A Board of Zoning Appeals is hereby established with membership and appointment provided in accordance with I.C. 36-7-4-901 and 36-7-4-902 through 36-7-4-907, and all acts now or hereafter amendatory thereto.
(A) Organization. At the first meeting of each year, the Board shall elect a Chairperson and a Vice Chairperson from among its members, and it may appoint and fix the compensation of a Secretary and such employees as are necessary for the discharge of its duties, all in conformity to and compliance with salaries and compensation theretofore fixed by the legislative authority.
(B) Rules. The Board shall adopt rules and regulations as it may deem necessary to effectuate the provisions of this chapter.
(C) Meetings open to public. All meetings of the Board shall be open to the public. The Board shall keep minutes of its proceedings, keep records of its examinations and other official actions, prepare findings and record the vote of each member voting upon each question. All minutes and records shall be filed in the office of the Board and shall be a public record, and a copy of which shall be filed with the Plan Commission Secretary following each Board meeting.
(D) Appeals jurisdiction. The Board shall hear and determine appeals from and review:
(1) Any order, requirement, decision or determination made by an administrative official, including the Building Inspector or staff member under this Zoning Code;
(2) Any order, requirement, decision or determination made by an administrative board or other body except a plan commission in relation to the enforcement of the Zoning Code; or
(3) Any order, requirement, decision or determination made by an administrative board or other body except a plan commission in relation to the enforcement of an ordinance adopted under this chapter requiring the procurement of an improvement location permit or a certificate of occupancy.
(E) Exceptions and uses. The Board shall approve or deny all of the following from the terms of the Zoning Code, but only in the classes of cases or in the particular situations specified in this Zoning Code. The Board may impose reasonable conditions as a part of its approval:
(1) Special exceptions;
(2) Special uses;
(3) Contingent uses; and
(4) Conditional uses.
(F) Variances of use from terms of Zoning Code. The Board shall approve or deny variances of use from the terms of the Zoning Code. The Board may impose reasonable conditions as a part of its approval. A variance may be approved under this section only upon a determination in writing that:
(1) The approval will not be injurious to the public health, safety, morals and general welfare of the community;
(2) The use and value of the area adjacent to the property included in the variance will not be affected in a substantially adverse manner;
(3) The need for the variance arises from some condition peculiar to the property involved;
(4) The strict application of the terms of the Zoning Code will constitute an unnecessary hardship if applied to the property for which the variance is sought; and
(5) The approval does not interfere substantially with the county’s Comprehensive Plan, as amended.
(G) Variances from development standards of Zoning Code. The Board shall approve or deny variances from the development standards (such as height, bulk or area) of the Zoning Code. A variance may be approved under this section only upon a determination in writing that:
(1) The approval will not be injurious to the public health, safety, morals and general welfare of the community;
(2) The use and value of the area adjacent to the property included in the variance will not be affected in a substantially adverse manner;
(3) The strict application of the terms of the Zoning Code will result in practical difficulties in the use of the property;
(4) There are exceptional or extraordinary circumstances or conditions applicable to the property or to the intended use that do not apply generally to the other property or class of use in the same vicinity and district;
(5) Such variance is necessary for the preservation and enjoyment of a substantial property right possessed by other property in the same vicinity and district but which is denied to the property in question; and
(6) That the granting of such variance will not alter the land use characteristics of the vicinity and district, or increase the congestion in the streets.
(H) Variances in FP District. Applications for variances to the provisions of this chapter concerning an improvement location permit or building permit for a use located in the FP District shall be forwarded to Natural Resources for review and comment. All terms and conditions imposed by Natural Resources shall be incorporated into the issuance of any such permits. All variances shall give the minimum relief necessary and be such that the maximum practical flood protection will be given to the proposed construction; and issue a written notice to the recipient of a variance or exception that the proposed construction will be subject to increased risks to life and property and could require payment of excessive flood insurance premiums.
(I) Appeals to Board; grounds; transmissions of record; disposition.
(1) An appeal filed with the Board must specify the grounds of the appeal and must be filed within such time and in such form as may be prescribed by the Board by rule.
(2) The Building Inspector, or other person from whom the appeal is taken shall, on the request of the Board of Zoning Appeals, transmit to it all documents, plans and papers constituting the record of the action from which an appeal was taken.
(3) Certified copies of the documents, plans and papers constituting the record may be transmitted for purposes of division (I)(5)(b) below.
(4) Upon appeal, the Board may reverse, affirm or modify the order, requirement, decision or determination appealed from. For this purpose, the Board has all the powers of the official, officer, Board or body from which the appeal is taken.
(5) The Board shall make a decision on any matter that it is required to hear under the Zoning Code:
(a) At the meeting at which that matter is first presented; and
(b) At the conclusion of the hearing on that matter, if it is continued.
(6) Within five days after making any decision under the Zoning Code, the Board of Zoning Appeals shall file in the office of the Board a copy of its decision.
(J) Writ of certiorari. Every decision of the Board shall be subject to review by certiorari.
(Ord. 8-7-12-3, passed 10-10-1961; Ord. passed 1- -2004)