Loading...
(A) Zoning Administrator. A Zoning Administrator or other official designated by the City Council must administer and enforce this subchapter.
(B) Permit requirements.
(1) Permit required. A permit must be obtained from the Zoning Administrator prior to conducting the following activities:
(a) The erection, addition, modification, rehabilitation, or alteration of any building, structure, or portion thereof. Normal maintenance and repair also requires a permit if such work, separately or in conjunction with other planned work, constitutes a substantial improvement as defined in this subchapter.
(b) The use or change of use of a building, structure, or land.
(c) The construction of a dam, fence, or on-site septic system, although a permit is not required for a farm fence as defined in this subchapter.
(d) The change or extension of a nonconforming use.
(e) The repair of a structure that has been damaged by flood, fire, tornado, or any other source.
(f) The placement of fill, excavation of materials, or the storage of materials or equipment within the floodplain.
(g) Relocation or alteration of a watercourse, unless a public waters work permit has been applied for.
(h) Any other type of “development” as defined in this subchapter.
(2) Application for permit. Permit applications must be submitted to the Zoning Administrator on forms provided by the Zoning Administrator. The permit application must include the following as applicable:
(a) A site plan showing all pertinent dimensions, existing or proposed buildings, structures, and significant natural features having an influence on the permit.
(b) Location of fill or storage of materials in relation to the stream channel.
(c) Copies of any required municipal, county, state or federal permits or approvals.
(d) Other relevant information requested by the Zoning Administrator as necessary to property evaluate the permit application.
(3) Certificate of zoning compliance for a new, altered, or nonconforming use. No building, land or structure may be occupied or used in any manner until a certificate of zoning compliance has been issued by the Zoning Administrator stating that the use of the building or land conforms to the requirements of this subchapter.
(4) Certification. The applicant is required to submit certification by a registered professional engineer, registered architect, or registered land surveyor that the finished fill and building elevations were accomplished in compliance with the provisions of this subchapter. Floodproofing measures must be certified by a registered professional engineer or registered architect.
(5) Record of first floor elevation. The Zoning Administrator must maintain a record of the elevation of the lowest floor (including basement) of all new structures and alterations or additions to existing structures in the floodplain, The Zoning Administrator must also maintain a record of the elevation to which structures and alterations or additions to structures are floodproofed.
(6) Notifications for watercourse alterations. Before authorizing any alteration or relocation of a river or stream, the Zoning Administrator must notify adjacent communities. If the applicant has applied for a permit to work in public waters pursuant to M.S. § 103G.245, as it may be amended from time to time, this will suffice as adequate notice. A copy of the notification must also be submitted to the Chicago Regional Office of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).
(7) Notification to FEMA when physical changes increase or decrease base flood elevations. As soon as is practicable, but not later than six months after the date such supporting information becomes available, the Zoning Administrator must notify the Chicago Regional Office of FEMA of the changes by submitting a copy of the relevant technical or scientific data.
(8) Variance applications. An application for a variance to the provisions of this ordinance will be processed and reviewed in accordance with applicable state statutes and § 154.172 of this chapter.
(9) Adherence to state floodplain management standards. A variance must not allow a use that is not allowed in that district, permit a lower degree of flood protection than the regulatory flood protection elevation for the particular area, or permit standards lower than those required by state law.
(10) Additional variance criteria. The following additional variance criteria of the Federal Emergency Management Agency must be satisfied:
(a) Variances must not be issued by a community within any designated regulatory floodway if any increase in flood levels during the base flood discharge would result.
(b) Variances may only be issued by a community upon (i) a showing of good and sufficient cause, (ii) a determination that failure to grant the variance would result in exceptional hardship to the applicant, and (iii) a determination that the granting of a variance will not result in increased flood heights, additional threats to public safety, extraordinary public expense, create nuisances, cause fraud on or victimization of the public, or conflict with existing local laws or ordinances.
(c) Variances may only be issued upon a determination that the variance is the minimum necessary, considering the flood hazard, to afford relief.
(11) Flood insurance notice. The Zoning Administrator must notify the applicant for a variance that: 1) The issuance of a variance to construct a structure below the base flood level will result in increased premium rates for flood insurance up to amounts as high as $25 for $100 of insurance coverage; and 2) Such construction below the base or regional flood level increases risks to life and property. Such notification must be maintained with a record of all variance actions.
