[Ord. No. 5814 §1(7.1), 4-27-2004]
A. 
In order to assure that construction/renovation activities are of high quality design and materials and in general conformity with the style and design of surrounding structures, an Architectural Review Board has been established. The Architectural Review Board will conduct design and material reviews of additions, alterations and improvements to existing structures, buildings and properties and will also review the design, material and compatibility of new construction within the City of Clayton. The goals of the Architectural Review Board are as follows:
1. 
To assure the continued and long-term quality of Clayton's housing stock by adoption of architectural review guidelines for residential construction;
2. 
To encourage high quality development, both residential and commercial, and to discourage poor exterior design, appearance and inferior quality that is likely to have a depreciating effect on the local environment and surrounding area;
3. 
To enhance the beauty, livability and prosperity of the community;
4. 
To encourage originality, creativity and diversity in design and to avoid monotony;
5. 
To preserve greenspace by requiring the preservation/replacement of existing trees and enhanced landscaping; and
6. 
To ensure residential design that is compatible with the character inherent within the surrounding neighborhood.
[Ord. No. 5814 §1(7.2), 4-27-2004; Ord. No. 6976, 11-11-2025]
The Architectural Review Board shall consist of seven (7) members appointed by the City Council, one (1) of whom shall be a member of the City Council appointed annually. The other six (6) members shall be residents of the City, who shall be appointed for terms of three (3) years, except that of the members first (1st) appointed, two (2) shall be appointed to serve for one (1) year, two (2) for two (2) years and one (1) for three (3) years. At least one (1) member shall be a registered architect. The City Council shall fill vacancies for any unexpired term. The Architectural Review Board shall elect its own Chairperson and other officers annually.
[Ord. No. 5814 §1(7.3), 4-27-2004; Ord. No. 6962, 10-28-2025]
A. 
Meetings to consider applications may be held in conjunction with the regularly scheduled meetings of the City Plan Commission or at any other time deemed necessary by the Chairperson. All meetings shall be open to the public, unless closed pursuant to State law. The Architectural Review Board shall keep a written record in the form of minutes of each meeting, depicting the discussion of the Board and the vote of each member present upon each agenda item. Absences and failure to vote shall also be noted for the record. Copies of minutes and materials used by the Architectural Review Board shall be kept on file in the office of the Department of Planning and Development Services. All notification requirements, public meetings and/or hearings and availability for examination of records related to actions by the Architectural Review Board shall conform with existing Federal, State and local laws.
B. 
Addressing The Architectural Review Board. Only an applicant or designated representative for a particular business matter may address the Architectural Review Board for a maximum of ten (10) minutes while the Architectural Review Board is considering such business matters. Any other persons may not speak on such business matters without first securing the permission of the officer presiding to do so. All speakers after the initial applicant presentation will be limited to three (3) minutes. Each person addressing the Architectural Review Board must complete and submit to the City staff a speaker card containing the speaker's name, residential address and the subject upon which the speaker desires to speak.
C. 
Written Communications. Interested parties or their authorized representatives are free to submit written communications to the members of the Architectural Review Board at any time. If such communications pertain to a matter then pending before the Board, and if such communications are sent to all members of the Board and the Director of Planning and Development Services and received before the Board has concluded its consideration of the matter, they will be included in the record of the proceedings.
[Ord. No. 5814 §1(7.4), 4-27-2004]
All proposed new construction, alterations, additions, renovations or signage affecting the exterior appearance of a building or property shall be submitted to and approved by the Architectural Review Board prior to the commencement of construction/installation.
[Ord. No. 5814 §1(7.5), 4-27-2004]
A. 
The City Manager shall have the authority to exclude from Architectural Review Board consideration minor alterations, installations, repairs and/or additions not substantially affecting the exterior appearance of the property. Minor exterior alterations considered for administrative review include, but are not limited to, the following:
1. 
Signage meeting the provisions of the sign ordinance;
2. 
Awning replacement;
3. 
Window replacement;
4. 
Facade changes not effecting the building's character;
5. 
Mechanical equipment screening;
6. 
Fences and retaining walls meeting the provisions of the Building Code;
7. 
Small additions less than seven hundred fifty (750) square feet;
8. 
Landscaping;
9. 
Surface parking lot expansion (twenty percent (20%) or less of the existing lot size) or reconfiguration;
10. 
Detached garages/porte-cocheres and carports designed for no more than two (2) automobiles.
B. 
The City Manager shall have the discretion to approve the construction/installation administratively or to refer the proposed project to the Architectural Review Board for their consideration.
[Ord. No. 5814 §1(7.6), 4-27-2004]
A. 
