(A) Establishment. Pursuant to I.C. 36-7-4-900 series, the Town Council hereby establish the Board of Zoning Appeals which shall conduct business consistent with all requirements of this chapter and Indiana State Code. The members shall initially be appointed for the following terms of office:
(1) One for a term of one year.
(2) One for a term of two years.
(3) One for a term of three years.
(4) One for a term of four years.
(B) Membership. Pursuant to I.C. 36-7-4-902, the Board of Zoning Appeals shall consist of five voting members, as follows:
(1) Three citizen members appointed by the executive, one of who must be a member of the Plan Commission while the other two must not be members of the Plan Commission.
(2) One citizen member appointed by the Town Council, who must not be a member of the Plan Commission.
(3) One citizen member appointed by the Plan Commission, who must be a citizen member of the Plan Commission other than the member appointed under division (B)(1) above.
(C) Membership restrictions. Pursuant to I.C. 36-7-4-905, none of the members of the Board of Zoning Appeals may hold other elective or appointive office, except as permitted by I.C. 36-7-4-902, in municipal, county or state government. A member must be a resident of the jurisdictional area of the board.
(D) Terms. When an initial term of office expires, each new appointment shall be for a term of four years beginning on the first Monday in January.
(E) Powers and duties. The powers and duties of the Board of Zoning Appeals with regard to this chapter are defined by Indiana State Code, and are described below. These powers and duties are further described by the Board of Zoning Appeals Rules and Procedures.
(1) Duties. Duties should be interpreted as activities that are obligations. The duties of the Board of Zoning Appeals are as follows:
(a) Fix a reasonable time for the hearing of administrative appeals, special exceptions, and variances;
(b) Keep minutes of all proceedings and record the vote on all actions taken, and file all minutes and records in the office of the Board in all cases;
(c) Adopt rules concerning the filing of appeals, applications, public notice, the conduct of hearings, and the determination of whether a variance application is for a variance of use or for a variance from the development standards;
(d) Make adopted rules available to all applicants and other interested persons;
(e) Review, hear, and approve or deny all applications for variances from development standards such as height, setback or area;
(f) Review, hear and approve or deny all applications for a special exception use;
(g) Review, hear and decide appeals of decisions made under this chapter or in the enforcement of this chapter by the Administrative Officer, or other Plan Commission staff, committees, administrative boards, or any other bodies, with the exception of the Plan Commission; and
(h) All additional duties as established in Indiana State Code.
(2) Powers. The following powers of the Board of Zoning Appeals should be interpreted as activities that are optional and may be initiated by the Board. They include:
(a) Appointment of a hearing committee;
(b) Appointment of a secretary and other employees as necessary for the discharge of Board duties; and
(c) All additional powers permitted by Indiana State Code.
(3) Rules and procedures. The Board of Zoning Appeals shall have the sole authority to adopt any and all rules under I.C. 36-7-4-916 and any and all procedures concerning organization, selection of officers, forms for applications (development standards variances, special exceptions), filing requirements, procedures, giving of public notices and conduct of meetings and public hearings.
(4) Communication with members of the Board of Zoning Appeals. No person (including applicants, remonstrators, and other interested parties) may communicate with any member of the Board before a hearing with the intent to influence the member's action on a matter pending before the Board.
(Ord. 121410, passed 1-11-2011)