West Lake Hills City Zoning Code

There is hereby created a board of adjustment, as authorized in Local Government Code Chapter 211, consisting of six (6) members appointed by the city council. Members of the board of adjustment shall not be members of the governing body of the city or employees of the city, and shall be residents of the city.

Each of the six members of the board shall be entitled to one vote in all deliberations of the board.

The city council shall appoint four (4) alternate members of the board of adjustment. The presiding officer of the board may request an alternate to serve in the absence or recusal of a regular member. An alternate serving under this subsection shall have full voting rights for the duration of the meeting at which the alternate is designated.

All members and alternates of the board of adjustment shall be bona fide residents of the city for a minimum of six months.

Each member of the board shall serve a two-year staggered term and may be reappointed for succeeding terms. Vacancies shall be filled by the city council for the unexpired term.

An alternate member serves for the same period as a regular member and is subject to removal in the same manner as a regular member. A vacancy among the alternate members is filled in the same manner as a vacancy among the regular members.

A member may be removed for cause by the city council on a written charge and after a public hearing, pursuant to LGC § 211.008(b).

The city council shall elect a chairperson and the board shall elect a vice-chairperson annually from its membership. The chairperson shall preside over all board meetings. The chairperson shall have full voting rights. Officers serve one-year terms and may be re-elected.

Meetings of the board of adjustment shall be held on a regular basis, but not less than once every two months, and such meetings shall be advertised and open to the public as required by the laws of the state.

Each case before the board of adjustment must be heard by at least 75 percent of the members.

The board shall keep minutes of its proceedings that indicate the vote of each member on each question or the fact that a member is absent or fails to vote. The board shall keep records of its examinations and other official actions. The minutes and records shall be filed immediately in the board's office and are public records.

All meetings of the board shall be open to the public and shall be subject to the Texas Open Meeting Act as set forth in chapter 551 of the Texas Government Code.

The board shall adopt and maintain rules of procedure necessary to conduct its affairs, and shall furnish a copy of such rules to the city secretary. Rules adopted by the board shall be consistent with the provisions of state law, [and] the City’s Code of Ordinances.

All orders and other enactments adopted by the board shall be in accordance with this chapter and its rules and regulations.

The board shall keep minutes of its proceedings, showing the vote of each member upon each question, or if absent or failing to vote, indicating such fact, and shall keep records of its examinations and other official actions, all of which shall be immediately filed in the office of the board and shall be a public record. The office of the board shall be in the office of the city secretary where such records shall repose.

The concurring vote of 75 percent of the members of the board shall be necessary to:

The board shall have the power to subpoena witnesses, administer oaths, and require the production of documents under regulations it may establish.

The board shall have the power to:

In exercising its authority under section 38.02.005(d)(3), the board may also consider the following as grounds to determine whether compliance with the ordinance as applied to a structure that is the subject of the appeal would result in unnecessary hardship:

In exercising its authority under section 38.02.006, the board may reverse or affirm, in whole or in part, or modify the administrative official's order, requirement, decision or determination from which an appeal is taken and make the correct order, requirement, decision, or determination, and for that purpose the board has the same authority as the administrative official.

Any of the following persons may appeal to the board of adjustment a decision made by an administrative official that is not related to a specific application, address, or project under any chapter of this Code:

Any of the following persons may appeal to the board of adjustment a decision made by an administrative official that is related to a specific application, address, or project under chapter 38 of the Code:

Any of the following persons may appeal to the board of adjustment a decision made by an administrative official that is related to a specific application, address, or project under chapters 22, 32, and 36 of the Code:

The appellant must file with the secretary of the board and the official from whom the appeal is taken a notice of appeal specifying the grounds for the appeal and pay a filing fee as may be prescribed by the city council. An appeal by a person aggrieved by an action of an administrative or building official in the enforcement of this chapter shall be filed with the secretary of the board not later than the 20th day after the date the decision is made. On receiving the notice, the secretary of the board shall immediately transmit to the board all the papers constituting the record of the action that is appealed.

