandonment process is to bring the proposal to the Public Works Department Engineering Division for a preliminary review. It is always helpful if you can bring a sketch illustrating the area that you want the City to consider abandoning.

Please Note: It is recommended that you contact all property owners directly affected by and/or adjacent to the proposed abandonment area and obtain their agreement to the proposal in writing prior to proceeding with the abandonment request.

Legal Description

Once the preliminary review has been completed and the property owner's agreement has been secured, you will be required to have a licensed Civil Engineer or Land Surveyor prepare a legal description and sketch of the proposed abandonment. One copy of that description and sketch, along with the required fee, must be submitted to the Public Works Department Engineering Division for review. Allow two weeks for this review to be completed.

Applications and Public Hearings

Once staff has approved the legal description and sketch for accuracy, you can obtain an application from the Community Development (formerly Development Services) for processing and public hearings. Public Works Department Engineering Division, along with other City departments, will review your application and prepare a formal written report to be submitted to the Planning Commission for consideration. The staff report, the Planning Commission's recommendation, and any conditions placed on the proposed abandonment by either staff or the Commission will then be referred to the City Council for action.

If approved by the City Council and all City-required conditions have been completed, the abandonment will be sent to the County for recordation.

The entire abandonment process will take approximately four months.

Abandonments by Tract or Parcel Map

Abandonments may also be accomplished on a Tract or Parcel Map. If the proposed abandonment is included on a Tract Map, there is no change to the Tract Map process and the abandonment is considered by Council as part of the Final Map approval. If the abandonment is included on a Parcel Map, the final Parcel Map will have to be brought before the City Council in the same manor as a Final Tract Map. In this case there will be an additional processing fee to cover the mailings and staff time associated with the City Council meeting.