(A) Notice by posted sign. The developer or applicant for any project that requires a public hearing before a board or commission shall be responsible for posting a physical sign in a conspicuous place on the property upon which action is pending. Such notice shall be not less than 18 inches in height and 24 inches in width with a white background and black letters not less than one and one-half inches in height. Such posted notice shall be so placed upon the premises - not in the public right-of-way - that is easily visible from the street and shall be so posted at least seven days before the date of the public hearing and shall remain until at least one day after the hearing. It is unlawful for any person to remove, mutilate, destroy or change such posted notice prior to the hearing.
(B) Planning and Zoning Commission.
(1) Zoning map and zoning ordinance text amendments.
(a) Initiation of zoning text amendments. Amendments to this chapter may be proposed by the City Council and by:
1. The Planning and Zoning Commission, as created by the City Council;
2. A resident and/or property owner within the city; or
3. The Zoning Administrator.
(b) Initiation of zoning map amendments. Amendments to the official zoning map may be proposed by the City Council and by:
1. The Planning and Zoning Commission, as created by the City Council;
2. The property owners of 20% or more of the area involved in the petition presented to the city; or
3. The Zoning Administrator.
(c) Before submission to City Council. Before submission to the City Council of the report and recommendations of the Planning and Zoning Commission on a proposed zoning map amendment or zoning text amendment, the Planning and Zoning Commission shall hold a public hearing thereon, and, when such hearing is held, the notice of time and place of such meetings shall be published as prescribed in Iowa Code §§ 362.3 and 414.4 or any successor provisions thereto.
(d) Fees for application for amendment. Any application for an amendment filed by, or on behalf of, the owner or owners of property affected shall be accompanied by a fee as determined by City Council resolution.
(2) Annexation. Prior to the annexation of any territory to the city, a plan of zoning for the area to be annexed shall be forwarded to the City Council by the Planning and Zoning Commission.
(C) Zoning Board of Adjustment.
(1) Variances.
(a) Scope and purpose. The Zoning Board of Adjustment shall have the authority pursuant to § 158.117 of this chapter to grant a variance to the regulations of this chapter that will not be contrary to public interest, where owing to the special conditions a literal enforcement of the regulations will result in unnecessary hardship, and so that the spirit of the chapter shall be observed and substantial justice done.
(b) Decision criteria. In deciding upon applications for variances, the Zoning Board of Adjustment shall take into consideration the extent to which the following conditions have been established by evidence:
1. The particular physical surrounding, shape or topographical condition of the specific property involved would result in a particular hardship upon the owner, as distinguished from a mere inconvenience or loss of revenue if the strict letter of the regulations were carried out;
2. The conditions upon which the requested variance is based would not be applicable, generally, to other property within the same zoning classification;
3. The alleged difficulty or hardship has not been created by any person presently having an interest in the property;
4. The granting of the variance will not be materially detrimental to the public welfare or injurious to other property or improvements in the neighborhood in which the property is located;
5. The proposed variance will not impair an adequate supply of light and air to the adjacent property, or substantially increase the congestion in the public streets or increase the danger of fire or endanger the public safety or substantially diminish or impair property values within the neighborhood; and
6. The proposed variance complies with the spirit and intent of the restrictions imposed by this chapter.
(c) Conditions and restrictions. The Zoning Board of Adjustment may impose such conditions and restrictions, including limiting the time the variance is effective, upon the premises benefitted by a variance as may be necessary to prevent injurious effects therefrom upon other property in the neighborhood and to better carry out the general intent of this chapter.
(d) Limitations. The provisions of § 158.77 of this chapter shall not, in any instance, be varied by the Zoning Board of Adjustment. Variance from other regulations of this chapter shall be granted by the Zoning Board of Adjustment only in accordance with the standards set forth herein.
(e) Application for; notice of hearing. An application for variance shall be filed with the Zoning Board of Adjustment. The application shall be in such form and shall contain such information as the Zoning Board of Adjustment shall, from time to time, prescribe by general rule. The Zoning Board of Adjustment shall meet at the call of the chairperson and at other such times as the Zoning Board of Adjustment may determine. The notice of the time and place of such meetings shall be published as prescribed in Iowa Codes §§ 362.3 and 414.4 or and successor provisions thereto, to wit: not less than seven, nor more than 20 days before the date set for the meeting of the Zoning Board of Adjustment. Such notice shall contain a statement of the particular purpose of such meeting and a brief description of the location of the property under consideration at such meeting. All meetings of the Zoning Board of Adjustment shall be open to the public.
