(A) All work on any nonconforming project shall cease on the effective date of this chapter, and all permits previously issued for work on nonconforming projects shall be revoked as of that date. Thereafter, work on nonconforming projects may begin, or may be continued, only pursuant to a
issued by the
(except as provided in division (B) of this section). The Board shall issue such a permit if it finds that the applicant has in good faith made substantial expenditures or incurred substantial binding obligations or otherwise changed his position in some substantial way in reasonable reliance on the land use law as it existed before the effective date of this chapter and thereby would be unreasonably prejudiced if not allowed to complete his project as proposed. In considering whether these findings may be made, the Board shall be guided by the following:
(1) All expenditures made pursuant to a validly issued and unrevoked or
shall be considered as evidence of reasonable reliance on the land use law that existed before this chapter became effective;
(2) Except as provided in division (A)(1) of this section, no expenditures made more than 180 days before the effective date of this chapter shall be considered as evidence of reasonable reliance on the land use law that existed before this chapter became effective. An expenditure is made at the time a party incurs a binding obligation to make that expenditure;
(3) To the extent that expenditures are recoverable with a reasonable effort, a party shall not be considered prejudiced by having made those expenditures. For example, a party shall not be considered prejudiced by having made expenditure to acquire a potential
site if the property obtained is just as valuable under the new classification as it was under the old, or the expenditure can be recovered by resale of the property;
(4) An expenditure shall be considered substantial if it is significant both in dollar amount and in terms of (a) the total estimated cost of the proposed project, and (b) the ordinary business practices of the
;
(5) A
shall be considered to have acted in good faith if actual knowledge of a proposed change in the land use law affecting the proposed
site could not be attributed to him or her; and
(6) Even though a
had actual knowledge of a proposed change in the land use law affecting a
site, the Board may still find that he acted in good faith if he or she did not proceed with his or her plans in a deliberate attempt to circumvent the effects of the proposed ordinance. The Board may find that the
did not proceed in an attempt to undermine the proposed ordinance if it determines that (a) at the time the expenditures were made, either there was considerable doubt about whether any ordinance would ultimately be passed, or it was not clear that the proposed ordinance would ultimately be passed, or it was not clear that the proposed ordinance would prohibit the intended
; and (b) the
had legitimate business reasons for making expenditures.
(B) The requirements of division (A) of this section shall not apply to a nonconforming project if the
certifies that actual construction of that project began at least 180 days before the effective date of this chapter and that the work is at least 75% complete at the effective date of this chapter.
(C) The
shall not consider any application for a
authorized by division (A) of this section that is submitted more than 60 days after the effective date of this chapter, unless it waives this requirement for good cause shown.
(D) If the
issues a
pursuant to division (A) of this section, it may attach such reasonable conditions to the permit as it finds necessary to reduce the extent to which the nonconforming project is incompatible with the surrounding neighborhood. In particular, the Board may require that work on the nonconforming project be continuously maintained, if possible, and that the project be completed as expeditiously as possible.
(E) The
shall send copies of this subsection to the
(and
, if different from the
) of all properties in regard to which permits have been issued for nonconforming projects or in regard to which a nonconforming project is otherwise known to be under construction. This notice shall be sent by registered mail not less than 15 days before the effective date of this chapter.
(F) The
shall establish expedited procedures for hearing applications for
under this subsection. These applications shall be heard, whenever possible, before the effective date of this chapter, so that construction work is not needlessly interrupted.
(G) When it appears from the
’s plans or otherwise that the nonconforming project was intended to be or reasonably could be completed in stages, segments or other discreet units, the
shall not allow the nonconforming project to be constructed or completed in a fashion that is larger or more extensive than is necessary to allow the
to recoup and obtain a reasonable rate of return on the expenditures he has made in connection with that nonconforming project.
(Ord. 2005-O3, passed 3-15-2005) (Am. Ord. 2010-O20, passed 7-20-2010)