(A) A stormwater permit is required for all development and redevelopment which equals or exceeds one acre of residential development, or on commercial lots that are one-half acre in size or more, unless exempt pursuant to this chapter.
(B) The County Board of Commissioners shall establish permit review fees as well as policies, and may amend and update the fees and policies when needed.
(C) For all activities which are subject to this chapter, no person shall initiate, proceed, or undertake any land-disturbing or development activity for which a permit is required without first being issued a written stormwater control permit. All other required applications must be received and permits must be obtained prior to the start of the work. These may include, but are not limited to, soil erosion and sedimentation control, flood damage prevention, subdivision, building permits and inspections, State Department of Transportation, State Division of Water Quality, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and State DENR-Dam Safety.
(D) Plan review fees shall be double the amount when land-disturbing activity begins before a stormwater permit is obtained from the county. Prior to presenting a stormwater plan to the County Planning and Development, a consultation meeting with the Stormwater Administrator or his or her designee is required to assess necessary stormwater management measures, constraints, opportunities, and potential approach.
(E) Two copies of the stormwater plan submittal shall be submitted to Planning and Development for review.
(F) The Department shall review the plan for completeness and for compliance with the requirements of this chapter. An incomplete or nonconforming stormwater plan will be returned to the applicant prior to review with an explanation of issues requiring resolution before plan review can be initiated.
(G) Within 30 days of receipt of application for stormwater plan approval, Planning and Development shall take action on the plan.
(1) Planning and Development shall forward a copy of the plan to the County Soil and Water Conservation District who, within 20 days of receipt of the plan, will review the plan and submit its comments and recommendations to the Stormwater Administrator at the County Planning and Development Department.
(2) Failure of the Soil and Water Conservation District to submit its comments and recommendations within 20 days shall not delay final action on the plan. Planning and Development is solely responsible for plan(s) review and will incorporate review comments and recommendations from the Soil and Water Conservation District into its examination of the plan application.
(H) (1) Approval, approval with modifications, or denial of the proposed stormwater plan shall be in writing, in the case of denial, the reasons for denial shall be clearly stated. The applicant may appeal the decision of the Stormwater Administrator at the County Planning and Development Department to a Plan Review Committee within 15 days after receipt of written notice of disapproval or approval with modifications. Only the applicant can appeal the decision of the Stormwater Administrator.
(2) A condition of plan approval will be the right to physical inspection of the drainage structures and stormwater management measures during and after construction.
(I) Hearings held pursuant to this section shall be conducted by a Plan Review Committee consisting of the Director of Planning and Development, the Director of the Soil and Water Conservation District, and the Director of General Services within 30 days after the date of the appeal or request for hearing.
(J) The Plan Review Committee shall decide appeals within 15 days after the date of the hearing on any stormwater plan. If the Review Committee upholds the disapproval or modification of a proposed plan following the hearing, the person submitting the plan shall then be entitled to appeal the local Plan Review Committee’s decision to the Board of Adjustment within 15 days.
(K) The Board of Adjustment will conduct a hearing in the nature of a quasi-judicial proceeding with all findings of fact supported by material evidence.
(L) Decisions appealing the final decision by the Board of Adjustment may be filed in County Superior Court, to be reviewed by proceedings in the nature of certiorari, within 30 days of the final decision of the Board of Adjustment.
(M) The Stormwater Administrator shall take action on revisions to a stormwater plan which has been previously denied, within 15 days of receipt of the revised plan application for approval.
(N) If a revised application is not re-submitted within 60 calendar days from the date the applicant was notified, the application shall be considered withdrawn, and a new submittal for the same or substantially the same project shall be required along with the appropriate fee and pursuant to the current standards.
(O) Application for an amendment to a stormwater plan in written and graphic form may be made at any time. Until such time that any amendment is approved by the Stormwater Administrator, it shall be unlawful to deviate from the approved plan.
(P) An approved plan shall become null and void if the applicant has failed to make progress on the site within six months after the date of approval. The Stormwater Administrator may grant a single, six-month extension of this time limit, for good cause shown, upon receiving a written request from the applicant before the expiration of the approved plan.
(2013 Code, § 20-6)