(A) Non-use variances. The Zoning Board of Appeals shall have the authority to grant non-use variances relating to the construction, structural changes or alteration of buildings or structures related to dimensional requirements of the zoning ordinance or to any other non-use-related standard in this chapter, only when all of the following conditions exist:
(1) The need for the requested variance is due to practical difficulties in carrying out the strict letter of the zoning ordinance arising from unique circumstances or physical conditions of the property involved, such as narrowness, shallowness, shape, water or topography;
(2) The asserted difficulty is not due to the applicant’s personal or economic difficulty. Increased financial return alone shall not be deemed sufficient to warrant a variance;
(3) The need for the requested variance is not the result of actions of the property owner or previous property owners;
(4) Strict compliance with regulations governing area, setback, frontage, height, bulk, density or other dimensional requirements will unreasonably prevent the property owner from using the property for permitted purposes or will render conformity with those regulations unnecessarily burdensome;
(5) The requested variance is the minimum variance necessary to do substantial justice to the applicant as well as to other property owners in the district;
(6) The requested variance will not cause an adverse impact on surrounding property, property values or the use and enjoyment of property in the neighborhood or zoning district; and
(7) The need for the requested variance is not based primarily on non-conforming use(s) of nearby lands, structures or buildings.
(B) Use variances. A use variance may be granted by the Zoning Board of Appeals only in cases where the applicant demonstrates in the official record of the public hearing that unnecessary hardship exists by showing all of the following:
(1) The property cannot be reasonably used for any of the uses permitted in the zoning district in which it is located;
(2) The need for the requested variance is due to unique circumstances or physical conditions of the property involved, such as narrowness, shallowness, shape, water or topography;
(3) That the need for the variance is not due to the applicant’s personal or economic hardship;
(4) Such unique circumstances or physical conditions of the property are not so general or recurrent in nature so as to make it reasonably practicable to address them by amending this chapter;
(5) The proposed use will not alter the essential character of the neighborhood;
(6) The need for the requested variance is not the result of actions of the property owner or previous property owners (self-created);
(7) The authorizing of such variance will not be of substantial detriment to the adjacent and nearby properties; and
(8) The need for the requested variance is not based primarily on non-conforming use(s) of nearby lands, structures or buildings.
(Ord. passed 7-12-2012, § 15.10)