Organization.

(1)

The board shall consist of five regular members and two alternates with corresponding place numbers who shall be appointed, and terms shall run, as provided in section 1.07.002. Board members may be subject to removal for any cause deemed sufficient by the town council on a written charge after a public hearing.

(2)

All appeals must be heard by a minimum of four members of the board. Alternates shall serve in the place of any absent regular member. If a quorum has not been achieved at a regular meeting, a special meeting, subject to the same notification requirements as a regular meeting, may be called.

(Ord. No. 2019-04-815, § 3.01, 4-16-2019)

Jurisdiction. The board of adjustment shall have the following powers and it shall be its duty:

(1)

To hear and decide appeals where it is alleged there is error of law in any order, requirement, decision or determination made by the building official in the enforcement of the town's zoning ordinance. In exercising its authority, the board may reverse or affirm, in whole or in part, or modify the building official's order, requirement, decision or determination from which the appeal is taken.

(2)

To permit such modification of the town's zoning ordinance for the height, yard, area, setback and coverage as may be necessary to secure appropriate development of a parcel of land which differs from other parcels in the district by being of such restricted area, shape or slope that it cannot be appropriately developed without such modification. The board shall have no authority to grant variances to the use provisions of said ordinance.

(3)

The jurisdiction of the board is limited to appeals and hardship cases that arise from time to time. Financial hardship shall not be considered grounds for the issuance of a variance.

(4)

Variances from parking and sign regulations must be approved by the town council and shall not be heard by the board. Existing nonconforming uses and structures shall be strictly governed by the provisions of article XXIII of this exhibit and the town council.

(Ord. No. 2019-04-815, § 3.01, 4-16-2019)

Appeals process.

(1)

Appeals to the board of adjustment can be taken by any person aggrieved, or by an officer, department or board of the municipality affected by the decision of the town building official. A written application for appeal shall be submitted together with required fees, accompanied by an accurate legal description, maps, site plans, drawings, and other data or information relevant to the appeal within 15 days after the decision has been rendered by the building official, by filing with the official from whom the appeal is taken and with the board of adjustment, a notice of appeal specifying the grounds thereof. The papers constituting the record upon which the action appealed from was taken shall forthwith be transmitted to board.

(2)

An appeal shall stay all proceedings of the action appealed from unless the official from whom the appeal is taken, after notice of the appeal has been filed, certifies in writing to the board that, by reason of facts stated in the certificate, a stay would, in his opinion, cause imminent peril to life or property. In such case, proceedings shall not be stayed, other than by a restraining order which may be granted by the board of adjustment or by a court of record on application, after notice to the official, if due cause shown.

(3)

The board of adjustment shall set the appeal hearing on the next available meeting date, give the public notice thereof by posting such notice in the mail addressed to all owners of real property located within 200 feet of the property on which the appeal is made and to any other persons deemed to be affected thereby, and by publication of the hearing notice in a newspaper of general circulation in the Town of Hickory Creek, Texas. Both the written and published notice shall be given at least ten days prior to the date for the hearing. Upon the hearing, any party may appear in person or by attorney or agent.

(4)

When the board has denied an appeal, no new applications of similar nature shall be accepted or scheduled by the board for 12 months after the date of denial. Applications withdrawn at or before the board meeting or that have expired after approval by the board may be resubmitted at any time for hearing before the board upon submission of written application and required fees.

(Ord. No. 2019-04-815, § 3.01, 4-16-2019)

Variances.

(1)

Variance criteria. To approve an application for a variance, the board of adjustment shall make an affirmative finding that all of the following criteria are met.

(a)

Special circumstances, including, but limited to, its size, shape or topography, exist that are peculiar to the land or structure that are not applicable to other land or structures in the same zoning district and are not merely financial or serve as a convenience to the applicant. These special circumstances are not the result of the actions of the applicant.

(b)

Literal interpretation and enforcement of the terms and provisions of the zoning ordinance would deprive the applicant of rights commonly enjoyed by other land in the same zoning district and would cause an unnecessary and undue hardship.

(c)

Granting the variance is the minimum action that will make possible the use of the land or structure which is not contrary to the public interest and would carry out the spirit of this article and substantial justice.

