Planning & Zoning Ordinance
Article 29-5 Amendments to Title and Map
Section 29-5-1 Intent
The Common Council may upon the recommendation of the Planning and Zoning Commission issue Use Permits, amend, supplement or change the zoning district boundaries or the regulations. Recommendations may be initiated by the Council or the Commission on their own motion, or by petition from the public. No amendment affecting zoning district boundaries shall be passed, until after a public hearing held in accordance with the requirements of this Article relating to applications.
- This title, including the map, may be amended, but all proposed
amendments shall be submitted first to the Planning and Zoning
Commission for its recommendations, which recommendations shall
be submitted to the Town Council for its consideration within
a reasonable time.
- Any person seeking an amendment of this title or map shall submit
to the Planning and Zoning Commission a written application on
forms furnished by the Town designating the change desired and
the reasons therefore, and shall pay a filing fee to the Town.
Upon receipt of the application and the payment of the filing
fee, the Planning and Zoning Commission shall consider the request
and shall certify its recommendations to the Town Council. The
fee required herein shall not be returned to the applicant. The
Planning and Zoning Commission, Manager, or Town Council may also
initiate amendments to this title without payment of the filing
fee.
- All amendments to this title shall be made in accordance with
the Comprehensive Plan of Land Use. It is public policy that this
title shall not be amende4 unless it can be shown that changed
or changing conditions make the proposed amendment reasonably
necessary to the promotion of the purposes of this title.
- Amendments to this title may be adopted only after a public hearing in relation thereto before the Town Council at which parties in interest and citizens shall have an opportunity to be heard. A notice of the time and place of such hearing shall be published in a newspaper of general circulation within the Town as required by law.
Section 29-5-2 Authority of Common Council; Initiation of Amendments
The Common Council may upon the recommendation of the Planning and Zoning Commission issue Use Permits, amend, supplement or change the zoning district boundaries or the regulations. Recommendations may be initiated by the Council or the Commission on their own motion, or by petition from the public. No amendment affecting zoning district boundaries shall be passed, until after a public hearing held in accordance with the requirements of Section 29-5-4 relating to applications.
Section 29-5-3 Type of Amendments; Initiation of Same
- Text Amendment. The application for an amendment to the text
of this Code shall state in particular the article, section, subsection,
and paragraph sought to be amendment. The application for amendment
shall contain the language of the proposed amendment and shall
recite the reasons for such proposed change in the text.
- Map Amendment. An application which seeks to change or modify
the classification imposed upon a particular piece of property
by the district map.
- The initiation of a change to the text and/or district map may
be accomplished by one of the following methods:
1. A majority of the property owners in the area of proposed change or their authorized agents; or
2. A majority vote of the Council; or
3. A majority vote of the Commission.
Section 29-5-4 Application for Amendments
Application for amending this Ordinance shall be made on a form provided by the Planning and Zoning Department and shall include the information described in the Town's amendment application packet.
Section 29-5-5 Public Hearing
- The Planning and Zoning Commission shall hold a public hearing
on any Zoning Ordinance Amendment or Use Permit which changes
any property from one zoning district to another, imposes any
regulations not previously imposed or which removes or modifies
any other regulation previously imposed.
Procedures for the Public Hearing shall be in accordance with ARS 9-462.03, (Arizona Revised Statutes) and copies of such procedures shall be included in the amendment application packet.
- After the hearing, the Commission shall render its decision
in the form of a written recommendation to the Common Council.
The recommendation shall include the reasons for the recommendation
and be transmitted to the Common Council in a form and manner
as may be specified by the Council.
- Upon receiving the report and recommendation of the Commission,
the Common Council shall render a decision, and if requested shall
hold a public hearing in the time and manner as specified in Subsection
A of this Section. In addition, the Town of Thatcher may give
notice of the hearing in any other manner as it may deem necessary
or desirable.
- A Use Permit granted under the terms of this Ordinance shall expire with six (6) months from the date of granting the Use Permit, unless otherwise stipulated.
Section 29-5-6 Reconsideration of Denied Amendments
In the event that an application is denied by the Council, the Commission shall not reconsider the application nor consider another application for the same amendment of the Zoning Ordinance applying to the property described in the original application, for at least six (6) months from the date of the denial, provided however, if within a six-month period there has been a bona fide change of ownership to the property for which the application was made, or a change in circumstances, then the new owner shall be permitted to apply for a zoning change.
Section 29-5-7 Protests Against Amendment
- If the owners of twenty percent (20%) or more either of the
area of the lots included in a proposed change, or of those immediately
adjacent in the rear or any side extending one hundred and fifty
feet (150') from the street frontage of the opposite lots, file
a protest in writing against a proposed amendment, it shall not
become effective except by the favorable vote of three-fourths
(3/4) of all members of the Common Council. If any members of
the Council are unable to vote on such a question because of a
conflict of interest, then the required number of votes for passage
of the question shall be three-fourths (3/4) of the remaining
membership of the Council, provided that the required number of
votes shall not be less than a majority of the full membership.
- Notwithstanding the provisions of this ordinance, a decision by the governing body involving rezoning of land which is not owned by the municipality and which changes the zoning classification of such land may not be enacted as an emergency measure and such change shall not be effective for at least thirty days after final approval of the change in classification by the governing body.