(a)

Creation and appointment. A board of zoning adjustment is hereby created and established. The word "board" when used in this section shall be construed to mean the board of zoning adjustment. The board shall consist of five (5) members appointed by the mayor with the consent of the city council. Each member of the board shall be a freeholder and a qualified voter. The membership of the first board shall serve respectively, one (1) for one (1) year, one (1) for two (2) years, one (1) for three (3) years, one (1) for four (4) years, and one (1) for five (5) years. Thereafter members shall be appointed for terms of five (5) years each. All members shall be removable for cause by the appointing authority, upon written charges and after public hearings. Vacancies shall be filled for the unexpired term of any member whose term becomes vacant.

(b)

Organization. The board shall elect its own chairman, who shall serve for one (1) year. The director-secretary of the zoning commission shall serve as the secretary of the board of zoning adjustment but shall not be considered as a voting member of the board. It shall be the duty of the secretary to keep a true and correct record of all proceedings of the board.

(c)

Records. The board shall keep minutes of its proceedings and records of its examinations and other official actions. The minutes of the board shall show the vote of each member upon each question, or, if failing to vote, indicating that fact. All minutes and records shall be filed immediately in the office of the board and shall be public records. Certified copies of all decisions of the board shall be furnished to the building inspector and the zoning commission.

(d)

General procedure. The board shall adopt rules of procedure not in conflict with any state act or parish or municipal ordinance. Meetings of the board shall be held at the call of the chairman and at such other times as the board may determine. The chairman, or in his absence the acting chairman, may administer oaths and compel the attendance of witnesses. All meetings of the board shall be open to the public. All testimony presented at a public hearing, objections thereto, and rulings thereon shall be taken down by a reporter. In exercising its powers and duties, the board may reserve or affirm wholly or partly, or may modify the order, requirement, decision, or determination appealed from and may make such order, requirement, decision, or determination as should be made, and to that end shall have all the powers of the building inspector. The concurring vote of four (4) members of the board shall be necessary to reverse any order, requirement, decision, or determination of the building inspector, or to decide in favor of the applicant on any matter upon which it is required to pass under any such ordinance, or to affect any variance of an ordinance.

(e)

Appeals . Appeals to the board may be taken by any party aggrieved, or by any officer, department, commission, board, bureau, or other agency of the incorporated area affected by any decision of the building inspector. The appeal shall be taken within a reasonable time, by filing with the building inspector and with the board a notice of appeal specifying the grounds thereof. The building inspector shall forthwith transmit to the board all the papers constituting the record upon which the action appealed from was taken. An appeal stays all proceedings in furtherance of the action appealed from, unless the building inspector certifies to the board of adjustment after the notice of appeal shall have been filed with him, that, by reason of facts stated in the certificate, a stay would, in his opinion, cause imminent peril of life or property. In such case, proceedings shall not be stayed otherwise than by a restraining order which may be granted by the board of adjustment or by a court of record in application or notice to the building inspector and on due cause shown. The board of adjustment shall fix a reasonable time for the hearing of the appeal, give public notice thereof, as well as due notice to the interested parties, and decide the appeal within a reasonable time. Upon the hearing any party may appear in person or by agent or attorney.

(f)

Powers and duties. The board of zoning adjustment shall have the following powers and it shall be its duty:

(1)

To hear and decide appeals involving the interpretation of any provision of this chapter or where it is alleged there is error in any order, requirement, decision, or determination made by the building inspector in the enforcement of this chapter.

(2)

In hearing and deciding appeals the board shall have the power to grant exceptions in the following instances:

a.

Where a district boundary line divides a lot in single or joint ownership of record at the time the line is adopted, permit the less restricted portion of the lot to extend not more than thirty (30) feet into the more restricted portion; provided the lot has frontage on a street in the less restricted district;

b.

Interpret the provisions of this chapter in such a way as to carry out the intent and purpose of the plan, as shown upon the zoning district map, where the district boundaries are uncertain, or where the street layout actually on the ground varies from the street layout as shown on the district map;

c.

Permit the erection and use of a building or the use of land for railroads or public utility purposes;

d.

