Trafford City Zoning Code
ARTICLE IX
Zoning Hearing Board
§ 202-39 Creation; appointment of members; organizations.
A Zoning Hearing Board is hereby created. Said Board shall consist of three members appointed by the Council. The initial terms of the first three members shall be as follows: One shall serve until the first Monday of January following the adoption of this chapter; one until the first Monday of the second January following the adoption of this chapter; and the other until the first Monday of the third January following the adoption of this chapter. Their successors shall serve for terms of three years. Any vacancy shall be filled for the unexpired term only. A Board member may be removed for official misconduct or neglect of duty. The Zoning Hearing Board shall organize and elect a Chairman and a Secretary from its membership and shall prescribe rules for the conduct of its affairs in accordance with applicable law.
§ 202-40 Powers and duties.
A.
The Zoning Hearing Board shall hear and decide appeals from and review any order, requirement, decision or determination made by the Planning Commission or the Zoning Officer in the administration of this chapter.
B.
The Zoning Hearing Board shall hear and decide all matters referred to it or upon which it is required to pass under this chapter. The standards and sequence procedures adopted in the Master Plan shall be the basic guide in reaching understandings and arriving at decisions.
C.
The Zoning Hearing Board may issue special permits for any of the uses for which this chapter requires the obtaining of such permits. In granting any special permit, the Board shall prescribe any conditions that it deems necessary to or desirable for public interests. No special permit shall be granted by the Zoning Hearing Board unless it finds that the use for which such permit is sought will not be injurious to the neighborhood or otherwise detrimental to the public welfare and will be in harmony with the general purposes of this chapter.
D.
The Zoning Hearing Board may adapt or vary the strict application of any requirements of this chapter in the case of irregular, narrow, shallow or steep lots or other physical conditions when such strict application would result in practical difficulty or unnecessary hardship that would deprive the owner of the reasonable use of the land or building involved, but in no other case.
(1)
No variance in the strict application of any provision of this chapter shall be granted by the Zoning Hearing Board unless it finds that there are special circumstances or conditions which are such that the strict application of the provisions of this chapter would deprive the applicant of the reasonable use of land or buildings.
(2)
The granting of any variance shall be in harmony with the general purpose and intent of this chapter, and shall not be injurious to the neighborhood or otherwise detrimental to the public welfare. Any variance thus authorized is required to be entered, in writing, in the minutes of the Council with the reason for which the departure was justified.
§ 202-41 Procedures.
The procedure of the Board shall be governed by the provisions of applicable laws of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and such rules, not inconsistent therewith, as the Board may adopt. In general, the procedure for appeal from action of the Zoning Officer shall be as follows:
A.
Any appeal from the requirements of this chapter shall be taken by filing with the officer from whom the appeal is taken and with the Board a notice of appeal, specifying the grounds therefor. The officer from whom the appeal is taken shall forthwith transmit to the Board all of the documentary material constituting the record upon which the action appealed was taken.
B.
The appellant shall, at the time of filing his appeal, pay the enforcing officer a fee as set forth from time to time by resolution of the Borough Council to defray or help defray the cost of the required advertising.
[Amended 10-20-1998 by Ord. No. 667]
C.
Each appeal shall be considered on its merits at a public hearing. Notice of such appeal shall be given by publishing such in a newspaper of general circulation in the borough and in accordance with applicable law. The Board shall give the additional notice required by law to all parties in interest, and they may adjourn any hearing for the purposes of giving such further notice.
D.
The Planning Commission shall furnish all pertinent narrative material, maps, charts and other data relative to the problem involved, for reference by all concerned. The Board may adjourn any hearing for the purpose of reviewing such data as may be pertinent to the problem involved and to request interpretations of said data by a representative of the Planning Commission.
E.
The Board shall decide each appeal within a reasonable time, and notice thereof shall be given to all parties in interest. The decision of the Board shall be immediately filed in its office, and if a variance is granted, it must be entered in the minutes of the Council so as to be of public record. In the exercise of its functions upon such appeals or upon exceptions, the Board may, in conformity with law, reverse or affirm, wholly or partly, or modify the order, requirement, decision or determination appealed from or make such order, requirement, decision or determination as, in its opinion, ought to be made. The Board must reach a decision within 45 days or it will be deemed a favorable decision.
F.
Any person aggrieved by any decision of the Board or any borough officer affected thereby may appeal therefrom, within 30 days, to the Court of Common Pleas as provided by law.