(A) General. The regulations, restrictions and boundaries set forth in this subchapter may from time to time be amended, supplemented, changed, modified or repealed upon initiation by the Planning and Zoning Commission, the City Council or by a petition of a property owner or of their authorized agents, provided however, that no such action may be taken until:
(1) Application has been made and duly filed upon the forms prescribed by the City Council and the filing fee as prescribed from time to time by the City Council has been submitted to the City Secretary;
(2) The question has been referred to the Planning and Zoning Commission for consideration and public hearing on the question and their recommendations received; and
(3) A public hearing has been held in relation thereto, before the City Council at which parties in interest and citizens shall have an opportunity to be heard.
(B) Hearing before the Zoning Commission.
(1) Written notice of all public hearings on proposed changes in district boundaries shall be sent to all owners of property within a distance of at least 200 feet from the boundaries of the subject property at least ten days prior to the hearing date. The notice shall be served by using the last known address as listed on the last approved city tax roll and depositing the notice postage paid, in the United States mail. In addition, a notice of public hearing shall be published one time in a newspaper of general circulation in the city, not less than ten days prior to the date of the hearing, and signs giving notice of a proposed zone change shall be placed on the subject property at least ten days prior to the public hearing. Minimum sign size shall be 24 inches by 24 inches with a minimum distance of 35 inches above ground. Notice of hearings on proposed changes to the text of the Zoning Ordinance shall be accomplished by one publication not less than 15 days prior thereto in the official newspaper of the city.
(2) Any hearing may be continued for good cause at the request of the applicant, or at the discretion of the Planning and Zoning Commission noted in writing in its minutes. In the event any hearing is continued or recessed or a matter tabled for any reason other than lack of proper notice, further notice to surrounding property owners shall not be required. The continuation date and time shall be set at that meeting.
(3) The same procedure for notifying adjacent property owners shall be followed by the Commission for hearings on rezoning petitions and for conditional use permit applications, unless otherwise provided.
(4) Upon the final hearing of the application, the Commission shall recommend approval or denial of the same and report of the action, shall be made by the Commission to the City Council.
(C) Hearing before the City Council.
(1) Before acting upon any application for amendment, the City Council shall hold a public hearing, notice of which hearing shall be published at least one time in a newspaper of general circulation in the city, not less than 15 days prior to the date of the hearing.
(2) Recommendations for revision or amendment of the ordinance, including the zoning district map, may also be made by the Planning and Zoning Commission upon its own motion, for final determination by the City Council. Likewise, the City Council may revise, modify or amend the ordinance, including the zoning district map, upon its own motion, provided however, the proposed changes shall first be submitted to the Planning and Zoning Commission for recommendation and report. In either case, final action thereon shall be taken only upon notice and hearing, as provided herein.
(3) In case of a written protest against the change, signed by the owners of 20% or more, either of the area of the lots or land included in the proposed change, or of the lots or land immediately adjoining the same and extending 200 feet therefrom, or if the change is denied by the Planning and Zoning Commission, the change shall not become effective except by the favorable vote of three-fourths of all members of the City Council of Heath.
(4) The City Council shall, unless otherwise stated in the motion, make all denials of zone changes with prejudice. If the request is denied with prejudice, no additional application shall be accepted which involves all or any part of the property within a period of 12 months except:
(a) At the request of the City Council; and
(b) On written request by the applicant to the City Council, with pertinent facts which the City Council may deem sufficient to warrant a new hearing. The request shall not be set for public hearing unless approved by a majority vote of the City Council. If a rehearing is granted by the City Council, then the procedure thereon will be the same as that given an original application for zoning change filed with the Commission.
(5) For joint hearings, the City Council may hold a public hearing, after publishing the required notice, jointly and with any public hearing required to be held by the Planning and Zoning Commission, but the City Council shall not take action until it has received a final report from the Planning and Zoning Commission.
(2005 Code, § 12-11-1) (Ord. 210824A, passed 8-24-2021)