Saukville Village City Zoning Code

Terms shall be for staggered three-year periods.

The Chairman shall be designated by the Village President.

Alternate members. The Village President shall appoint a first alternate member and a second alternate member to act only when a regular member is absent or refuses to vote because of interest. The second alternate member may act only when the first alternate is unable to act or is already sitting.

The Secretary and office of the Board of Zoning Appeals shall be the Village Administrator and the Village Administrator's office.

The Building Inspector shall attend all meetings for the purpose of providing technical assistance when requested by the Board.

Official oaths shall be taken by all members in accordance with § 19.01, Wis. Stats. within five days of receiving notice of their appointment.

Vacancies shall be filled for the unexpired term in the same manner as appointments for a full term.

Meetings shall be held at the call of the Chairman and shall be open to the public.

Minutes of the proceedings and a record of all actions shall be kept by the Secretary, or other designated person, showing the vote of each member upon each question, the reasons for the Board's determination, and its finding of facts. These records shall be immediately filed in the office of the Board and shall be a public record.

The concurring vote of four members of the Board shall be necessary to reverse any order, requirement, decision or determination of any administrative official; grant a variance, grant a special exception, or make an interpretation.

Errors: to hear and decide appeals when it is alleged there is error in any order, requirement, decision, or determination made by any administrative official.

Variances: to hear and grant appeals for variances as will not be contrary to the public interest, when, owing to special conditions, a literal enforcement will result in practical difficulty or unnecessary hardship, so that the spirit and purposes of this chapter shall be observed and the public safety, welfare, and justice secured. Use variances shall not be granted.

Substitutions: to hear and grant applications for substitution of more restrictive nonconforming uses for existing nonconforming uses, provided no structural alterations are to be made and the Village Plan Commission has made a review and recommendation. Whenever the Board permits such a substitution, the use may not thereafter be changed without application.

Special exceptions: to hear, and in accordance with the procedure described in § 205-128, grant special exceptions to those requirements of this chapter identified in § 205-128.

Permits: The Board may reserve, affirm wholly, or partly modify the requirements appealed from, and may issue or direct the issue of a permit.

Assistance: The Board may request assistance from other Village officers, departments, commissions, and boards.

Oaths: The Chairman may administer oaths and compel the attendance of witnesses.

Name and address of the appellant or applicant and all abutting and opposite property owners of record.

Plat of survey prepared by a registered land surveyor showing all of the information required under § 205-14 for a building permit.

Additional information required by the Village Plan Commission, Village Engineer, Board of Zoning Appeals, or Building Inspector.

Preservation of intent. No variance shall be granted that is not consistent with the purpose and intent of the regulations for the district in which the development is located. No variance shall have the effect of permitting a use in any district that is not a stated permitted use, accessory use, or conditional use in that particular district.

Exceptional circumstances. There must be exceptional, extraordinary, or unusual circumstances or conditions applying to the lot or parcel, structure, use or intended use that do not apply generally to other properties or uses in the same district, and the granting of the variance should not be of so general or recurrent nature as to suggest that the Zoning Chapter should be changed.

Economic hardship and self-imposed hardship not grounds for variance. No variance shall be granted solely on the basis of economic gain or loss. Self-imposed hardships shall not be considered as grounds for the granting of a variance.

Preservation of property rights. The variance must be necessary for the preservation and enjoyment of substantial property rights possessed by other properties in the same district and same vicinity.

Absence of detriment. No variance shall be granted that will create substantial detriment to adjacent property or that will materially impair or be contrary to the purpose and spirit of this chapter or the public interest.

Additional requirements in floodland districts. No variance shall be granted where:

The Board of Zoning Appeals may hear an application for a special exception from those requirements of this chapter described in Subsection B below, and may grant a special exception as provided in this article.

Special exceptions may be granted only with respect to the following requirements of this chapter:

A special exception may be granted only if the Board of Zoning Appeals finds that at least one of the following criteria is met:

In making its determination under Subsection C, the Board of Zoning Appeals may consider factors such as characteristics of the real property, including, but not limited to, relative placement of improvements thereon with respect to property boundaries or otherwise applicable setbacks; existing and future use of the property; useful life of improvements at issue; aesthetics; degree of noncompliance with the requirement from which a special exception is sought; proximity to and character of surrounding properties; zoning of the area in which property is located and neighboring areas; and the purpose and intent of the Zoning Chapter subsection imposing the requirement.

The Board of Zoning Appeals' decision shall be based on substantial evidence. In this article, "substantial evidence" means facts and information, other than merely personal preferences or speculation, directly related to the requirements and conditions the applicant must meet to obtain a special exception and that reasonable persons would accept in support of a conclusion.

If the applicant for a special exception meets or agrees to meet all of the requirements and conditions specified in this chapter or those imposed by the Board of Zoning Appeals, the Board of Zoning Appeals shall grant the special exception.

The Board of Zoning Appeals, in considering and granting an application for a special exception, may condition the granting of a special exception on the compliance by the applicant with other conditions, including, but not limited to landscaping, lighting and site plan changes.

Any condition imposed must be related to the purpose of this chapter, must be based on substantial evidence, must be reasonable and, to the extent practicable, measurable, and may include conditions such as the special exception's duration, transfer and renewal. The applicant must demonstrate that the application and all requirements and conditions established by the Board of Zoning Appeals relating to the special exception are or shall be satisfied, both of which must be supported by substantial evidence. The Board of Zoning Appeals' decision to approve or deny a special exception must be supported by substantial evidence.

Wetland disputes. Whenever the Board of Zoning Appeals is asked to interpret a C-1 Conservancy District boundary where an apparent discrepancy exists between the Village's Final Wetland Inventory Map and actual field conditions, the Village shall contact the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) to determine if the wetland inventory map is in error. If the DNR staff concurs that the particular area was incorrectly mapped as a wetland, the Board of Zoning Appeals shall direct the Village Plan Commission to initiate appropriate action to rezone the property within a reasonable amount of time.

Floodland disputes. Whenever the Board of Zoning Appeals is asked to interpret a floodland boundary where an apparent discrepancy exists between the federal Flood Insurance Study and actual field conditions, the following procedure shall be used. The floodland boundary shall be determined by use of the flood profiles contained in an engineering study, or where such information is not available, by experience flood maps or any other evidence available to the Board of Zoning Appeals. The person contesting the location of the district boundary shall be given the opportunity to present his own technical evidence. Where it is determined that the floodplain is incorrectly mapped, the Board of Zoning Appeals shall advise the Village Plan Commission of its findings and the Plan Commission shall proceed to petition the Village Board for a map amendment.

Conditions may be placed upon any building permit ordered or authorized by this Board.

Variances, substitutions, special exceptions or use permits granted by the Board shall expire within six months unless substantial work has commenced pursuant to such grant.

Applicants receiving variances in floodlands shall be notified, in writing, by the Board of Zoning Appeals that increased flood insurance premiums may result from the granting of the variance. The Board shall keep a record of the notifications in its files.