These regulations, restrictions and provisions and the boundaries of the districts may from time to time be amended, supplemented, changed, modified or repealed by the Mayor and Council. Any person or officer, department, board, commission or bureau of the Town may petition for such change or amendment; however, no such change or amendment shall become effective until after a public hearing in relation thereto, at which parties in interest and citizens shall have an opportunity to be heard. At least 15 days' notice of the time and place of such hearing shall be published in a newspaper of general circulation in the Town, and if the proposed amendment involves a change in a zoning district boundary line, the property involved shall be posted for a period of 15 days immediately preceding the hearing. Where an official annexation by the Town is involved, the requirements of the Annotated Code of Maryland (Article 23 inclusive) shall govern and be applicable, as shall applicable provisions of the Carroll County Zoning Ordinance relating to official annexations by any municipality of Carroll County.

The Mayor and Council shall refer all proposed changes and amendments to these regulations or proposed changes in a zoning district to the Planning and Zoning Commission for report and recommendations.

Before acting upon proposed changes and amendments to these regulations or changes in the zoning district boundary lines, the Mayor and Council shall consider the following:

The Commission shall study zoning, its development, application and relation to public and private development and its relation to other phases of the Master Plan for the development and may, from time to time, submit amendments to these regulations or changes in the district boundaries to the Mayor and Council. However, no such amendment or change shall become effective until approved by the Mayor and Council as required by this article.

Unless otherwise provided by Article 66B of the Annotated Code of Maryland, as amended, no proposed amendment, supplement or change to this chapter shall be approved without the favorable votes of members of the Council as required by the Town Charter.

If a petition for a change in a zoning district boundary is disapproved by the Mayor and Council, thereafter the Mayor and Council shall take no further action on another petition for the same or substantially the same proposal on the same premises until after 12 months from the date of the last disapproval.

Every application for a change in zoning of district boundaries shall be accompanied by a scale drawing, showing the existing and proposed boundaries and such other information as may be needed to properly locate and plat the amendment on the official Zoning Maps.

A filing fee shall be charged for processing an application for a change in zoning, as may be determined by the Mayor and Council.