A Board of Appeals is hereby authorized to be established. The word “Board” when used in this subchapter shall be construed to mean the Board of Appeals. The Board shall consist of 5 members appointed by the Mayor and confirmed by the City Council. The members of the Board shall serve for a term of 5 years. One of the members of the Board shall be designated as Chairperson of the Board by the Mayor, with the consent of City Council and shall hold his or her office as Chairperson until his or her successor is appointed. The Chairperson, or, in his or her absence, the Acting Chairperson, may administer oaths and compel the attendance of witnesses. The Mayor shall have the power to remove any member of the Board for cause and after a public hearing. Vacancies upon the Board shall be filled for the unexpired term of the member whose place has become vacant, in the manner herein provided for the appointment of the member.

(1992 Code, § 155.185) (Ord. passed 5- -1969)

   (A)   All meetings of the Board of Appeals shall be held at the call of the Chairperson and at the other times as the Board may determine. There shall be at least 7 days but not more than 30 days notice of the time and place of the meeting published in a paper of general circulation in the city, the notice to contain a statement of the particular purpose of the meeting and a brief description of the location of the property under consideration at the meeting. All meetings of the Board shall be open to the public.

   (B)   The Board shall keep minutes of its proceedings, showing the vote of each member upon every question, or, if absent or failing to vote, indicating the fact, and shall also keep records of its examinations and other official actions. Findings of fact shall be included in the minutes of each case of a requested variation, and the reasons for granting or denying the variation shall be specified. Every rule, regulations, every amendment or repeal thereof, and every order, requirement, decision or determination of the Board shall immediately be filed in the office of the Board and shall be a public record.

   (C)   The Board shall adopt its own rules of procedure not in conflict with the statute in the case made and provided and may select or appoint the officers as it deems necessary.

(1992 Code, § 155.186) (Ord. passed 5- -1969)

   (A)   The Board of Appeals shall hear and decide appeals from and review any order, requirement, decision or determination made by the administrative official charged with the enforcement of the Zoning Code. The Board may reverse or affirm, wholly or partly, or may modify or amend the order, requirement, decision or determination appealed from to the extent and in the manner that the Board may decide to be fitting and proper in the premises. The applicant for such an appeal or an applicant for variance to the zoning ordinance shall submit, with his or her application, the fee of $100.

   (B)   The Board shall also hear and decide all matters referred to it or upon which it is required to pass under the Zoning Code.

   (C)   Where there are practical difficulties or particular hardships in the way of carrying out the strict letter of the Zoning Code, the Board may authorize a variation in the application of the regulations of the Zoning Code in harmony with their general purpose and intent, in the following instances:

      (1)   To permit a front yard, a side yard, and/or a rear yard less than that required by the Zoning Code, but the variation shall not exceed 25% of the depth of the front yard, or the width of a side yard, as required by the Zoning Code;

      (2)   The Board is hereby authorized to vary the rear lot requirements to reduce rear lot measurements to as low as 10 feet; except on corner lots where buildings are erected to front on the long dimension of a lot, and except on triangular, irregular and odd shaped lots, the Board is hereby authorized to vary the rear lot measurements to as low as 5 feet;

      (3)   To permit a building or structure to exceed the height limit by a reasonable amount beyond the limits established by the Zoning Code;

      (4)   To permit the use of a lot less in area by not more than 10% of the lot width as required by the Zoning Code;

      (5)   To permit the use of a lot less in width by not more than 15% of the lot width as required by the Zoning Code;

      (6)   To permit the use of a lot adjacent to a commercial or multiple dwelling use as parking space for the use, provided that the lot shall have the area required by the Zoning Code for parking space for the use.

   (D)   In considering all proposed variations to the Zoning Code, the Board shall, before making any variation from the regulation in a specific case, first determine and make a finding of fact that the proposed variation will not impair an adequate supply of light and air to adjacent property, increase the congestion in public streets, increase the danger of fire or endanger the public safety, and unreasonably diminish or impair established property values within the surrounding area.

   (E)   The concurring vote of 3 members of the Board shall be necessary to reverse any order, requirement, decision or determination of the administrative official charged with the enforcement of the Zoning Code or to decide in favor of the applicant any matter upon which the Board is authorized by the Zoning Code to render a decision.

(1992 Code, § 155.187) (Ord. passed 5- -1969; Am. Ord. 042682, passed 4-26-1982; Am. Ord. 051401G, passed 5-14-2001; Am. Ord. 2007-MC01, passed 1-22-2007)

   (A)   An appeal may be taken from the officer charged with the enforcement of the Zoning Code by any person aggrieved or by an officer, department, or bureau of the city. The appeal shall be taken within the time as shall be prescribed by the Board by general rule, by filing with the officer from whom the appeal is taken and with the Board, a notice of appeal, specifying the grounds thereof. The officer from whom the appeal is taken shall forthwith transmit to the Board all of the papers constituting the record upon which the action appealed from was taken.

   (B)   An appeal stays all proceedings in furtherance of the action appealed from, unless the officer from whom the appeal is taken certifies to the Board after the notice of appeal has been filed with him that by reason of facts stated in the certificate, a stay would, in his or her opinion, cause imminent peril to life or property, in which case the proceedings shall not be stayed otherwise than by a restraining order which may be granted by the Board or by a court of record on application, on notice to the officer from whom the appeal is taken and on due cause shown.

   (C)   The Board shall fix a reasonable time for the hearing of the appeal and give due notice thereof to the parties and decide the same within a reasonable time. Upon the hearing, any party may appear in person, or by agent, or by attorney.

   (D)   All final administrative decisions of the Board of Appeals shall be subject to judicial review pursuant to the provisions of the “Administrative Review Act,” approved May 8, 1945, and all amendments and modifications thereof, and the rules adopted pursuant thereto.

(1992 Code, § 155.188) (Ord. passed 5- -1969)