Where a zoning administrator, planning agency
or a board of appeals has already been appointed to administer a zoning
ordinance adopted under § 59.69, 59.692 or 62.23(7), Wis.
Stats., these officials shall also administer this chapter.[1]
A.
The Zoning Administrator is hereby authorized to administer
the provisions of this chapter and shall have the following duties
and powers:
(1)
Advise applicants of the provisions of this chapter;
assist them in preparing permit applications and appeals, and assure
that the regional flood elevation for the proposed development is
shown on all permit applications.
(2)
Issue permits and inspect properties for compliance
with provisions of this chapter and issue certificates of compliance
where appropriate.
(3)
Inspect all damaged floodplain structures and perform
a substantial damage assessment to determine if substantial damage
to the structures has occurred.
(4)
Keep records of all official actions, such as:
(a)
All permits issued, inspections made, and work
approved.
(b)
Documentation of certified lowest floor and
regional flood elevations for floodplain development.
(c)
Records of water surface profiles, floodplain
zoning maps and ordinances, nonconforming uses and structures, including
changes, appeals, variances and amendments.
(d)
All substantial damage assessment reports for
floodplain structures.
(5)
Submit copies of the following items to the Department
regional office:
(a)
Within 10 days of the decision, a copy of any
decisions on variances, appeals for map or text interpretations, and
map or text amendments.
(b)
Copies of any case-by-case analyses, and any
other information required by the Department, including an annual
summary of the number and types of floodplain zoning actions taken.
(c)
Copies of substantial damage assessments performed
and all related correspondence concerning the assessments.
(6)
Investigate, prepare reports, and report violations
of this chapter to the appropriate municipal zoning agency and the
Municipal Attorney for prosecution. Copies of the violation reports
shall also be sent to the Department district office.
(7)
Submit copies of text and map amendments and biennial
reports to the regional office of FEMA.
B.
Land use permit. A land use permit shall be obtained from the Zoning Administrator before any new development, as defined in § 143-34, or any structural repair, or any change in the use of an existing building or structure, including sewage disposal systems and water supply facilities, may be initiated. Application shall be made to the Zoning Administrator upon furnished application forms and shall include the following data:
(2)
Site development plan. The site development plan shall
be drawn to scale and submitted as a part of the permit application
form and shall contain the following information:
(a)
Location, dimensions, area and elevation of
the lot.
(b)
Location of the ordinary high-water mark of
any abutting navigable waterways.
(c)
Location of any structures, with distances measured
from the lot lines and center line of all abutting streets or highways.
(d)
Location of any existing or proposed on-site
sewage systems or private water supply systems.
(e)
Location and elevation of existing or future
access roads.
(f)
Location of floodplain and floodway limits on
the property as determined from the Official Floodplain Zoning Maps.
(g)
The elevation of the lowest floor of proposed
buildings and any fill using National Geodetic and Vertical Datum
(NGVD).
(3)
Data requirements to analyze developments.
(a)
The applicant shall provide all survey data and computations required to show the effects of the project on flood heights, velocities and floodplain storage, for all subdivision proposals, as "subdivision" is defined in Ch. 236, Wis. Stats., and other proposed developments exceeding five acres in area or when the estimated cost exceeds $125,000. The applicant shall provide:
[1]
An analysis of the effect of the development
on the regional flood profile, velocity of flow and floodplain storage
capacity.
[2]
A map showing location and details of vehicular
access to lands outside the floodplain.
[3]
A surface drainage plan with adequate details
showing how flood damage will be minimized. The estimated cost of
the proposal shall include all structural development, landscaping
improvements, access and road development, electrical and plumbing,
and similar items reasonably applied to the overall development costs,
but need not include land costs.
(b)
The Department will determine regional flood elevations and evaluate the proposal where the applicant is not required to provide computations as above and inadequate data exists. The municipality may transmit additional information, such as the data in § 143-19B where appropriate, to the Department with the request for analysis.
(4)
Expiration. All permits issued under the authority
of this chapter shall expire six months from the date of issuance.
C.
