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Land Development

Well-planned development benefits our citizens, our economy and our long-term growth. Here are the basic steps for the development review and project application process for the City of Denton.

Development Review Process

1. The ZONING of the property must permit the intended use to complete the development review process.
If the use is allowed “by right,” no further action is required and the project may move forward to Platting. If the use is not permitted, the property owner may request approval from the City Council to change the zoning of the property. In addition to zoning, at this step you should also verify any secondary zoning factors that may relate to the property such as Environmentally Sensitive Areas.
2. The project must take place on a PLATTED lot.
The project must take place on a platted lot to ensure the property meets zoning requirements, has access from public streets, and is adequately served by public utilities and infrastructure. As part of the plat process, the developer shall design and construct all the required public utilities and infrastructure necessary to serve the site and dedicate any right-of-way or easements for that purpose. Once approved, a plat is filed with the County and becomes the official legal description of the property.
3. A SITE PLAN must be approved.
A site plan is a set of engineering and architectural drawings that shows the layout of a proposed project. It is required for multi-family and nonresidential developments. A site plan is not required for single family residential, two family residential (a duplex), and townhome developments.

A site plan is important because it ensures that the project complies with development codes and standards; allows for detailed site review and better coordination between disciplines; helps streamline the building plan review; and can help the devloper to secure funding prior to approval of the building permit.

After the site plan is approved by the City’s Development Review Committee, a site development permit may be issued and the applicant may then proceed to the next step of applying for a building permit. Site development plans and building plans may be reviewed concurrently; however, the site development permit must be issued prior to the issuance of the building permit.

Prior to submitting an application for a site development permit, applicants are encouraged to request a predevelopment meeting with city staff to become familiar with applicable codes and regulations and to expedite the site development permit approval process.
4. BUILDING PERMITS must be reviewed and issued prior to construction.
Detailed set of building plans for the project are reviewed for compliance with the international building codes, fire codes, and all other applicable code requirements. There are a number of permits that will likely be required to cover the entire scope of the project. Once a permit is issued, construction may begin on the site.
5. Once under construction, the project must pass all INSPECTIONS.
Inspections are required at various times during construction to ensure that all approved plans are followed.
6. A CERTIFICATE OF OCCUPANCY is issued.
Once construction is complete and all inspections have been passed, the Building Official will issue a Certificate of Occupancy that allows the building to open for business.

Apply for a Project

Applications for development review are accepted over the counter or online. All applications submitted for review must be accompanied by an application, all items listed in the appropriate project checklist below, and payment. Many of the applications listed are updated regularly; please check back to ensure you are using the most recent version.
Please note, applications are accepted anytime; however, to be included in the week's new submission list, the deadline to apply online, fees paid and all documents uploaded, is Monday at noon and Wednesday at noon.

Apply Over The Counter - If applying for a project over the counter, submit one copy of each item listed in the associated project checklist. If your submittal includes exhibits that are larger than 8 ½ X 11, please provide a PDF of the exhibits saved on a CD or flashdrive.

Apply Online - If applying for a project online, please follow the steps below:

1. Apply Online with E-TrakIT
As soon as the project is created, an email will be sent to you with instructions on how to upload your documents into ProjectDox.

After log-in, select project type from the drop down, select subtype from the drop down, and then continue entering your information. Fees must be paid prior to uploading documents into ProjectDox.
2. Pay your application fee
There are three ways to pay your application fee:
- Online through E-TrakIT.
- Over the phone by calling (940-349-8360).
- In person at the Development Services Center, 215 W. Hickory Street.
Please note, all fees must be paid in order for staff to continue processing your development review submittal. If you miss the deadline, your initial development review request will be deemed incomplete.
3. Upload drawings and supporting documents into ProjectDox
Drawings (Site Plan, Landscape Plan, etc.) should be uploaded in the drawing folder, and supporting documents (Universal Application, Narrative, Checklist, etc.) should be uploaded in the supporting documents folder. Please note, each item listed in the associated project checklist must be uploaded as single PDF files in order for staff to continue processing your development review submittal.
4. Submit Project
To have your project reviewed, follow the directions below:
Under the workflow, once an applicant completes their upload, click on the “Workflow Portals” tab. Under this tab you will see an “Applicant Upload” task. You will accept this task and it will take you into the workflow page. At the bottom of the page you will see a button labeled “Submission Complete”. When you click on the “Submission Complete". The system will notify staff that your upload is complete and you are ready to begin the review process.

When staff has determined the development review submittal is complete, staff will distribute development review project to the Development Review Committee (DRC) for review. Once the DRC's review is complete, an email will be sent to the person listed as the Applicant with instructions to log into ProjectDox to view comments and markups. Logging into ProjectDox allows you to view your DRC comments and markups at the same time.