The powers and duties of the Board of Zoning Appeals shall be the following, as provided by VA Code § 15.2-2309.
(A) Administrative review. The Board of Zoning Appeals shall decide appeals from any decision, order, requirement, or determination of the Zoning Administrator or any other administrative official in the administration or enforcement of this chapter.
(B) Variances.
(1) The Board of Zoning Appeals shall decide applications for variances from the terms of this chapter. Variances may be approvable when certain criteria are met, when such approval will not be contrary to the public interest, and when, owing to special conditions, a literal enforcement of the provisions will result in unnecessary hardship; provided that the intended purpose and spirit of this chapter shall be observed and substantial justice done. In authorizing a variance, the Board of Zoning Appeals may impose such conditions regarding the location, character and other features of the proposed structure or use as it may deem necessary in the public interest and may require a guarantee or bond to insure that conditions imposed are being and will continue to be complied with. No variance shall be granted until the Board of Zoning Appeals has held a public hearing and given public notice in accordance with VA Code § 15.2-2204. Consistent with and pursuant to VA Code § 15.2-2308, no variance shall be granted until the Board of Zoning Appeals finds and is satisfied that:
(a) The property owner acquired his/her property in good faith but by reason of the exceptional narrowness, shallowness, size or shape of the specific piece of property at the effective date of this chapter; by reason of exceptional topographic conditions; or by reason of other extraordinary situations or conditions of such piece of property or of the use or development of property immediately adjacent thereto, the strict application of the terms of this chapter would effectively prohibit or unreasonably restrict the use of the property, or there exists a clearly demonstrable hardship, as distinguished from a special privilege or convenience sought by the applicant;
(b) That the strict application of this chapter would produce undue hardship;
(c) That such hardship is not shared generally by other properties in the same zoning district and the same vicinity;
(d) That the authorization of the variance will not be of substantial detriment to adjacent property and that the character of the district will not be changed by the granting of the variance;
(e) That the condition of the situation of the property is not of so general or recurring a nature as to make reasonably practicable the formulation of a general regulation to be adopted as an amendment to this chapter.
(C) Interpretation of district boundaries. The Board of Zoning Appeals may hear and decide applications for interpretation of the district boundaries where there is any uncertainty as to the location of the district boundary. The Board of Zoning Appeals shall interpret the map in such ways as to carry out the intent and purpose of this chapter for the particular district in question; however, it shall not have the power to change the locations of district boundaries as established by ordinance.
(Ord. passed 4-12-2016)