The regulations established herein shall be minimum regulations and be uniformly applied to each class of structure or land, except as hereinafter provided.

402.01. Any owner or owners of any tract of land located within the county, in whole or in part, who subdivides the same as provided herein shall cause a plat of such subdivision to be made in accordance with procedures set forth in this ordinance.

402.02. Plats prepared prior to July 06, 1993, that have not been recorded in the office of the Clerk of the Circuit Court will be subject to these regulations.

402.03. A resurvey may be recorded in the office of the Clerk of the Circuit Court without review by the planning commission or the planning department. The surveyor shall clearly label all resurvey plats on the plat itself with the term "RESURVEY".

402.04. Any plat not receiving preliminary approval from the planning commission by August 02, 2001, will be subject to these regulations as adopted by the Amherst County Board of Supervisors on May 02, 2001.

No building or land shall hereafter be used or occupied and no building or part thereof shall be erected, constructed, moved, or structurally altered except in conformity with the regulations herein specified for the district in which it is or is to be located.

403.01. Permitted uses. A permitted use is one which is allowed in the district in which the land is situated. Where the proposed use is permitted and is in accordance with other regulations herein, a zoning permit will be issued by the zoning administrator, without hearing thereon, in accordance with paragraph 1003.02 herein.

403.02. Special exception. A special exception is one which may be allowed when either the board of appeals or the board of supervisors, after review of the application and hearing thereon, finds as a fact that the proposed use or uses are consistent with the comprehensive plan and the policies of the board of supervisors and the public interest. Where the use is a special exception, a zoning permit will be issued by the zoning administrator, in accordance with paragraph 1004.03 herein, after such special exception has been approved by either the board of appeals or the board of supervisors.

No building shall hereafter be erected, constructed, or altered so as to exceed the height limit, to accommodate or house a greater number of families, or to occupy a greater percentage of the lot area than is required or specified in the regulations herein for the district in which it is located.

No new lot nor yard shall hereafter be created, nor shall any lot nor yard existing at the time of enactment of this ordinance be moved so that lot width, depth, or area requirements; front, side or rear yard requirements; inner or outer court requirements; or other requirements of this ordinance are not maintained, except when a portion of a lot is acquired for public use.

No part of a yard nor other open space required for any building for the purpose of complying with the provisions of this ordinance shall be included as part of a yard or other open space similarly required for another building. Every part of a required yard or court shall be open from its lowest point to the sky unobstructed, except for the ordinary projections of sills, cornices, buttresses ornamental features, chimneys, flues, and eaves, provided such projections shall not extend into the required yard areas for a distance exceeding two (2) feet.

Nothing contained herein shall require any change in the plans or construction of any building or structure for which a permit was granted prior to the effective date of this ordinance. However, if such construction does not commence within thirty (30) days after this ordinance becomes effective, or if construction is discontinued for a period of six (6) months or more, further construction shall be in conformity with the provisions of this ordinance for the district in which the operation is located.

The following uses may be undertaken without a zoning permit:

407.01. In any district that allows residential uses, any agricultural use which does not occupy more than five (5) acres and does not create any nuisance conditions related to odor, dust, noise, pollution, or erosion or drainage.

407.02. Agricultural uses, within districts in which agriculture is permitted by right, except as otherwise provided herein.

407.03. Yard sales and garage sales conducted on residential property by the property owner, and bazaars, flea markets and sales conducted by non-profit organizations, provided that each such sale, bazaar, or flea market lasts no longer than forty-eight (48) hours, and that each property owner or non-profit organization may conduct only one (1) such sale, bazaar, or flea market per calendar month.

407.04. Within districts that agriculture or commercial activity is permitted by right, wayside stands for the sale of agricultural or horticultural products.

407.05. Home occupations in an accessory building to the main dwelling unit, as provided in Section 905, provided the main dwelling unit is located on a parcel containing five (5) or more acres, and that such occupation is associated with an agricultural use.

407.06. A single carport with a maximum size of two hundred fifty-six (256) square feet provided that such carport (i) is located no closer than fifteen (15) feet to the rear lot line, (ii) is located at a distance from the front lot line equal to at least half of the required front yard setback in Section 804 for the district in which the lot is located, and (iii) no other carports are located on the subject parcel. Additional carports constructed on the subject parcel shall be subject to the zoning permit process.

(Ord. No. 2017-0001, § 1, 1-17-17)

Two (2) additional single-family dwellings may be permitted on the same lot or parcel of land as that of the main dwelling, upon application to and approval by the zoning administrator, provided that:

408.01. The main dwelling is located either in R-2 Residential District, A-1 Agricultural District, or Public Lands.

408.02. Each additional dwelling conforms to the minimum lot area, minimum lot width, maximum lot coverage and yard requirements for such a dwelling as set forth in Article VIII herein.

408.03. Each additional dwelling has access to a public street by means of a passageway open to the sky at least fifteen (15) feet in width.

408.04. When three (3) or more residential dwelling units are constructed on the same lot or parcel of land within a dam break inundation zone, the requirements contained in Section 713 of Appendix A to the Amherst County Code shall apply.

(Ord. No. 2013-0016, § 1, 1-27-14)

Private access to a parcel of land used appropriately in a zoning district as provided herein shall be prohibited through another zoning district unless such private access is approved by the board of appeals in accordance with Section 1008 herein.

If, in any district hereunder, a use is not specifically permitted by right or special exception to this ordinance, a property owner, or his appointed agent, may submit an application for an amendment to this ordinance as provided by Section 1004 herein. If the use as applied for is approved by the board of supervisors this ordinance shall automatically be amended to include the use as a special exception in the district so located.

No building, above or below ground storage tank, or any portion of an on-site sewage system shall be permitted within two hundred (200) feet of the boundary of any property zoned P-1, "Public Lands," owned in conjunction with any current or designated future site of a lake or reservoir by the County of Amherst or the Amherst County Service Authority. The buffer strip must be clearly shown as a shaded area, along with the restrictions, on any affected subdivision plat, individual survey plat, and made part of each deed.

(Ord. of 11-21-06(3); Ord. No. 2020-0001, § 1, 7-21-20)