It is the intent of this ordinance that all questions arising in connection with the administration and enforcement or the interpretation of this ordinance shall be first presented to the Town Planner and that the questions shall be presented to the Board of Adjustment only on appeal from the decision of the Town Planner and that from the decisions of the Board of Adjustment, recourse shall be taken to the courts as provided by law. It is further the intent of this ordinance that the duties of the Board of Aldermen in connection with this ordinance shall not include hearing and passing on disputed questions which might arise in connection with the enforcement or interpretations of this ordinance, but the procedures for determining the questions shall be stated in this ordinance, and the duties of the Board of Aldermen in connection with this ordinance shall be only the duty of holding a public hearing and voting upon any proposed amendment or repeal of this ordinance as provided by law.

1. The Town Planner is hereby authorized, and it shall be his or her duty, to enforce and administer the provisions of this ordinance.
2. It shall be the duty of the Town Planner to review all plans and specifications of a proposed building or structure and to review all plans for a change in use of any building or structure on any lot to ensure conformity with this ordinance and to issue zoning permits and compliance letters.
3. No building or other structure shall be erected, moved, added to, or structurally altered, nor shall any building permit be issued nor shall any change in use of any building or land be made until a zoning permit shall have been issued by the Town Planner. No zoning permit shall be issued except in conformity with the provisions of this ordinance. Upon approval of a Special Use Permit or variance by the Board of Adjustment, the Town Planner shall issue a zoning permit. All applications for zoning permits shall be accompanied by plans in duplicate and drawn to scale showing the actual dimensions of the lot to be built upon, accurate dimensions and use of the proposed building(s), the location on the lot of building(s) or structure(s) proposed to be erected or altered, and the other information as may be necessary to provide for the enforcement of the provisions of this ordinance. Prior to the issuance of a zoning permit, the Town Planner may consult with qualified personnel for assistance to determine if the application meets the requirements of this ordinance.

No building or other structure shall be erected, moved, extended, or enlarged, or structurally altered, nor shall any excavation or filling of any lot for the construction of any building be commenced until the authorized Building Inspector has issued a building permit for the work. No building permit shall be issued except in conformance with this ordinance except after written order from the Board of Adjustment. Building permits shall be issued only to those who have first obtained a zoning permit from the Town Planner.

1. Each application to the Building Inspector for a building permit shall be accompanied by plot plans in duplicate showing:
   1. The actual dimensions of the lot to be built upon;
   2. The size of the building to be erected;
   3. The location of the building on the lot;
   4. The location of existing structures on the lot, if any;
   5. The number of dwelling units the building is designed to accommodate;
   6. The approximate setback lines of buildings on adjoining lots
   7. Any other information as may be essential for determining whether the provisions of this ordinance are being observed;
   8. The proposed use of land; and
   9. Site soil stabilization and reseeding plan or landscaping.
2. Within 90 days of being granted any approval by the Zoning Board of Adjustment, a property owner or developer must obtain a building permit. Any building permit issued shall become invalid unless the work authorized by it shall have been commenced within 6 months of its date of issue or if the work authorized by it is materially suspended or abandoned for a period of 90 days.

A certificate of occupancy issued by the authorized Building Inspections Department is required in advance of the occupancy or use of any building hereafter erected, altered, or moved, or the change in use of any building or land. In conjunction with the final building inspection, the Town Planner shall certify that all requirements of this ordinance have been met. The applicant shall call for the certification coincident with the final building inspection. A certificate of occupancy, either for the whole or part of a building, shall be applied for coincident with the application for a certificate of zoning compliance and shall be issued within 10 days after the erection or structural alterations or change in use of the building, or part, shall have been completed in conformity with the provisions of this ordinance. A certificate of occupancy shall not be issued unless the proposed use of a building or land conforms to the applicable provisions of this ordinance. If the certificate of zoning compliance is denied, the Town Planner shall state in writing the reasons for refusal and the applicant shall be notified in writing of the refusal. A record of all certificates of zoning compliance shall be kept on file in the office of the Town Planner, and copies shall be furnished on request to any person having a proprietary or tenancy interest in the building or land involved.

In case any building is erected, constructed, reconstructed, altered, repaired, converted, or maintained, or any building or land is used in violation of this ordinance, the Town Planner, or any other appropriate town authority, or any person who would be damaged by the violation, in addition to other legal remedies, may institute an action for injunction, or mandamus, or other appropriate action or proceeding to prevent the violation.

No person shall commence or proceed with any development without first securing development approval. Development approvals shall be in writing and may be in print or electronic form. Applications for development approvals may be made by the landowner, a lessee or person holding an option or contract to purchase or lease land, or an authorized agent of the landowner. An easement holder may also apply for development approval for such development as is authorized by the easement.

