Sunbury City Zoning Code
ARTICLE XII
Nonconforming Buildings and Uses
§ 175-93 Existing uses.
All lawful uses of land, buildings or other structures may be continued, altered, reconstructed, changed, sold or maintained without being in violation of this chapter, even though such use may not conform to the use and/or dimension regulations of the district in which it is located. When existing uses do not conform to the regulation established for the district in which located, such uses become nonconforming in terms of this chapter, and such nonconforming uses or structures must comply with the following.
§ 175-94 Registration; recordkeeping.
The Zoning Officer shall identify and register all nonconforming structures, buildings and uses, and such information shall be maintained in a permanent inventory or record of nonconforming structures, buildings and uses and shall include facts pertaining to the property location and the nature and degree of nonconformance of each such structure, building or use.
§ 175-95 Certificates of nonconformance; business identification signs.
A.
The owner of the premises occupied by a lawful nonconforming use or building may secure a certificate of nonconformance, which shall be for the purpose of ensuring to the owner the right to continue a nonconforming building or use.
§ 175-96 Repairs and alterations.
A.
Repairs and structural alterations may be made to a nonconforming building or a building occupied by a nonconforming use.
B.
A nonconforming building which is damaged by fire, explosion, flood, wind or other unforeseen circumstances may be rebuilt and used for the same purposes, provided that:
(1)
If the damage is less than 60% of the floor area prior to destruction, rebuilding may take place upon the original foundation; however, if any expansion is proposed and approved, such expansion shall be controlled by all setback and open space requirements for the district in which it is located and, when applicable, parking and loading requirements as set forth in this chapter.
(2)
If the damage is greater than 60% of the floor area prior to destruction, rebuilding may take place upon the original foundation when approved by the Zoning Hearing Board as a variance; however, if any expansion is proposed and approved, such expansion shall be controlled by all setback and open space requirements for the district in which it is located and, when applicable, parking and loading requirements as set forth in this chapter.
(3)
The reconstruction of the building is commenced within one year from the date of the destruction of the building and is carried to completion without undue delay.
§ 175-97 Extensions or enlargements.
A.
A nonconforming use in a building may be extended throughout the building.
B.
A nonconforming use may be extended upon a lot occupied by such use and held in single and/or separate ownership when authorized as a special exception, provided that such extension does not replace a conforming use and does not violate the yard and coverage requirements of the district in which the nonconforming use exists.
C.
The extension or enlargement of the building or use shall be provided with off-street parking and loading spaces as required by this chapter.
§ 175-98 Change of use.
A.
A nonconforming use may be changed to another nonconforming use of the same or more restricted classification.
B.
Whenever a nonconforming use has been changed to a more restricted classification or to a conforming use, such use shall not hereafter be changed to a use of less restricted classification.
§ 175-99 Abandonment.
[Amended 5-13-1991 by Ord. No. 1151]
If a nonconforming use of a building or land ceases, is discontinued or is abandoned for a continuous period of two years or more, subsequent use of such building or land shall be in conformity with the provisions of this chapter, except when the discontinuance is due to a death and the settling of the estate. In such cases, the discontinuance shall not be presumed to start until the estate is settled or a court order concerning the disposition of the estate has been entered.
§ 175-100 Floodplain District.
A.
Existing nonconforming structures and/or uses located in the floodway shall not be expanded or enlarged unless the effect of the proposed expansion or enlargement on flood heights is fully offset by accompanying stream improvement.
B.
Any modification, alteration, repair, reconstruction or improvement of any kind to a nonconforming structure and/or use located in the floodway, to an extent or amount of less than 50% of its value, should be undertaken only in full compliance with the provisions of this chapter and any other applicable ordinance.
C.
The modification, alteration, repair, reconstruction or improvement of any kind to a nonconforming structure and/or use, regardless of location, to an extent or amount of 50% or more of its market value, shall be undertaken only in full compliance with the provisions of this chapter and any other applicable ordinance.
D.
Uses or adjuncts thereof which are or become nuisances shall not be permitted to continue.