Before the Commission considers a proposal within its authority under this chapter, the Zoning Code and related ordinances, the matter to be presented for consideration by the Commission shall be made by appropriate application completed by its proponent on a form devised and approved for use by resolution of the Commission. The Commission may, by resolution, establish such requirements, necessary to the competent pursuit of its functions, to be included in such application. A proponent of an application is encouraged to informally discuss the objects and details of the proposal with any Commission member or appropriate City official, including the City Engineer, prior to submission of the application, which shall be submitted to the Recording Secretary of the Commission and be accompanied by an application fee to merit inclusion on the agenda of a Commission meeting. An initial application fee, in the amount of one hundred dollars ($100.00), shall accompany each application, payable by check or money order to the City, deposited with the Recording Secretary. The Commission, as a condition to approval of a proposal by way of application, may require a deposit with the Recording Secretary, made payable to the City, by check or money order, of a sum set for a technical site plan review, not to exceed three thousand dollars ($3,000), in addition to the initial application fee, by the proponent, as compensation for duties performed or to be performed as assigned by the Commission to the City Engineer for ongoing evaluation by the City Engineer for compliance of the technical aspects of the proposal with the ordinances of the City and laws of the State. Such deposit shall be reasonably apportioned as based upon the time spent as logged by the City Engineer and/or his or her employees on the project, to its completion and the approval of final site plans or other evaluation deemed necessary by the Commission. If a proponent objects or disagrees with the amount of a deposit deemed necessary by the Commission, and, but for the deposit deemed necessary by the Commission as a condition of approval, the proposal would merit approval by the Commission, the proponent may apply to the Board of Zoning Appeals for a determination and assessment of the reasonableness and amount of the deposit. The Board may either confirm, deny the necessity of or modify the amount of the deposit, and the decision of the Board shall be final. In any event, the proponent, at the completion of the proposal and upon final compliance with the conditions imposed by the Commission for approval and with ordinances of the City, laws of the State and regulations of the Commission and appropriate City authorities and departments, shall be entitled to any refund of the deposit remaining if the Commission, upon report of the City Engineer, determines that the amount deposited was in excess of the reasonable time expended by the City Engineer for the study and evaluation of the proposal to completion. Any sums deposited with the City as a condition for approval shall be noninterest bearing.
Any application for a proposal submitted to the Commission and approved shall be considered abandoned by the proponent if the proponent, after approval, fails or neglects for any reason whatsoever to take steps to implement such proposal within one year of the approval. After the expiration of one year, if steps are not taken by the proponent to proceed further, the proponent shall reapply to the Commission for approval again.
Any application by a proponent conditionally approved by the Commission may be reconsidered by the Commission upon proper motion at a Commission meeting and with adequate notification to the proponent by the Recording Secretary, on the grounds that reports, studies and facts not presented to the Commission at the time of original conditional approval may jeopardize compliance of the proponent with the ordinances of the City, laws of the State and regulations of governmental authorities and departments and the health, safety and general welfare of the community, or on the grounds that the proponent has not complied with the conditions of the original approval or the reasonable requirements of the departments of the City to which the Commission has assigned the ongoing duty of supervision of such proposed development for compliance as set forth above. Upon reconsideration, the Commission may, by a vote of at least four members, revoke the original approval of such application or impose new conditions on the original approval.
(Ord. 1984-48. Passed 10-15-85.)