The various use districts created by this chapter and the various sections of this chapter are adopted for the purposes, among others, of:

   1.   Carrying out the Comprehensive Plan for the City.

   2.   Promoting the public health, safety, morals, comfort, general welfare, and preserving the natural, scenic and historically significant areas of the City.

   3.   Helping to achieve greater efficiency and economy of land development by promoting the grouping of those activities which have similar needs and are compatible.

   4.   Encouraging such distribution of population, classification of land use, and distribution of land development throughout the City, which will tend to facilitate adequate and economic provision of transportation, communication, water supply, drainage, sanitation, education, recreation, and other public requirements.

   5.   Lessening or avoiding congestion in the public streets and highways.

   6.   Protecting against fire, explosion, noxious fumes, flood, panic, and other dangers in the interest of public health, safety, comfort, and general welfare.

   7.   Helping to insure that all residential, commercial, and manufacturing structures as well as other types of structures will be accessible to fire fighting and other emergency equipment.

   8.   Prohibiting the formation or expansion of nonconforming uses of land, buildings, and structures that are adversely affecting the character and value of desirable development in each district.

   9.   Promoting the development of residential neighborhoods, which are free of noise, dust, fumes, and heavy traffic volumes in which each dwelling unit is assured of light, air, and open spaces.

   10.   Helping to prevent land development activities which lead to roadside blight, and to minimize the effects of nuisance producing activities.

   11.   Promoting and guiding the continued growth and expansion of the City while protecting the natural, economic, historic and scenic resources of the City.

   12.   Conserving the taxable value of land and buildings throughout the City.

   13.   Defining the powers and duties of the Zoning Officer and other bodies as provided herein.