[Added as part of Section 203 of the 1999
Code of Ordinances; amended 7-13-2004 by Ord. No. 2004-03; 10-8-2019 by Ord. No. 2019-04; 12-8-2020 by Ord. No. 2020-05]
A. The Board of Appeals is hereby established. It shall consist of five members. The terms of office of the members of the Board shall be three years. They shall be appointed by the Mayor, confirmed by the Town Council and removable for cause, upon written charges, and after public hearing. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, including but not limited to Chapter
30 of this Code, each member shall, during their tenure on the Board, maintain their primary residence within the corporate limits of the Town of Myersville. Any member who fails to maintain such residency within the Town shall, upon moving such residence outside of the Town, automatically forfeit and render vacant his or her membership on the Board without the necessity of written charges or public hearing. The Mayor shall appoint a new member to fill the unexpired term of any member who leaves or forfeits his or her membership on the Board of Appeals.
[Added as part of Section 203 of the 1999
Code of Ordinances; amended 10-11-2005]
The Board shall organize and adopt rules in
accordance with the provisions of this Code. Meetings of the Board
shall be held at the call of the Chairman and at other times as determined
by the Board or, in his absence, the Acting Chairman may administer
the oath and compel the attendance of witnesses. All meetings of the
Board shall be open to the public. The Board shall make a transcript
of its proceedings, showing the vote of each member upon each question,
or, if absent or failing to vote, indicating such fact, and shall
keep records of its examinations and other official actions, all of
which shall be immediately filed in the office of the Board and shall
be a public record.
[Added as part of Section 203 of the 1999
Code of Ordinances; amended 10-11-2005; 1-13-2015 by Ord. No. 2014-09]
The Board of Appeals shall have the following powers:
A. To hear and decide appeals where it is alleged there is an error in any order, requirement, decision, or determination made by an administrative official under the provisions of Chapter
165,
130,
105 or any other ordinance adopted pursuant to the Land Use Article, Annotated Code of Maryland.
B. To authorize upon appeal in specific cases variances from the terms
of this chapter.
C. To hear and decide special exceptions to the terms of this chapter
and upon which the Board is empowered to pass under this chapter.
A filing fee shall accompany each application
for a hearing before the Board of Appeals. Such fee shall be established,
from time to time, by the Town Council upon the recommendation of
the Planning Commission. The fee schedule shall be maintained on file
in the office of the Town Clerk.
The Board shall schedule a hearing within 60
days of the filing and acceptance of an application or appeal, shall
give at least 10 days' notice in a newspaper of general circulation
in the Town or the county, of the time and place of such hearing,
to the public and to the parties in interest, and decide the same
within a reasonable time after it is submitted. At the hearing, any
party may appear in person or by agent or attorney. The adjacent property
owners shall be notified and the property shall be posted with a placard,
as provided by the Town, within 10 days of the hearing date.
If the application is disapproved by the Board
of Appeals, thereafter the Board shall take no further action on another
application for substantially the same proposal, on the same premises,
until after one year from the date of such disapproval. If an appeal
to the Board is perfected and the public hearing date set by the posting
of the property and thereafter the applicant withdraws the appeal,
he shall be precluded from filing another application for substantially
the same proposal on the same premises for six months.
[Amended 4-11-2017 by Ord. No. 2017-04]
Any party adversely affected by a decision of
the Board may appeal to the Circuit Court of Frederick County in accordance
with Maryland state law.