(A) Zoning Administrator. A Zoning Administrator or other official designated by the City Council must administer and enforce this chapter.
(B) Development approvals. Any construction, enlargement, alteration, repair, improvement, moving or demolition of any building or structure must comply with the requirements of this chapter. No mining, dredging, filling, grading, paving, excavation, obstruction, drilling operation or other form of development as defined in § 154.02(G) of this chapter are allowed, other than the uses identified in § 154.04(A) and the activities allowed under § 154.06.
(C) Permit required.
(1) A permit must be obtained from the Zoning Administrator prior to conducting the following activities:
(a) Expansion, change, enlargement, or alteration of a nonconforming use as specified in § 154.06 of this chapter. Normal maintenance and repair also requires a permit if such work, separately or in conjunction with other planned work, constitutes a substantial improvement as defined in § 154.02(G) of this chapter.
(b) Any use that requires fill, obstruction, excavation, storage of materials, or any other form of development as defined in § 154.02(G) of this chapter.
(2) Permit applications must be submitted to the Zoning Administrator on forms provided for that purpose and shall include the following where applicable: plans drawn to scale, showing the nature, location, dimensions, and elevations of the lot; existing or proposed structures, fill, or storage of materials; and the location of the foregoing in relation to the stream channel.
(3) Prior to granting a permit, the Zoning Administrator must verify that the applicant has obtained all necessary state and federal permits.
(D) Variances.
(1) An application for a variance to the provisions of this chapter will be processed and reviewed in accordance with applicable state statutes and the City of Winnebago’s Zoning Code.
(2) A variance must not allow a use that is not allowed in that district, permit a lower degree of flood protection than the regulatory flood protection elevation for the particular area, or permit standards lower than those required by state law.
(3) The following additional variance criteria of the Federal Emergency Management Agency must be met:
(a) Variances must not be issued by a community within any designated regulatory floodway if any increase in flood levels during the base flood discharge would result.
(b) Variances may only be issued by a community upon (i) a showing of good and sufficient cause, (ii) a determination that failure to grant the variance would result in exceptional hardship to the applicant, and (iii) a determination that the granting of a variance will not result in increased flood heights, additional threats to public safety, extraordinary public expense, create nuisances, cause fraud on or victimization of the public, or conflict with existing local laws or ordinances.
(c) Variances may only be issued upon a determination that the variance is the minimum necessary, considering the flood hazard, to afford relief.
(4) The City Administrator must submit hearing notices for proposed variances to the Department of Natural Resources sufficiently in advance to provide at least ten days’ notice of the hearing. The notice may be sent by electronic mail or U.S. Mail to the respective DNR area hydrologist.
(5) A copy of all decisions granting variances must be forwarded to the Commissioner of the Department of Natural Resources within ten days of such action. The notice may be sent by electronic mail or U.S. Mail to the respective DNR area hydrologist.
(6) The Zoning Administrator must notify the applicant for a variance that: 1) The issuance of a variance to construct a structure below the base flood level will result in increased premium rates for flood insurance up to amounts as high as $25 for $100 of insurance coverage and 2) Such construction below the base or regional flood level increases risks to life and property.
(7) The Zoning Administrator must maintain a record of all variance actions, including justification for their issuance, and must report such variances in an annual or biennial report to the Administrator of the National Flood Insurance Program, when requested by the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
(E) Notifications for watercourse alterations. Before authorizing any alteration or relocation of a river or stream, the Zoning Administrator must notify adjacent communities. If the applicant has applied for a permit to work in public waters pursuant to M.S. Chapter 103G.245, this will suffice as adequate notice. A copy of the notification must also be submitted to the Chicago Regional Office of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).
(F) Notification to FEMA when physical changes increase or decrease base flood elevations. As soon as is practicable, but not later than six months after the date such supporting information becomes available, the Zoning Administrator must notify the Chicago Regional Office of FEMA of the changes by submitting a copy of the relevant technical or scientific data.
(Ord. 155-2019, passed - -19)