(A) Creation and membership.
(1) Pursuant to Pub. Act 110 of 2006, being M.C.L.A. § 125.3601, one of the regular members of the Zoning Board of Appeals shall be a member of the Planning Commission. The remaining regular members, and any alternate members, shall be selected from the electors of the township residing within the zoning jurisdiction of the township. The members selected shall be representative of the population distribution and of the various interests present in the township. One regular member may be a member of the Board of Trustees, but shall not serve as Chairperson of the Zoning Board of Appeals. An employee or contractor of the Board of Trustees may not serve as a member of the Zoning Board of Appeals.
(2) The Township Board may appoint not more than two alternate members for the same term as regular members to the Zoning Board of Appeals. An alternate member may be called as specified in this chapter to serve as a regular member of the Zoning Board of Appeals in the absence of a regular member if the regular member is absent from or will be unable to attend one or more consecutive meetings of the Zoning Board of Appeals. An alternate member may also be called to serve as a regular member for the purpose of reaching a decision on a case in which the regular member has abstained for reasons of conflict of interest. The alternate member appointed shall serve in the case until a final decision is made. The alternate member has the same voting rights as a regular member of the Zoning Board of Appeals.
(3) The total amount annually allowed the Board of Appeals as per diem or as expenses actually incurred in the discharge of duties shall not exceed a reasonable sum, which shall be appropriated annually in advance by the Township Board.
(4) A member of the Board of Appeals may be removed by the Township Board for misfeasance, malfeasance or non-feasance in office upon written charges and after public hearing. A member shall disqualify himself or herself from a vote in which the member has a conflict of interest. Failure of a member to disqualify himself or herself from a vote in which the member has a conflict of interest constitutes malfeasance in office.
(5) Terms shall be for three years, except for members serving because of their memberships on the Planning Commission, or Township Board, whose terms shall be limited to the time they are members of the Planning Commission, or Township Board, respectively, and whose terms shall be limited to the time they are members of those bodies. When members are first appointed, the appointments may be for less than three years to provide for staggered terms. A successor shall be appointed not more than one month after the term of the preceding member has expired. Vacancies for unexpired terms shall be filled for the remainder of the term.
(6) The Zoning Board of Appeals shall not conduct business unless a majority of the regular members of the Board is present.
(B) Organization and procedures.
(1) Rules of procedure. The Zoning Board of Appeals shall adopt its own rules of procedure as may be necessary to conduct its meetings and carry out its function, and shall have all other powers as provided by law. The Board shall choose its Chairperson, and in the absence of the Chairperson, an acting Chairperson. The Board may also alert other officers or committees as it considers necessary.
(2) Meetings. Meetings shall be held at the call of the Chairperson and at such times as the Zoning Board of Appeals may determine. All meetings by the Zoning Board of Appeals shall be open to the public. The Board may declare any meeting, or part of any meeting, a study meeting to pursue matters of business without comment or interruption from the public in attendance. The Chairperson or, in his or her absence, the acting Chairperson may administer oaths and compel the attendance of witnesses.
(3) Records. Minutes of all proceedings shall be kept and maintained which shall contain evidence and dates relevant to every case considered together with the votes of the members and the final disposition of each case. The minutes shall be filed in the office of the Township Clerk and shall be made available to the general public.
(4) Counsel. The Township Attorney shall act as legal counsel for the Zoning Board of Appeals and shall be present at all meetings upon request by the Chairperson of the Zoning Board of Appeals.
(5) Hearings.
(a) Following receipt of a written request concerning a request for a variance, the Zoning Board of Appeals shall fix a reasonable time for the hearing of the request and give notice as provided in § 155.385. Upon receipt of a written request seeking an interpretation of the zoning ordinance or an appeal of an administrative decision, a notice stating the time, date and place of the public hearing shall be published in a newspaper of general circulation within the township and shall be sent to the person requesting the interpretation not less than 15 days before the public hearing. In addition, if the request for an interpretation or appeal of an administrative decision involves a specific parcel, written notice stating the nature of the interpretation request and the time, date, and place of the public hearing on the interpretation request shall be sent by first-class mail or personal delivery to all persons to whom real property is assessed within 300 feet of the boundary of the property in question and to the occupants of all structures within 300 feet of the boundary of the property in question. If a tenant's name is not known, the term "occupant" may be used.
