(See Section 4.04.5.)

         (1)   the time and place of the hearing;

         (2)   the particular location for which the variation is requested;

         (3)   a brief statement of what the proposed variation consists of;

         (4)   the name of the legal and beneficial owner of the property for which the variation is requested;

         (5)   the name of the applicant if different from that of the owner of the property; and,

         (6)   any other information prescribed by the Zoning Administrator.

      b.   Notice Published in the Local Newspaper. Notice of the hearing shall be published at least once in a local newspaper, not more than thirty (30) days nor less than fifteen (15) days before such hearing.

      c.   Notice to Nearby Property Owners. The applicant shall give written notice to the owners of record, as determined by the records of the local real estate tax collector, of all property within 250 feet of the boundaries of the subject property, exclusive of public right of ways not more than thirty (30) days nor less than fifteen (15) days prior to the scheduled public hearing.

         (1)   For owner-occupied residential properties in the R-1, R-2, or R-3 zoning districts, such written notices shall be property addressed and either (a) delivered in person by the applicant to the respective owner(s) of record or (b) sent by certified mail, return receipt requested, to the respective owners of record. If the written notice is served in person to the owner(s) of record, the applicant shall have the owner(s) of record sign a form, as provided by the Zoning Administrator, listing, at a minimum, the owner(s) of record's name and address.

         (2)   For all other properties, such written notice shall be properly addressed and sent by certified mail, return receipt requested, to the respective owners of record.

         (3)   Every applicant shall file a sworn affidavit with the Village Clerk prior to the public hearing certifying he or she has given proper notice as required by the Itasca Zoning Ordinance. The affidavit shall include: (1) copies of the notices and (2) certified mail receipts and/or the form with the owner(s) of record's signatures.

      d.   If the foregoing requirements providing for the notice publication and notice to owners of record are not completed within the time frame set forth, the public hearing shall be canceled and the applicant shall be required to pay an additional filing fee if the hearing is to be rescheduled.

      a.   The President and Board of Trustees shall not vary the provisions of this Ordinance as authorized in this Section unless the Zoning Board of Appeals shall have made findings based upon the evidence presented to it in the following specific cases:

         (1)   that the property in question cannot yield a reasonable return if permitted to be used only under the conditions allowed by the regulations governing the district in which it is located;

         (2)   that the plight of the owner is due to unique circumstances; and

         (3)   that the variation, if granted, will not alter the essential character of the locality.

      b.   For the purpose of supplementing the above standards, the Zoning Board of Appeals shall also, in making this determination whether there are particular difficulties or particular hardships, take into consideration the extent to the following facts favorable to the applicant, have been established by the evidence:

         (1)   that the particular physical surroundings, shape or topographical conditions of the specific property involved would bring a particular hardship upon the owner, as distinguished from a mere inconvenience, if the strict letter of the regulations were to be carried out;

         (2)   that the conditions upon which the petition for variation is based would not be applicable generally to other property within the same zoning classification;

         (3)   that the purpose of the variation is not based exclusively upon a desire to make more money from the property, or merely for the convenience of the owner;

         (4)   that the alleged difficulty or hardship has not been created by any person presently having an interest in the property;

         (5)   that the granting of the variation will not be detrimental to the public welfare or injurious to other property or improvements in the neighborhood in which the property is located; or

         (6)   that the proposed variation will not impair an adequate supply of light on adjacent property or substantially increase the danger of fire or otherwise endanger the public safety or substantially diminish or impair property values within the neighborhood.

      c.   The Zoning Board of Appeals may require such conditions and restrictions upon the premises benefitted by a variation or as may be necessary to comply with the standards set forth in this Section to reduce or minimize the injurious effect to such variation upon other property in the neighborhood and to implement the general purpose and intent of this Ordinance.

      a.   Variations from the regulations of this Ordinance may be decided by the president and the Board of Trustees only in accordance with the standards set forth in this Section, and only in the following instances and no others:

         (1)   to permit side or rear yards less than the yard required by the applicable regulations; front and corner side yards shall be reviewed by the Plan Commission;

         (2)   to permit the use of a lot for a use otherwise prohibited solely because of the insufficient area of the lot, but in no event shall the area of a lot, not of record on the effective date of this Ordinance, be less than ninety (90) percent of the required lot area;

         (3)   to permit parking lots to be illuminated more than thirty (30) minutes after the close of the business;

         (4)   to permit the same off-street parking spaces to qualify as required spaces for two (2) or more uses, provided that the maximum use of such facility by each user does not take place during the same hours or on the same days of the week;

         (5)   to reduce the applicable off-street parking or loading required to the extent of not more than one (1) parking space or loading berth, or twenty (20) percent of the spaces required by applicable regulations, whichever number is greater;

         (6)   to increase by not more than twenty-five (25) percent the maximum distance that required parking spaces are permitted to be located from the use served; and

         (7)   to consider any changes to the sign requirements for all districts other than the Office-Research and/or the Regional Office Center Districts. In these cases, the Plan Commission shall review and may recommend and the Board of Trustees may approve any such variations.

(Ord. 963-97, passed 4-08-97; Am. Ord. 1520-10, passed 3-16-10)