In accordance with the authority contained in W. Va. Code § 8-5, and in accordance with the mandate by the qualified voters of the Town of Ravenswood at an election held July 17, 1956, at which time the majority of the votes cast upon the questions were in favor of a Zoning Ordinance, the Council of the Town of Ravenswood, Jackson County, West Virginia, does ordain as follows:

1. There is hereby adopted, as provided herein, an Ordinance for the Town of Ravenswood, State of West Virginia, said Ordinance being a precise and detailed plan for the use of land in said Town based on the GENERAL PLAN for the Town of Ravenswood and enacted in order to promote the public health, safety, morals, comfort and general welfare throughout said Town.
2. The Council hereby declares its intention to exercise the authority granted to it in W. Va. Code § 8-4(10), which states that “it may extend the powers of the corporate limits to the extent necessary to the reasonable efficient exercise of such powers within the corporate limits. But such powers, unless otherwise provided, shall not extend more than one mile beyond the corporate limits …” Therefore, for the purpose of regulating development within one mile of the limits of the Town of Ravenswood, it is hereby declared that the procedures and regulations contained herein will apply to all that territory within one mile of the town limits, except that no permit fees shall be charged for applications made pertaining to that area.
3. Said Ordinance recognizes the opportunities uniquely available in the Town of Ravenswood to obtain, through land use controls, an urban environment of the highest possible quality without making necessary unduly high public or private expenditures for development and without unduly restricting private enterprise or initiative. Said unique opportunities are due to the following circumstances which do not exist in many other communities:
   1. The Town of Ravenswood is, as a result of nearby large-scale industrial development, being called upon to house and serve with community facilities great numbers of persons now living elsewhere.
   2. By far the greatest part of the Ravenswood area is as yet vacant and unsubdivided, or occupied primarily by agricultural land uses.
   3. Prior to preparation of said Land Use Regulations, the Town of Ravenswood caused to be prepared and officially adopted, an Official GENERAL PLAN, delineating in general terms the future use of land throughout the town and its environs and providing a long range guide to the Land Use Districts and district regulations in said Ordinance.
4. Said Land Use Regulations, in order to obtain the greatest benefits from the foregoing opportunities which exist in the Town of Ravenswood, have been prepared in accordance with the following principles:
   1. The Land Use Regulations are based on the GENERAL PLAN for the Ravenswood Area with respect to the general pattern of future land uses and the principles for future land development expressed in said PLAN.
   2. The Land Use Regulations recognize the importance to the community of all legitimate uses of land: Residential, Commercial and Industrial. The Ordinance further recognizes the need of all such uses to be protected from other uses which are unrelated or incompatible. Thus, each non-residential district is exclusive with respect to every other zoning district in the Ordinance, and commercial and industrial zoning districts are protected from encroachment by residential uses as firmly as residential districts are protected from commercial and industrial encroachment.
   3. The Land Use Regulations recognize the importance to the public welfare of beauty and order in the appearance of all districts of the town. The Ordinance implements this principle through provisions for the review of the appearance of many structures and buildings, and by provisions to require site plan review and landscaping. It is not the intent of such provisions or regulations to stifle individual initiative or control individual taste by forcing adherence to any particular style of design but rather to provide the minimum amount of direction necessary to encourage orderliness of appearance throughout the town.
   4. Site area, yard, off-street parking and other standards in the Land Use Regulations are based on the best accepted contemporary practice, rather than on past practices, since the Land Use Regulations will control development for years in the future. A variance from the strict application of the standards in the Ordinance is available where compliance under special conditions would cause individual hardship.
   5. Uses which would adversely affect adjoining uses or the public welfare unless designed in a particular way or permitted only in certain locations are allowed as “conditional uses”, subject to review by the Planning Commission. Wherever possible, the special requirements are spelled out in the Land Use Regulations as a guide to the discretionary authority of the Planning Commission.
5. Said Land Use Regulations consist of the establishment of various Land Use Districts, within the incorporated territory of said Town of Ravenswood, and within the one-mile limit, as specified in this section, within which it shall be unlawful to erect, construct, alter or maintain certain buildings or to carry on certain trades or occupations or to conduct certain uses of land or of buildings; within which certain open spaces shall be required about future buildings and consisting further, of appropriate regulations to be enforced in such district, all as set forth in this ordinance.
6. In their interpretation and application, provisions of this Ordinance shall be held to be minimum requirements. Where these Land Use Regulations impose a greater restriction than is imposed or required by other rules or regulations or ordinances, the provisions of this Ordinance shall control.