(b) Any person may appear and testify at the hearings, either in person or by duly authorized agent or attorney.
(c) The Chairperson of the Zoning Board of Appeals may recess the hearings from time to time and, if the time and place of the continued hearing be publicly announced at the time of adjournment of the Board hearing, no further notice shall be required.
(6) Decisions. The Zoning Board of Appeals shall return a decision upon each case within 30 days after a request or appeal has been filed, unless an extended time is agreed upon with the parties concerned. Any decision of the Zoning Board of Appeals shall not become final until the expiration of the five days from the date of entry of the order, unless the Zoning Board of Appeals shall find the immediate effect of the order is necessary for the preservation of property or personal rights and shall so certify on the record.
(7) Malfeasance. The Township Board of Trustees shall provide for the removal of a member of the Zoning Board of Appeals for misfeasance, malfeasance or non-feasance in office upon written charges and after public hearing.
(C) Majority vote. The concurring vote of a majority of the members of the Zoning Board of Appeals shall be necessary to reverse any order, requirements, decision or determination of the Zoning Administrator and/or Code Enforcement Officer or to decide in favor of the applicant on any matter upon which they are required to pass under this chapter or to effect any variation in the ordinance.
(D) Appeals.
(1) Filing of appeals.
(a) Appeals to the Zoning Board of Appeals may be made by any person aggrieved, or by any order, requirement, decision or determination made by an administrative official charged with enforcement of this chapter.
(b) Any appeal from the ruling of the Administrative Official concerning the enforcement of the provisions of this chapter may be made to the Zoning Board of Appeals within ten days after the date of the mailing of the Administrator's decision. The appeal shall be filed with the Zoning Administrator and shall specify the grounds for appeal. The Zoning Administrator shall immediately transmit to the Chairperson of the Board of Appeals papers constituting the record upon which the action appealed from was taken.
(2) Stay. An appeal shall stay all proceedings in furtherance of the action appealed from unless the Zoning Administrator certifies to the Zoning Board of Appeals after notice of appeal has been filed, that by reason of facts stated in the certificate a stay would, in their opinion, cause imminent peril to life or property, in which case the proceedings shall not be stayed otherwise than by a restraining order, which may be granted by the Zoning Board of Appeals or, by a court of record.
(3) Fees. A fee, as established by the Township Board from time to time, shall be paid to the Zoning Administrator at the time of filing application with the Zoning Board of Appeals. The purpose of the fee is to cover, in part, the necessary advertisements, investigations and other expenses incurred by the Zoning Board of Appeals in connection with the appeal.
(E) Duties and powers. The Zoning Board of Appeals shall not have the power to alter or change the zoning district classification of any property, nor to make any change in the terms or intent of this chapter, but does have power to act on those matters where this chapter provides for an administrative review, interpretation, variance exception or special approval permit, as defined in this section.
(1) Review. The Zoning Board of Appeals shall hear and decide appeals where it is alleged by the appellant that there is an error in any order, requirement, permit, decision, determination or refusal made by the Zoning Administrator or by any other official in administering or enforcing any provisions of this chapter.
(2) Interpretation. The Zoning Board of Appeals shall have the power to:
(a) Interpret, upon request, the provision of this chapter in a way as to carry out the intent and purpose of the ordinance;
(b) Determine the precise location of the boundary lines between zoning districts;
(c) Classify a use which is not specifically mentioned as part of the use regulations of any zoning district so that it conforms to a comparable permitted or prohibited use, in accordance with the purpose and intent of each district; and
(d) Determine the off-street parking and loading space requirements of any use not specifically mentioned in § 155.082.
(3) Water and sewer. May not alter or give variance for potable water and sanitary sewer requirements.
