(a)

One appointed body serving as two boards. A single appointed body shall perform the duties of both the planning board and the board of adjustment. The planning board of adjustment shall hold regular meetings according to the posted schedule. The agenda for the planning board of adjustment shall be made available to the general public and shall identify planning board cases and board of adjustment cases separately.

(b)

Composition. The planning board of adjustment shall consist of seven members when serving as the planning board, and five regular members with two alternate members when serving as the board of adjustment. All appointments shall be made by Woodfin Town Council, with all appointments serving staggered three-year terms. The members of the planning board of adjustment shall be residents of the town and must take an oath of office prior to commencing duties.

(c)

Conflicts of interest. Members of the board shall not vote on any advisory, legislative, or quasi-judicial decision where the outcome of the matter being considered is reasonably likely to have a direct, substantial, and readily identifiable financial impact on the member. Members shall not vote on any zoning map amendment if the landowner of the property subject to a rezoning petition or the applicant for a zoning text amendment is a person with whom the member has a close familial, business, or other associational relationship.

If an objection is raised to a board member's participation at or prior to the hearing or vote on a particular matter and that member does not recuse themselves the remaining members of the board shall by majority vote rule on the objection.

(d)

Planning board.

(1)

Proceedings. A quorum shall consist of four members for the purpose of taking an official action required by the ordinance. All meetings of the planning board shall be open to the public.

(2)

Powers and duties. In addition to its powers and duties under the subdivision ordinance, it shall be the duty of the planning board to:

a.

Prepare and recommend a comprehensive plan to the town council, and to conduct ongoing related research, data collection, mapping and analysis.

b.

Facilitate and coordinate citizen engagement and participation in the planning process.

c.

Advise the town council on all zoning text and map amendments with review and comment.

d.

Develop and recommend policies, ordinances, development regulations and other means of carrying out plans.

e.

Review all major subdivision plats and make recommendations to the town council, as necessary.

f.

Perform any other duties that the governing board may direct.

(3)

Zoning text and map amendments. Every proposed amendment, supplement, change, modification, or repeal to this article shall be referred to the planning board for its recommendation and report. Any development regulation other than a zoning regulation may be referred to the planning board for review and comment. All petitions for a change in the zoning map shall include a legal description of the property involved and the names and addresses of current abutting property owners.

a.

Notice requirements. The owners of affected parcels of land and the owners of all parcels of land abutting that parcel of land, including properties separated by a street, railroad, or other transportation corridor, shall be mailed a notice of the hearing on a proposed zoning map amendment by first-class mail at the last address listed for such owners on the county tax abstracts. The notice must be deposited in the mail at least ten but not more than 25 days prior to the date of the hearing. In addition, notice of the hearing shall be prominently posted on the site proposed for the amendment or on an adjacent public street or highway right-of-way within the same time period specified for mailed notices.

1.

Optional notice for large-scale rezoning. If the zoning map amendment directly affects more than 50 properties, owned by a total of at least 50 different property owners, the town may elect to either make the mailed notice provided for in subsection (a) of this section or may as an alternative elect to publish notice of the hearing, as required by G.S. 160D-602, but, provided that each advertisement shall not be less than one-half of a newspaper page in size. The advertisement shall only be effective for property owners who reside in the area of general circulation of the newspaper which publishes the notice. Property owners who reside outside of the newspaper circulation area, according to the address listed on the most recent property tax listing for the affected property, shall be notified according to the provisions of subsection (b) of this section.

b.

Plan consistency. When conducting a review of proposed zoning text or map amendments pursuant to this section, the planning board shall advise and comment on whether the proposed action is consistent with any comprehensive plan that has been adopted. The planning board shall provide a written recommendation to the governing board that addresses plan consistency.

c.

Governing board review. If no written report is received from the planning board within 30 days of referral of the amendment, the governing board may act on the amendment without the planning board report. When adopting or rejecting any zoning text or map amendment, the governing board shall approve a brief statement describing whether its action is consistent or inconsistent with an adopted comprehensive plan and the minutes should provide that the governing board was aware of and considered the planning board's recommendation.

d.

