It shall be the duty of the building commissioner, designated by the mayor, to enforce this ordinance. He shall receive applications required by this ordinance, issue permits, and furnish the prescribed certificates. He shall examine areas for which permits have been issued, and shall make necessary inspections to see that the provisions of this ordinance are being upheld. He may be provided with the assistance of the chief of police in enforcing orders and the city attorney in prosecuting violations. For the purpose of this ordinance, the building commissioner shall have the following duties:

1.

Upon finding that any of the provisions of this ordinance are being violated, he shall notify in writing the person responsible for such violation(s), ordering the action necessary to correct such violation;

2.

Order discontinuance of illegal uses of land, buildings, or structures;

3.

Order removal of illegal buildings or structures or illegal additions or structural alterations;

4.

Order discontinuance of any illegal work being done;

5.

Take any other action authorized by this ordinance to ensure compliance with or to prevent violation(s) of this ordinance. This may include the issuance of and action on building and certificate of occupancy permits and such similar administrative duties as are permissible under the law.

The board of zoning appeals shall continue to operate in the manner as established in Article VI, Board of Zoning Appeals, in Ordinance 1959-11.

The board shall be composed of six members, five of whom shall be residents of the city and one of whom shall reside in the jurisdictional area outside the city and none of whom shall hold other elective or appointive office, except that two of the six members shall be appointed from the Princeton City Plan Commission's citizen membership. Of the original five members residing in the city, two shall be appointed to serve for four years; one for three years; one for two years; and one for one year; and the appointee from the jurisdictional area outside of the city shall be appointed for a term of four years. Terms of these members shall expire on the first day of January in the year in which their original appointments terminate. Thereafter as the terms expire, each new appointment shall be for a term of four years. All members of the board residing in the city shall be appointed by the mayor. The member residing outside the city shall be appointed by the Judge of the Circuit Court of Gibson County.

At the first meeting of each year, the board shall elect a chairman and a vice-chairman from among its members, and it may appoint and fix the compensation of a secretary and such employees as are necessary for the discharge of its duties, all in conformity to and compliance with salaries and compensations theretofore fixed by the Common Council of the City of Princeton.

The board shall adopt rule and regulations as it may deem necessary to effectuate the provisions of this ordinance.

All meetings of the board shall be open to the public. The board shall keep minutes of its proceedings, keep records of its examinations and other official actions, prepare findings, and record the vote of each member voting upon each question. All minutes and records shall be filed in the office of the board and shall be a public record.

Any decision of the building commissioner made in enforcement of this ordinance may be appealed to the board of zoning appeals by any person claiming to be adversely affected by such decision.

A.

The board shall have the following powers and it shall be its duty to:

1.

Hear and determine appeals from and review any order, requirement, decision, or determination made by the building commissioner in the enforcement of this ordinance.

2.

Hear and decide on permits for conditional uses, PUD plans, or other uses upon which the board is required to act under this ordinance.

3.

Authorize upon appeal in specific cases such variances from the terms of this ordinance as will not be contrary to the public interest, where owing to special conditions, fully demonstrated on the basis of the facts presented, a literal enforcement of the provisions of this ordinance will result in unnecessary hardship and so that the spirit of this ordinance shall be observed and substantial justice done.

B.

In exercising its powers, the board may reverse or affirm, wholly or partly, or may modify the order, requirement, decision, or determination appealed from as in its opinion ought to be done in the premises, and to that end shall have all the powers of the building commissioner from whom the appeal is taken.

A.

Every decision of the board shall be subject to review by certiorari.

B.

No variance in the application of the provisions of this ordinance shall be made by the board relating to buildings, land, or premises now existing or to be constructed, unless after a public hearing, the board shall find that such variance will not:

1.

Alter the land use characteristics of the district;

2.

Impair the adequate supply of light and air to adjacent property;

3.

Increase the hazard from fire, flood, and other dangers of said property;

4.

Diminish the marketable value of adjacent lands and buildings;

5.

Otherwise impair the public health, safety, convenience, comfort or general welfare.

The plan commission shall continue to operate under its existing rules of operation. To maintain strict conformance with the Indiana Planning Statutes (I.C. 18-7-4) at least four meetings must be held during each year, in January, April, July and October (I.C. 18-7-4-306). Meetings shall be held monthly and special meetings may be called by at least two members of the commission upon written request to the secretary (I.C. 18-7-4-307). All meetings shall be open to the public. The commission shall keep minutes of its proceedings showing the vote of each member upon each question, or if absent or failing to vote, indicating such fact, and shall keep records of its examinations and other official actions all of which shall be of public record and be immediately filed in the office of the commission.

A.

Initiate proposed amendments to this ordinance.

B.

Review all proposed amendments to this ordinance and make recommendations to the board of zoning appeals.

C.

Review all planned unit developments and make recommendations to the board of zoning appeals.

Unless otherwise provided by any state statute, all appeals and variances shall conform to the procedures and requirements of sections 11.31—11.39, inclusive of this ordinance. As specified in section 11.16, the board of zoning appeals has appellate jurisdiction relative to appeals and variances.

