Warsaw City Zoning Code
§ 405.010
General Provisions.
[Ord. No. 211[1] § 2, 12-21-2015]
A.
Title And Effective Date. These regulations shall be known and may be cited as the "Unified Development Code, City of Warsaw, Missouri" and are referred to in this document as the "Unified Code," the "UDC," or this "Code." The Unified Development Code shall take effect and be in force from and after December 21, 2015.
B.
Authority. This Unified Development Code is adopted and administered pursuant to the authority granted to the City of Warsaw by the Missouri Zoning Enabling Act, Sections 89.020 through 89.491, RSMo.
C.
Purpose. The purposes of this Code are to:
1.
Implement the Warsaw Comprehensive Plan and other relevant planning documents;
2.
Promote the health, safety, and welfare of the community;
3.
Lessen congestion on the roads and enhance pedestrian and vehicular movement with the least detriment to environmental quality;
4.
Provide adequate light and open space and avoid undue concentration or sprawl of population;
5.
Provide a planned and orderly use of land, protection of the environment and preservation of viability as a tourist area, all to conserve the value of the investments of the people of this community and encourage a high quality of life and the most appropriate use of land throughout the municipality;
6.
Prevent the inefficient use of land and prevent overcrowding of land and avoid transportation and public service and facility demands that cannot be satisfied; provide for phased development of government services and facilities; and aid in realizing the policies, objectives, and goals of the City; and facilitate adequate provisions for water, sewage, schools, parks, open space, medical facilities, recreation, and other public requirements to achieve community self-sufficiency;
7.
Secure the safety of the people against fire hazards, unstable slopes, mudslides, and flood danger;
8.
Provide clean air by reducing pollutants discharged into the air;
9.
Sustain water sources by maintaining the natural watershed, preventing accelerated erosion, reducing runoff and consequent sedimentation, eliminating pollutants introduced directly into streams and water bodies, and enhancing public access to recreational water sources;
10.
Maintain the natural scenic beauty of Warsaw in order to preserve areas of historical and archaeological importance, provide for adequate open spaces, preserve scenic views, provide recreational opportunities, and sustain a tourist-based economy;
11.
Encourage innovations in residential development and renewal so that the growing demand for housing may be met by greater variety in type and design of dwellings and by the conservation of more efficient and attractive use of appropriately located open space; and
12.
Ensure that development and resource decisions are sustainable not only for the current residents of Warsaw but for future residents and generations also.
D.
Applicability And Jurisdiction.
1.
Permit or approval required. All land, buildings, structures, or appurtenances thereon located within the City of Warsaw, which are hereafter occupied, used, erected, altered, or converted shall be used, placed, and erected in conformance with the regulations for the zoning district in which such land or building is located, any applicable development standards, and all applicable development review processes, including obtaining any necessary approvals, authorizations, and/or permits.
2.
Subdivision compliance required. It is unlawful for any person to subdivide land within the entire area of the City without having first complied with the provisions of this Code.
3.
Requirements as minimum. The provisions of this Code shall be held to be minimum requirements. No required open space for one building or use shall be computed as being the open space, yard, or area requirement for any other building or use. When this Code imposes a greater restriction than imposed by other ordinances or laws, the provisions of this Code shall govern.
4.
Emergency powers. The Board of Aldermen may authorize deviations from any provision of this Code during a local emergency. Such deviations shall be authorized by a resolution of the Board of Aldermen without a requirement for prior notice or public hearing.
5.
Applicability to public agencies. The provisions of the Unified Code shall apply to all public bodies, districts, and agencies of the Federal, State, county, and municipal governments to the extent permitted by law.
E.
Conflicting Provisions.
1.
Conflict with other public laws, ordinances, regulations or permits. This Code is intended to complement other City, State and Federal regulations that affect land use. This Code is not intended to revoke or repeal any other public law, ordinance, regulation or permit. However, where conditions, standards or requirements imposed by any provision of this Code are either more restrictive or less restrictive than comparable standards imposed by any other public law, ordinance or regulation, the provisions that are more restrictive or that impose higher standards or requirements, as determined by the Director, shall govern.
2.
Conflict with private agreements. This Code is not intended to revoke or repeal any easement, covenant or other private agreement. However, where the regulations of this Code are more restrictive or impose higher standards or requirements than such easement, covenant or other private agreement, then the requirements of this Code shall govern. Nothing in this Code shall modify or repeal any private covenant or deed restriction, but such covenant or restriction shall not excuse any failure to comply with this Code. In no case shall the City be obligated to enforce the provisions of any easements, covenants or agreements between private third parties.
F.
Transitional Regulations. The purpose of transitional regulations is to resolve the status of properties with pending applications or recent approvals and properties with outstanding violations at the time of the adoption of this Code.
1.
Continuity of provisions. The provisions of this Code, insofar as they are substantially the same as previously existing Code provisions relating to the same subject matter shall be construed as restatements and continuations thereof and not new enactments. Any actions or proceedings commenced or permits issued pursuant to any previously existing ordinance shall not be affected by the enactment of this Code, but such actions, proceedings, and permits shall hereafter conform to this Code.
2.