Citizen comments. Citizen comments and amendments in zoning ordinances may follow the provisions of G.S. 160D-603.

(e)

Board of adjustment.

(1)

Proceedings.

a.

A quorum shall consist of three members of the board of adjustment, but the board shall not decide, upon any question relating to an application for a variance when there are less than four members present.

1.

After receipt of notice of appeal, variance, special use, or other matters requiring a hearing before the board, staff shall schedule a hearing which shall be at a regular or special meeting within a reasonable time from the filing of such notice. Any party may appear in person or by agent or by attorney at the hearing.

2.

Staff shall transmit to the board all applications, reports and written materials relevant to the matter being considered. The materials shall become part of the hearing record and may be provided in written or electronic form. At the same time they are distributed to the board a copy shall also be provided to the applicant and to the landowner if that person is not the applicant.

3.

The applicant, local government and any person who would have standing to appeal the decision shall have the right to participate as a party at the hearing. Other witnesses may present competent, material, and substantial evidence that is not repetitive as allowed by the board.

4.

Objections to administrative materials or jurisdictional issues, may be made to the board. The board chair shall rule on any objections and the chair's rulings may be appealed to the full board.

5.

The chair to the board and the clerk to the board are authorized to administer oaths to witnesses in any matter coming before the board.

(2)

Powers and duties of the board. The board of adjustment shall have the authority to rule on matters of interpretation of this ordinance, consider appeals from decisions of the zoning administrator, issue special use permits, grant variances and perform other duties as defined in this ordinance. Any appeal from a decision of the board of adjustment shall be subject to review by the superior court pursuant to G.S. 160D-1402.

a.

Variances. When unnecessary hardships would result from carrying out the strict letter of a zoning regulation, the board of adjustment shall vary any of the provisions of the zoning regulation upon a showing of all of the following:

1.

Unnecessary hardship would result from the strict application of the regulation. It is not necessary to demonstrate that, in the absence of the variance, no reasonable use can be made of the property.

2.

The hardship results from conditions that are peculiar to the property, such as location, size, or topography. Hardships resulting from personal circumstances, as well as hardships resulting from conditions that are common to the neighborhood or the general public, may not be the basis for granting a variance. A variance may be granted when necessary and appropriate to make a reasonable accommodation under the Federal Fair Housing Act for a person with a disability.

3.

The hardship did not result from actions taken by the applicant or the property owner. The act of purchasing property with knowledge that circumstances exist that may justify the granting of a variance is not a self-created hardship.

4.

The requested variance is consistent with the spirit, purpose, and intent of the regulation, such that public safety is secured and substantial justice is achieved.

b.

Special use permits. It shall be the duty of the board to decide requests for permits for special uses and grant them in particular cases and subject to appropriate conditions and safeguards, where they meet the findings listed in this section. The uses permitted only as a special use are identified with a "S" in the permitted uses table, located in Appendix A. In addition, the board of adjustment shall find the following to exist:

1.

The establishment, maintenance, or operation of the special use will not be detrimental to or endanger the public health, safety, morals, comfort, or general welfare;

2.

The special uses will not be injurious to the use and enjoyment of other property in the immediate vicinity for the purposes already permitted nor substantially diminish and impair property values within the neighborhood;

3.

The establishment of the special use will be in harmony with or compatible with its neighbors and generally consistent with the comprehensive plan; and

4.

Adequate utilities, access roads, drainage, and or other necessary facilities have been or are being provided;

5.

Adequate measures have been or will be taken to provide ingress and egress so designed as to minimize traffic congestion in the public streets; and

6.

The special use shall, in all other respects, conform to the applicable regulations of the district in which it is located.

