[CC 1976 §430.010; Ord. No. 1151 §15.10, 1-23-1974; Ord. No. 1940 §2, 5-10-1994]
A.
A Board
of Adjustment is hereby established. The word "Board", when used in this Section, shall be construed to mean the Board
of Adjustment. The Board shall consist of five (5) members; all of
whom shall be residents appointed by the Mayor and approved by the
Board of Aldermen. The term of office of the members of the Board
shall be for five (5) years. Vacancies shall be filled for the unexpired
term only. Members shall be removable for cause by the Board of Aldermen
upon written charges and after hearing. No member of the Board of
Adjustment shall be an employee or a member of any other board, agency,
department or governing body of the City.
B.
The
Board shall elect its own Chairman and Vice-Chairman who shall serve
for one (1) year. The Board shall adopt from time to time, such rules
and regulations as it may deem necessary to carry into effect the
provisions of this title.
[CC 1976 §430.020; Ord. No. 1151 §15.20, 1-23-1974]
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/her absence the Acting Chairman, may administer oaths and
compel the attendance of witnesses. All meetings of the Board shall
be open to the public. 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. All
testimony, objections thereto, and rulings thereon, shall be taken
down by a reporter employed by the Board for that purpose.
[CC 1976 §430.030; Ord. No. 1151 §15.30, 1-23-1974; Ord. No. 2329 §1(a), 11-25-2002]
A.
Appeals
to the Board may be taken by any person aggrieved or by an officer,
department, any board, other than the Board of Adjustment, or bureau
of the City of Shrewsbury affected by any decision of the City Engineer,
Building Commissioner, or other official or agency relating to zoning
or building. Such appeal shall be taken within a reasonable time,
as shall be prescribed by the Board by general rule, by filing with
the Building Commissioner and with the Board, a notice of appeal specifying
the grounds thereof. The Building Commissioner shall forthwith transmit
to the Board, all the papers constituting the record upon which the
action appealed from is taken.
B.
An
appeal stays all proceedings in furtherance of the action appealed
from, unless the Building Commissioner certifies to the Board after
the notice of appeal shall have been filed with him/her that by reason
of facts stated in the certificate, a stay would, in his/her opinion,
cause immediate peril to life or property. In such case, proceedings
shall not be stayed otherwise than by a restraining order which may
be granted by the Board or by a court of record on application or
notice to the officer from whom the appeal is taken and on due cause
shown.
C.
The
Board shall fix a reasonable time for the hearing of the appeal, give
not less than five (5) days public notice of the date, time and place
thereof in an official newspaper or a newspaper of general circulation
in the City, as well as due notice to the parties in interest, and
decide the same within a reasonable time. Upon the hearing, any party
may appear in person or by agent or by attorney.
D.
The
concurring vote of four (4) members of the Board of Adjustment shall
be necessary to reverse any order, requirements, decision or the determination
of the Zoning Administrator or to decide in favor of the applicant
on any matter upon which it is required to pass under this Chapter
or to affect any variance. The Board of Adjustment shall give written
notice of any decision in any appeal before the Board to each party
and to the City's Director of Administration, or his or her designee,
within a reasonable period of time after rendering such decision.
The Director of Administration, or his or her designee, shall further
provide the Mayor and Board of Aldermen with notice of said decision.
[Ord. No. 2964, 6-11-2019]
E.
Charges. At the time of filing of an appeal the appellant
shall pay a fee of twenty dollars ($20.00) to the City Clerk. Further,
if it appears necessary to the Board that a reporter be employed for
the purpose of recording testimony or for other purposes in connection
with a hearing, prior to said hearing fifty dollars ($50.00) shall
be deposited with the City Clerk by the appellant to cover all costs
in connection with such reporter.
Any monies remaining after deduction of said costs from such
deposit will be refunded to the appellant. However, should said costs
exceed fifty dollars ($50.00), the appellant shall pay to the City
Clerk the additional costs involved.
[CC 1976 §430.040; Ord. No. 1151 §15.40, 1-23-1974]
A.
The
Board of Adjustment shall have the following powers and may grant
variances only in the following instances and no others:
1.
To hear and decide appeals in which it is alleged there is error
in any order, requirement, decision, or determination made by the
City Engineer, Building Commissioner, administrative or other official
agency in the enforcement of this Title.
2.
To permit the reconstruction within twelve (12) months of a non-conforming
building which has been damaged by explosion, fire, act of God, or
public enemy, to the extent of more than sixty percent (60%) of its
assessed value, where the Board finds some compelling public necessity
requiring a continuance of the non-conforming use, and the primary
purpose of continuing the non-conforming use is not to continue a
monopoly.
3.
