Procedures

A. Application: An amendment to the text of the Chapter, or the Official Zoning Map, may be initiated by the City Council, Planning & Zoning Commission, or by application of a property owner. Individuals wishing to initiate an amendment to the Zoning Ordinance shall fill out an application and submit it to the City Clerk, together with a fee, as set forth by Section 1-2-2 of the City Code. B. Public Hearing: 1\. Before voting on the enactment of an amendment, the Commission shall hold a public hearing thereon, pursuant to public notice. The hearing shall be held within forty-five (45) days after the request for the zoning amendment has been received. It shall be the responsibility of the Clerk to have notice of the time, place, and purpose of the public hearing published in the official newspaper ten (10) days prior to the hearing. 2\. Also, when an amendment involves changes in district boundaries affecting an area of five (5) acres or less, a written notice of the hearing stating its time, place and purpose shall be mailed by the City Clerk at least ten (10) days before the day of the hearing to each owner or affected property and property situate wholly or partially within one thousand three hundred twenty (1,320) feet of the property to which the amendment relates For the purpose of giving mailed notice, the Clerk may use any appropriate records to determine the names and addresses of owners. A copy of the notice and a list of the owners and addresses to which the notice was sent shall be attested to by the Clerk and shall be made a part of the records of the proceedings. The failure to give mailed notice to the individual property owners, or defects in the notice, shall not invalidate the proceedings, provided a bona fide attempt to comply with this section has been made. 3\. If, after any public hearing held upon an amendment, the proposed amendment is revised or further revised to include land previously not affected by it, the Commission shall hold another public hearing, pursuant to public notice, before proceeding to vote on the amendment. C. Planning & Zoning Commission Report: The Commission shall make its report to the Council at the next regular City Council meeting following the hearing recommending approval, disapproval, or modified approval of the proposed amendment. D. City Council Action: The City Council shall act upon the request within forty-five (45) days after receipt of the report from the Planning & Zoning Commission. The applicant shall be notified of the action taken. The City Council shall maintain records of amendments to the text and Official Zoning Map of this Chapter. E. Recommendation: No application of a property owner for an amendment to the text of this Chapter or the Official Zoning Map shall be considered by the Planning & Zoning Commission within one (1) year following a denial of such request, except the Planning & Zoning Commission may permit a new application, if, in the opinion of the Commission, new evidence or a change of circumstances warrant it. (Ordinance #3, adopted November 9, 2010)