Certificate of compliance. No land shall be occupied
or used, and no building which is hereafter constructed, altered,
added to, modified, rebuilt or replaced shall be occupied, until a
certificate of compliance is issued by the Zoning Administrator, except
where no permit is required, subject to the following provisions:
(1)
The certificate of compliance shall show that the
building or premises or part thereof, and the proposed use, conform
to the provisions of this chapter.
(2)
Application for such certificate shall be concurrent
with the application for a permit.
(3)
The certificate of compliance shall be issued within
10 days after written notification of completion of the work specified
in the permit, provided that the building or premises or proposed
use conforms with all the provisions of this chapter.
(4)
The applicant shall submit a certification signed by a registered professional engineer or registered land surveyor that the fill, lowest floor and floodproofing elevations are in compliance with the permit issued. Floodproofing measures also require certification by a registered professional engineer or registered architect that floodproofing adequacy meets the requirements of § 143-28.
D.
Other permits. The applicant must secure all other
necessary permits from all appropriate federal, state, and local agencies,
including those required by the United States Army Corps of Engineers
under § 404 of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act amendments
of 1972, 33 U.S.C. § 1334.
The appropriate board created under § 62.23(7)(e),
Wis. Stats., is hereby authorized or shall be appointed to act as
the Zoning Board of Appeals for the purposes of this chapter. The
Zoning Board of Appeals shall exercise the powers conferred by the
Wisconsin Statutes and adopt rules for the conduct of business. The
Zoning Administrator may not be the Secretary of the Board.
A.
Powers and duties. The Zoning Board of Appeals shall:
(1)
Appeals. Hear and decide appeals where it is alleged
there is error in any order, requirement, decision or determination
made by an administrative official in the enforcement or administration
of this chapter.
(2)
Boundary disputes. Hear and decide disputes concerning
the district boundaries shown on the Official Floodplain Zoning Map.
(3)
Variances. Hear and decide, upon appeal, variances
from the dimensional standards of this chapter.
B.
Appeals to the Board.
(1)
Appeals to the Board may be taken by any person aggrieved
or by any officer, department, board or bureau of the municipality
affected by any decision of the Zoning Administrator or other administrative
officer. Such appeal shall be taken within 30 days, unless otherwise
provided by the rules of the Board, by filing with the official whose
decision is in question, and with the Board, a notice of appeal specifying
the reasons for the appeal. The official whose decision is in question
shall transmit to the Board all the papers constituting the record
concerning the matter appealed.
(2)
Notice and hearing for appeals, including variances.
(a)
Notice. The Board shall:
[1]
Fix a reasonable time for the hearing.
[2]
Publish adequate notice pursuant to the Wisconsin
Statutes, specifying the date, time, place and subject of the hearing.
[3]
Assure that notice shall be mailed to the parties
in interest and the district office of the Department at least 10
days in advance of the hearing.
(3)
Decision. The final decision regarding the appeal
or variance application shall:
(a)
Be made within a reasonable time.
(b)
Be sent to the district office of the Department
within 10 days of the decision.
(c)
Be a written determination signed by the Chairman
or Secretary of the Board.
(d)
State the specific facts which are the basis
for the Board's decision.
(e)
Either affirm, reverse, vary or modify the order,
requirement, decision or determination appealed, in whole or in part,
dismiss the appeal for lack of jurisdiction or giant or deny the application
for a variance.
(f)
Include the reasons or justifications for granting
an appeal, with a description of the hardship or practical difficulty
demonstrated by the applicant, in the case of a variance, clearly
stated in the recorded minutes of the Board proceedings.
C.
Boundary disputes. The following procedure shall be
used by the Zoning Board of Appeals in hearing disputes concerning
the district boundaries shown on the Official Floodplain Zoning Map:
(1)
Where a Floodplain District boundary is established
by approximate or detailed floodplain studies, the regional flood
elevations or profiles for the point in question shall be the governing
factor in locating the district boundary. If no regional flood elevations
or profiles are available to the Board, other available evidence may
be examined.
(2)
In all cases, the person contesting the location of
the district boundary shall be given a reasonable opportunity to present
arguments and technical evidence to the Zoning Board of Appeals.