The Town official making the determination shall give written notice to the owner of the property that is the subject of the determination and to the party who sought the determination, if different from the owner. The written notice shall be delivered by personal delivery, electronic mail, or by first-class mail. The notice shall be delivered to the last address listed for the owner of the affected property on the county tax abstract and to the address provided in the application or request for a determination if the party seeking the determination is different from the owner.

The Town Planner or administrative staff shall not make a final decision on any administrative decision required by this ordinance if the outcome of that decision would have a direct, substantial, and readily identifiable financial impact on the staff member or if the applicant or other person subject to that decision is a person with whom the staff member has a close familial, business, or other associational relationship. If a staff member has a conflict of interest under this section, the decision shall be assigned to the supervisor of the staff person.

No staff member shall be financially interested or employed by a business that is financially interested in a development subject to regulation under this ordinance unless the staff member is the owner of the land or building involved. No staff member or other individual or an employee of a company contracting with the local government to provide staff support shall engage in any work that is inconsistent with his or her duties or with the interest of the Town of Maggie Valley.

1. A Board of Adjustment for the Town of Maggie Valley and is hereby established.
2. Membership; terms of office; vacancies.
   1. The Board of Adjustment shall consist of seven (7) members, five (5) regular members and two (2) alternate. All seven (7) members of the Board of Adjustment shall be appointed by the Board of Aldermen of the Town of Maggie Valley.. At no time shall more than five members vote in any meeting or hearing; additionally, no Alternate member shall vote on any issue before the Board unless the Alternate is standing in for a regular member.
   2. For the initial appointments to the Board of Adjustment, the Town of Maggie Valley shall appoint one member for a 1-year term, two members for a 2-year term, two members for 3-year terms, and two alternate members for three year terms. Any vacancy in the membership shall be filled for the unexpired term in the same manner as the initial appointment. Each successive appointment of members to the Board shall be for a term of 3 years. Members may be appointed for any number of successive terms.
   3. The Board of Aldermen shall appoint two (2) alternate members to serve on the Board of Adjustment in the absence, for any cause, of any regular member. The alternate members shall be appointed for 3-year terms. The alternate members, while attending any regular or special meeting of the Board of Adjustment and serving in the absence of any regular member, shall have and exercise all the powers and duties of the regular member so absent. However, no Alternate member shall vote on any issue before the Board unless the Alternate is standing in for a regular member.
3. Attendance. Faithful attendance at the meetings of the Board of Adjustment is required in order to maintain membership on the Board, and members who miss 3 consecutive meetings, or 4 regular meetings in a calendar year, automatically forfeit membership. A member terminated for lack of attendance may appear before the Board of Aldermen and request reinstatement.
4. Organizational meeting; election of Chairperson, officers; terms. Within 30 days after the appointment of members to the Board of Adjustment, the Board shall meet and elect a Chairperson and create and fill any offices as it may determine. The term of the Chairperson and other offices shall be for 1 year, with eligibility for re-election for any number of successive terms.
5. Regular meetings required; quorum.
   1. The Board of Adjustment may hold monthly meetings, or meet as needed, and all of its meetings shall be open to the public.
   2. A quorum for routine administrative decisions and for deciding an appeal from a decision of the Town Planner, or an application for a Special Use Permit, shall consist of three qualified members of the Board of Adjustment. However, a quorum necessary to decide in favor of the applicant for a variance or to affect any variation of this ordinance requires no less than four qualified Board members to be present in order to have the required 4/5 supermajority vote.
6. The Board of Adjustment shall adopt rules for transaction of its business and shall keep a record of its members’ attendance and its resolutions, discussions, findings, and recommendations, which record shall be a public record.
7. The Board of Adjustment may conduct public hearings as may be required to carry out its duties under this ordinance and as prescribed by state law.
8. On all appeals, applications, and other matters brought before the Zoning Board of Adjustment, the Board shall inform, in writing, the parties involved of its decisions and the reasons therefore.
9. Members of the Board of Adjustment, when duly authorized by the Board of Aldermen, may attend planning conferences or meetings of planning institutes, or hearings upon pending planning legislation, and the Board may, by formal and affirmative vote, pay, within the Board’s budget, the reasonable traveling expenses incident to the attendance.

