(1) No person shall remove any stone walls or portion thereof located within the public right-of-way without first applying for and receiving a permit from the office of historic preservation. "Stone wall" is defined to be a wall built of stones or rocks which have been gathered from fields or creek bottoms or quarried stones or rocks. The office of historic preservation may issue a removal permit only in special circumstances including but not limited to the following:
(a) The stone wall is a traffic hazard or otherwise presents a threat to public safety;
(b) The stone wall is to be relocated or replaced by a more appropriate stone wall; or
(c) The existing stone wall is in such a damaged or neglected condition that it is not feasible to have it remain. No permit shall be issued however in cases where the property owner or his agents cause the stone wall to be damaged in order to justify the issuance of a removal permit.
Nothing contained in this section is intended to limit or impair the authority of the federal or state government to remove stone walls within the public right-of-way of any publicly dedicated road when the removal or alternation is necessary to make road improvements.
(2) Applicants may appeal the denial of a permit to the stone wall appeals board. The appeal provided herein shall be taken by filing written notice thereof with the office of historic preservation within twenty (20) days from the final action of the office of historic preservation's denial of the permit. The written notice provided for herein shall state the reasons why the appeal is being taken. The appeal provided herein shall be heard within sixty (60) days following the date the appeal is filed.
(3) The stone wall appeals board shall meet to review applicants' appeals. The stone wall appeals board may consider whether special circumstances exist to allow for the removal of a stone wall. Special circumstances may include, but are not limited to, the circumstances set out in subsection (1) of this section. Decisions made by the stone wall appeals board shall be final. The stone wall appeals board shall be composed of the members of the board of architectural review established pursuant to Article 13-5 of the Zoning Ordinance with terms concurrent with their terms serving on the board of architectural review.
(4) Any person violating any provision of this section shall be upon conviction or a plea of guilty subject to a fine of not less than three hundred dollars ($300.00) per five (5) linear feet of stone wall removed nor more than five hundred dollars ($500.00) per five (5) linear feet of stone wall removed.
(Ord. No. 224-94, § 1, 11-17-94; Ord. No. 179-2009, § 1, 8-27-09)