The regulations and the number, area, and boundaries of districts established by this ordinance may be amended, supplemented, changed, modified, or repealed by the city council, but no amendment shall become effective unless and until it is first submitted to the city planning commission for its recommendation. The planning commission, upon its own initiative, shall hold public hearings, public notice of which shall be provided, for the consideration of any proposed amendment to the provisions of this ordinance or to the zoning map of Weaver, and report its recommendations to the city council. The provisions of section 78 of title 11 of the 1975 Code of Alabama [Code of Ala. 1975, § 11-52-78], as the same may be amended, shall apply to all changes and amendments.

A petition for amendment of this ordinance or the zoning district boundaries may be initiated by the city council, the planning commission, or the owner of a property or his agent.

A petition for amendment, when initiated by the property owner or authorized agent of such owner, shall meet the application requirements of this section.

3.1

Any persons, firm, or corporation desiring to petition for rezoning under the authority of this section must present such petition to the enforcement officer in writing, at least 14 days prior to the planning commission hearing. The petition shall be accompanied by the following information and materials:

A.

Name, signature, and address of the property owner and agent of the property owner, if any.

B.

Address and legal description of the property under consideration, accompanied by a copy of the applicable tax maps clearly identifying the property subject to rezoning.

C.

Present and proposed zoning and land use of the property under consideration.

D.

Reason for the rezoning request.

E.

A site plan, drawn to scale and dimensioned, showing the size and location of the property boundaries, public right-of-ways, and the proposed use and development layout.

F.

A certified check, payable to the City of Weaver in the amount of $15.00 minimum (any additional cost above the minimum will be borne by the applicant).

4.1

Notice of public hearing. Where a zoning amendment or rezoning is petitioned by a property owner, the city clerk shall post, at least six days prior to the date of the scheduled planning commission hearing, a public hearing notice regarding the proposed rezoning in four conspicuous places within the city. The notice shall state the following information:

A.

The name of the petitioner.

B.

The location of the property and the nature of the petition.

C.

The current and proposed zoning and land use of the property.

D.

The time, date, and location of the planning commission hearing of the proposed zoning amendment.

[4.2

Reserved.]

4.3

Scheduling of hearing. The planning commission shall hold a public hearing at the first regularly scheduled meeting after compliance with the application and notice requirements of this ordinance.

4.4

Planning Commission recommendation. The planning commission, by majority vote, shall recommend approval or denial of the requested zoning amendment or rezoning. Once a recommendation has been approved, the planning commission report its recommendations and the findings thereof to the city council. The planning commission report shall be transmitted to the city council within 30 days of the hearing, unless an extension period is granted by the city council. Otherwise, the proposed amendment shall be considered to have been recommended by the planning commission. To obtain an extension period from the city council, the planning commission shall entertain a motion to request such extension then shall immediately forward such request to the city council for consideration at the next regularly scheduled city council meeting.

5.1

Scheduling of public hearing. Upon receipt of the recommendation of the planning commission, the city council shall schedule a public hearing on the proposed amendment at the next regularly scheduled city council meeting.

5.2

Public hearing notice. At least 15 days in advance of the passage of the amendment to the zoning ordinance, a notice of a public hearing on the proposed amendment shall be posted in full in four conspicuous places within the city, together with a notice stating the time and place that the amendment is to be considered by the city council and stating further that at such time and place all persons who desire shall have opportunity of being heard in opposition to or in favor of such amendment. The city council shall hold a public hearing at the first regularly scheduled meeting after compliance with the notice requirements of this ordinance.

5.3

Approval or denial. After the public hearing on a rezoning petition or proposed amendment to the zoning ordinance, the city council shall vote to approve or deny the amendment. Failure by the city council to vote in favor of a proposed amendment shall constitute denial of the amendment without a formal vote.

After the city council has voted on an application for rezoning or other amendment to the zoning ordinance, another application for rezoning of the same tract or parcel of land, or change of the same portion of the zoning ordinance, will not be considered until a period of one year has elapsed from the date of such action by the city council. Provided, however, that the city council may adjust this time period, if in the opinion of a majority of the city council an unusual situation or circumstance exists.

7.1

Application for zoning. An application for zoning of property to be annexed shall accompany each petition for annexation. The application for zoning shall be made on a form available from the city clerk and be filed with the city clerk at least ten regular business days prior to the planning commission hearing. The city clerk shall transmit such petition and application to the planning commission, which shall hold a public hearing and give notice of such hearing in accordance with the notice requirements in subparagraph 4.1 (Notice of public hearing) of this article.

7.2

Planning commission action. The planning commission shall hold a public hearing at the first regularly scheduled meeting after submission and acceptance of the application. The planning commission, by majority vote, shall report its recommendations to the city council as to whether the property to be annexed should be brought into the city in the zoning district requested by the applicant or, if the planning commission believes the requested zoning designation to be inappropriate, in the R-1 Single-family Residential Zoning District. The planning commission report shall be transmitted to the city council within 30 days of the hearing date, unless the city council grants an extension of such period. Otherwise, the zoning classification requested by the applicant shall be deemed to have been recommended by the planning commission.

7.3

City council action. Upon receipt of the recommendation of the planning commission, the city council shall schedule and hold a public hearing on the recommended zoning of the property to be annexed. Such hearing shall not be held until the city council has annexed said property into the city, but may be conducted immediately following adoption of the annexation ordinances. The city council shall give public notice of the hearing on the recommended zoning in accordance with subparagraph 5.2 (public hearing notice) of this article. Following such hearing, the city council shall decide by majority vote to accept or reject the recommended zoning. If the recommended zoning is accepted, such property shall be added to the Weaver Zoning Map. If the recommended zoning is rejected, such ordinances shall be remanded to the planning commission for reconsideration.

7.4

Planning commission reconsideration. If the city council rejects the zoning recommended by the planning commission, the planning commission, within 30 days following annexation, shall review the zoning of the newly annexed property and, if determined necessary, initiate a petition to rezone the property to the most appropriate district, in accordance with section 3 (petition for amendment) of this article. No fee shall be paid by the applicant for any reconsideration and rezoning action by the planning commission conducted in accordance with this subparagraph. In determining the most appropriate zoning, the planning commission shall duly consider the following minimum items:

A.

The Weaver Comprehensive Plan, as adopted by the planning commission, as well as other relevant land use and planning studies;

B.

The desires of the property owner subject to rezoning, as well as concerns of adjacent property owners;

C.

The purposes and considerations of zoning, as required by this ordinance and section 11-52-72 of the Code of Alabama, as amended [Code of Ala. 1975, § 11-52-72].

7.5

Action on planning commission petition. The planning commission and city council shall act on the planning commission petition to rezone the newly annexed property in accordance with the procedures set forth in sections 4 and 5 of this article.

The City of Weaver discourages the use of rezonings as a strategy to increase speculative land value, where the applicant has no actual or immediate intent to develop in accordance with the rezoning. Rezonings are intended to grant the applicant an opportunity to exercise appropriate alternative development options in situations where development in compliance with existing zoning is not possible or practicable, as long as the proposed uses are consistent with the comprehensive plan and the character of the surrounding area. The granting of this privilege by the city carries with it a good faith expectation that the proposed development will occur in a timely and deliberate manner. Therefore, when the city council grants approval of a rezoning, the applicant should acquire a zoning permit or final plat approval (whichever is applicable) and commence construction activities in compliance with that permit or approval within one year of the date upon which the rezoning is approved. If such actions have not been taken within the specified time frame, the planning commission may initiate actions to further rezone the subject property and/or to reinstate the original zoning classification.