(4) Variance. The Zoning Board of Appeals shall have the power to authorize, upon an appeal, dimensional (non-use) variances allowed by law; provided, the conditions listed herein can be satisfied:
(5) Dimensional variance. A dimensional variance may be granted only in cases where the applicant demonstrates in the official record of the public hearing that practical difficulty exists by showing all of the following:
(a) The need for the requested variance is due to unique circumstances or physical conditions of the property involved, such as narrowness, shallowness, shape, water or topography and is not due to the applicants personal or economic difficulty;
(b) The need for the requested variance is not the result of actions of the property owners or previous property owners (self-created);
(c) Strict compliance with regulations governing area, setback, frontage, height, bulk, density or other dimensional requirements will unreasonably prevent the property owner from using the property for a permitted purpose, or will render conformity with those regulations unnecessarily burdensome;
(d) The requested variance is the minimum variance necessary to do substantial justice to the applicant as well as to other property owners in the district; and
(e) The requested variance will not cause an adverse impact on surrounding property, property values or the use and enjoyment of property in the neighborhood or zoning district.
(F) Rules. The following rules shall be applied in the granting of variances.
(1) The Zoning Board of Appeals may specify, in writing, conditions regarding the character, location, length of time and other features that will in its judgment, secure the objectives and purposes of this chapter. The breach of any condition shall automatically invalidate the variance granted.
(2) Each variance granted under the provisions of this chapter shall become null and void unless:
(a) The construction authorized by the variance or permit has been commenced within six months after the granting of the variance; or
(b) The occupancy of land, premises or buildings authorized by the variance has taken place within one year after the granting of the variance.
(3) No application for a variance which has been denied wholly or in part by the Zoning Board of Appeals shall be resubmitted for a period of one year from the date of the last denial, except on the grounds of newly discovered evidence or proof of changed conditions found upon inspection by the Board to be valid.
(G) Temporary variances. The Zoning Board of Appeals may grant temporary variances for temporary structures, such as a garage, partial structure, cellar or basement to be used for dwelling purposes. Temporary variances are limited to six months or less with no extensions. Temporary variances are subject to the following procedures and limitations.
(1) An application for a variance for the erection or movement of a temporary structure for dwelling purposes, including trailer coaches, shall be made to the Zoning Board of Appeals.
(2) Notices shall be given in accordance with § 155.385.
(3) A temporary variance shall not be granted unless the Zoning Board of Appeals finds adequate evidence that the proposed location of the use will not be detrimental to property in the immediate vicinity; and that the proposed water supply and sanitary facilities have been approved by the County Health Department.
(4) The Zoning Board of Appeals may impose any reasonable conditions in addition to the district requirements in which the use is proposed, including setbacks, land coverage, off-street parking, landscaping and other requirements deemed necessary to protect adjoining properties and the public welfare. The violation of any condition shall automatically invalidate the permit.
(5) Unique and temporary conditions shall exist which justify the need for a manufactured home on a given lot or parcel such as a dwelling for seasonal farm labor, aged family members, domestic employees or similar dwelling needs of a temporary nature that relate to the use of the principal dwelling on the property in question.
(6) The variance issued shall clearly set forth the conditions under which the variance is granted and shall state that the proposed temporary dwelling structure is to be vacated upon expiration of a specific time limit not to exceed 12 months. No temporary variance shall be transferable to any other owner or occupant. The variance may be renewed in the case of manufactured homes if the conditions of divisions (G)(1) through (G)(5) above can be met again.
(H) Bond for compliance.
(I) Bond authorized. In authorizing any variance, or in granting any conditional, or special approval permits, the Zoning Board of Appeals may require that a bond of ample sum be furnished to ensure compliance with requirements, specifications and conditions imposed with the grant of variance.
(J) Zoning Board of Appeals decisions. The decision of the Zoning Board of Appeals shall be final. A party aggrieved by the decision may appeal to the Circuit Court.
(Ord. 06-14-Z, passed 10-3-2006; Ord. 06-14, passed 10-17-2006; Ord. 09-02, passed 10-20-2009)