(a) The
Planning Commission shall hear and decide appeals and requests for
variances from the requirements of this chapter.
(b) The
Planning Commission shall hear and decide appeals when it is alleged
there is an error in any requirement, decision, or determination made
by the Floodplain Administrator in the enforcement or administration
of this chapter.
(c) Applications
for variances shall be submitted in writing to the Planning Department
with the required fee. The applicant shall be responsible for providing
all of the necessary information as determined by the City.
In passing upon such applications, the Planning Commission shall
consider all technical evaluations, all relevant factors, the standards
specified in other sections of this chapter, and:
(1) The danger that materials may be swept onto other lands to the injury
of others;
(2) The danger of life and property due to flooding or erosion damage;
(3) The susceptibility of the proposed facility and its contents to flood
damages and the effect of such damages on the individual owner;
(4) The importance of the services provided by the proposed facility
to the community;
(5) The necessity to the facility of a waterfront location, where applicable;
(6) The availability of alternative locations for the proposed use which
are not subject to flooding or erosion damage;
(7) The compatibility of the proposed use with existing and anticipated
development;
(8) The relationship of the proposed use to the comprehensive plan and
floodplain management program for such area;
(9) The safety of access to the property in times of flood for ordinary
and emergency vehicles;
(10) The expected heights, velocity, duration, rate of rise, and sediment
transport of the floodwaters expected at the site;
(11) The costs of providing governmental services during and after flood
conditions, including the maintenance and repair of public utilities
and facilities, such as sewer, gas, electrical, and water systems,
and streets and bridges; and
(12) Any other inspection deemed necessary by the City.
(d) Generally, variances may be issued 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 provided the factors of subsection
(c) of this section have been considered. As the lot size increases beyond one-half acre, the technical justification required for issuing the variance shall increase.
(e) Upon the consideration of the factors of subsection
(c) of this section and the purposes of this chapter, the Planning Commission may attach such conditions to the granting of variances as it deems necessary to further the purposes of this chapter.
(f) The
Floodplain Administrator shall maintain the records of all appeal
actions and report any variances to the Federal Insurance Administration
upon request.
(§ 1, Ord. 655, eff. May 19, 1988)
(a) Variances
may be issued for the reconstruction, rehabilitation, or restoration
of structures listed in the National Register of Historic Places or
the State Inventory of Historic Places without regard to the procedures
set forth in this section.
(b) Variances
shall not be issued within any designated floodway if any increase
in flood levels during the base flood discharge would result.
(c) Variances
shall only be issued upon a determination that the variance is the
minimum necessary, considering the flood hazard, to afford relief.
(d) 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; and
(3) A determination that the granting of a variance will not result in
increased flood heights, additional threats to the public safety,
extraordinary public expense, create nuisances, cause fraud on or
the victimization of the public, or conflict with existing local laws.
(e) Variances
may be issued for new construction and substantial improvements and
for other development necessary for the conduct of a functionally
dependent use provided the provisions of this section are satisfied
and that the structure or other development is protected by methods
which minimize flood damages during the base flood and create no additional
threat to the public safety.
(f) 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 regulatory flood elevation and that the cost of
flood insurance will be commensurate with the increased risk resulting
from the reduced lowest floor elevation. A copy of the notice shall
be recorded by the Floodplain Administrator in the office of the County
Recorder and shall be recorded in a manner so that it appears in the
chain of title of the affected parcel of land.
(§ 1, Ord. 655, eff. May 19, 1988)