(A) Authority. This chapter and the zoning district map may be amended from time to time by ordinance duly enacted by the City Council; provided, however, that no such amendment shall be enacted except in accordance with the procedures of § 151.042 Public Hearings.
(B) Initiation. Proposed amendments or rezonings may be initiated by the City Council, by the Planning Commission, or by any one or more owners of real estate in the area to be affected by the amendment or rezoning or by the owner of an enforceable option to purchase property in the area affected by the amendment or rezoning.
(C) Procedure.
(1) When any proposed amendment or rezoning is initiated by the City Council, the Council shall transmit its proposal to the Planning Commission for a public hearing and report thereon.
(2) When any proposed amendment or rezoning is initiated by an owner or owners of real estate in the city, an application for such amendment or rezoning, addressed to the City Council, shall be filed with the City Administrator. A nonrefundable application fee, established from time to time by the City Council by ordinance to cover administrative costs, shall accompany the application. The application shall be in such form and contain such information as shall be prescribed from time to time by the Planning Commission, but shall in all instances contain the following information:
(a) The applicant’s name and address;
(b) The precise wording of any proposed amendment to the text of this chapter; and
(c) In the case of a rezoning:
1. A legal description and street address of the property proposed to be reclassified;
2. The name and address of the property owner or owners of the property;
3. The present zoning classification and existing uses of the property to be reclassified;
4. The area of the property proposed to be reclassified, stated in square feet or acres, or fraction thereof; and
5. A map clearly showing the property proposed to be rezoned, its present zoning classification, existing uses, and its initial use under the proposed zoning and, if deemed necessary by the Zoning Administrator, a land survey will be required.
(3) A public hearing shall be set, advertised, and conducted by the Planning Commission in accordance with § 151.042.
(4) Following the conclusion of the public hearing, the Planning Commission shall transmit to the City Council its recommendation in the form of a written report. Such report shall be accompanied by the findings of fact specifying the reasons for the recommendation.
(5) The City Council shall make a decision on the amendment within the time period established by M.S. § 15.99, as it may be amended from time to time.
(6) The chapter may be amended by a simple majority of the Council, except that the adoption or amendment of any portion of this chapter which changes all or part of the existing classification of a zoning district from residential to either commercial or industrial requires a two-thirds majority vote of all members of the Council.
(7) The City Council may apply a condition to a rezoning that would revert the site to the previous zoning classification if substantial development activity has not commenced on the site within two years of the date of rezoning approval.
(Prior Code, § 151.034) (Ord. 149, passed 3-9-1998)