(d)

Granting the variance will not adversely affect adjacent land in a material way.

(e)

Granting the variance will be generally consistent with the purposes and intent of this article.

(2)

In exercising its authority, the board of adjustment shall not grant a variance that would create any one of the following effects:

(a)

The variance would be a material detriment to the public welfare or create injury to the use, enjoyment or value of property in the vicinity.

(b)

The variance would allow a use not allowed in the district in which the parcel is located or would not only affect a specific parcel but would be of such general nature as to constitute, in effect, a change in zoning of the parcel or a larger area or would merit an amendment to zoning ordinance.

(c)

The variance will relieve the applicant of conditions or circumstances that are self-imposed or grounded solely upon the opportunity to make the property more profitable or to reduce expense to the owner.

(d)

The variance will modify any condition imposed by the town council as part of a conditional use or special use review.

(3)

Conditions. The board of adjustment may impose such conditions on a variance as are necessary to accomplish the purposes of the zoning ordinance, to prevent or minimize adverse impacts upon the public and neighborhoods, and to ensure compatibility of the site with its surroundings. These conditions may include, but are not limited to, limitations on size, bulk and location; standards for landscaping, buffering and screening, lighting and adequate ingress and egress; other on-site improvements; and limitations on the duration or hours of operation of an allowed use.

(4)

Effect of variance.

(a)

Issuance of a variance shall authorize only the particular variation which is approved by the board. A variance shall run with the land.

(b)

Unless otherwise specified in the variance, an application to commence construction of the improvements that were the subject of the variance request must be applied for and approved within six months of the date of the approval of the variance, otherwise the variance shall automatically become null and void. Permitted time frames do not change with successive owners. Upon written request, only one 60 day extension of the six-month period may be granted by the building official if it is determined that conditions of the site and the immediately surrounding area are substantially unchanged.

(5)

Upon the filing of an application for a variance on a lot or tract of land or property, the owner/developer/applicant shall be required to place an informational sign on such lot or tract of land.

(a)

The size of the sign in a residential district shall be two feet by two feet, and in a non-residential district shall be four feet by four feet and be made out of aluminum or ten mm thick fluted polypropylene corrugated plastic material. If using plastic, the sheets shall be extruded comprising of two skins separated by vertical ribs.

(b)

The sign shall be double-sided, mounted on two stakes/poles, and the bottom of the sign shall be at least one foot above grade.

(c)

The sign shall be visible from and placed perpendicular to the street.

(d)

There shall be one sign for each 500 feet of street frontage.

(e)

The sign shall have a white background, with the letters and borders being blue in color. The sign shall include the following information, as applicable: The type of request, the case number, the town's logo, the town's contact number, and the web address for the town.

(f)

The owner/developer/applicant shall be required to remove informational signs from the lot or tract of land within ten days after the date of the final action of the requested change or amendment. The owner er/developer/applicant shall also be required to replace missing informational signs on the next business day after staff notifying them of the absence.

(Ord. No. 2019-04-815, § 3.01, 4-16-2019; Ord. No. 2022-11-917, § 3.02, 11-21-2022)

Actions of the board.

(1)

In exercising its powers, and in conforming with the provisions of Chapter 211 of the Texas Local Government Code, as amended, the board may revise or reform, wholly or partly, or may modify the order, requirements, decisions, or determination appealed from and make such order, requirement, decision, or determination as ought to be made and shall have all the powers of the officer from whom the appeal is taken, including the power to impose reasonable conditions to be complied with by the applicant.

(2)

The concurring vote of four members of the board shall be necessary to revise any order, requirement, decision, or determination of the building official, or to decide in favor of the applicant on any matter upon which it is required to pass under this ordinance, or to affect any variance in said ordinance.

(3)

Any person or persons, jointly or severally, aggrieved by any decision of the board of adjustment or any taxpayer or any officer, department or board of the municipality may present to a court of record a petition duly verified, setting forth that such decision is illegal, in whole or in part, specifying the grounds of the illegality as specified in § 211.011 of the Texas Local Government Code. Such petition shall be presented to the court within ten days after the date of the decision and not thereafter.

(Ord. No. 2019-04-815, § 3.01, 4-16-2019)