An appeal stays all proceedings in furtherance of the action that is appealed unless the official from whom the appeal is taken certifies in writing to the board facts supporting the official’s opinion that a stay would cause imminent peril to life or property. In that case, the proceedings may be stayed only by a restraining order granted by a court of record.

The board shall give public notice of the hearing and due notice to the parties in interest for the appeal hearing for the next meeting for which notice can be provided, but not later than the 60th day after the date the appeal is filed. A party may appear at the appeal hearing in person or by agent or attorney.

In accordance with the provisions of the Texas Local Government Code Chapter 211, the Board of Adjustment, in appropriate cases and subject to appropriate conditions and safeguards, may make special exceptions to the terms of the zoning ordinance that are consistent with the general purpose and intent of the ordinance and in accordance with any applicable rules contained in the ordinance.

The Board of Adjustment may grant the requested special exception in accordance with Article 38.05 under specific circumstances therein established.

A special exception shall expire six (6) months from the date of Board of Adjustment approval, unless a certificate of occupancy has been issued.

Applications pursuant to section 38.02.006(b)(3) shall be made in writing in a form provided by the city administrator and shall be accompanied by a site plan and additional information as may be requested in order to properly review the application. Such requests shall be filed with the city secretary who shall transmit the same as soon as possible to the chairperson of the board. Such information may include, but is not limited to, survey, site and building plans, and contour maps. If applicant is not the legal owner(s) of the property, a statement from the owner that the applicant is the authorized agent of the owner should be provided with the application. Applications for a variance to the board under this section shall be accompanied with the payment of the filing fee. When applications are made for variances to the terms of this chapter under section 38.02.006(b)(2), either the city administrator shall visit the site where the proposed variance will apply and the surrounding area and shall report findings to the board.

The board shall review each application filed pursuant to section 38.02.006(b) after a public hearing and shall make a final written finding. Notice of a variance under section 38.02.006 shall be provided per section 38.05.036 of the Code.

The board shall not approve a variance unless it finds, based on competent evidence, that each of the conditions in section 38.05.032 has been established. The burden of establishing such conditions is on the applicant. An approval may be conditioned on the applicant’s adoption of specified changes, conditions, limitations, or safeguards deemed appropriate by the board. A violation of any such condition, limitation or safeguard shall constitute a violation of the Code.

Any rights authorized by a variance which are not exercised within one year from the date of granting such variance shall lapse and may be reestablished only after notice and a new hearing pursuant to this article. The board may waive the requirement for the payment of fees for such variance renewal application if there has been no material change of conditions pertaining to the property since the granting of the first variance. Variances originally granted concurrently and in connection with a change of a zoning designation as set forth in section 38.05.097 hearings shall expire when and if the zoning designation is changed or the site plan approved with variance(s) expires.

The final decision of the board shall be in writing and shall concisely state all pertinent and material facts upon which its findings are based and references to applicable sections of the chapter or rules that the board relied upon in reaching its decision. The final decision shall be verified by the city secretary.

The board shall forward its findings to the city secretary, to the applicant in writing, and the secretary of the board of adjustment.

The board’s final decision shall be immediately filed with the board of adjustment office, which shall be maintained by the board’s secretary. The time and date that the board’s final decision is filed with the board’s office shall be stamped on the face of the decision.

No re-application may be filed by the same applicant within 365 days of the date upon which the board denied such request, unless other property in the immediate vicinity has, within the 365-day period, been changed or acted on by the board so as to alter the facts and conditions upon which the previous board action was based. Such change of circumstances shall permit the rehearing of a request by the board prior to the expiration of the 365-day period, but such conditions shall in no way have any force in law to compel the board to reconsider the request. Such subsequent rehearing shall be considered entirely on its merits and the peculiar and specific conditions related to the property with reference to which such proceeding is brought.

Any person or persons, jointly or severally, aggrieved by any decision of the board or any taxpayer, or any officer, department, or board of the city may present any such matter to a court of competent jurisdiction for review after the final action of the board thereon and in the manner and upon the terms provided by the laws of the state.