[Amended 11-10-2008]
The hearing and review of variance proposals shall be within the power and duty of the Zoning Board of Appeals. The procedures and conditions for granting a variance to this chapter shall be as provided in this §
690-12.
A. Creation, appointment and organization.
(1) The Zoning Board of Appeals is created pursuant to § 62.23(7)(e),
Wis. Stats. The Board shall consist of five members appointed by the
Mayor, subject to confirmation of the Common Council, for terms of
three years. The members of the Board shall be removable by the Mayor
for cause upon written charges and after public hearing. The Board
may employ a secretary and other employees. Vacancies shall be filled
for the unexpired terms of members whose terms become vacant. The
Mayor may appoint, for staggered terms of three years, two alternate
members of such Board, in addition to the five members as provided
for above. Annually, the Mayor shall designate one of the alternate
members as first alternate and the other as second alternate. The
first alternate shall act, with full power, only when a member of
the Board refuses to vote because of interest or when a member is
absent. The second alternate shall so act only when the first alternate
so refuses or is absent or when more than one member of the Board
so refuses or is absent. The above provisions, with regard to removal
and filling of vacancies, shall apply to such alternates.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General
Provisions, Art. II)]
(2) The Joint Extraterritorial Board of Appeals shall consist of four
members appointed by the Mayor. The Mayor shall consider nominations
from each town board. The members shall serve without compensation
and shall be removable by the Mayor for cause upon written charges
and after public hearing. The Mayor shall designate one of the members
Chairperson. The Mayor shall appoint an alternate member who shall
act with full power only when a member of the Joint Board of Appeals
is absent or refuses to vote because of an interest. The Joint Board
shall consist of:
(a)
One member who is a resident of the Town of Reedsburg.
(b)
One member who is a resident of the Town of Winfield.
(c)
One member who is a resident of the Town of Excelsior.
(d)
One member who is a resident of the City of Reedsburg.
(3) The Zoning Board of Appeals (hereinafter referring to the City Zoning
Board of Appeals and the Joint Extraterritorial Board of Appeals)
shall adopt rules for its government and procedure. Meetings of the
Zoning Board of Appeals shall be held at the call of the Chairperson
and at such other times as the Zoning Board of Appeals may determine.
The Chairperson may administer oaths and compel the attendance of
witnesses. All meetings shall be open to the public.
(4) The Zoning Board of Appeals 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 Zoning Board of Appeals and
shall be a public record.
(5) Appeals to the Zoning Board of Appeals may be taken by any persons
aggrieved or by any officer, department, board or bureau of the City,
affected by any decisions of the administrative officers. Such appeal
shall be taken within a reasonable time, as provided by the rules
of the Zoning Board of Appeals, by filing with the officers from whom
the Zoning Board of Appeals is taken and with the Zoning Board of
Appeals a notice of appeal specifying the grounds thereof. The officers
from whom the appeal is taken shall forthwith transmit to the Zoning
Board of Appeals all the papers constituting the record upon which
the action appealed from was taken. The Zoning Board of Appeals shall
fix a reasonable time for the hearing appeals and give public notice
thereof as well as due notice to the parties in interest and shall
decide the same within a reasonable time. Fees for an appeal are set
forth in the current City Fees Schedule.
B. Powers and duties. The City of Reedsburg Zoning Board of Appeals
shall have all the powers and duties prescribed by law and by this
chapter, within the territorial limits of the City. The Joint Extraterritorial
Board of Appeals shall have all the power and duties prescribed by
law and by this chapter within the extraterritorial limits.
(1) Interpretation. Upon appeal from a decision by an administrative
official to decide any question involving the interpretation of any
provision of this chapter, including determination of the exact location
of any district boundary if there is uncertainty with respect thereto.
(2) Variances. The Zoning Board of Appeals is authorized under current
law to authorize a variance from the terms of this chapter. A use
variance grants permission for a use that is not permitted by this
chapter, and an area variance relaxes restrictions on dimensions,
such as setback, frontage, height, bulk, density, and area. To grant
a variance, the Zoning Board of Appeals must find four things:
[Amended 2-26-2018 by Ord. No. 1861-18]
(a)
The variance will not be contrary to the public interest.