In granting such a permit, the board of adjustment may designate such conditions in connection therewith as will, in its opinion, are reasonable and appropriate to ensure that the proposed use will conform to the requirements and spirit of this chapter, but only those conditions consented to by the petitioner in writing may be incorporated into the zoning regulations. If at any time after a special use permit has been issued the zoning administrator finds that the conditions imposed and agreements made have not been or are not being fulfilled by the holder of a special use permit, a zoning violation notice shall be issued to the permit holder. Upon issuance of a zoning violation notice, the permit shall be terminated and the operation of such use discontinued. If a special use permit is terminated for any reason, it may be reinstated only after a public hearing is held.

c.

Appeals. The board shall hear and decide all appeals from and review any order, requirement, decision or determination made by the zoning administrator. It shall also hear and decide upon all matters referred to it or upon which it is required to pass, in accordance with zoning ordinance of the town. No appeal shall be heard by the board unless notice thereof is filed within 30 days after the interested party receives notice of the order, requirements, decision or determination by the zoning administrator.

(3)

General process and duties.

a.

It is the intention of this article that:

1.

All questions arising in connection with the enforcement of this article shall be presented first to the zoning administrator.

2.

Such questions shall be presented to the board of adjustment only on appeal from the zoning administrator.

3.

From the decision of the board of adjustment, recourse shall be to the courts as provided by law.

4.

The duties of the town council in connection with this article shall include considering and passing upon any proposed amendments or repeal of this article as provided by law.

b.

Notice. The board of adjustment shall mail a notice of hearing (i) to the party whose appeal, application, or request is the subject of the hearing; (ii) to the owner of the property that is the subject of the hearing; (iii) to the owners of all parcels of land within 150 feet, including properties separated from the subject property by street, railroad, or other transportation corridor, of land that is the subject of the hearing; and (iv) to any other persons entitled to receive notice under this chapter. The notice of hearing must be deposited in the mail at least ten days, but not more than 25 days, prior to the date of the hearing. The town shall also prominently post a notice of the hearing on the property that is the subject of the hearing or on an adjacent street right-of-way at least ten days, but not more than 25 days, prior to the date of the hearing.

c.

Decisions. Every quasi-judicial decision shall be based upon competent, material, and substantial evidence in the record, and shall be made within a reasonable time. The decision shall be reduced to writing and shall reflect the board's determination of contested facts and their application to the applicable standards, and be signed by the chair. The written decision shall be given to the applicant by first-class mail, electronic mail or personal delivery as soon as practicable after the case is decided. Also, written notice shall be given to owners of the subject property and to other persons who have made written request for such notice.

1.

Where a variance is granted, the concurring vote of four out of five of the total members shall be necessary. The record shall state in detail any exceptional difficulty or unnecessary hardship upon which the appeal was based and which the board finds to exist.

2.

When hearing an appeal, the decision may reverse or affirm, wholly or partly, or modify the decision which was appealed from.

3.

Where a special use is granted, the record shall state in detail any facts supporting the findings required to be made prior to the issuance of such permit. The record shall state in detail what, if any, conditions and safeguard are imposed by the board in connection with the decision.

The decisions of the board, as filed in its minutes, shall be a public record available for inspection at all reasonable times.

Unless otherwise specified, any order or decision of the board granting a special use or variance shall expire if a building permit or certificate of occupancy for such use is not obtained by the applicant within two years from the date of the decision.

d.

Reapplication. An application for a rehearing may be made in the same manner as provided for an original hearing. Evidence in support of the application shall initially be limited to that which is necessary to enable the board to determine whether there has been a substantial change in the facts, evidence, or conditions in the case. The application for rehearing shall be denied by the board if from the record it finds that there has been no substantial change in facts, evidence or conditions. If the board finds that there has been a change, it shall thereupon treat the request in the same manner as any other application.

e.

Appeals of board decision. Appeals from the board of adjustment decision may be taken to the superior court pursuant to G.S. 160D-406(k).

(Ord. of 5-18-2021; Ord. No. 2023-010, § 1, 4-18-2023, eff. 5-17-2023)