A.

The city planning and zoning commission shall adopt rules necessary for the conduct of its affairs and in keeping with the provisions of this title. The city planning and zoning commission shall keep a record of all proceedings. Meetings shall be held at the call of the chairperson and at such times as the planning commission may determine. The chairperson, or in his or her absence, the acting chairperson, may administer oaths and compel the attendance of witnesses. All meetings shall be open to the public.

B.

The city planning and zoning commission shall keep minutes of its proceedings, showing the vote upon each question, or if absent or failure to vote indicating such fact, and shall keep records of its examinations and other official actions, all of which shall be a public record and be immediately filed with the secretary of the planning commission. The planning commission shall adopt from time to time, subject to the approval of the city board, such rules and regulations as it may deem necessary to carry appropriate provisions and this title into effect.

(Ord. 292, § 1801, 1980; Ord. No. 574, 6-10-2019)

The governing body of the City of Britton, South Dakota shall constitute the board of adjustment, and said governing body or city commission shall act as and perform all the duties and exercise all the powers, as provided by South Dakota law, of the board of adjustment; the mayor shall be chairman of said board of adjustment, and the concurring vote of at least two-thirds of the members of said board of adjustment, as so composed shall be necessary to reverse any order, requirement, decision or determination of any administrative officer, or to decide in favor of the appellant upon any matter upon which it is required to pass under any zoning ordinance, or to effect any variation of such ordinance, or to allow any special exception to said ordinance, of which said board of adjustment shall have jurisdiction. The governing body shall invite the members of the planning and zoning commission to attend all hearings on matters brought before it as a zoning board of adjustment.

(Ord. No. 574, 6-10-2019)

A.

Appeals to the board of adjustment may be taken by any person aggrieved or by any officer, department, board or bureau of the city affected by any decision of the zoning administrator. Such appeal shall be taken within fifteen (15) days after the building permit is published in the city's official newspaper, by filing with the officer from whom the appeal is taken and with the board of adjustment a notice of appeal specifying the grounds for such appeal. The officer from whom the appeal is taken shall immediately transmit to the board of adjustment all the papers constituting the record upon which the action appealed from was taken. (See Appendix D of this title.)

B.

The board of adjustment shall within thirty (30) days, or as soon thereafter as practicable, hold a hearing of the appeal, after public notice of such hearing, as well as, due notice to the parties in interest, and decide the appeal within thirty (30) days after said hearing. Upon the hearing, any party may appear in person or by agent or by attorney.

(Ord. 292, § 1802, 1980; Ord. No. 574, 6-10-2019)

The board of adjustment shall have the power to hear and decide appeals where it is alleged there is error in any order, requirement, decision, or determination made by an administrative official or agency based on or made in the enforcement of any zoning regulation relating to the location or soundness of structures or to interpret any map.

(Ord. 292, § 1901, 1980; Ord. No. 574, 6-10-2019)

The board of adjustment shall have power to hear and decide, in accordance with the provisions of this title, requests for special exceptions or for decisions upon other special questions upon which the board of adjustment is authorized by this title and South Dakota law to pass; to decide such questions as are involved in determining whether special exceptions should be granted; and to grant special exceptions with such conditions and safeguards as are appropriate under this title, or to deny special exceptions when not in harmony with the purpose and intent of this title. A special exception shall not be granted by the board of adjustment unless and until:

A.

A written application for a special exception is submitted (see Appendix E of this title) indicating the section of this title under which the special exception is sought and stating the grounds on which it is requested;

B.

Notice shall be given at least ten (10) days in advance of public hearing. The owner of the property for which special exception is sought or the owner's agent shall be notified by mail (see Appendix F of this title). Notice of such hearing shall be posted on the property for which special exception is sought, at City Hall and in one other public place at least ten (10) days prior to public hearing;

C.

The public hearing shall be held. Any party may appear in person, or by agent or attorney;

D.

The board of adjustment shall make a finding that it is empowered under the section of this title described in the application to grant the special exception, and that the granting of the special exception will not adversely affect the public interest;

E.

Before any special exception shall be issued, the board of adjustment shall make written findings certifying compliance with the specific rules governing individual special exceptions and that satisfactory provision and arrangement has been made concerning the following, where applicable:

1.

Ingress and egress to property and proposed structures on such property with particular reference to automotive and pedestrian safety and convenience, traffic flow and control and access of fire or catastrophe;

2.