An application form for architectural review shall be completed and filed with the Department of Planning and Development Services. Application forms and a list of the required submittal materials are available at the office of Planning and Development Services during regular business hours.
B. 
The application document will provide a description of the project and plans and other pertinent information required for submittal by the applicant as part of the architectural review process.
[Ord. No. 5814 §1(7.7), 4-27-2004]
The applicant must submit one (1) original and thirteen (13) copies of the application and all required documentation to the Director of Planning and Development Services. At the time an application is filed, the applicant shall pay a fee as required by the fee schedule approved by the Board of Aldermen. The fee shall be paid to the City of Clayton to the credit of the General Revenue Fund of the City. Applications and all required documentation should be submitted twelve (12) days in advance of the Architectural Review Board meeting date in order to be considered for that Architectural Review Board agenda.
[Ord. No. 5814 §1(7.8), 4-27-2004]
Upon receipt of the architectural review application, plans and supporting documents, the Director of Planning and Development Services shall review the documents to determine completeness. If the Director determines the submittal is complete, then the submittal can be forwarded to the Architectural Review Board.
[Ord. No. 5814 §1(7.9), 4-27-2004]
A. 
The Architectural Review Board shall hear all applications for architectural review.
B. 
The Architectural Review Board may approve as submitted, approve with modifications or deny an application.
1. 
If the application is approved as submitted, the Director of Planning and Development Services or his/her designee may process an application for a building permit.
2. 
If the Architectural Review Board approves the application with modifications, the Director of Planning and Development Services or his/her designee shall issue a permit only after the applicant submits the appropriate revisions required by the Architectural Review Board.
C. 
All applications shall be promptly considered by the Architectural Review Board who shall render a decision no later than sixty (60) days from the date of the meeting at which the item first appears before the Architectural Review Board. Failure of the Architectural Review Board to make a decision within that time period will result in the application being deemed approved and shall make a decision of said Architectural Review Board unnecessary, unless said time period is extended by mutual agreement, in writing, of the Architectural Review Board and the applicant to allow further consideration.
[Ord. No. 5814 §1(7.10), 4-27-2004]
Approval shall be void unless a building permit has been issued within one (1) year from the date of approval. When Architectural Review Board approval coincides with a development approved by the Board of Aldermen as a planned unit development or pursuant to a conditional use permit, Architectural Review Board approval shall expire and become void upon expiration of the rights granted by the planned unit development or conditional use permit ordinance. A written request for an extension must be received by the Director of Planning and Development Services not less than forty-five (45) days prior to expiration of the original one (1) year period. The applicant shall bear the burden of providing just cause for delay, proof that the project remains the same and proof that no circumstances bearing on the suitability of the project have changed. Approval of a request for an extension is at the sole direction of the Architectural Review Board.
[Ord. No. 5814 §1(7.11), 4-27-2004]
In the event that the Architectural Review Board denies an application, no request for a hearing upon the same application or substantially similar application will be accepted for a period of at least one (1) year from date of denial by the Architectural Review Board.
[Ord. No. 5814 §1(7.12), 4-27-2004]
Building permits shall be issued in accordance with the approved architectural review plans. A copy of the approved plans shall be retained in the records of the office of the Department of Planning and Development Services and all building and occupancy permits issued by the Director of Planning or his/her designee shall conform to the provisions of the plans.
[Ord. No. 5814 §1(7.13), 4-27-2004]
An aggrieved party may, within fifteen (15) days of the decision for which redress is sought, file with the Board of Aldermen a written request for reconsideration and appeal of any decision of the Architectural Review Board under this Article. The written request must set forth in a concise manner the decision being appealed and all grounds known to the appellant as to wherein and why the decision is allegedly in error. The request for reconsideration and appeal must be filed with the City Clerk within the time specified above. A copy of the request and any supporting documents or materials filed by aggrieved party must be served by the aggrieved party on the applicant (if different than the aggrieved party) by certified U.S. mail, return receipt requested, within three (3) days of filing with the City Clerk. Proof of service on the applicant must be filed with the City Clerk within six (6) days of filing of the request. The Board of Aldermen may consider the appeal on the record of the prior decision by the Architectural Review Board or may, at its sole discretion, receive additional evidence in such manner as it deems appropriate in light of the circumstances.
[Ord. No. 5814 §1(7.14), 4-27-2004]
The Board of Aldermen shall hear such interested parties as may desire to be heard and after said hearing shall approve, modify or disapprove the application. If the Board of Aldermen approves the application, the Director of Planning and Development Services or his/her designee shall promptly issue the requested permit. If the application is approved with modifications, the Director of Planning and Development Services or his/her designee will issue a permit after the applicant submits the appropriate revisions to the plans and/or specifications required by the Board of Aldermen.