The Appearance Commission shall have the following powers and duties:
(A) To initiate, promote and assist in the implementation of programs of general community beautification in the county;
(B) To seek to coordinate the activities of individuals, agencies and organizations, public and private, whose plans, activities and programs bear upon the appearance of the county;
(C) To provide leadership and guidance in matters of area or community design and appearance to individuals, and to public and private organizations, and agencies;
(D) To make studies of the visual characteristics and problems of the county, including surveys and inventories of an appropriate nature, and to recommend standards and policies of design for the entire area, any portion or neighborhood thereof, or any project to be undertaken;
(E) Prior to consideration of any application for approval of a conditional use, the County Board of Commissioners may request a recommendation on the appearance of the proposed conditional use from the Commission. The Commission shall have 30 days after the request is made to submit its recommendations;
(F) To prepare both general and specific plans for the improved appearance of the county. These plans may include the entire area or any part thereof, and may include private as well as public property. The plans shall set forth desirable standards and goals for the aesthetic enhancement of the county or any part thereof within its area of planning and zoning jurisdiction, including public ways and areas, open spaces, and public and private buildings and projects. Plans and recommendations shall be coordinated with municipalities and communities lying within and near the county where plans would affect these areas;
(G) To request from the proper officials of any public agency or body, including agencies of the state and its political subdivisions, its plans for public buildings, facilities or projects to be located within the county;
(H) To review these plans and to make recommendations regarding their aesthetic suitability to the appropriate agency, or to the planning or governing board. All plans shall be reviewed by the Commission in a prompt and expeditious manner, and all recommendations of the Commission with regard to any public project shall be made in writing. Copies of the recommendation shall be transmitted promptly to the planning or governing body of the county and to the appropriate agency;
(I) To formulate and recommend to the Board of County Commissioners the adoption of amendments of ordinances that will, in the opinion of the Commission, serve to enhance the appearance of the county;
(J) To direct the attention of the county officials to needed enforcement of any ordinance that may in any way affect the appearance of the county;
(K) To seek voluntary adherence to the standards and policies of its plans; and
(L) To promote public interest in and an understanding of its recommendations, studies and plans, and to that end to prepare, publish and distribute to the public those studies and reports as will, in the opinion of the Commission, advance the cause of improved municipal appearance.
(Ord. passed 4-20-1992)