(b)
Substantial justice will be done by granting the variance.
(c)
The variance is needed so that the spirit of this chapter is
observed.
(d)
Due to special conditions, a literal enforcement of the provisions
of this chapter will result in unnecessary hardship.
(3) Variance hardship. A property owner bears the burden of proving unnecessary
hardship by demonstrating either of the following:
[Added 2-26-2018 by Ord.
No. 1861-18]
(a)
For an area variance, that strict compliance with this chapter
would unreasonably prevent the property owner from using the property
for a permitted purpose or would render conformity with this chapter
unnecessarily burdensome.
(b)
For a use variance, that strict compliance with this chapter
would leave the property owner with no reasonable use of the property
in the absence of a variance. In both situations, the property owner
bears the burden of proving that the unnecessary hardship is based
on conditions unique to the property, rather than personal considerations,
and that the unnecessary hardship was not created by the property
owner.
(4) Prohibited use. Except as specifically provided, no action by the
Zoning Board of Appeals shall have the effect of permitting, in any
district, uses prohibited in such district.
(5) Expirations. An expiration date for a variance may be granted if
that date relates to a specific date by which the action authorized
by the variance must be commenced or completed. If no such ordinance
is in effect at the time a variance is granted, or if the Zoning Board
of Appeals does not specify an expiration date for the variance, a
variance granted under this subsection does not expire unless, at
the time it is granted, the Zoning Board of Appeals specifies in the
variance a specific date by which the action authorized by the variance
must be commenced or completed. A variance granted under this subsection
runs with the land.
[Added 11-23-2015 by Ord.
No. 1819-15]
C. Procedure. The Zoning Board of Appeals shall act in accordance with
Wis. Stat. 62.23(6)(e), (Current through 2021 Act 257 and Acts 259-264,
266, and 267, published April 16, 2022), this chapter and any rules
adopted by the board. All appeals and applications made to the board
shall be in writing on forms prescribed by the board. Every appeal
or application shall refer to the specific provision of this chapter
involved, and shall exactly set forth the interpretation that is claimed,
the use for which the special permit is sought, or the details of
the variance that is applied for and the grounds on which it is claimed
that the variance should be granted, as the case may be. Every decision
of the Zoning Board of Appeals shall contain a full written record
of the findings of the board in the particular case. The Zoning Board
of Appeals shall notify, in writing, the Common Council and the Plan
Commission of the City of Reedsburg or the Joint Extraterritorial
Committee of each interpretation and each variance granted under the
provisions of this chapter.
[Amended 10-10-2022 by Ord. No. 1945-22]
D. Notice and hearing. No action of the Board shall be taken on any
case until after proper notice has been given and public hearing has
been held. Proper notice of a hearing before the Board shall be, besides
public notice, written notice mailed to the owner or his agent and,
so far as it is practicable, written notice to parties of interest.
If a quorum is present, the Zoning Board of Appeals may take action
by a majority vote of the members present.
E. Rehearing. An owner of property, or his or her authorized agent,
shall not file an appeal for zoning variance affecting the same parcel
more often than once every 12 months. An exception to this rule may
be made in those cases where the Board of Appeals determines that:
(1) Conditions affecting the property have changed substantially;
(2) The nature of the request has changed substantially from the date
of the previous petition; or
(3) If the City attorney by a written opinion states that in the attorney's
professional opinion, the decision made by the Zoning Board of Appeals
or the procedure used in the matter was clearly erroneous.
F. Stay. An appeal shall stay all legal proceedings in furtherance of
the action appealed from, unless the Zoning Administrator certifies
to the Zoning Board of Appeals that by reason of facts a stay would,
in the Zoning Administrator's opinion, cause imminent peril of life
or property. In such case, proceedings shall not be stayed otherwise
than by a restraining order, which may be granted by the Zoning Board
of Appeals or by a court of record on application and on due cause
shown.