(a) Except as otherwise provided in subdivisions (b) and (c), Section 65868, or Section 65869.5, notwithstanding any other law, if a newly incorporated city or newly annexed area comprises territory that was formerly unincorporated, any development agreement entered into by the county prior to the effective date of the incorporation or annexation shall remain valid for the duration of the agreement, or eight years from the effective date of the incorporation or annexation, whichever is earlier. The holder of the development agreement and the city may agree that the development agreement shall remain valid for more than eight years, provided that the longer period shall not exceed 15 years from the effective date of the incorporation or annexation. The holder of the development agreement and the city shall have the same rights and obligations with respect to each other as if the property had remained in the unincorporated territory of the county.
(b) The city may modify or suspend the provisions of the development agreement if the city determines that the failure of the city to do so would place the residents of the territory subject to the development agreement, or the residents of the city, or both, in a condition dangerous to their health or safety, or both.
(c) Except as otherwise provided in subdivision (d), this section applies to any development agreement which meets all of the following requirements:
(1) The application for the agreement is submitted to the county prior to the date that the first signature was affixed to the petition for incorporation or annexation pursuant to Section 56704 or the adoption of the resolution pursuant to Section 56800, whichever occurs first.
(2) The county enters into the agreement with the applicant prior to the date of the election on the question of incorporation or annexation, or, in the case of an annexation without an election pursuant to Section 57075, prior to the date that the conducting authority orders the annexation.
(3) The annexation proposal is initiated by the city. If the annexation proposal is initiated by a petitioner other than the city, the development agreement is valid unless the city adopts written findings that implementation of the development agreement would create a condition injurious to the health, safety, or welfare of city residents.
(d) This section does not apply to any territory subject to a development agreement if that territory is incorporated and the effective date of the incorporation is prior to January 1, 1987.
(Amended by Stats. 1989, Ch. 664, Sec. 1.)