The City of Mills land development regulations (LDRs) have been designed and drafted to make it as easy as possible for the user to determine all land use regulations that apply to a particular piece of property and to uses, structures, and activities on that property. Follow the step-by-step procedure described below to find applicable regulations.

(1)

Find the subject property on the city's zoning map (the zoning map is on file at city hall). The subject property may be located within a zoning district, such as General Commercial (C-1), for example.

(2)

After determining the property's zoning district, refer to the section that corresponds to the use district in which the subject property is located. Please consult with city planning and zoning staff for questions on a property's zoning designation.

(3)

Each of the use district sections contains a series of charts. Read down the first vertical column of each chart to find the use in which you are interested.

(4)

After finding the appropriate use, then read across to find a variety of regulations that apply to the subject property. In addition, review all of the sections to which the use district chart refers you.

(5)

You now have the basic zoning regulations that apply to the subject property. However, you should review the following section (17.1.5. general provisions) to see if other regulations of this code may be applicable.

(Ord. No. 813, att.(intro. ¶), 6-25-2024; Ord. No. 823, 7-22-2025)

In addition to the regulations in the use district charts, this code contains a variety of regulations that may apply to the subject property or to a particular use or activity on the property. The following list of questions will help you determine what other factors of this code may contain regulations that may apply.

(1)

Parking. Are you planning to install parking stalls on your property? If so, you should read section 17.40.10.

(2)

Subdivisions. Do you want to subdivide your property into multiple parcels or consolidate multiple parcels into one lot? If so, you should read chapter 17.47.

(3)

Fences. Do you want to erect a fence or wall on the subject property? If so, you should read section 17.40.15.

(4)

Signs. Are you interested in erecting or having a sign of any kind on or for the subject property? If so, see section 17.40.25.

(5)

Buffering. Are you interested in buffering standards for your property? If so, you should read section 17.40.30.

(6)

Downtown design overlay. Is your property within the downtown design district overlay on the zoning? If so, see chapter 17.22 (downtown design district overlay).

(7)

Caretaker housing. Are you considering caretaker housing on-site with your business? If so, you should read section 17.45.15.

(8)

Annexation. Would you like to have your property added to the Mills city limits? If so, you should read chapter 17.46.

(9)

Home occupations. Do you want to conduct a home occupation out of your primary residence? If so, you should read section 17.45.20.

(10)

Manufactured homes/parks. Are you considering buying a manufactured home, or are you thinking of developing a manufactured home park? If so, you should read section 17.45.25.

(11)

Used car dealerships or heavy equipment sales. Are you thinking of opening a used car dealership or conducting heavy equipment sales in the city? If so, you will need to obtain a conditional use permit, and you should read section 17.10.60.

(12)

Temporary uses. Are you considering a temporary use for your property? If so, you should read section 17.10.30 on temporary use permits.

(13)

RV parks. Are you considering locating an RV on your property or developing an RV park in the city? If so, you should read section 17.45.40.

(14)

Communication facilities. Are you thinking about locating a telecommunication facility within the city? If so, you should read section 17.45.45.

(15)

Daycare and child care facilities. Are you interested in operating a daycare facility? If so, you should read section 17.45.50.

(16)

Sexually oriented businesses. Are you interested in operating a sexually oriented business? If so, you should read section 17.45.50.

(17)

Development plans. Are you required to complete a development plan review with your development proposal? If so, you should read section 17.10.40.

(18)

Minor variances. Would you like to slightly deviate from the required zoning district development standards? If so, you should read section 17.10.50.

(19)

Variances. Would you like to deviate from the development standards required for your property? If so, you should read section 17.10.55.

(20)

Conditional uses. Are you considering a use or activity that requires a conditional use permit for your property? If so, you should read section 17.10.60.

(21)

Zoning amendments. Would you like to change the zoning district and/or district development standards for your property? If so, you should read section 17.10.65.

(22)

Nonconforming uses/structures. Do you want to know what you can and cannot do with the nonconforming use or structure on your property? If so, you should read section 17.10.80.

The foregoing list has been provided to assist the reader in finding applicable regulations. However, you should review the table of contents of this code to find other sections that may be of interest to you.

(Ord. No. 813, att.(1.5), 6-25-2024; Ord. No. 823, att.(1.5), 7-22-2025)