Off-street parking and loading areas where required, with particular attention to the items in subsection (E)(1) of this section and the economic, noise, glare or other effects of the special exception in adjoining properties and properties generally in the district;

3.

Refuse and service areas, with particular reference to the items in subsections (E)(1) and (E)(2) of this section;

4.

Utilities, with reference to location, availability and compatibility;

5.

Screening and buffering with reference to type, dimensions and character;

6.

Signs, if any, and proposed exterior lighting with reference to glare, traffic safety, economic effect and compatibility and harmony with properties in the district;

7.

Required yards and other open spaces; and

8.

General compatibility with adjacent properties and other property in the district.

(Ord. 292, § 1902, 1980; Ord. of 7-25-2005; Ord. No. 574, 6-10-2019)

The board of adjustment shall have the power, where, by reason of exceptional narrowness, shallowness or shape of a specific piece of property at the time of the enactment of the ordinance codified in this title, or by reason of exceptional topographic conditions or other extraordinary and exceptional situation or condition of such piece of property, the strict application of any regulation under this title would result in peculiar and exceptional difficulties to, or exceptional and undue hardships upon, the owner of such property, to authorize, upon an appeal or application relating to the property, a variance from such strict application so as to relieve such difficulties or hardships, as such relief may be granted without substantially impairing the intent and purpose of this title.

A.

No such variance shall be authorized by the board of adjustment unless it finds that the strict application of this title would produce undue hardship: such hardship is not shared generally by other properties in the same zoning district and the same vicinity; the authorization of such variance will not be of substantial detriment to adjacent property; and the character of the district will not be changed by the granting of the variance; and the granting of such variance is based upon reasons demonstrable and exceptional hardship as distinguished from variations for purposes of convenience, profit, and caprice.

B.

No variance shall be authorized unless the board of adjustment finds that the condition or situation of the property concerned or the intended use of the property concerned is not of so general or recurring a nature as to make reasonably practicable the formulation of a general regulation to be adopted as an amendment to this title.

C.

A variance from the terms of this title shall not be granted by the board of adjustment unless and until a written application for a variance is submitted demonstrating that special conditions and circumstances exist which are peculiar to the land, structure, or building involved and which are not applicable to other lands, structures, or buildings in the same district; that literal interpretation of the provisions of this title would deprive the applicant of rights commonly enjoyed by other properties in the same district under the terms of this title; that the special conditions and circumstances do not result from the action of the applicant; and that granting the variance requested will not confer on the applicant any special privilege that is denied by this title to other lands, structures or buildings in the same district.

No variance shall be approved unless and until all property pins relating to the requested variance shall be found and exposed so that the information contained in the application may be accurately verified. Locating and exposing the property pins shall be the responsibility of the applicant and at the applicant's expense. The property pins must be located and exposed no later than 10 days prior to the public hearing on the variance.

D.

No nonconforming use of neighboring lands, structures, or buildings in the same district, and no permitted or nonconforming use of lands, structures, or buildings in other districts shall be considered grounds for the issuance of a variance.

E.

Notice of public hearing shall be given as in Section 17.64.040; the public hearing shall be held. Any party may appear in person, or by agent or by attorney; the board of adjustment shall make findings that the requirements of this section have been met by the applicant for a variance; the board of adjustment shall further make a finding that the reasons set forth in the application justify the granting of the variance, and that the variance is the minimum variance that will make possible the reasonable use of the land, building, or structure; the board of adjustment shall further make a finding that the granting of the variance will be in harmony with the general purpose and intent of this title and will not be injurious to the neighborhood or otherwise detrimental to the public welfare.

F.

In granting any variance, the board of adjustment may prescribe appropriate conditions and safeguards in conformity with this title. Violation of such conditions and safeguards, when made a part of the terms under which the variance is granted, shall be deemed a violation of this title and punishable under Section 17.80.020 of this title.

G.

Under no circumstances shall the board of adjustment grant a variance to allow a use not permissible under the terms of this title in the district involved or an use expressly or by implication prohibited by the terms of this title.

(Ord. 292, § 1903, 1980; Ord. No. 574, 6-10-2019; Ord. No. 613, 12-9-2024)

Editor's note— Ord. No. 574, adopted June 10, 2019, repealed § 17.64.060, which pertained to board of adjustment having powers of zoning administrator in appeals; reversing decision of zoning administrator, and derived from Ord. No. 292, § 1904, 1980.