Permit unenclosed roadside stands for the sale of products raised on the premises, commercial amusements, or recreational developments for temporary or seasonal periods;

e.

Permit temporary buildings, that are used in conjunction with construction work only, in any district during the period that construction work is in progress, but such temporary buildings shall be removed upon completion of the construction work; or

f.

Permit land in an R-3 single-family residential district within three hundred (300) feet of a use permitted in an R-M multi-family residential district to be improved for the parking spaces required in connection with the permitted use but only when there is positive assurance that the land will be used for such purpose during the existence of the permitted use.

No exception shall be granted by the board of adjustment unless it finds that the use for which such exception is sought will not, in the circumstances of the particular case and under any conditions that the board considers to be necessary or desirable, be injurious to the neighborhood or otherwise detrimental to the public welfare.

(3)

To vary or adopt the strict application of the yard requirements or height restrictions, or parking regulations in the case of exceptionally irregular, narrow, shallow, or steep lots, or other exceptional physical conditions, whereby such strict application would deprive the owner of the reasonable use of the land in accordance with the use regulations of this chapter; to waive or reduce the parking requirements whenever the use of a building or land is so extraordinary as to make unnecessary the full provision of parking facilities, or whenever it can be shown that provision of required off street parking space within three hundred (300) feet of the main building is not feasible and would impose an unreasonable hardship as contrasted with merely granting an advantage or a convenience.

a.

In granting any variance, the board of adjustment shall prescribe any conditions that it deems to be necessary or desirable.

b.

No variance shall be granted by the board of adjustment unless it finds:

1.

That there are special circumstances or conditions, fully described in the findings, applying to the land or building for which the variance is sought, which circumstances or conditions are peculiar to the land or buildings and do not apply generally to land or buildings in the neighborhood, and that the circumstances or conditions are such that the strict application of the provisions of this chapter would deprive the applicant of the reasonable use of the land or building.

2.

That, for reasons fully set forth in the findings, the granting of the variance is necessary for the reasonable use of the land, or building and that the variance as granted by the board is the minimum variance that will accomplish this purpose.

3.

That the granting of the variance will be in harmony with the general purpose and intent of this chapter and will not be injurious to the neighborhood or otherwise detrimental to the public welfare.

(g)

Court review. Any person or persons, or any officer, department, commission, board, bureau, or any other agency of the incorporated area jointly or severally aggrieved by any decision of the board of zoning adjustment, may present to the Civil District Court of the Parish of Calcasieu, within thirty (30) days after filing for the decision in the office of the board, a petition asking for relief and under the rules and regulations as are provided for such matters in appropriate legislation of the State of Louisiana.

(h)

Fees. A fee of fifteen dollars ($15.00) shall be paid to the building inspector at the time the notice of appeal is filed, which the inspector shall forthwith pay over to the city revenue department to the credit of the general revenue fund of the zoning commission.

(i)

Responsibilities in zoning administration.

(1)

Local legislative body.

a.

Receives proposed zoning ordinance from zoning commission;

b.

May hold public hearing;

c.

Adopts zoning ordinance;

d.

Submits amendment proposal to zoning commission;

e.

Receives recommendations of zoning commission on all proposed amendments to zoning ordinance; and

f.

Adopts zoning amendments.

(2)

Zoning commission.

a.

Prepares proposed zoning ordinance;

b.

Conducts public hearings;

c.

Recommends ordinance to legislative body;

d.

Accepts applications for amendments to zoning ordinance;

e.

Processes all proposed amendments, including public hearings and recommendations to legislative body; and

f.

Assists building inspector and board of adjustment.

(3)

Building inspector.

a.

Receives applications for certificates of compliance;

b.

Issues or refuses permits in accordance with ordinances;

c.

Inspects property;

d.

Issues final certificates of compliance; and

e.

Accepts applications for appeal to board of zoning adjustment.

(4)

Board of zoning adjustment.

a.

Accepts appeals from building inspector's decisions;

b.

Renders decisions within scope and intent of ordinance or interpretation and application of zoning ordinance, special exceptions, and zone adjustments; and

c.

Decisions may be appealed for court review.

(Ord. No. 186, 10/10/68, Art. IX)