(f) Fees for applications of variances. Any application for a variance filed by, or on behalf of, the owner or owners of the property affected shall be accompanied by a fee as determined by City Council resolution.
(2) Conditional uses.
(a) Nature and purpose. The formulation and enactment of comprehensive zoning regulations is based on the division of the entire city into districts, in each of which are permitted specified uses that are mutually compatible. In addition to such permitted compatible uses, however, it is recognized that there are other uses, which it may be necessary or desirable to allow in a given district, but which, because of their potential influence upon neighboring uses or public facilities, need to be carefully regulated with respect to location or operation for the protection of the community. Such uses are classified in this chapter as conditional uses and may include the following:
1. Uses either municipally operated or operated by publicly regulated utilities, or uses traditionally affected by public interest;
2. Uses entirely private in character which, because of their peculiar locational need, the nature of the service they offer to the public and their possible damaging influence on the neighborhood may have to be established in a district in which they cannot reasonably be allowed as an unrestricted permitted use under the zoning regulations;
3. Non-conforming uses which as conditional uses can be made more compatible with their surroundings; and
4. Uses of a temporary nature, serving a particular need within definable time limits.
(b) Application for conditional use. An application for a conditional use shall be filed with the Zoning Administrator upon such form and accompanied by such information as shall be established from time to time by the Zoning Board of Adjustment. The Zoning Administrator shall forward to the Board without delay each such application received.
(c) Authorization; revocation. Conditional uses shall be authorized by a conditional use permit granted by the Zoning Board of Adjustment, after the Board shall have noticed and held a public hearing and prepared and filed a finding of fact, thereon. Such permit shall set forth any restrictions or conditions imposed in the granting thereof. Failure of the permittee to comply with such conditions or restrictions shall be deemed cause for the revocation of such permit.
(d) Criteria for granting. No conditional use shall be granted by the Zoning Board of Adjustment unless such use:
1. Is so designed, located and proposed to be operated that the public health, safety and welfare will be protected;
2. Is so designed located, and proposed to be operated that it is compatible with its surroundings;
3. Will not cause substantial injury to the value of the other property in the neighborhood in which it is to be located; and
4. Shall conform to the applicable regulations of, and be compatible with the essential character of the district in which it is located.
(e) Conditions imposed upon grant. The Zoning Board of Adjustment may provide such conditions or restrictions upon the construction, location, and operation of a conditional use, including, but not limited to, provisions for the protection of adjacent property, the expiration of such conditional use after a specified period of time, off-street parking and loading, as shall be deemed necessary to secure the general objectives of this chapter and to reduce injury to the value of property in the neighborhood.
(f) Authorized improvements. The Zoning Administrator my authorize any expansion of the size of the building by up to 10% of the existing or authorized building approved by a conditional use permit; provided that, the expansion is not in violation of the provisions of the original conditional use permit.
(g) Fees for applications of conditional uses. Any application for a conditional use filed by or on behalf of, the owner or owners of the property affected shall be accompanied by a fee as determined by City Council resolution.
(h) Notice of hearing. An application for conditional use permit shall be filed with the Zoning Board of Adjustment. The application shall be in such form and shall contain such information as the Zoning Board of Adjustment shall, from time to time, prescribe by general rule. The Zoning Board of Adjustment shall meet at the call of the chairperson and at other such times as the Board may determine. The notice of the time and place of such meetings shall be published two times, once not less than seven, nor more than 17, and once not less than 14 nor more than 20 days before the date set for the meeting of the Board. Notice shall also be mailed to all property owners within 400 feet of the outside boundaries of the subject property at least 14 days prior to the meeting date. All meetings of the Board shall be open to the public.
(2011 Code, § 34.0504) (Ord. 2373, passed 4-20-2020; Ord. 2411, passed 4-4-2022; Ord. 2453, passed 10-21-2024)