Appeals to the board of zoning appeals concerning interpretation or administration of this ordinance may be taken by any persons aggrieved or by any officer or bureau of the legislative authority of the city affected by any decision of the building commissioner. Such appeal shall be taken within 20 days after the decision by filing, with the building commissioner and with the board of zoning appeals, a notice of appeal specifying the grounds upon which the appeal is being taken. The building commissioner shall transmit to the board of zoning appeals all the papers constituting the record upon which the action appealed from was taken.

An appeal stays all proceedings in furtherance of the action appealed from, unless the building commissioner from whom the appeal is taken certifies to the board of zoning appeals after the notice of appeal is filed with him, that by reason of facts stated in the application, a stay would, in his opinion, cause imminent peril to life and property. In such case, proceedings shall not be stayed other than by a restraining order which may be granted by the board of zoning appeals or by a court of record on application, on notice to the building commissioner from whom the appeal is taken or due cause shown.

The board of zoning appeals, with preliminary review by the plan commission, may authorize upon appeal in specific cases such variances from the terms of this ordinance as will not be contrary to the public interest where, owing to special conditions, a literal enforcement of the provisions of this ordinance would result in unnecessary hardship. No nonconforming use of neighboring lands, structures, or buildings in the same district and no permitted or nonconforming use of lands, structures, or buildings in other districts shall be considered grounds for issuance of a variance. Variances shall not be granted on the grounds of convenience or profit, but only where strict application of the provisions of this ordinance would result in unnecessary hardship.

A variance from the terms of this ordinance shall not be granted by the board of zoning appeals unless and until a written application for a variance is submitted to the zoning inspector and the board of zoning appeals containing:

1.

Name, address, and phone number of applicants;

2.

Legal description of property;

3.

Description of nature of variance requested;

4.

A narrative statement demonstrating that the requested variance conforms to the following standards:

a.

That special conditions and circumstances exist which are peculiar to the land, structure, or building involved and which are not applicable to other lands, structures, or buildings in the same district;

b.

That a literal interpretation of the provisions of this ordinance would deprive the applicant of rights commonly enjoyed by other properties in the same district under the terms of this ordinance;

c.

That special conditions and circumstances do not result from the actions of the applicant;

d.

That granting the variance requested will not confer on the applicant any special privilege that is denied by this ordinance to other lands, structures, or buildings.

A variance shall not be granted unless the board makes specific findings of fact based directly on the particular evidence presented to it, which support conclusions that the standards and conditions imposed by subsection 4 of this section have been met by the applicant.

Under no circumstances shall the board of zoning appeals grant an appeal or variance to allow a use not permissible under the terms of this ordinance in the district involved, or any use expressly or by implication prohibited by the terms of this ordinance in said district. In granting any appeal or variance, the board of zoning appeals may prescribe appropriate conditions and safeguards in conformity with this ordinance. Violation of such conditions and safeguards, when made a part of the terms under which the appeal or variance is granted, shall be deemed a violation of this ordinance and punishable under section 11.50 of this ordinance.

The board of zoning appeals shall hold a public hearing within 45 days after the receipt of an application for an appeal or variance from the building commissioner or an applicant. However, the public hearing shall not be held sooner than ten days after its receipt.

Before holding the public hearing required in section 11.36, notice of such hearing shall be given in the newspaper of general circulation of the City of Princeton at least ten days before the date of said hearing. The notice shall set forth the time and place of the public hearing and the nature of the proposed appeal or variance.

Before holding the public hearing required in section 11.36, written notice of such hearing shall be mailed by the applicant, by registered mail, at least ten days before the day of the hearing to each person who owns an interest in real estate, abutting the property involved in such petition including owners of real estate at corners, across streets, alleys or easements, as well as others who may share a common boundary; all other persons who in the opinion of the applicant have an interest in the outcome of the petition; and any owner of real estate who did not join as an original petitioner or who did not file a waiver of notice of hearing prior to the date of public hearing.

Within 30 days after the public hearing required in section 11.36, the board of zoning appeals shall either approve, approve with supplementary conditions as specified in section 11.35, or disapprove the request for appeal or variance. The board of zoning appeals shall further make a finding that the reasons set forth in the application justify the granting of the variance that will make possible a reasonable use of the land, building, or structure.

A.

It shall be unlawful to construct, demolish or make a structural alteration to a structure without first filing with the building commissioner an application in writing and obtaining a formal permit.

B.

An application for a building permit shall be submitted in such form as the building commissioner may prescribe. Such application shall be accompanied by payment of fees as follows:

1.

For construction, reconstruction or structural alteration of all single-family dwellings and two-family dwellings a fee of $50.00 and an additional fee of $0.05 per square foot of said constructed, reconstructed or structurally altered area shall be paid and collected.

2.

For construction, reconstruction or structural alteration of all multi-family dwellings; business, commercial or industrial buildings a fee of $100.00 and an additional fee of $0.05 per square foot of said constructed, reconstructed, or structurally altered area shall be paid and collected.

