Tremont City Zoning Code
ZONING BOARD
§ 153.265 ORGANIZATION.
(A) A Zoning Board is hereby established in accordance with the provisions of the statute applicable thereto. Regular meetings of the Zoning Board shall be held at such time and place within the village as the Board may determine. Special meetings may be held at the call of the chairperson, or as determined by the Zoning Board. Such Chairperson, or, in his or her absence, the Acting Chairperson, may administer oaths and compel attendance of witnesses.
(B) All meetings of the Zoning Board shall be open to the public. Such Zoning Board shall keep minutes of its proceedings showing the vote of each member on every question. If any member is absent or fails to vote, the minutes shall indicate such fact. The Zoning Board shall adopt its own rules of procedure not in conflict with the statute of this chapter.
(Ord. 18-108, passed 5-7-2018)
§ 153.266 APPEALS; HOW TAKEN.
(A) Appeals to the Zoning Board may be taken by any person aggrieved or by an officer, department or board of the village.
(B) Such appeal shall be taken within 20 days from the date of the action appealed from, by filing with the Code Enforcement Officer and with the Zoning Board a notice of appeal, specifying the grounds thereof. The Code Enforcement Officer shall forthwith transmit to the Zoning Board all papers constituting the record upon which the action appealed from was taken.
(C) An appeal stays all proceedings in furtherance of the action appealed from unless the Code Enforcement Officer certifies to the Zoning Board, after the notice of appeal has been filed with him or her, that because of facts stated in the certificate a stay would, in his or her opinion, cause imminent peril to life or property.
(D) The Zoning Board shall fix a reasonable time for hearing of the appeal and give due notice thereof to the parties and decide the same within a reasonable time. The Zoning Board may reverse or affirm, wholly or partly, or may modify the use, requirement, decision or determination as, in its opinion, ought to be made on the premises.
(Ord. 18-108, passed 5-7-2018)
§ 153.267 JURISDICTION.
The Zoning Board shall not have the power to alter or change the zoning district classification of any property, nor to make any change in the terms of this chapter but, does have power to act on appeals and hold public hearings as set forth herein. Said powers include:
(B) Special uses. To hold public hearings in accordance with the provisions of this chapter, on requests for special use permits. Any special use permit may be subject to such conditions as the Village Board may require to preserve and promote the character of the zoning district in question and otherwise promote the purpose of this chapter;
(C) Variance. To hold public hearings on requests for variances from the strict applications of the provisions of this chapter whereby reason of exceptional narrowness, shallowness, shape or area of a specific piece of property at the time of enactment of this chapter or by reason of exceptional topographic conditions or other extraordinary or exceptional conditions of such property, the strict application of the regulations enacted would result in peculiar or exceptional practical difficulties to, or exceptional undue hardship upon the owner of such property; provided such relief may be granted without substantially impairing the intent and purpose of this chapter;
(D) Application for variance and/or special use. An application for a variance and/or special use may be made by filing a written application with the Code Enforcement Officer in duplicate in the office of the Village Clerk. Such application shall:
(1) State the name and address of the applicant (and the name and address of the owner of record, if applicant is not such owner);
(2) State the location and legal description of the lot for which the variance and/or special use is sought; and
(3) Request the variance and/or special use desired.
(E) Hearing date and notice of public hearing.
(1) If the application for a variance and/or special use is in proper form, and the proper fee paid, the Zoning Board shall set a hearing date for the application and shall cause a notice of the time and place of such public hearing to be published at least once in one or more local newspapers published in the county, no less than 15 days, nor more than 30 days, prior to the date of the hearing. Such notice shall contain the location for which the variance and/or special use is requested as well as a brief statement describing the variance and/or special use requested.
(2) Not less than ten days before the hearing, the Code Enforcement Officer shall mail a copy of such published notice to the applicant at the address given in such application, the Zoning Board shall maintain in its records a publisher’s certificate with an attached copy of the notice as published, and the Zoning Board shall file such notice with the Village Clerk for inclusion in the records of the village.
