A Board of Zoning Appeals is hereby established with powers and membership as set forth in I.C. 36-7-4-901 to 36-7-4-907.
(A) At the first meeting of each year, the Board shall elect a Chairman and a Vice-Chairman 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 in compliance with salaries and compensation therefore fixed by the legislative-authority.
(B) The Board shall adopt rules and regulations as it may deem necessary to effectuate the provisions of this chapter.
(C) 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.
(D) Any decision of the Building Commissioner in the enforcement of this chapter may be appealed to the Board by any person claiming to be adversely affected by such decision.
(E) The Board shall have the following powers and shall have the duty to:
(1) Hear and determine appeals from and review any order, requirement, decision, or determination made by the Building Commissioner or any other town official or agency, except the Plan Commission, under this chapter.
(2) Hear and approve or deny all applications for special exceptions or other uses from the terms of this chapter as may be allowed under, this chapter and state law.
(3) Authorize upon application in specific cases such variances from the terms of this chapter that the Board determines, on the basis of facts presented to it, that satisfy the requirements of this chapter and state law for a variance approvals.
(F) In exercising its powers, the Board may reverse or affirm, wholly or partly, or may modify the order, requirement, decision or determination appealed from as in its opinion ought to be done in the premises, and to that end shall have all the powers of the Building Commissioner from whom the appeal is taken.
(G) Every decision of the Board shall be subject to review to certiorari.
(H) (1) The Board may approve a variance of use from the terms of this chapter upon making a determination in writing that:
(a) The approval will not be injurious to the public health, safety, morals and general welfare of the community;
(b) The use and value of the area adjacent to the property included in the variance will not be affected in a substantially adverse manner;
(c) The need for the variance arises from some condition peculiar to the property involved;
(d) The strict application of the terms of this chapter will constitute an unnecessary hardship if applied to the property for which the variance is sought; and
(e) The approval does not interfere substantially with the town’s master plan. The Board may impose reasonable conditions as a part of its approval.
(2) The Board may approve a variance from the development standards (such as height, bulk or area) of this chapter upon making a determination in writing that:
(a) The approval will not be injurious to the public health, safety, morals and general welfare of the community;
(b) The use and value of the area adjacent to the property included in the variance will not be affected in a substantially adverse manner; and
(c) The strict application of the terms of this chapter will result in practical difficulties in the use of the property.
(3) Any variance approved by the Board shall expire six months from the date of its approval, unless the activity necessitating the variance has commenced on the property or unless an improvement location permit for construction of the structure necessitating the variance has been obtained. If the authority of an improvement location permit for construction of a structure necessitating the variance expires without the substantial completion of the structure as described in the development plan, the variance shall be considered as having expired at the same time as the improvement location permit.
(I) (1) Prior to the determination of an appeal or a decision on a permit for a special exception, the Board shall fix a reasonable time for the hearing. Public notice shall be given at least ten days prior to the date set for the hearing by publishing a notice thereof in a newspaper of general circulation in the county setting forth the time and place of the hearing and by giving due notice to the interested persons in accordance with the rules of the Board.
(2) The Board shall require the party taking the appeal or requesting the special exception to assume the cost of public notice and due notice to the interested persons.
(Ord. 480, passed 11-16-1970; Ord. 95-611, passed 10-4-1995)