(A) Initiation of amendment. The City Council may, from time to time, at its own initiative or upon recommendation from the Planning Commission or on petition, amend, supplement, or change the district boundaries or the regulations herein, pursuant to the authority and procedures set forth in Public Act 110 of 2006, as amended. Text amendments may be proposed by any governmental body or any interested person or organization. Changes in district boundaries may be proposed by any governmental body, any person having a freehold interest in the subject property, or by the designated agent of a person having a freehold interest in the property.
(B) Application for amendment. A petition for an amendment to the text of this chapter, or an amendment to change the zoning classification of a particular property, shall be commenced by filing a petition with the Building Department, on the forms and accompanied by the fees specified. The petition shall explicitly describe the proposed amendment and shall be signed by the applicant. Petitions for rezoning of a specific site shall be accompanied by a plot plan or survey, which shall contain the following information.
(1) Applicant's name, address, and telephone number.
(2) Scale, northpoint, and dates of submission and revisions.
(3) Zoning classification of petitioner's parcel and all abutting parcels.
(4) Existing lot lines, building lines, structures, parking areas, driveways, and other improvements on the site and within 100 feet of the site.
(5) Dimensions, centerlines, and right-of-way widths of all abutting streets and alleys.
(6) Location of existing drainage courses, floodplains, lakes and streams, and wood lots.
(7) All existing and proposed easements.
(8) Location of sanitary sewer system, existing and proposed.
(9) Location and size of water mains and building service leads, existing and proposed.
(C) Review procedures. After the completed petition and all required supporting materials have been received and fees paid, the petition shall be reviewed in accordance with the following procedures.
(1) Planning Commission review.
(a) The petition shall be placed on the agenda of the next regularly scheduled meeting of the Planning Commission. The Planning Commission shall review the petition for amendment in accordance with the procedures in division (C)(3) of this section and hold a public hearing in accordance with Public Act 110 of 2006, as amended.
(b) Notice of the public hearing shall be given in the manner prescribed by Public Act 110 of 2006, Sections 103 and 202. If an individual property or several adjacent properties are proposed for rezoning, the Planning Commission shall give notice of the proposed rezoning to the owner of the property in question at least 15 days before the hearing.
(c) In addition, any petition for amendment shall require a public hearing, notice of which shall be given by publication in a newspaper of general circulation in the city. Notice of the time and place of the hearing shall also be given by mail to each utility company, telecommunication service provider, and railroad operating within the district affected, and airport manager of each airport that registers its name and mailing address with the City Clerk for purpose of receiving the notice of public hearing.
(2) Action by the Planning Commission and City Council.
(a) Following the hearing on the proposed amendment, the Planning Commission shall make written findings of fact which it shall transmit together with the comments made at the public hearing, and its recommendations to the City Council.
(b) The City Council may, by majority vote of its membership, at its next regularly scheduled meeting do one of the following.
1. Adopt the proposed amendment with or without amendments. If amended as to any manner of substance, Council shall not adopt until the amendment has been subject to all of the procedures required above.
2. Reject the proposed amendment.
3. Whenever a written protest against a proposed amendment is presented in writing to the City Clerk, signed by the owners of at least 20% of the area included in the proposed change, or by the owners of at least 20% of the area of land included within an area extending outward 100 feet from any point on the boundary of land included in the proposed change, excluding publicly-owned land in calculating the 20% requirement, the amendment shall not be passed except by the favorable vote of three-fourths of the entire City Council.
4. No application for a map amendment which has been denied by the City Council shall be reconsidered for one year unless there have been changes in the facts, evidence, and/or conditions in the case. Determination of whether there have been such changes shall be made by the Planning Commission at the time the application is submitted for processing.
(3) Review considerations. The Planning Commission and City Council shall, at minimum, consider the following before taking action on any proposed amendment.
(a) Will the proposed amendment be in accordance with the basic intent and purpose of the Zoning Ordinance?
(b) Will the proposed amendment further the comprehensive planning goals of the city?
(c) Have conditions changed since the Zoning Ordinance was adopted, or was there a mistake in the Zoning Ordinance, that justify the amendment?
(d) Will the amendment correct an inequitable situation created by the Zoning Ordinance, rather than merely grant special privileges?
(e) Will the amendment result in unlawful exclusionary zoning?
(f) Will the amendment set an inappropriate precedent, resulting in the need to correct future planning mistakes?
(g) If a rezoning is requested, is the proposed zoning consistent with the zoning classification of surrounding land?
(h) If a rezoning is requested, could all requirements in the proposed zoning classification be complied with on the subject parcel?
(4) Notice and record of amendment adoption. Following adoption of an amendment by the City Council, notice shall be published in a newspaper of general circulation in the city within 15 days after adoption; in accordance with Public Act 110 of 2006, as amended. The notice shall include either a summary of the regulatory effect of the amendment, including the geographic area affected, or the text of the amendment; the effective date of the amendment; and the item and place where a copy of the ordinance may be purchased or inspected. A record of all amendments shall be maintained by the city. A master Zoning Map shall be maintained by the Zoning Administrator, which shall identify all map amendments by number and date.
(Ord. 92-005, passed 2-17-92; Am. Ord. 11-005, passed 4-11-11; Am. Ord. 20-003, passed 7-6-20)