(A) Authority. In specific cases in which there are practical difficulties or particular hardship in the way of carrying out the strict letter of the regulations of this chapter, the Planning and Zoning Commission shall have the power and duty to determine and vary the application of such regulations, in harmony with their general purpose and intent, but only in accordance with the requirements hereinafter set forth.
(B) Application and notice of hearing. An application for a variation shall be filed with the Community Development Department. The application shall be in such form, contain such information, and be accompanied by such plans, as the Commission may by rule require. The Commission shall hold a public hearing on such request not more than 60 days after filing of a completed application. Notice of the time and place of such public hearing shall be completed in accordance with § 156.203.
(C) Standards.
(1) The Planning and Zoning Commission shall not vary the provisions of this chapter as authorized in this section, unless it shall have made findings based upon the evidence presented to it in the following cases:
(a) That the property in question cannot yield a reasonable return if permitted to be used only under the conditions allowed by the regulations governing the district in which it is located;
(b) That the plight of the owner is due to unique circumstances; or
(c) That the variation, if granted, will not alter the essential character of the locality.
(2) A variation shall be permitted only if the evidence, in the judgment of the Planning and Zoning Commission, sustains each of the three conditions enumerated above.
(3) For the purpose of supplementing the above standards, the Planning and Zoning Commission, in making this determination whenever there are practical difficulties or particular hardship, shall also take into consideration the extent to which the following facts, favorable to the applicant, have been established by the evidence:
(a) That the particular physical surroundings, shape or topographical conditions of the specific property involved will bring a particular hardship upon the owner as distinguished from a mere inconvenience if the strict letter of the regulations were to be carried out;
(b) That the conditions upon which the petition for variation is based would not be applicable generally to other property within the same zone's classification;
(c) That the purpose of the variation is not based exclusively upon a desire to make more money out of the property;
(d) That the alleged difficulty or hardship has not been created by any person presently having an interest in the property;
(e) That the granting of the variation will not be detrimental to the public welfare or unduly injurious to other property or improvements in the neighborhood in which the property is located;
(f) That the proposed variation will not impair an adequate supply of light and air to adjacent property, or substantially increase the danger of fire or otherwise endanger the public safety, or substantially diminish or impair property values within the neighborhood.
(4) The Planning and Zoning Commission may require each condition and restriction upon the premises benefitted by a variation as may be necessary to comply with the standards set forth in this section to reduce or minimize the effect of such variation upon other property in the neighborhood, and to implement the general purpose and intent of this chapter.
(D) Authorized variations. Variations from the regulations of this chapter shall be granted by the Planning and Zoning Commission only in accordance with the standards set out in this section and may be granted only in the following instances, and in no others:
(1) To permit any yard or setback less than a yard or a setback required by the applicable regulations.
(2) To permit the use of a lot or lots of record on the effective date of this chapter for a use otherwise prohibited solely because of insufficient area of width of the lot or lots, but in no event shall the respective area and width of the lot or lots be less than 90% of the required area and width.
(3) To permit the same off-street parking facility to qualify as required facilities for two or more uses, provided that substantial use of such facility by each user does not take place at approximately the same hours of the same days of the week.
(4) To reduce the applicable off-street parking or loading facilities required by 20% of the applicable regulations.
(5) To increase by not more than 25% the maximum distance that required parking spaces are permitted to be located from the use served.
(6) To increase by not more than 20% the gross area of a sign.
(7) To modify any requirement of § 156.023, Accessory Buildings.
(E) Effective period. No order of the Commission granting a variation shall be valid for a period longer than one year from the date of such order unless a building permit is obtained within such period and the erection or alteration of a building is started or the use is commenced within such period. The Commission may grant one extension of this period, valid for up to one year, upon written application, and good cause shown, without notice or hearing. If any of the benefits conferred by any variation, whether heretofore or hereafter granted, are abandoned, or are not utilized for any continuous period of six months, the variation shall, to the extent of such abandonment or non-utilization, become void, and such use shall not thereafter be reestablished unless a new variation is obtained.
(F) Decisions. Not more than 60 days after the close of the public hearing, the Commission shall make its findings of fact and its determination, in writing, and shall forthwith transmit a copy thereof to the applicant. The concurring vote of four members of the Commission shall be necessary to grant a variation.
(Ord. 95, passed 4-5-71; Am. Ord. 1809, passed 6-1-15; Am. Ord. 2044, passed 2-15-21; Am. Ord. 2141, passed 12-18-23)