D.
Variance.
(1)
The Zoning Board of Appeals may, upon appeal, grant
a variance from the dimensional standards of this chapter where an
applicant convincingly demonstrates that:
(a)
Literal enforcement of the provisions of this
chapter will result in practical difficulty or unnecessary hardship
on the applicant.
(b)
The hardship is due to adoption of this chapter
and special conditions unique to the property, not common to a group
of adjacent lots or premises (in such case, this chapter or map must
be amended).
(c)
Such variance is not contrary to the public
interest.
(2)
In addition to the criteria in Subsection D(1), to qualify for a variance under FEMA regulations, the following criteria must be met:
(a)
The variance may not cause any increase in the
regional flood elevation.
(b)
Variances can only be granted for lots that
are less than 1/2 acre and are contiguous to existing structures constructed
below the RFE.
(c)
Variances shall only be granted upon a showing
of good and sufficient cause, shall be the minimum relief necessary,
shall not cause increased risks to public safety or nuisances, shall
not increase costs for rescue and relief efforts and shall not be
contrary to the purpose of the ordinance.
(3)
A variance shall not:
(a)
Grant, extend or increase any use prohibited
in the zoning district.
(b)
Be granted for a hardship based solely on an
economic gain or loss.
(c)
Be granted for a hardship which is self-created.
(d)
Damage the rights or property values of other
persons in the area.
(f)
Allow any alteration of an historic structure,
including its use, which would preclude its continued designation
as an historic structure.
(4)
When a variance is granted in a floodplain area, the
Board shall notify the applicant in writing that increased flood insurance
premiums and risks to life and property may result. A copy of this
notification shall be maintained with the variance appeal record.
A.
The Village Plan Commission or Zoning Board of Appeals
shall review all data constituting the basis for the appeal of permit
denial. This data may include (where appropriate):
(3)
Data listed in § 143-11A(2)(b), where the applicant has not submitted this information to the Zoning Administrator.
(4)
Other data submitted to the Zoning Administrator with
the permit application or submitted to the Board with the appeal.
C.
For appeals concerning increases in regional flood
elevation, the Board shall:
(1)
Uphold the denial where the Board agrees with the
data showing an increase in flood elevation. Increases equal to or
greater than 0.01 foot may only be allowed after amending the flood
profile and map and all appropriate legal arrangements are made with
all adversely affected property owners.
(2)
Grant the appeal where the Board agrees that the data
properly demonstrates that the project does not cause an increase
equal to or greater than 0.01 foot, provided that no other reasons
for denial exist.
A.
No permit or variance shall be issued until the applicant
submits a plan or document certified by a registered professional
engineer or architect that the floodproofing measures are adequately
designed to protect the structure or development to the flood protection
elevation.
B.
Floodproofing measures shall be designed to:
(1)
Withstand the flood pressures, depths, velocities,
uplift and impact forces and other factors associated with the regional
flood.
(2)
Assure protection to the flood protection elevation.
(3)
Provide anchorage of structures to foundations to
resist flotation and lateral movement.
(4)
Insure that the structural walls and floors are watertight
to the flood protection elevation and the interior remains completely
dry during flooding, without human intervention.
C.
Floodproofing measures could include:
(1)
Reinforcement of walls and floors to resist rupture
or collapse caused by water pressure or floating debris.
(2)
Addition of mass or weight to structures to prevent
flotation.
(3)
Placement of essential utilities above the flood-protection
elevation.
(4)
Surface or subsurface drainage systems, including
pumping facilities, to relieve external foundation wall and basement
floor pressures.
(5)
Construction of water supply wells, and waste treatment
systems to prevent the entrance of floodwaters into the systems.
(6)
Cutoff valves on sewer lines or elimination of gravity
flow basement drains.
A.
Where useful, marks on bridges or buildings or other
markers may be set to show the depth of inundation during the regional
flood at appropriate locations within the floodplain.
B.
All available information in the form of maps, engineering
data and regulations shall be readily available and should be widely
distributed.
C.
All legal descriptions of property in the floodplain
should include information relative to the floodplain zoning classification
when such property is transferred.