Violations continue. Any violation of the previous versions of this Code shall continue to be a violation under this Code and shall be subject to the penalties and enforcement set forth in Section 405.150, Violations, Enforcement and Penalties, unless the use, development, construction, or other activity complies with the provisions of this Code. Payment shall be required for any civil penalty assessed under the previous regulations, even if the original violation is no longer considered to be a violation under this Code.
3.
Legal nonconformities under prior regulations. Any legal nonconformity under the previous zoning and subdivision regulations shall also be a legal nonconformity under this Code, as long as the situation that resulted in the nonconforming status under the previous Code continues to exist. If a nonconformity under the previous zoning and subdivision regulations becomes conforming because of the adoption of this Code, then the situation will no longer be a nonconformity.
4.
Uses, structures and lots rendered nonconforming. Except as specifically provided in this Code, if any use, building, structure, lot or parcel that legally existed on the effective date of this Code does not meet all standards set forth in this Code, such building, structure or lot shall be considered nonconforming and shall be controlled by Section 405.050(F), Nonconformities.
5.
Legal recorded nonconforming lots and parcels.
a.
A legally recorded nonconforming lot or parcel not in a subdivision may be used for any use permitted in the zoning district in which it is located, provided that the lot conforms to all other requirements of this Code, except as provided for in Subsection (F)(5)(b) below.
b.
A legally recorded nonconforming lot or parcel not in a subdivision shall be permitted to retain its approved minimum lot area, minimum lot width and minimum required yards.
6.
Processing of applications commenced or approved under previous ordinances.
a.
Pending applications.
(1)
Any complete application that has been submitted or accepted for approval, but upon which no final action has been taken by the appropriate decisionmaking body prior to the effective date of this Code shall be reviewed in accordance with the provisions of the Code in effect on the date the application was deemed complete by the City. The applicant, however, may waive review under the prior ordinance through a written letter to the Director and request review of the entire application pursuant to this Code.
(2)
If the applicant fails to comply with any applicable required period for submittal or other procedural requirements, the application shall expire and subsequent applications shall be subject to the requirements of this Code.
(3)
Any reapplication for an expired project approval shall meet the standards in effect at the time of reapplication.
b.
Preliminary approvals. An application for which approval of a preliminary subdivision plat was granted prior to the effective date of this Code shall be considered as having received preliminary plan approval under this Code, provided that all final plat submittals subsequent to the date of these regulations shall conform to the requirements of this Code. In the instance of large tracts or blocks of land contained within a recorded subdivision and intended or designed for resubdivision into smaller tracts, lots, or building sites, the resubdivision shall comply with all provisions of this Code except for those that, in the opinion of the Board of Aldermen, have been satisfied prior to the filing of the original subdivision plat. Failure to obtain a final plat or plan approval within the specified time shall result in expiration of the preliminary approval.
c.
Approved projects.
(1)
Approved rezoning requests, site plans, variances, grading permits or building permits that are valid on the effective date of this Code shall remain valid until their expiration date, where applicable.
(2)
Projects with valid approvals or permits should comply with the development standards of this Code where the standards will not materially affect the project. In the case that these standards would materially affect the project, it shall be carried out with the development standards in effect at the time of approval, provided that the permit or approval is valid and has not lapsed.
(3)
Any building or development for which a building permit was granted prior to the effective date of this Code shall be permitted to proceed to construction, even if such building or development does not conform to the provisions of this Code, as long as the building permit remains valid.
(4)
If the development for which the building permit is issued prior to the effective date of this Code fails to comply with the time frames for development established for the building permit, the building permit shall expire, and future development shall be subject to the requirements of this Code.
G.
Transition To New Zone Districts. Upon the effective date of this Code, land that is zoned with a zoning district classification from the previous zoning regulations shall be reclassified or translated to one (1) of the zone district classifications set forth in this Code by separate action of the Board of Aldermen. Table 405.010-1, Transition to New Zone Districts, summarizes the translation or reclassification of the zoning districts in the previous zoning regulations to the zone districts used in this Code.
Table 405.010-1 Transition to New Zone Districts | |
|---|---|
Existing District(s) | New District |
C-3 and C-4 | C-3 |
H.
Severability.
1.
If any court of competent jurisdiction invalidates any provision of this Code, then such judgment shall not affect the validity and continued enforcement of any other provision of this Code.
2.
If any court of competent jurisdiction invalidates the application of any provision of this Code to a particular property, structure or situation, then such judgment shall not affect the application of that provision to any other building, structure or situation not specifically included in that judgment.
3.
If any court of competent jurisdiction judges invalid any condition attached to the approval of a development review application, then such judgment shall not affect any other conditions or requirements attached to the same approval that are not specifically included in that judgment.
4.
Whenever a condition or limitation is included in an administrative action authorizing regulatory activity, then it shall be conclusively presumed that the authorizing officer, commission or board considered such condition or limitation necessary to carry out the spirit and intent of this Code, and that the officer, commission or board would not have granted the authorization to which the condition or limitation pertained except in belief that the condition or limitation was lawful.
[1]
Editor's Note: This ordinance also repealed former Ch. 405, Zoning Regulations, adopted 1-7-1985 by Ord. No. 584, as amended.