A.
Establishment. The Mayor of the City of Oswego shall
appoint a five man Board of Appeals. The members of this Board shall
not hold elective office in the City of Oswego and they shall receive
no compensation for their services.
B.
Term of office. The Mayor shall designate the term
of two of the members as being two years from the date of appointment;
the term of two members to be three years from the date of appointment;
and the term of the fifth member to be four years from the date of
appointment. Each successor to the original membership shall be appointed
by the Mayor for a term of three years, except that any vacancy occurring
during any term shall be filled for the unexpired term only. The Board
shall hold a reorganization meeting yearly and shall elect one of
their members to be Chairman and one Secretary.
C.
Capitals, powers and duties.
(1)
The Board shall hear and decide appeals from any order,
requirement, decision or determination of the Housing Administrator.
(2)
The Board shall decide any question involving the
interpretation of any provision of this chapter.
(3)
The Board shall decide any matter referred to it by
the City Engineer, who is designated as the Housing Administrator.
D.
In exercising the above-mentioned powers and duties,
the Board of Appeals may reverse, affirm, wholly or partly, or may
modify the order, requirements, decision or determination as made
and, to that end, have all the powers of the Housing Administrator
from whom the appeal is made.
E.
Every decision of the Board of Appeals shall be subject
to review in accordance with Article 78 of the Civil Practice Law
and Rules, and such decision may be so appealed by any person aggrieved
or by any officer, department, board or bureau of the city.
F.
Any appeal from the decision of the Housing Administrator,
properly filed with the Board of Appeals, shall stay all proceedings
in furtherance of the action appealed from, unless the Housing Administrator
certifies to the Board of Appeals that, by reason of facts stated
in the certification, a stay would, in his opinion, cause eminent
peril to life and property.
A.
Where strict application of any of the requirements
of this chapter shall deprive the owner of real property or a mobile
home the reasonable use of his building, the Board of Appeals shall
have the power, in passing upon appeals, to grant a variance to any
of the regulations or provisions of this chapter relating to bulk,
construction or alteration of buildings or structures or any part
thereof or of use of said buildings, so that the spirit of this chapter
shall be observed, public health, safety and welfare secured and substantial
justice done.
B.
Such variance shall be granted by the Board of Appeals
only if and wherever it finds:
(1)
That there are special circumstances or physical conditions
fully described in the findings applying to the buildings for which
the variance is sought and that said circumstance or condition is
peculiar to such particular building and do not apply generally to
buildings in the neighborhood; and that such circumstance or condition
is such that the strict application of the provision of this chapter
would deprive the applicant of the reasonable use of his building.
(2)
That for reasons set forth in the findings, the granting
of the variance is necessary for the reasonable use of the land or
building involved, and that the variance, as granted by the Board
of Appeals, is the minimum variance which will accomplish this purpose.
(3)
That the granting of the variance will be in harmony
with the general purpose and intent of this chapter and will not be
injurious to the neighborhood or otherwise to the public welfare.
C.
Fee. Each application to the Board of Appeals for
a variance shall be accompanied by a fee of $50 to help defray the
cost of holding the hearing.
[Amended 12-28-2009 by Res. No. 554-2009]
A.
Form of appeals and application. The Board of Appeals
shall act in strict accordance with procedure specified by the General
City Law and by this chapter and shall determine its own rules of
conduct. All appeals and applications made to the Board shall be taken
in writing on forms prescribed by the Board.
B.
Content of application for variance. Any building
owner in the City of Oswego allegedly aggrieved by the strict application
of any of the requirements of this chapter, or desiring to deviate
therefrom, may apply to the Board of Appeals for a variance from any
such requirement. Such application shall state the specific provisions
of this chapter from which the variance is sought and shall state
precisely the interpretation which is sought, the use for which the
variance is sought or the details of the variance which is sought,
together with the special circumstances which allegedly justify such
variance.
C.
Appeals or applications shall be taken within such
time as prescribed by the Board of Appeals by general rule, by the
filing with the Housing Administrator from which the appeal is taken
and with the Board of Appeals of a Notice of Appeal, specifying the
grounds therefor. The Housing Administrator shall forthwith transmit
to the Board of Appeals all papers constituting the record upon which
the action appealed from was taken.
D.
Public hearing. The Board of Appeals shall, after
due notice, hold a public hearing on every appeal or application for
a variance referred to it, and upon which it is required to pass,
in accordance with this chapter in the General City Law. The Board
of Appeals shall have published a notice of such public hearing in
a newspaper of general circulation of the City of Oswego at least
10 days prior to such hearing. In addition, at least seven days prior
to such public hearing, the Board of Appeals shall have sent, by registered
mail, the notice of such hearing, and the explanation of the variance
or special permits sought, to all property owners within 100 feet
of the four corners of the subject building. Such notices shall be
sent to the last known address of all property owners as shown on
the city tax records.
E.
Findings and conclusions. After such public hearings,
and after consideration of the application, the Board of Appeals shall
either grant or deny the variance and shall make written findings
of fact and conclusions concerning the subject matter of such hearing,
including the reasons for the granting or denial of the relief sought.