To authorize upon appeal, whenever a property owner can show that
a strict application of the terms of this Title relating to the construction
or alteration of buildings or structures, or the use of land will
impose upon him/her practical difficulties or unnecessary hardship,
such variances from the strict application of the terms of this Title
as are in harmony with its general intent and purpose, but only when
the Board is satisfied that a granting of such variance will not merely
serve as a convenience to the applicant, but will alleviate some demonstrable
and unusual hardship or difficulty so great as to warrant a variance
from the comprehensive plan as established by this Title, and at the
same time, the surrounding property will be properly protected.
4.
To permit a temporary building for business or industry in any district
for a use otherwise excluded from such district, provided the use
is incidental to the development of that district; such permit to
be for a period of not more than one (1) year.
5.
To permit the enlargement of a building in a Business District or
any Industrial District, for a use otherwise excluded from such district,
provided such enlargement and use are distinctly incidental and essential
to a use permitted in such district, provided such incidental building
and its enlargement or use occupy not more than ten percent (10%)
of the lot, that not more than ten percent (10%) of the employees
of the building or plant are to be engaged therein, and provided that
such building or use is not located within fifty (50) feet of any
street or Residential District.
6.
To permit the extension of a district where the boundary line of
a district divides a lot in single ownership as shown on record prior
to the date of passage of this Title.
7.
To permit a front yard, a side yard, or a rear yard, less than that
required by this Title.
8.
To permit a building to exceed the height limit by not more than
ten percent (10%) of the height limit established by this Title.
9.
To permit the use of a lot less than the area required by this Title.
10.
To permit the use of a lot for a use otherwise prohibited solely
because of the insufficient width of the lot.
11.
To reduce the applicable off-street parking or loading facilities
required by not more than one (1) parking space or loading berth,
or ten percent (10%) of the required number, whichever is greater.
12.
To increase by not more than twenty-five percent (25%) the maximum
distance that required parking spaces are permitted to be located
from the use served.
13.
To permit the same off-street parking facilities to qualify as a
required facility for two (2) or more uses, provided that use of such
facility by each user does not take place at the same hours of the
same days of the week.
14.
To have all the powers conferred upon the Board of Adjustment by
the Revised Statutes of Missouri.
[CC 1976 §430.050; Ord 1151 §15.50, 1-23-74]
In exercising the above powers, the Board may reverse 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 ought to be made, and to that end, shall
have all the powers of the administrative official from whom the appeal
is taken.
[CC 1976 §430.060; Ord. No. 1151 §15.60, 1-23-1974; Ord. No. 2329 §1(b), 11-25-2002]
A.
The
Board of Adjustment shall not grant a variation as authorized in this
Section unless it shall, in each case, make specific written findings
of fact directly based upon the particular evidence presented to it
that support all of the following conclusions:
1.
The variation requested arises from a condition which is unique to
the property in question and which is not ordinarily found in the
same zoning district and is not created by an action or actions of
the property owner or the applicant;
2.
The granting of the variation shall not adversely affect the rights
of adjacent property owners or residents;
3.
The strict application of the provisions of this Chapter from which
a variation is requested will cause severe practical difficulty or
extreme hardship for the property owner represented in the application;
4.
The variation desired will not adversely affect the public health,
safety, order, convenience or general welfare of the community;
5.
Granting the variation desired will not violate the general spirit
and intent of this Title.
B.
The
Board of Adjustment may impose such conditions and restrictions upon
the premises benefitted by a variance as may be necessary to prevent
injurious effects therefrom upon other property in the neighborhood,
and better to carry out the general intent of this Title.
[Ord. No. 2329 §1(c), 11-25-2002]
A.
In determining whether the evidence presented supports all of the conclusions required by Section 430.060, the Board of Adjustment shall consider the extent to which the evidence demonstrates that:
1.
The particular physical surroundings, shape or topographical conditions
of the property involved would result in a severe practical difficulty
or extreme hardship upon or for the owner, lessee, or occupant, if
the provisions of the Chapter were literally enforced;
2.
The request for a variation is not based exclusively upon the desire
of the owner, lessee, occupant or applicant to secure a greater financial
return from the property;
3.
The granting of the variation will not be materially detrimental
or injurious to other property or improvements in the neighborhood
in which the property is located;
4.
The proposed variation will not impair an adequate supply of light
to adjacent property, substantially increase the congestion in the
public streets, increase the danger of fire, endanger the public safety
or substantially diminish or impair property values within the neighborhood.
[CC 1976 §430.070; Ord. No. 1151 §15.70, 1-23-1974]
A.
Any
person or persons jointly or severally aggrieved by any decision of
the Board of Adjustment may present to the Circuit Court having jurisdiction
in St. Louis County, a petition, duly verified, stating that such
decision is illegal in whole or in part specifying the grounds of
the illegality and asking for relief therefrom. Such petition shall
be presented to the court within thirty (30) days after receipt of
notice of the decision of the Board.
B.
Costs
shall not be allowed against the Board in any such action unless it
shall appear to the court that it acted with gross negligence or in
bad faith, or with malice in making the decision appealed from.
