Unless initiated by City staff, the commission, or the Council, an application for a text amendment or rezoning shall be given first consideration within sixty (60) days from the date of its official and complete submission unless extended by the City Council or a time waiver is granted by the applicant. If applicable, processing of the application through required State or Federal agencies shall extend the review and decision making period. Additional procedural requirements are as follows:
A. Requests: Requests for a text amendment or rezoning shall be filed with the Administrative Officer on an official application form. The application shall be accompanied by a fee as provided by City Council resolution. The application shall also be accompanied by detailed written and graphic materials fully explaining the proposed change, and, in the case of a rezoning, the development of all forms and functions allowed within the proposed district and their potential impact on surrounding property and the community. The request shall be considered officially submitted when all the informational requirements have been reviewed and are determined to be complete. The request for a text amendment or rezoning shall be placed on the agenda of the next regular commission meeting.
B. Proof Of Ownership Or Authorization: Except for rezoning petitions initiated by City staff, the commission, or the Council, the applicant shall supply proof of ownership of the property for which the rezoning is requested, and, if the applicant is not the owner, supply written authorization from the owner(s) of the property in question to proceed with the requested rezoning.
C. Conditional Rezoning: Prior to any public hearing, the applicant for rezoning may voluntarily propose conditions or restrictions on the uses, forms or functions permitted upon the land in question, subject to all of the following:
1. All such conditions or restrictions must be voluntarily proposed by the applicant in writing as part of the rezoning application, or in writing prior to closing of the public hearing before the commission.
2. All such conditions or restrictions must conform to this title and all applicable requirements of this Code.
3. Conditions or restrictions may not be proposed and may not be changed after the public hearing before the commission has been closed. If the applicant wishes to change the conditions or restrictions after the commission has closed the public hearing, such changes must be voluntarily proposed in writing and shall require reconsideration by the commission at a new public hearing.
4. After the public hearing is closed, the commission may recommend approval without the conditions or recommend approval subject to the conditions or restrictions as submitted by the applicant; but the commission may not alter the conditions as submitted. Conversely, the commission may recommend denial of the rezoning.
5. The City Council may approve the rezoning without the conditions, or may approve the rezoning subject to the conditions or restrictions as submitted by the applicant, but the Council may not alter the conditions as submitted. Conversely, the Council may deny the rezoning.
D. Public Hearing: Upon receipt of the application, the Administrative Officer shall set a public hearing following proper hearing notification. The commission shall conduct the hearing and report its findings and recommendations to the City Council. Notice of said hearing shall consist of a legal property description and description of the request, and shall be published in the official newspaper at least seven (7) days but no more than twenty (20) days prior to the hearing and written notice of said hearing shall be mailed at least ten (10) days prior to all owners of land within three hundred fifty feet (350') of the subject property. Public notice signs will be posted on the subject property.
E. Failure Not Invalidation: Failure of a property owner to receive said notice shall not invalidate any such proceedings as set forth within this title.
F. Technical Reports: The Administrative Officer shall instruct the appropriate staff persons to prepare technical reports where appropriate, and provide general assistance in preparing a recommendation on the action to the City Council.
G. Adverse Effects: The commission and City Council shall consider possible adverse effects of the proposed text amendment or rezoning. Its judgment shall be based upon (but not limited to) the following factors:
1. The proposed action has been considered in relation to the specific policies and provisions of and has been found to be consistent with the official Mason City Comprehensive Plan.
2. The proposed action is or will be compatible with present and future land uses of the area.
3. The proposed action conforms to all performance standards contained herein.
4. The proposed action will not tend to or actually depreciate the area in which it is proposed.
5. The proposed action can be accommodated with existing public services and will not overburden the City's service capacity.
6. The proposed action is in conformance with the City's utility extension policies or is contiguous to existing development of a similar zoning.
H. Additional Information Requested: The commission and City staff shall have the authority to request additional information from the applicant concerning operational factors or to retain expert testimony with the consent and at the expense of the applicant concerning operational factors, said information to be declared necessary to establish performance conditions in relation to all pertinent sections of this title. Failure on the part of the applicant to supply all necessary supportive information may be grounds for denial of the request.
I. Appearance To Answer Questions: The applicant or a representative thereof shall appear before the commission in order to answer questions concerning the request.
J. Approval, Denial Or Changes: The commission shall recommend approval or denial of the request. In the case of a text amendment, the commission may recommend changes to the requested amendment.
K. Report And Recommendation Received: The City Council shall not act upon a text amendment or rezoning until they have received a report and recommendation from the commission or until sixty (60) days after the first regular commission meeting at which the request was considered.
L. Placement On Agenda: Upon receiving the report and recommendation of the commission, the Administrative Officer shall place the report and recommendation on the agenda for the next regular City Council meeting. Such reports and recommendations shall be entered in and made part of the permanent written record of the City Council meeting.
M. Public Hearing And Consideration: It shall be the duty of the City Council to hold a public hearing and give first consideration to the request within sixty (60) days after the receipt of the commission recommendation, unless the applicant agrees to an extension in writing to a date certain. Notice of the hearing shall be published in the official newspaper at least seven (7) days but no more than twenty (20) days prior to hearing.
N. Council Decision:
1. The City Council shall consider the commission's recommendation in coming to a final decision. However, prior to making a final decision, the Council shall refer the application back to the commission for further study and recommendation should any of the following occur:
a. The City Council finds that specific inconsistencies exist in the review process that may have prevented full consideration of relevant issues.
b. New information comes to light that the commission did not have at the time it made its recommendation that may have resulted in a different recommendation.
c. In the case of a text amendment, the Council may approve minor deviations from the text recommended by the commission, but shall refer major changes back to the commission. The commission shall hold a public hearing on the changes before making a recommendation to the City Council.
d. The City Council shall provide the commission with a written statement detailing the specific reasons for referral. This procedure shall be followed only one time on a singular action.
2. Approval of a proposed text amendment or rezoning shall require a majority vote of the City Council. However, in rezoning cases, if the owners of twenty percent (20%) or more of the area of the lots included in such proposed rezoning area or the property owners of twenty percent (20%) or more of the property that is located within two hundred feet (200') of the exterior boundaries of the property for which the rezoning is proposed, inclusive of public property and right-of-way, object to the rezoning in writing, the rezoning shall not become effective except by the favorable vote of at least three-fourths (3/4) of all the members of the City Council.
O. Denial; Reconsideration: Whenever an application for a text amendment or rezoning has been considered and denied by the City Council, a similar application and proposal for the text amendment or rezoning, affecting generally the same property, shall not be considered again by the commission or City Council for at least six (6) months from the date of its denial, unless a decision to reconsider such matter is made by the City Council.
P. Effective: The text amendment or rezoning shall not become effective until such time as the City Council approves an ordinance reflecting said text amendment or rezoning and after said ordinance is published in the official newspaper. (Ord. 10-003, 1-19-2010, eff. 7-1-2010; amd. 2017 Code)