[Ord. No. 913, 8/11/2008, §§ 7.00 and 7.01, as amended by Ord. No. 999, 9/16/2019]
1. Requests for variances shall be considered by the Town of Bloomsburg Zoning Hearing Board in accordance with the procedures contained in §
8-212 and the following:
A. No variance shall be granted for any construction, development, use,
or activity within any floodway which would cause any increase in
BFE.
B. No variance shall be granted for any construction, development, use,
or activity within any AE Area/District without floodway that would,
together with all other existing and anticipated development, increase
the BFE more than one foot at any point.
C. Except for a possible modification of the regulatory flood elevation, and/or any other elevations required by this chapter, no variance shall be granted for any of the other requirements pertaining specifically to development regulated by special permit (Part
5) or to development which may endanger human life (§
8-404).
D. No variances shall be granted for a proposed accessory structure
that exceeds 600 square feet in size. A signed nonconversion agreement
is required as a condition of receiving the variance.
E. If granted, a variance shall involve only the least modification
necessary to provide relief.
F. In granting any variance, the Town of Bloomsburg Zoning Hearing Board
shall attach whatever reasonable conditions and safeguards it considers
necessary in order to protect the public health, safety, and welfare
and to achieve the objectives of this chapter.
G. Whenever a variance is granted, the floodplain administrator shall
notify the applicant in writing that:
(1)
The granting of the variance may result in increased premium
rates for flood insurance.
(2)
Such variances may increase the risks to life and property.
H. In reviewing any request for a variance, the Town of Bloomsburg Zoning
Hearing Board shall consider, at a minimum, the following:
(1)
That there is good and sufficient cause.
(2)
That failure to grant the variance would result in exceptional
hardship to the applicant.
(3)
That the granting of the variance will neither result in an
unacceptable or prohibited increase in flood heights, additional threats
to public safety, or extraordinary public expense, nor create nuisances,
cause fraud on, or victimize the public, or conflict with any other
applicable state or local ordinances and regulations.
I. A complete record of all variance requests and related actions shall
be maintained by the floodplain administrator. In addition, a report
of all variances granted during the year shall be included in the
annual report to the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
2. Notwithstanding any of the above, however, all structures shall be
designed and constructed so as to have the capability of resisting
the one-percent flood.
3. Applications for variance shall be accompanied by a fee payable to
the Town of Bloomsburg in an amount as established by resolution of
the Town Council of the Town of Bloomsburg from time to time, and
a hearing will be held before Town Council in accordance with the
provisions of the Local Agency Act.