A. Granting; planning commission action. Following the procedures set forth in § 13.06.040 of this code, the planning commission may authorize variances from the requirements of this title where it can be shown that, owing to special and unusual circumstances related to a specific piece of property, the literal interpretation of this title would cause an undue or unnecessary hardship, except that no variance shall be granted to allow the use of the property for purposes not authorized within the zone in which the proposed use would be located. In granting a variance, the planning commission may attach conditions which it finds necessary to protect the best interests of the surrounding property or neighborhood and to otherwise achieve the purposes of this chapter.
B. Granting; conditions. No variance shall be granted by the planning commission unless it can be shown that all of the following conditions exist:
1. Exceptional or extraordinary conditions applying to the property that do not apply generally to other properties in the same zone or vicinity, which conditions are a result of lot size or shape, topography, or other circumstances over which the applicant has no control;
2. The variance is necessary for the preservation of a property right of the applicant substantially the same as is possessed by owners of other property in the same zone or vicinity;
3. The authorization of the variance shall not be materially detrimental to the purposes of this chapter, be injurious to property in the zone or vicinity in which the property is located, or be otherwise detrimental to the objectives of any city development plan or policy;
4. The variance requested is the minimum variance from the provisions and standards of this title which will alleviate the hardship.
C. Application. A request for a variance may be initiated by a property owner or his authorized agent by filing an application with the city clerk upon forms prescribed for the purpose. The application shall be accompanied by a site plan, drawn to scale, showing the dimensions and arrangement of the proposed development.
D. Expiration when unexercised. When the planning commission (or in the case of an appeal, the city council) approves a variance the rights thereby given to the applicant shall continue to exist and to belong to the applicant or any other owner of the land for a period of one year from the date of final approval. If, at the expiration of one year from the date of approval, construction of the structure or initiation of the use giving rise to the need for the variance has not begun, the rights given by the variance approval shall terminate without further action by the city, the planning commission, or the city council. Such rights shall also terminate at or after the expiration of one year from approval if, though commenced within one year, construction ceases and is not resumed within 60 days.
(Ord. 81-09 (part), 1981)