The Zoning Board of Adjustment shall have the following powers and duties:

1. Administrative review and Appeals. To hear and decide appeals where it is alleged there is error in any order, requirement, decision, or determination made by the Town Planner in the administration of this ordinance.
2. Special Uses. To hear and decide applications for Special Use permits upon which the Board of Adjustment is required to pass under this ordinance and in accordance with G.S. 160D-705 (c). To decide the questions as are involved in determining whether a Special Use Permit should be granted. To grant Special Use permits with the conditions and safeguards as are appropriate under this ordinance, or to deny Special Use permits when not in harmony with the intent of this ordinance and would adversely affect the public interest. A Special Use permit may be granted by the Board of Adjustment only after making the following findings:
   1. That the Board of Adjustment is empowered under a specific section of this ordinance to grant the Special Use permit and that the granting of the Special Use permit will not adversely affect the public interest.
   2. Before any Special Use permit shall be issued, the Board shall make written findings certifying compliance with all specific rules governing the individual Special Use and that satisfactory provision and arrangement has been made concerning the following wherever applicable:
      1. Ingress and egress to property and proposed structure with particular reference to automotive and pedestrian safety, convenience, traffic flow and control, and access in case of fire or catastrophe;
      2. Refuse and service areas, with particular reference to the items in division (B)(2)a. above;
      3. Off-street parking and loading areas where required with particular attention to the items in division (B)(2)a. above; and to the economic, noise, glare, or odor effects of the Special Use on adjoining properties and generally in the district;
      4. Utilities, with reference to location, availability, and compatibility;
      5. Screening and buffering, with reference to type, dimensions, and character;
      6. Signs, if any, and proposed exterior lighting, with reference to glare, traffic safety, economic effect, and compatibility and harmony with properties in the district; and
      7. Required yards and other open spaces;
      8. General compatibility with adjacent property and other property in the district.
3. Variances. Before the Zoning Board of Adjustment may grant a variance, it shall make all of the following findings, which shall be recorded in the permanent record of the case and shall include the factual reasons on which the findings are based:
   1. Unnecessary hardship would result from the strict application of the ordinance. It shall not be necessary to demonstrate that, in the absence of the variance, no reasonable use can be made of the property.
   2. The hardship results from conditions that are peculiar to the property, such as location, size, or topography. Hardships resulting from personal circumstances, as well as hardships resulting from conditions that are common to the neighborhood or the general public, may not be the basis for granting a variance.
   3. The hardship did not result from actions taken by the applicant or the property owner. The act of purchasing property with knowledge that circumstances exist that may justify the granting of a variance shall not be regarded as a self created hardship.
   4. The requested variance is consistent with the spirit, purpose, and intent of the ordinance. That is, the applicant is not seeking to establish, to expand, or to extend in area a nonconforming use. Moreover, the existence of a nonconforming use in the same or in any other zoning district shall not constitute a reason for granting the requested variance.
   5. Such that public safety is secured, and substantial justice is achieved. The Board shall not grant a variance if it finds that doing so would alter the essential character of the neighborhood, materially diminish or impair established property values within the surrounding area, or in any other respect impair the public health, safety, or general welfare.

Any person or persons, jointly or severally, aggrieved by any decision of the Board of Adjustment, may, within 30 days after the filing of the decision in the office of the Board, but not thereafter, present to a court of competent jurisdiction a petition duly verified, setting forth that the decision is illegal, in whole or in part, specifying that ground of illegality, whereupon the decision of the Board of Adjustment shall be subject to review as provided by law.

A fee shall be paid to the Town of Maggie Valley for an application for any variance, Special Use, or appeal to cover administrative costs. The application fee for a variance, Special Use, or an appeal to the Board of Adjustment shall be determined by the Board of Aldermen.

A. Establishment. A Planning Board Consisting of five (5) members is hereby established in accordance with G.S. 160D-301. All Five (5) members, appointed by the Town Board of Alderman, shall be citizens of and reside within the town limits of Maggie Valley. Members shall serve without compensation but may be reimbursed for actual expenses incidental to the performance of their duties within the limit of funds available to the board. The Planning Board of shall adopt rules for the transaction of its business and shall keep them on record in the office of the Town Clerk.

B. Tenure. Members of the board shall be be appointed to serve terms of three (3) years, and shall remain a member until their respective successors have been appointed and qualified. The terms of the original members may be staggered so that all terms do not expire simultaneously. Vacancies shall be filled for the unexpired term only.

C. Officers. Following annual appointments, the board shall elect one (1) member to serve as chair and preside over its meetings and shall elect one (1) vice chair to perform the duties of the chair when the chair is unable. The term of the chair and vice chair shall be one (1) year, with eligibility for re-election.

