(a) The
appeal board, as established by the city council, shall hear and decide
appeals and requests for variances from the requirements of this article.
(b) The
appeal board shall hear and decide appeals when it is alleged there
is an error in any requirement, decision, or determination made by
the flood administrator in the enforcement or administration of this
article.
(Ordinance 07-525-10, § 1(art.
II, § D(1)(a), (b)), adopted 6/7/2007)
In passing upon such applications, the city council shall consider
all technical evaluations, all relevant factors, standards specified
in other sections of this article, and:
(1) The
danger that materials may be swept onto other lands to the injury
of others;
(2) The
danger to life and property due to flooding or erosion damage;
(3) The
susceptibility of the proposed facility and its contents to flood;
(4) Damage
and the effect of such damage on the individual owner;
(5) The
importance of the services provided by the proposed facility to the
community;
(6) The
necessity to the facility of a waterfront location, where applicable;
(7) The
availability of alternative locations for the proposed use which are
not subject to flooding or erosion damage;
(8) The
compatibility of the proposed use with existing and anticipated development;
(9) The
relationship of the proposed use to the comprehensive plan and floodplain
management program for that area;
(10) The
safety of access to the property in times of flood for ordinary and
emergency vehicles;
(11) The
expected heights, velocity, duration, rate of rise, and sediment transport
of the floodwaters and the effects of wave action, if applicable,
expected at the site; and
(12) The
costs of providing governmental services during and after flood conditions,
including maintenance and repair of public utilities and facilities
such as sewer, gas, electrical, and water systems, and streets and
bridges.
(Ordinance 07-525-10, § 1(art.
II, § D(1)(c)), adopted 6/7/2007)
Upon consideration of the factors and the purposes of this article,
the appeals board may attach such conditions to the granting of variances
as it deems necessary to further the purposes of this article.
(Ordinance 07-525-10, § 1(art.
II, § D(1)(d)), adopted 6/7/2007)
The flood administrator shall maintain the records of all appeal
actions and report any variances to the Federal Insurance Administration
upon request.
(Ordinance 07-525-10, § 1(art.
II, § D(1)(e)), adopted 6/7/2007)
(a) Generally,
the only condition under which a variance from the elevation standard
may be issued is for new construction and substantial improvements
to be erected on a lot of one-half acre or less in size contiguous
to and surrounded by lots with existing structures constructed below
the base flood level, providing items set forth in this section have
been fully considered. As the lot size increases the technical justification
required for issuing the variance increases.
(b) Variances
may be issued for the reconstruction, rehabilitation, or restoration
of structures listed on the National Register of Historic Places or
the state inventory of historic places, without regard to the procedures
set forth in this section.
(c) Variances
shall not be issued within a designated floodway if any increase in
flood levels during the base flood discharge would result.
(d) Variances
shall only be issued upon a determination that the variance is the
minimum necessary, considering the flood hazard, to afford relief.
(e) Variances
shall only be issued upon:
(1) A
showing of good and sufficient cause;
(2) A
determination that failure to grant the variance would result in exceptional
hardship to the applicant;
(3) A
determination that the granting of a variance will not result in increased
flood heights, additional threats to public safety, extraordinary
public expense, create nuisances, cause fraud on or victimization
of the public, or conflict with existing local laws or ordinances.
(f) Variances
as interpreted in the National Flood Insurance Program are based on
the general zoning law principle that they pertain to a physical piece
of property; they are not personal in nature and do not pertain to
the structure, its inhabitants, economic or financial circumstances.
They primarily address small lots in densely populated residential
neighborhoods. As such, variances from the flood elevations should
be quite rare.
(g) Variances
may be issued for nonresidential buildings in very limited circumstances
to allow a lesser degree of floodproofing than watertight or dry-floodproofing,
where it can be determined that such action will have low damage potential,
complies with all other variance criteria and otherwise complies with
the general standards.
(h) Any
applicant to whom a variance is granted shall be given written notice
that the structure will be permitted to be built with a lowest floor
elevation below the base flood elevation and that the cost of flood
insurance will be commensurate with the increased risk resulting from
the reduced lowest floor elevation.
(Ordinance 07-525-10, § 1(art.
II, § D(2)), adopted 6/7/2007)