The Village Board of Trustees shall appoint a Board of Appeals
pursuant to § 7-712 of the Village Law. Said Board shall
consist of five members to serve for overlapping five-year terms.
The Chairman of the Board shall be one of the five members and shall
be designated as such by the Village Board of Trustees. The Board
or Appeals shall elect a Vice Chairman from its membership, shall
appoint a Secretary and shall establish rules for the conduct of its
officers.
The Board of Appeals shall have all the powers, duties, rights
and functions prescribed by § 7-712-b of the Village Law
of the State of New York, as amended, and by this chapter, which are
more particularly specified as follows:
A. Interpretation: on appeal from an order, requirement, decision or
determination made by the Code Enforcement Officer, to decide any
question involving the interpretation of any provision of this chapter
or of the following questions:
(1) Meaning: determination of the exact meaning of any position of the
text of this chapter or of any condition or requirement specified
or made under the provisions of this chapter.
(2) Location: determination of the exact location of any district boundary
shown on the Zoning Map. The Board may request assistance from the
Village Engineer or County Planning Department or other professional
person in making this determination.
B. Variances.
(1) Use variances.
(a)
The Board of Appeals, on appeal from the decision or determination
of the administrative officer charged with the enforcement of this
chapter, shall have the power to grant use variances, as defined herein.
(b)
No such use variance shall be granted by the Board of Appeals
without a showing by the applicant that applicable zoning regulations
and restrictions have caused unnecessary hardship. In order to prove
such unnecessary hardship, the applicant shall demonstrate to the
Board of Appeals that, for each and every permitted use under the
zoning regulations for the particular district where the property
is located:
[1]
The applicant cannot realize a reasonable return, provided that
lack of return is substantial as demonstrated by competent financial
evidence.
[2]
The alleged hardship relating to the property in question is
unique and does not apply to a substantial portion of the district
or neighborhood.
[3]
The requested use variance, if granted, will not alter the essential
character of the neighborhood.
[4]
The alleged hardship has not been self-created.
(c)
The Board of Appeals, in the granting of use variances, shall
grant the minimum variance that it shall deem necessary and adequate
to address the unnecessary hardship proved by the applicant and, at
the same time, preserve and protect the character of the neighborhood
and the health, safety and welfare of the community.
(2) Area variances.
(a)
The Zoning Board of Appeals shall have the power, upon an appeal
from a decision or determination of the administrative official charged
with the enforcement of this chapter, to grant area variances as defined
herein.
(b)
In making its determination, the Zoning Board of Appeals shall
take into consideration the benefit to the applicant if the variance
is granted, as weighed against the detriment to the health, safety
and welfare of the neighborhood or community by such grant. In making
such determination, the Board shall also consider whether:
[1]
An undesirable change will be produced in the character of the
neighborhood or a detriment to nearby properties will be created by
the granting of the area variance.
[2]
The benefit sought by the applicant can be achieved by some
method, feasible for the applicant to pursue, other than an area variance.
[3]
The requested area variance is substantial.
[4]
The proposed variance will have an adverse effect or impact
on the physical or environmental conditions in the neighborhood or
district.
[5]
The alleged difficulty was self-created, which consideration
shall be relevant to the decision of the Board of Appeals but shall
not necessarily preclude the granting of the area variance.
(c)
The Board of Appeals, in the granting of area variances, shall
grant the minimum variance that it shall deem necessary and adequate
and, at the same time, preserve and protect the character of the neighborhood
and the health, safety and welfare of the community.
(3) Conditions and safeguards. In all cases where the Board of Appeals
grants a variance from the strict application of the requirements
of this chapter, the Board of Appeals shall prescribe conditions and
safeguards that it deems to be necessary or desirable in preserving
the spirit and intent of this chapter. These conditions and safeguards
may include, but are not limited to, points of entry and exit, landscaping,
lighting, buffer areas, screening, fencing, drainage and other conditions
it may deem reasonable and proper to ensure that the spirit and intent
of this chapter is preserved. Where special circumstances exist, the
Zoning Board of Appeals shall have the authority to establish time
limitations upon the granting of a variance.
(4) Needs and desires of the applicant. The needs or desires, economic,
social or otherwise, of a particular owner or tenant shall not, either
alone or in conjunction with other factors, such as existing improvements
at the time of the application which are old, obsolete, outmoded or
in disrepair, afford any basis for the granting of a variance.
C. Recommendation for rezoning. Where the Board finds the zoning classification
of a particular property to be conducive to the deprivation of the
reasonable use of the land or building by the owner thereof, and where
the Board deems the same condition to apply generally to other land
or buildings in the same neighborhood or district, the Board shall
call this condition to the attention of the Planning Board for consideration
of rezoning and report to the Village Board of Trustees.
Unless major structural construction has commenced within 12
months from the date of the granting of a variance and is completed
within two years of start of construction, such variance shall become
null and void. If circumstances beyond the control of the applicant
preclude the commencement of major structural construction within
two years, as determined by the Zoning Board of Appeals, then the
applicant has a right to reapply without penalties or fees assessed
thereon.
[Added 9-4-2018 by L.L.
No. 2-2018]
A. The Village of McGraw Planning Board as currently constituted and
comprised is hereby abolished and is consolidated into the Village
of McGraw Zoning Board of Appeals. All powers of the Village of McGraw
Planning Board are hereby conferred to the Village of McGraw Zoning
Board of Appeals.
B. Wherever the terms "Zoning Board," "Planning Commission," "Planning
Board," or "Village Planning Board" other than references to the Cortland
County Planning Board, appear in the Code of the Village of McGraw,
said terms shall hereafter mean and refer to the Zoning Board of Appeals.
C. To the extent any parts of this chapter or any other chapter of the
Code of the Village of McGraw are inconsistent with or conflict with
any of the provisions of this section, the terms of this section shall
control.