D. Meetings. The board shall establish a regular meeting schedule and shall meet at least monthly, provided there are actionable agenda items, or more often as it shall determine and require. All meetings of the board shall be open to the public, and reasonable notice of the time and place thereof shall be given to the public, in accordance with Chapter 143, Article 33C of the N.C. General Statutes. The board shall keep a record of its meetings, including attendance of its members, its resolutions, findings, recommendations, and actions. In the case of a divided vote on any question on which the board is required to act, the record shall include the vote of each member.

E. Attendance. Any member of the board who misses three (3) consecutive meetings, or four (4) of the regular meetings in a calendar year, shall lose his or her status as a member of the board, and shall be replaced by the Town Board of Aldermen. Absence due to a sickness, death of a family member, or other emergencies of like nature shall be recognized as excused absences and shall not affect the member's status on the board, except that in the event of a long illness or other such cause for prolonged absence, the member shall be replaced by the Town Board of Aldermen.

F. Quorum and Voting. Quorum of the Planning Board, necessary to take any official action, shall consist of a majority of the members. A majority is more than half (50%). A member who has withdrawn or been excused from an agenda item shall be counted as present for the purpose of determining whether or not a quorum is present. A quorum must be present before any business is transacted. Social gatherings shall not be deemed as official meetings so long as there is no discussion of public business. The concurring vote of a simple majority of those members present and voting shall be necessary to take any action on an agenda item.

A. The Planning Board shall have the following powers and duties:

1. Acquire and maintain in current form such basic information and materials as are necessary to an understanding of past trends, present conditions and forces at work to cause changes in these conditions;

2 .Prepare and, from time to time, amend and revise a comprehensive and coordinated plan for the physical development of the area. The comprehensive plan shall be the Planning Board's recommendations to the Town Council for the development of the town including, among other things, the general location, character and extent of streets, bridges, playgrounds, parks, and other public ways, grounds and open space; the general location and extent of public utilities; whether publicly or privately owned or operated, the removal, relocation, widening, narrowing, vacating, abandonment, change of use or extension of any of the foregoing ways, buildings, grounds, open spaces, property, utilities, and the most desirable pattern of land use within the area;

3. Prepare and recommend ordinances promoting orderly development of the area in accordance with the adopted land use plan including a zoning ordinance and subdivision regulations. The Planning Board may initiate, from time to time, proposals for amendment of the zoning ordinance and of subdivision regulations based upon its studies. In addition, it shall review and make recommendations to the Town Council concerning all proposed amendments to the zoning ordinance and subdivision regulations;

4. Determine whether specific proposed developments conform to the principles and requirements of the comprehensive plan of the area and to make recommendations concerning them;

5. Issue preliminary and final plat approval or as stated in the Subdivision Ordinance;

6. Keep the Town Council and general public informed and advised as to these above-referenced matters

7. Make other recommendations which it sees fit for improving the development of the area;

8. To exercise such other powers and to perform such other duties as are authorized or required elsewhere in this appendix, the N.C. General Statutes, or by the Board of Aldermen.

1. This ordinance, including the Official Zoning Map, may be amended from time to time, but no amendment shall become effective unless it shall have been proposed by, or shall have been submitted to, the Town of Maggie Valley Planning Board for review and recommendation. A public hearing shall be held by the Board of Aldermen before adoption of any proposed amendment to this ordinance. A notice of the public hearing shall be given in accordance with G.S. 160D-601.
2. Prior to adopting or rejecting any amendment, the Board of Aldermen shall adopt one of the following statements which shall not be subject to judicial review:
   1. A statement approving the amendment and describing its consistency with an adopted comprehensive plan and explaining why the action taken is reasonable and in the public interest.
   2. A statement rejecting the amendment and describing its inconsistency with an adopted comprehensive plan and explaining why the action taken is reasonable and in the public interest.
   3. A statement approving the amendment and containing at least all of the following:
      1. A declaration that the approval is also deemed an amendment to the comprehensive plan. The Board of Aldermen shall not require any additional request or application for amendment to the comprehensive plan.
      2. An explanation of the change in conditions the Board of Aldermen took into account in amending the ordinance to meet the development needs of the community.
      3. Why the action was reasonable and in the public interest.
3. Prior to consideration by the Board of Aldermen of the proposed amendment, the planning board shall advise and comment on whether the proposed amendment is consistent with any comprehensive plan. The planning board shall provide a written recommendation to the Board of Aldermen that addresses plan consistency and other matters as deemed appropriate by the planning board, but a comment by the planning board that a proposed amendment is inconsistent with the comprehensive plan shall not preclude consideration or approval of the proposed amendment by the Board of Aldermen.
4. A fee, as determined by the Board of Aldermen, shall be paid to the Town of Maggie Valley for each application for an amendment to cover the cost of advertising and other administrative expenses.