Hampstead City Zoning Code
ARTICLE XXXII
Board of Appeals
§ 135-264 Creation; membership; terms; removal; vacancies; compensation.
[Amended 6-13-1995 by Ord. No. 270; 10-10-1995 by Ord. No. 277]
The Board of Appeals of the Town of Hampstead is hereby created and designated as the "Board of Zoning Appeals." The number of members of such Board shall be three, with one or more alternates. All members of the Board and alternates shall reside within the corporate limits of the Town of Hampstead. Their terms of office, succession, removal and filling of vacancies, powers and duties shall be as provided in Article 66B of the Annotated Code of Maryland. The members and alternates shall serve with such compensation as the Mayor and Council deem appropriate.
§ 135-265 Powers.
A.
The Board shall have the following powers:
(1)
To hear and decide appeals where it is alleged that there is an error in any order, requirement, decision or determination made by an administrative official in regard to the enforcement of this chapter or of any ordinance adopted pursuant thereto.
(2)
To hear and decide conditional uses to the chapter, upon which such Board is required to pass.
(3)
To authorize, upon appeal in special cases, such variance from the regulations and requirements listed in § 135-259 as will not be contrary to the public interest, where, owing to special conditions, the enforcement of the provisions of this chapter will result in unwarranted hardship and injustice and which will most nearly accomplish the purpose and intent of the regulations of this chapter.
[Amended 10-24-1995 by Ord. No. 282]
B.
In exercising the above-mentioned powers, the Board may, in conformity with the provisions of law and this chapter and amendments thereto, reverse or affirm, wholly or partly, or may modify the order, requirement, decision or determination appealed from and may make such order, requirement, decision or determination as ought to be made.
C.
The Board is also empowered to adopt and promulgate such rules and regulations as it shall deem necessary in the conduct of its hearings and the issuance of its decisions or testimony pertaining to its hearings.
§ 135-266 Organization; meetings; records.
The Board shall be organized and its rules shall be amended, if necessary, in accordance with the provisions of this chapter. Meetings of the Board shall be held at the call of the Chairman, and at such other times as the Board may determine. The Chairman or, in his absence, the Acting Chairman, may administer oaths and compel the attendance of witnesses. For assistance in reaching decisions relative to appeals, conditional uses or variances, the Board may request testimony at its hearings for purposes of securing technical aid or factual evidence from the Commission or any county agency. All meetings of the Board shall be open to the public. The Board shall keep minutes of its proceedings and shall keep records of all its official actions, all of which shall be filed in the office of the Board and shall be a public record.
§ 135-267 Appeals.
[Amended 6-27-1995 by Ord. No. 268]
An appeal to the Board may be taken by any person aggrieved, by any Town of Hampstead taxpayer or by any officer, department, board, Commission or bureau of the Town affected by any decision of the Zoning Administrator or any decision of the Commission. Such appeal shall be taken within 30 days after the decision by filing with the Zoning Administrator and with the Board a notice of appeal, specifying the grounds thereof. The Zoning Administrator shall forthwith transmit to the Board all the papers constituting the record upon which the action appealed from was taken.
§ 135-268 Actions preparatory to hearing.
Upon the filing of an application before the Board, the following action shall be taken preparatory to holding a hearing thereon:
A.
The Board shall fix a reasonable time for a hearing of the application or appeal.
B.
Notice of the hearing shall be advertised in two consecutive issues of a newspaper having general circulation in the Town of Hampstead. The first insertion shall appear in such newspaper at least 20 days prior to such hearings.
C.
Property upon which the application or appeal is concerned shall be posted conspicuously by a zoning notice no less in size than 22 inches by 28 inches at least 14 days before the date of the hearing.
D.
Notification by certified mail shall be made to the appellant or petitioner and to the owners of those properties and the addresses certified on the notice of appeal by the appellant or petitioner as being contiguous to the property with which the hearing is concerned.
E.
The Board, upon application in writing by any interested party filed with the Zoning Administrator no less than 10 days prior to the date of scheduled hearing, shall visit the specific property involved prior to the hearing. The Board, in its discretion, may otherwise visit the specific property prior to or after the hearing.
§ 135-269 Hearing.
The Board, following such action above, shall hold such hearing. At the hearing, any party may appear and be heard in person or by agent or attorney.