(12) General considerations. The community may consider the following factors in granting variances and imposing conditions on variances and conditional uses in floodplains:
(a) The potential danger to life and property due to increased flood heights or velocities caused by encroachments;
(b) The danger that materials may be swept onto other lands or downstream to the injury of others;
(c) The proposed water supply and sanitation systems, if any, and the ability of these systems to minimize the potential for disease, contamination and unsanitary conditions;
(d) The susceptibility of any proposed use and its contents to flood damage and the effect of such damage on the individual owner;
(e) The importance of the services to be provided by the proposed use to the community;
(f) The requirements of the facility for a waterfront location;
(g) The availability of viable alternative locations for the proposed use that are not subject to flooding;
(h) The compatibility of the proposed use with existing development and development anticipated in the foreseeable future;
(i) The relationship of the proposed use to the comprehensive land use plan and flood plain management program for the area;
(j) The safety of access to the property in times of flood for ordinary and emergency vehicles;
(k) The expected heights, velocity, duration, rate of rise and sediment transport of the flood waters expected at the site.
(13) Submittal of hearing notices to the Department of Natural Resources (DNR). The Zoning Administrator must submit hearing notices for proposed variances to the DNR sufficiently in advance to provide at least ten-days' notice of the hearing. The notice may be sent by electronic mail or U.S. Mail to the respective DNR area hydrologist.
(14) Submittal of final decisions to the DNR. A copy of all decisions granting variances must be forwarded to the DNR within ten days of such action. The notice may be sent by electronic mail or U.S. Mail to the respective DNR area hydrologist.
(15) Record-keeping. The Zoning Administrator must maintain a record of all variance actions, including justification for their issuance, and must report such variances in an annual or biennial report to the Administrator of the National Flood Insurance Program, when requested by the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
(D) Conditional uses.
(1) Administrative review. An application for a conditional use permit under the provisions of this ordinance will be processed and reviewed in accordance with § 154.170 of this chapter.
(2) Factors used in decision-making. In passing upon conditional use applications, the City Council must consider all relevant factors specified in other sections of this ordinance, and those factors identified in division(C)(12) above.
(3) Conditions attached to conditional use permits. The City Council may attach such conditions to the granting of conditional use permits as it deems necessary to fulfil! the purposes of this subchapter. Such conditions may include, but are not limited to, the following:
(a) Modification of waste treatment and water supply facilities.
(b) Limitations on period of use, occupancy, and operation.
(c) Imposition of operational controls, sureties, and deed restrictions.
(d) Requirements for construction of channel modifications, compensatory storage, dikes, levees, and other protective measures.
(e) Floodproofing measures, in accordance with the state building code and this subchapter. The applicant must submit a plan or document certified by a registered professional engineer or architect that the floodproofing measures are consistent with the regulatory flood protection elevation and associated flood factors for the particular area.
(4) Submittal of hearing notices to the Department of Natural Resources (DNR). The Zoning Administrator must submit hearing notices for proposed conditional uses to the DNR sufficiently in advance to provide at least ten-days' notice of the hearing. The notice may be sent by electronic mail or U.S. Mail to the respective DNR area hydrologist.
(5) Submittal of final decisions to the DNR. A copy of all decisions granting conditional uses must be forwarded to the DNR within ten days of such action. The notice may be sent by electronic mail or U.S. Mail to the respective DNR area hydrologist.
(Ord. 14-0729, passed 6-10-2014)
A use, structure, or occupancy of land which was lawful before the passage or amendment of this ordinance but which is not in conformity with the provisions of this subchapter may be continued subject to the following conditions. Historic structures, as defined in § 154.087 above, are subject to the provisions of divisions (A) to (E) of this section.
(A) A nonconforming use, structure, or occupancy must not be expanded, changed, enlarged, or altered in a way that increases its nonconformity. Expansion or enlargement of uses, structures or occupancies within the Floodway District is prohibited.
(B) Any structural alteration or addition to a nonconforming structure or nonconforming use which would result in increasing the flood damage potential of that structure or use must be protected to the regulatory flood protection elevation in accordance with any of the elevation on fill or floodproofing techniques (i.e., FP-1 thru FP-4 floodproofing classifications) allowable in the State Building Code, except as further restricted in divisions (C) through (G) below.
(C) The cost of ail structural alterations or additions to any nonconforming structure over the life of the structure may not exceed 50% of the market value of the structure unless the conditions of this section are satisfied. The cost of all structural alterations and additions must include all costs such as construction materials and a reasonable cost placed on all manpower or labor. If the cost of all previous and proposed alterations and additions exceeds 50% of the market value of the structure, then the structure must meet the standards of §§ 154.089 and 154.090 above for new structures depending upon whether the structure is in the Floodway or Flood Fringe District, respectively.
