1.

Membership, term of office, compensation.

(a)

Membership and appointment. The board of zoning appeals shall consist of the mayor and alderman. Any member of the board shall be disqualified to act upon any matter before the board with respect to property in which the member has an interest.

(b)

Term of office. The term of office for each member of the board of zoning appeals shall run concurrently with the term of their elected office as mayor or alderman.

(c)

Compensation. The board of zoning appeals members shall receive no compensation for their service.

2.

Officers, meetings, quorum, minutes; procedures generally. The board of zoning appeals shall have a chairman, who shall be the mayor or in his absence the mayor pro tem. The board of zoning appeals shall appoint a secretary who may be an officer or employee of the town. The board of zoning appeals shall have authority to adopt rules of procedure. Meetings of the board of zoning appeals shall be held at the call of the chairman and at such other times as the board may determine. Four members of the board shall constitute a quorum. The chairman, or in his absence the acting chairman, may administer oaths and compel the attendance of witnesses by subpoena.

The board of zoning appeals 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 immediately filed in town hall and shall be a public record.

The decision of the board of zoning appeals shall be by motion, which motion shall contain a statement of the grounds of its decision or action. the full text of the motion shall be sent to the appellant. No appeal requesting the same relief in regard to the same property shall be received or heard by the board of zoning appeals for a period of 12 months following the date of such motion, except that this limitation shall not affect the right of the board to grant a rehearing as provided in the rules of procedures adopted by the board.

3.

Duties of board of zoning appeals. The board of zoning appeals shall resolve disputes in interpretation of this ordinance, shall pass on requests for conditional uses, site plan approvals and variances, and shall pass on applications for special uses when such is required by this ordinance.

4.

Public hearing.

(a)

Notice of hearing shall be given. Before making its decision on any appeal, request for permission to establish a use, request for a variance, or on any other matter within the board of zoning appeals purview, said board shall hold public hearing thereon. At least 15 days' notice of the time and place of such hearing shall be sent to the appellant or petitioner, to the planning and zoning commission, to the zoning administrator, and to the owners of all properties either adjoining the property with which the hearing is concerned or situated directly across a public right-of-way from said property. Such notice shall contain the name of the appellant and petitioner, the date, time, and place fixed for the hearing, and brief statement of the error alleged by the appellant, or of the variance, use requiring special approval, or other relief requested.

(b)

Erection of sign. Within three days after acceptance for filing of an appeal the applicant shall erect a sign, to be furnished by the zoning administrator, on the land with which the appeal is concerned. The sign shall be non-returnable, weather resistant or equal, minimum size of 30 by 40 inches, show the application number, the type of relief sought, the scheduled date, time, and place of public hearing, and the telephone number to call for further information. The applicant shall be responsible for the sign per the most current schedule of fees. Once the petition is disposed of the applicant must remove and dispose of the sign within ten days. The applicant shall pay for the cost of such sign and all related fees in accordance with the current fee schedule as approved by town council.

(c)

Adjournment of hearings. Hearings may be adjourned from time to time and, if the time and place of the continued hearing be publicly announced at the time of the adjournment, no further notice of such continued hearings shall be required; otherwise, notice thereof shall be given, as in the case of the original hearing.

(d)

Public notice in newspaper. The board of zoning appeals shall give public notice of the hearing in a newspaper circulated in Thunderbolt by advertisement published for two consecutive days more than 15 days prior to the date of the public hearing. All advertising fees are to be paid by the applicant/petitioner.

(e)

Rehearing. An application for a rehearing may be made in the same manner as provided for an original hearing.

(f)

Time limit of board's decision. The board of zoning appeals shall reach a decision following a public hearing within a reasonable period of time; however, said period shall not exceed 45 days.

(g)

Forms. Appeals, requests for permission to establish a use requiring special approval, requests for conditional use permits, requests for approval of site plans, request for variances and requests for extension of nonconforming issues shall be made on forms provided therefor, which shall be available in the office of the zoning administrator, and all information required on said forms shall be provided by the applicant/petitioner. Forms shall be filed with the office of the zoning administrator, and the applicant/petitioner shall pay a fee incidental to the application/petition. The board of zoning appeals shall accept no forms unless it contains all pertinent information and is accompanied by the required fee.

(h)

Calendar of appeals. Appeals and applications filed in proper form shall be posted conspicuously in the office of the zoning administrator during the period before such hearing date.

5.

Stay of proceedings. An appeal stays all legal proceedings against the applicant that have been instituted in connection with the action appealed unless the officer whose action is being appealed certifies to the board of zoning appeals that, for reasons stated in the certificate, a stay would, in his opinion, cause imminent peril to life and/or property. In such cases, proceedings shall only be stayed by a restraining order, which may be granted by either the board of zoning appeals or a competent court, on application.

6.

Powers. The board of zoning appeals shall have the following powers:

(a)

To hear and decide appeals where it is alleged that there is an error in any order, requirement, decision, or determination made by an administrative official in the enforcement of this ordinance.

(b)

To accept and decide on applications for uses on which the board of zoning appeals is required to act by this ordinance.

(c)

To authorize upon appeal in specific cases such variance 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 the ordinance will, in an individual case, result in practical difficulty or unnecessary hardship. Such variance may be granted in individual cases upon finding by the board of zoning appeals that:

(1)

There are extraordinary and exceptional conditions pertaining to the piece of property in question because of its size, shape, or topography; and

(2)

The application of this ordinance or resolution to a particular piece of property would create an unnecessary hardship. Economic hardship alone is not sufficient to get a variance.

(3)

Relief, if granted, would not cause substantial detriment to the public good or impair the purpose of this ordinance; provided, however, that no variance may be granted for a use of land or building or structure that is prohibited by this ordinance.

(d)

In exercising the above powers, the board of zoning appeals may, in conformity with the provisions of this ordinance, reverse or affirm, wholly or partly, a decision of an administrative official or the recommendation of the planning and zoning commission or may modify the order, requirements, decisions, or determinations of such administrative official, or the recommendation of the planning and zoning commission, and to that end shall have all the powers of such administrative official and the planning and zoning commission. In exercising the above powers, the board of zoning appeals may issue or direct the issuance of a permit.

7.

Appeals from decisions of board of zoning appeals. Any person or persons severally or jointly aggrieved by any decision of the board of zoning appeals may take an appeal to the superior court. Said appeal to the superior court shall be filed within 30 days of the date of said decision of the board of zoning appeals, and upon failure to file said appeal within 30 days, the said decision of the board of zoning appeals shall be final. Provided, however, that on appeal, said case shall be heard by the judge of the superior court without a jury, unless one of the parties files a written demand for a jury trial within 30 days from the filing of the appeal.