Kensington City Zoning Code
ARTICLE V
Nonconforming Buildings and Uses
§ 151-22 General.
A.
A nonconforming building or use is:
(1)
A building or use which existed when the Building Zone Ordinance of the Village of Kensington was adopted on February 9, 1926, and which complied with all of the requirements of the ordinances of the village immediately prior to the adoption of such ordinance, but which failed to conform to the requirements of the ordinance so adopted; or,
(2)
A building or use which existed when an amendment of such Building Zone Ordinance was adopted and which complied with all of the requirements of the Building Zone Ordinance immediately prior to the adoption of such amendment, but which failed to comply with the requirements of the Building Zone Ordinance as so amended; or,
(3)
A building or use which may hereafter exist when an amendment of such Building Zone Ordinance is adopted and which complies with the requirements of the Building Zone Ordinance immediately prior to the adoption of such amendment, but which fails to comply with the requirements of the Building Zone Ordinance as so amended.
B.
Except as provided in Subsection C, any nonconforming use may be continued and any building designed, arranged or intended for or devoted to a nonconforming use may be reconstructed or structurally altered and the nonconforming use therein changed, subject to the following regulations:
(1)
The structural alterations made in such building shall in no case exceed its assessed value, nor shall the building be enlarged, unless the use therein is changed to a conforming use.
(2)
No building or premises devoted to a use permitted in the district in which it is situated shall be changed to a use excluded from or not permitted in such district.
(3)
A nonconforming lot having a street frontage, area, or width at the front building line less than the minimum provided for the district in which it is situated whose ownership at the time such nonconformity arose and at all times hereafter differed from the ownership of all adjoining property may be improved and a building may be constructed, altered or enlarged thereon, provided that such building and lot comply with all of the requirements of the district in which such lot is situated other than the regulations as to minimum street frontage, area, or width at the front building line.
[Amended 11-20-1997 by L.L. No. 5-1997; 6-17-2009 by L.L. No. 3-2009]
(4)
On a nonconforming lot improved with a building which has either or both side yards less in width than the minimum provided for the district in which it is situated, the building may be altered, extended or enlarged, provided that no side yard is reduced in width, and further provided that any extension or enlargement of the building shall conform to the minimum yard requirements herein provided for such district.
C.
Signs existing on the date of adoption of this chapter which do not conform to the requirements of this chapter may be continued no later than December 31, 1969, after which time such signs shall be removed. If any such existing sign is removed, relocated, repaired, replaced, altered, enlarged or changed in any way prior to December 31, 1969, the permission under this subsection shall not apply and such sign shall then and thereafter be made to conform to the requirements of this chapter.
D.
The restoration of a nonconforming building in the event of a catastrophe or natural disaster is permitted as follows:
[Amended 2-16-2011 by L.L. No. 2-2011]
(1)
Nothing in this chapter shall prevent the restoration of a building destroyed by fire, explosion, act of God or act of a public enemy, to the extent of not more than 50% of its floor area, or prevent the continuance of the use of such building or part thereof as such use existed at the time of such destruction of such building or part thereof, or prevent a change of such existing use under the limitations provided by Subsection B. Any building destroyed in the manner aforesaid to an extent exceeding 50% of its floor area at the time of such destruction may be reconstructed and thereafter used only in such a manner as to conform to all the provisions of this chapter unless reconstruction is permitted pursuant to Subsection D(2) below.
(2)
In the event a building is destroyed by fire, explosion, act of God or act of a public enemy to an extent exceeding 50% of its floor area, it may be reconstructed only if the Building Inspector has issued a certificate of occupancy or a certificate of existing use for the building that was destroyed, and approved plans are on file in the Village Building Department at the time of the destruction, which plans provide sufficient detail for the reconstruction of the same building that was destroyed. The owner shall file new plans with the Building Department and obtain new permits prior to any construction at the premises. The Building Inspector and Architectural Review Board shall confirm that the original plans on file with the Building Department have sufficient detail to reconstruct the same building at the premises and that the new plans are identical to the original plans.
(3)
Nothing in this chapter shall prevent the restoration of a wall or other part of a building declared unsafe.
E.
Where any real property is acquired by the Village of Kensington for a public use, whether by dedication, purchase, condemnation or otherwise, and as a result of such acquisition other real property not so acquired fails to conform to the regulations of this chapter or Building Code[1] in force at the time of such acquisition, the Board of Trustees may, by general resolution authorizing the improvement or by special resolution authorizing the acquisition of a specific parcel of real property, adopt other regulations applying to such real property which fails to conform as aforesaid, which shall take the place of the regulations with which it fails to conform; provided, however, that such resolution or regulation shall be adopted in the same manner as an ordinance amending this chapter or Building Code[2] generally.