(D) If any nonconforming use, or any use of a nonconforming structure, is discontinued for more than one year, any future use of the premises must conform to this ordinance. The Assessor must notify the Zoning Administrator in writing of instances of nonconformities that have been discontinued for a period of more than one year.
(E) If any nonconformity is substantially damaged, as defined in § 154.087 above, it may not be reconstructed except in conformity with the provisions of this subchapter. The applicable provisions for establishing new uses or new structures in §§ 154.089 and 154.090 will apply depending upon whether the use or structure is in the Floodway or Flood Fringe, respectively.
(F) If any nonconforming use or structure experiences a repetitive loss, as defined in § 154.087 above, it must not be reconstructed except in conformity with the provisions of this subchapter.
(G) Any substantial improvement, as defined in § 154.097 above, to a nonconforming structure requires that the existing structure and any additions must meet the requirements of §§ 154.089 and 154.090 of this subchapter for new structures, depending upon whether the structure is in the Floodway or Flood Fringe District.
(Ord. 14-0729, passed 6-10-2014)
(A) It is unlawful for any person to violate the provisions of this subchapter or fail to comply with any of its requirements, including violations of conditions and safeguards established in connection with grants of variances or conditional uses.
(B) Nothing herein contained shall prevent the Council from taking other lawful action as is necessary to prevent or remedy any violation. These actions may include, but are not limited to, the following.
(1) In responding to a suspected violation, the Zoning Administrator and the Council may utilize the full array of enforcement actions available to them, including, but not limited to, prosecution and fines, injunctions, after-the-fact permits, orders for corrective measures or a request to the National Flood Insurance Program for denial of flood insurance availability to the guilty party. The city must act in good faith to enforce these official controls and to correct violations to the extent possible so as not to jeopardize its eligibility in the National Flood Insurance Program.
(2) When a violation is either discovered by or brought to the attention of the Zoning Administrator, the Zoning Administrator shall immediately investigate the situation and document the nature and extent of the violation of the official control. As soon as is reasonably possible, this information will be submitted to the appropriate Department of Natural Resources and Federal Emergency Management Agency regional office along with the city’s plan of action to correct the violation to the degree possible.
(3) The Zoning Administrator shall notify the suspected party of the requirements of this subchapter and all other official controls and the nature and extent of the suspected violation of these controls. If the structure or use is under construction or development, the Zoning Administrator may order the construction or development immediately halted until a proper permit or approval is granted by the city. If the construction or development is already completed, then the Zoning Administrator may either:
(a) Issue an order identifying the corrective actions that must be made within a specified time period to bring the use or structure into compliance with the official controls; or
(b) Notify the responsible party to apply for an after-the-fact permit or development approval within a specified period of time not to exceed 30 days.
(4) If the responsible party does not appropriately respond to the Zoning Administrator within the specified period of time, each additional day that lapses shall constitute an additional violation of this subchapter and shall be prosecuted accordingly. The Zoning Administrator shall also, upon the lapse of the specified response period, notify the landowner to restore the land to the condition which existed prior to the violation of this subchapter.
(2004 Code, § 154.098) (Ord. 464, passed 1- -1996; Ord. 98-223, passed 5-12-1998) Penalty, see § 154.999
(A) Floodplain designation; restrictions on removal. The floodplain designation on the official zoning map must not be removed from floodplain areas unless it can be shown that the designation is in error or that the area has been filled to or above the elevation of the regulatory flood protection elevation and is contiguous to lands outside the floodplain. Special exceptions to this rule may be permitted by the Commissioner of the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) if the Commissioner determines that, through other measures, lands are adequately protected for the intended use.
(B) Amendments require DNR approval. All amendments to this ordinance must be submitted to and approved by the Commissioner of the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) prior to adoption. The Commissioner must approve the amendment prior to community approval.
(C) Map revisions require ordinance amendments. The floodplain district regulations must be amended to incorporate any revisions by the Federal Emergency Management Agency to the floodplain maps adopted in § 154.086(C) above.
(2004 Code, § 154.099) (Ord. 464, passed 1- -1996; Ord. 98-223, passed 5-12-1998; Ord. 14-0729, passed 6-10-2014)
DEVELOPMENT STANDARDS
Loading...