3.

For construction, reconstruction or structural alteration of all private garages and accessory buildings a fee of $10.00 and an additional fee of $0.05 per square foot of said constructed, reconstructed, or structurally altered area shall be paid and collected.

4.

In no event, however, shall any applicant be required to pay a building permit fee in excess of $1,000.00.

5.

No fee shall be required in connection with the application for a building permit for the demolition of a structure.

C.

Plans. Applications for permits shall be filed in duplicate and shall be accompanied by such drawings of the proposed work as the building commissioner may require. The applicant for a building permit for the demolition of a structure shall not be required to submit drawings of the proposed work.

D.

Accompanying each application shall be a plot plan in a form and size suitable for filing permanently with the application to assist the building commissioner in his on-site inspection; the applicant shall conspicuously and properly mark each corner of the proposed building site. The building commissioner may require proof of ownership of the site and a survey. The applicant for a building permit for the demolition of a structure shall not be required to comply with this subsection.

E.

Within ten days after the receipt of an application, the building commissioner shall either approve or disapprove the application. One set of the plans shall be returned to the applicant by the building commissioner and either be marked "approved" or "disapproved," and his signature on the copy should attest. One set of the plans, similarly marked, shall be retained by the building commissioner. If the application is approved, the building commissioner shall issue a placard to the applicant. It is to be posted in a conspicuous place on the property in question, and will attest to the fact that the use or alteration is in compliance with the provisions of this ordinance.

F.

If work has not begun one year from the date of issuance of the building permit application, that permit shall expire and be revoked by the building commissioner. If same work has not been substantially completed within two and a half (2½) years—except for PUD's where five years are allowed—from the date of issuance of the building permit application, that permit shall expire and be revoked by the building commissioner. In each case, written notice shall be given to the applicants with the stipulation that work may not begin or continue (whichever case applies) until a new building permit has been obtained.

G.

It shall be unlawful to use, occupy, or permit the use or occupancy of any building or premises, or both, or part thereof hereafter created, erected, changed, converted, constructed, or had a structural alteration made until a certificate of occupancy shall have been issued by the building commissioner. The certificate of occupancy shall state that the proposed use of the building or land conforms to the requirements of this ordinance and that the building commissioner has inspected the property and attested to that fact.

H.

A temporary certificate of occupancy may be issued by the building commissioner for a period not exceeding six months pending completion of modifications in order to comply with this ordinance.

I.

The building commissioner shall maintain a complete record of all building permits and certificates of occupancy and copies shall be furnished or presented for review to any person making a request.

J.

Failure to obtain either a building permit or a certificate of occupancy shall be a violation of this ordinance and will be punishable under the provisions of section 11.50 of this ordinance.

K.

Building permits of occupancy issued on the basis of plans and applications approved by the building commissioner authorize only the use or arrangement set forth in such approved plans and applications or amendments thereto, and no other use, arrangements, or construction. Any use, arrangement, or construction contrary to that authorized shall be deemed a violation of this ordinance and be punishable under the provisions of section 11.50 of this ordinance.

L.

Any person may file a written complaint whenever a violation of this ordinance occurs or is alleged to have occurred. The complaint shall state fully and accurately the causes and basis thereof, and be filed with and recorded by the building commissioner. The building commissioner shall immediately investigate and take action upon such complaint as provided in this ordinance.

(Ord. No. 1985-4, § 1, 2-4-85; Ord. No. 1999-4, §§ 1—3, 5-3-99)

Violation of the provisions of this ordinance or failure to comply with any of its requirements (including violations of conditions and safeguards established in connection with grants of variances or special exceptions) shall constitute a common nuisance or misdemeanor. Any person who violates this ordinance or fails to comply with any of its requirements shall upon conviction thereof either be fined not more than $300.00 nor less than $10.00, and in addition, shall be expected to pay all costs and expenses involved in the case. Each day such violation continues after receipt of a notice of violation shall be considered a separate offense. The owner of any building, structure, premises, or part thereof who commits such violation will be found guilty of such offense and suffer the penalties herein provided. Nothing herein contained shall prevent the city from taking such other lawful action as is necessary to prevent or remedy any violation.

The city council shall, by ordinance or resolution, establish a schedule of fees, charges, and expenses and a collection procedure for building permits, amendments, appeals, variances, conditional use permits, plan approvals, and other matters pertaining to the administration and enforcement of this ordinance requiring investigations, legal, advertising, postage, and other expense. The schedule of fees shall be posted in the office of the city clerk and may be altered or amended only by the city council. Until all applicable fees, charges, and expenses have been paid in full, no action shall be taken on any application or appeal.

All applications for variances, conditional use permits, plan approval and other matters relative to the administration and enforcement of this ordinance shall require a $15.00 filing fee; provided, however, a $25.00 filing fee shall be required for all applications for amendment of the zoning ordinance.

No petition shall be considered by the plan commission or board of zoning appeals without the fees having been paid in advance. The applicant shall be responsible for payment of all mailing and legal advertising costs.