(a)

Any aggrieved person may appeal a final order or decision of the Administrator with the Board of Adjustment where there is an alleged error in the resulting requirement, decision or approval determination appropriate for Board of Adjustment review. An appeal is made by filing with the Town a written notice of appeal specifying the reasons for the appeal. A notice of appeal shall be considered filed with the Administrator and the Board of Adjustment when delivered to the Town offices, and the date and time of filing shall be entered on the notice by the Town staff. Appeals shall be submitted on a form provided by the Town, and shall be accompanied by the appropriate fee as established through resolution adopted by the Board of Trustees.

(b)

An appeal must be made within thirty (30) days after the date of the decision or order appealed from.

(c)

Whenever an appeal is filed, the Administrator shall forthwith transmit to the Board of Adjustment all records relating to the action appealed from.

(d)

An appeal stays all actions by the Administrator seeking enforcement of or compliance with the order or decision appealed from, unless the Administrator certifies to the Board of Adjustment the belief that due to the facts contained in the certification, a stay would cause imminent peril to life or property. In that case, proceedings shall not be stayed except by order of the Board of Adjustment or a court, issued on application of the party seeking the stay, for due cause shown, and after notice to the Administrator.

(e)

The Board of Adjustment may reverse, affirm or modify the order, requirement, decision or determination appealed from and shall make any order, requirement, decision or determination that in its opinion ought to be made in the case before it. To this end, the Board of Adjustment shall have all the powers of the officer from whom the appeal is taken.

(Ord. 1-96, 1996, § 1; Ord. 2017-11, 2017, § 1)

(a)

An application for a variance shall be submitted to the Board of Adjustment by filing a copy of the application with the Administrator. Applications shall be complete. A staff report shall accompany the application to the Board of Adjustment.

(b)

A variance may be granted by the Board of Adjustment if it concludes that strict enforcement of this Chapter would result in practical difficulties or unnecessary hardships for the applicant and that, by granting the variance, the spirit of this Chapter will be observed, public safety and welfare secured and substantial justice done, except that the Board of Adjustment shall have no authority to grant use variances. It may reach these conclusions if it finds that:

(1)

If the applicant complies strictly with the provisions of this Chapter, he or she can make no reasonable use of his or her property;

(2)

The hardship of which the applicant complains is one (1) suffered by the applicant rather than by neighbors or the general public;

(3)

The hardship relates to the applicant's land, rather than personal circumstances;

(4)

The hardship is unique and unusual, or nearly so, rather than one (1) shared by many surrounding properties;

(5)

The hardship is not the result of the applicant's own actions;

(6)

The variance requested is the minimum that will afford relief and the least possible modification of the requirements of this Chapter; and

(7)

The variance will neither result in the extension of a nonconforming situation in violation of this Article, authorize the initiation of a nonconforming use of land, nor conflict with the goals and policies of the Comprehensive Plan.

(c)

In granting variances, the Board of Adjustment may impose such reasonable conditions as will ensure that the use of the property to which the variance applies will be as compatible as practicable with the surrounding properties.

(d)

A variance may be issued for an indefinite duration or for a specified duration only.

(e)

The nature of the variance and any conditions attached to it shall be entered on the face of the zoning permit, or the zoning permit may simply note the issuance of the variance and refer to the written record of the variance for further information. All such conditions are enforceable in the same manner as any other applicable requirement of this Chapter.

(Ord. 1-96, 1996, § 1; Ord. 2017-11, 2017, § 1)

(a)

The Administrator interprets the Official Zoning Map. The Board of Adjustment is authorized to hear appeals on the Official Zoning Map and to pass upon disputed questions of lot lines or district boundary lines and similar questions.

(b)

An application for a map interpretation shall be submitted to the Board of Adjustment by filing a copy of the application with the Administrator. The application shall contain sufficient information to enable the Board of Adjustment to make the necessary interpretation.

(c)

Interpretations of the Official Zoning Map shall follow the guidelines of Section 16-4-20.

(Ord. 1-96, 1996, § 1; Ord. 2017-11, 2017, § 1)

The Board of Adjustment shall hear and decide all appeals, variance requests and requests for interpretations consistent with the need to follow regularly established agenda procedures, provide notice and hold public hearings, and obtain the necessary information to make sound decisions.

(Ord. 1-96, 1996, § 1; Ord. 2007-06, 2007, § 4; Ord. 2017-11, 2017, § 1)

(a)

When an appeal is taken to the Board of Adjustment, the Administrator shall have the initial burden of presenting to the Board of Adjustment sufficient evidence and argument to justify the order or decision under appeal. The burden of presenting evidence and argument to the contrary then shifts to the appellant, who shall also have the burden of persuasion.

(b)

The burden of presenting evidence sufficient to allow the Board of Adjustment to reach any conclusions, as well as the burden of persuasion on relevant issues, remains with the applicant seeking the variance.

(Ord. 1-96, 1996, § 1; Ord. 2017-11, 2017, § 1)

(a)

The Board of Adjustment, before deciding requests for appeals or variances, shall hold a public hearing following standard hearing procedures.

(b)

A motion to reverse or modify any order, requirement, decision or determination of any administrative official or to decide in favor of the applicant upon any matter which it is required to pass under this Code shall require the concurring vote of four (4) members of the Board. All orders to reverse, affirm or modify the order, requirement, decision or determination appealed from shall include, to the extent practicable, a statement of the specific reasons or findings of fact that support the order.

(c)

A motion to deny a variance may be made on the basis that more than one (1) of the criteria set forth in Section 16-5-20 are not satisfied or that the application is incomplete. Insofar as practicable, such a motion shall include a statement of the specific reasons or findings of fact that support it. This motion is adopted as the Board of Adjustment's decision if supported by a majority of the Board of Adjustment's membership present.

(Ord. 1-96, 1996, § 1; Ord. 1-98, 1998, § 1; Ord. 1-02, 2002; Ord. 2017-11, 2017, § 1)