Ridgecrest Municipal Code § 106-212 Public hearing procedure

The planning commission is hereby empowered to grant variances in order to lessen practical difficulties and unnecessary hardships inconsistent with the objectives of the zoning ordinance (this chapter) which would result from a strict or literal interpretation and enforcement of the regulations prescribed by this chapter. A practical difficulty or unnecessary physical hardship may result from the existing size, shape or dimensions of a site or the location of existing structures thereon from geographic, topographic or other physical conditions on the site or in the immediate vicinity, or from population densities, street locations or traffic conditions in the immediate vicinity. The power to grant variances shall not extend to use regulations.

(Code 1980, § 20-24.1; Ord. No. 84-08, A 24, § 2401)

The planning commission may grant variances to the regulations prescribed by this chapter with respect to fences and walls, site area, width, frontage, depth, coverage, front yard, rear yard, side yards, height of structures, distances between structures, off-street parking facilities and off-street loading facilities, in accordance with the procedure prescribed in this division.

(Code 1980, § 20-24.2; Ord. No. 84-08, A 24, § 2402)

Application for a variance shall be made to the planning commission, accompanied by a fee as set by the city council, on a form prescribed by the planning commission which shall include the following data:

(1) Name and address of the applicant;

(2) Signature of the owner and a statement that the applicant is the owner of the property or is the authorized agent of the owner;

(3) Address and legal description of the property;

(4) A concise statement of the precise nature of the variance requested, showing the practical difficulty or unnecessary physical hardship that is inconsistent with the objectives of the zoning ordinance (this chapter), together with any other data pertinent to the findings prerequisite to the granting of a variance prescribed in section 106-214;

(5) The application shall be accompanied by a site plan which shall comply with the provisions of division 4 of this article;

(6) The application shall be filed with the secretary of the planning commission and shall be considered by the planning commission within 60 days following the filing date. The secretary of the planning commission shall give notice to the applicant of the time when the application will be considered, and he may give notice of the time to any other interested party.

(Code 1980, § 20-24.3; Ord. No. 84-08, A 24, § 2403)

The planning commission shall hold a public hearing in accordance with the provisions of sections 106-128 and 106-129.

(Code 1980, § 20-24.4; Ord. No. 84-08, A 24, § 2404)

At a public hearing, the planning commission shall review the application and the statements and drawings submitted therewith and shall receive pertinent evidence concerning the variance, particularly with respect to the findings prescribed in section 106-214.

(Code 1980, § 20-24.5; Ord. No. 84-08, A 24, § 2405)

The secretary to the planning commission shall make an investigation and shall prepare a report thereon in accordance with the provisions of section 106-130.

(Code 1980, § 20-24.6; Ord. No. 84-08, A 24, § 2406)

(a) The planning commission may grant a variance to a regulation prescribed by this division as applied for or in a modified form, if, on the basis of the application, investigation and evidence submitted, the commission makes all the following findings:

(1) That strict or literal interpretation and enforcement of the specified regulation would result in practical difficulty or unnecessary physical hardship inconsistent with the objectives of the zoning ordinance (this chapter).

(2) That there are exceptional or extraordinary circumstances or conditions applicable to the property involved or to the intended use of the property which do not apply generally to other properties classified in the same zoning district.

(3) That strict or literal interpretation and enforcement of the specified regulations would deprive the applicant of privileges enjoyed by the owners of other properties classified in the same zoning district.

(4) That the granting of the variance will not constitute a grant of special privilege inconsistent with the limitations on other properties classified in the same zoning district.

(5) That the granting of the variance will not be detrimental to the public health, safety or welfare, or materially injurious to properties or improvements in the vicinity.

(b) The planning commission may grant a variance to a regulation prescribed by this division with respect to off-street parking facilities or off-street loading facilities as the variance was applied for or in modified form, if, on the basis of the application, investigation and the evidence submitted, the commission makes the findings prescribed in subsection (a) of this section and the following additional findings:

(1) That the granting of the variances will not result in the parking or loading of vehicles on public streets in such a manner as to interfere with the free flow of traffic on the streets.

(2) That the granting of the variance will not create a safety hazard or any other condition inconsistent with the objectives of the zoning ordinance (this chapter).

(c) A variance may be revocable, may be granted for a limited time period, or may be granted subject to such conditions as the planning commission may prescribe. The planning commission may deny a variance application.

(d) A variance shall become effective upon the expiration of five working days following the date on which the variance was granted unless an appeal has been taken to the city council in accordance with section 106-134.

(Code 1980, § 20-24.7; Ord. No. 84-85, A 24, § 2407; Ord. No. 86-06, § 38)

A variance shall lapse and shall become void one year following the date on which the variance becomes effective unless, by conditions of the variance, a greater time is allowed, or unless prior to the expiration of one year, a building permit is issued by the building official and construction is commenced and diligently pursued toward completion on the site, or the permit or entitlement is executed which was the subject of the variance application.

(Code 1980, § 20-24.8; Ord. No. 84-08, A 24, § 2408)

Following the denial of a variance application, no application for the same or substantially the same variance on the same or substantially the same site shall be filed within one year of the date of denial of the variance application or revocation of the variance.

(Code 1980, § 20-24.9; Ord. No. 84-08, A 24, § 2409)