§ 135-270 Postponement of hearing.
A.
Requests for postponement of a scheduled hearing shall be filed in writing with the Zoning Administrator not less than 10 days prior to the date of hearing and shall be accompanied by a sum of money sufficient to pay the cost of advertising the postponement and the rescheduled hearing. The granting of such requests shall be at the discretion of the Chairman of the Board.
B.
Requests for postponement filed later than 10 days prior to the date of a scheduled hearing shall, in addition to the other requirements set forth in Subsection A above, be supported by an affidavit of the party making the request or of some other creditable person. The granting of such request shall be at the discretion of the Board in cases of extreme hardship or upon good cause shown.
C.
The Board may, upon its own initiative, postpone a scheduled hearing at any time.
§ 135-271 Continuance of hearing.
The Board may continue a hearing at another time and/or date once such hearing has been started; however, the Board shall announce the date and hour of continuance of such hearing while in session.
§ 135-272 Decisions; appeals.
[Amended 3-15-1993 by Ord. No. 254; 4-8-1997 by Ord. No. 298]
The Board shall render a decision within a reasonable time. Any person or persons, jointly or severally, aggrieved by a decision of the Board of Appeals, or by a zoning action by the local legislative body or any taxpayer or any officer, department, board or bureau of the Town of Hampstead may appeal to the Circuit Court for Carroll County as provided for by state law. The Court may affirm, reverse, vacate or modify the decision complained of in the appeal to the extent and as provided for by state law.
§ 135-273 Reconsideration.
[Amended 3-15-1993 by Ord. No. 254]
The Board may, pursuant to a written request filed within 30 days after the date of the mailing of notice of any final decision, reconsider such decision with respect to such grounds as may be stated in such request, and if reconsideration is granted, the Board may receive additional testimony to the extent it thinks proper or appropriate. The granting of any such request is entirely discretionary with the Board, but shall not be granted unless the Board finds that there is good cause to do so. The request for reconsideration shall contain a certification that a copy of the request has been served by regular mail, postage prepaid, upon each party who appeared at the original hearing or the spokesman or attorney for such party. Upon request of any Board member, an opportunity will be given to the other parties to be heard or file a response to the request for reconsideration. The Board may act upon such request with or without hearing. No such request will be granted if an appeal to the Circuit Court is pending from the original decision
§ 135-274 Limitations, guides and standards.
A.
Where in these regulations certain powers are conferred upon the Board or the approval of the Board is required before a permit may be issued or the Board is called upon to decide certain issues, such Board shall study the specific property involved, as well as the neighborhood, and consider all testimony and data submitted and shall hear any person desiring to speak for or against the issuance of the permit.
B.
However, the application for a permit shall not be approved where the Board finds the proposed building, addition, extension of building or use, sign, use or change of use would adversely affect the public health, safety, security, morals or general welfare or would result in dangerous traffic condition or would jeopardize the lives or property of people living in the neighborhood.
C.
In deciding such matters, the Board shall give consideration among other things, to the following:
(1)
The number of people residing or working in the immediate area concerned.
(2)
The orderly growth of a community.
(3)
Traffic conditions and facilities.
(4)
The effect of such use upon the peaceful enjoyment of people in their homes.
(5)
The conservation of property values.
(6)
The effect of odors, dust, gas, smoke, fumes, vibrations, glare and noise upon the use of surrounding property values.
(7)
The most appropriate use of land and structure.
(8)
Decisions of the courts.
(9)
The purpose of these regulations as set forth herein.
(10)
The type and kind of structures in the vicinity where public gatherings may be held, such as schools, churches and the like.
§ 135-275 Disapproval of application.
If the application is disapproved by the Board, thereafter, the Board shall take no further action on another application for substantially the same proposal on the same premises until after two years from the date of such disapproval. If an appeal to the Board is perfected and the public hearing date is set and duly advertised and properly posted and thereafter the applicant withdraws the appeal, he shall be precluded from filing another application for substantially the same proposal on the same premises for one year.
§ 135-276 Fees.
[Amended 6-10-2003 by Ord. No. 369]
A filing fee shall accompany each application for an appeal to the Board as may be determined by the Mayor and Council of the Town of Hampstead.