A. Authority: The regulations and provisions herein established as the text of the zoning ordinance may be amended by the Board of Commissioners in accordance with the provisions of this section. Such amendment may be initiated by the Board of Commissioners on its own motion, upon the recommendation of the Planning Commission to the Board of Commissioners, or upon submittal of a duly signed and acknowledged petition by the owners of fifty one percent (51%) or more of the land in an area requesting an amendment of the regulations prescribed for such area.
B. Application: Consideration of a request by property owners for an amendment to the zoning text is initiated by submittal of the appropriate completed application form. The filing fee for text amendment applications shall be set by the Board of Commissioners, no part of which shall be refundable. Requests initiated by the Planning Commission or Board of Commissioners are exempt from the filing fee requirement.
C. Review: Upon compliance with all application requirements, or upon direction from the Board of Commissioners, the proposed change in the text of the zoning ordinance shall be reviewed by the City staff and the Planning Commission as to consistency with the intent and purpose of this title and the master plan, and the nature of any changes in the zoning district or districts affected which make the proposed amendment necessary. The findings and recommendations of staff and the Planning Commission shall then be reported to the Board of Commissioners. Upon required notice being given, the Board of Commissioners shall hold a public hearing in accordance with the provisions of section 11-17-2 of this chapter to review the proposed zoning text amendment, receive comments from interested parties, and receive the recommendations of City staff and the Planning Commission.
D. Approval: The Board of Commissioners shall approve or deny the proposed text amendment. Approval shall be documented by corresponding changes in the zoning text, and by passage and publication of an ordinance pursuant to the applicable provisions of the City Charter and this Code. (Ord. 5916, 8-9-1999)