(3) If the application is not in proper form, the Code Enforcement Officer shall notify the applicant, in writing, and no hearing shall be set, nor notice published, until a proper application is filed and the proper fee paid.
(F) Hearing by the Zoning Board.
(1) A public hearing on the application for the variance and/or special use shall be conducted by the Zoning Board. The hearing shall be held in accordance with the general rules for meeting of the Zoning Board provided for in this chapter, and such hearing may be continued from time to time as required.
(2) After the hearing, the Zoning Board shall make a report of their findings to the Village Board, and in said report shall recommend approval or disapproval of such proposed variance and/or special use. Every report shall contain findings of fact specifying the reason for the Zoning Board’s recommendation.
(G) Vote of the Village Board. Within 30 days after receipt of the report of the Zoning Board, the Village Board may, by vote, without further public hearing, grant or deny the variance and/or special use or they may refer it back to the Zoning Board for further consideration.
(Ord. 18-108, passed 5-7-2018)
§ 153.268 STANDARDS.
(A) Each case before the Zoning Board shall be considered as an individual case and shall conform to the detailed application of the following standards in a manner appropriate to the circumstances of such case. All uses as listed in any district requiring Zoning Board approval for a permit shall be of such location, size and character that, in general, it will be in harmony with the appropriate and orderly development of the district in which it is situated and will not be detrimental to the orderly development of adjacent districts.
(B) The Zoning Board shall consider the following:
(1) The location and size of the use;
(2) The nature and intensity of the operations involved in or conducted;
(3) Its size, layout and its relation to pedestrian and vehicular traffic to and from the use;
(4) The assembly of persons in connection with it will not be hazardous to the neighborhood or be incongruous therewith or conflict with normal traffic of the neighborhood;
(5) Considering among other things, convenient routes of pedestrian traffic, particularly of children;
(6) Vehicular turning movements in relation to routes of traffic flow, relation to street intersections, sight distance and the general character and intensity of development of the neighborhood;
(7) The location and height of buildings, the location, nature and height of walls, fences and the nature and extent of landscaping of the site shall be such that the use will not hinder or discourage the appropriate development and use of adjacent land and buildings or impair the value thereof;
(8) The nature, location, size and site layout of the uses shall be such that it will be a harmonious part of the district in which it is situated considering among other things, prevailing shopping habits, convenience of access by prospective patrons, the physical and economic relationship of one type of use to another; and
(9) The location, size, intensity and site layout of the use shall be such that its operations will not be objectionable to nearby dwellings, because of noise, fumes or flash of lights to a greater degree than in normal with respect to the proximity of commercial to residential uses, nor interfere with and adequate supply of light and air, nor increase the danger of fire or otherwise endanger the public safety.
(Ord. 18-108, passed 5-7-2018)
§ 153.269 REQUEST FOR LEGAL OPINION.
Where a legal opinion is requested of the Village Attorney on a matter of interpretation of this chapter regarding a matter being heard by the Zoning Board, such opinion shall be binding upon said Board.
(Ord. 18-108, passed 5-7-2018)
§ 153.270 MISCELLANEOUS.
No order of the Zoning Board permitting the erection or alteration of buildings shall be valid for a period longer than one year, unless a building permit for such erection or alteration is obtained within such period and such erection or alteration is commenced and proceeds to completion in accordance with the terms of such permit. No order of the Zoning Board permitting a use of a building or premises shall be valid for a period longer than one year unless such use in established within such period; however, that the use of such permit is dependent upon the erection or alteration of a building, such order shall continue in full force and effect if a building permit for such use, erection or alteration is obtained within such period and such erections or alterations are commenced and proceed to completion in accordance with the terms of such permit.
(Ord. 18-108, passed 5-7-2018)
§ 153.271 APPEALS TO COURT.
All final administrative decisions of the Zoning Board rendered under the terms of this chapter shall be subject to judicial review pursuant to the provisions of the Administrative Review Act approved May 8, 1945, and all amendments thereof, and the rules adopted pursuant thereto.
(Ord. 18-108, passed 5-7-2018)