A. The city planning and zoning commission shall serve as a board of adjustment as provided by South Dakota law. The city planning and zoning commission shall adopt rules necessary for the conduct of its affairs and in keeping with the provisions of this title. The city planning and zoning commission shall keep a record of all proceedings. Meetings shall be held at the call of the chairperson and at such times the planning commission may determine. The chairperson, or in his or her absence, the acting chairperson, may administer oaths and compel the attendance of witnesses. All meetings shall be open to the public.

B. The city planning and zoning commission shall keep minutes of its proceedings, showing the vote upon each question, or if absent or failure to vote indicating such fact, and shall keep records of its examinations and other official actions, all of which shall be a public record and be immediately filed with the secretary of the planning commission. The planning commission shall adopt from time to time, subject to the approval of the city board, such rules and regulations as it may deem necessary to carry appropriate provisions and this title into effect. (Ord. 292 § 1801, 1980)

A. Appeals to the city planning and zoning commission may be taken by any person aggrieved or by any officer, department, board or bureau of the city affected by any decision of the zoning administrator. Such appeal shall be taken within fifteen (15) days after the building permit is published in the city’s official newspaper, by filing with the officer from whom the appeal is taken and with the city planning and zoning commission a notice of appeal specifying the grounds for such appeal. The officer from whom the appeal is taken shall immediately transmit to the city planning and zoning commission all the papers constituting the record upon which the action appealed from was taken. (See Appendix D of this title.)

B. The city planning and zoning commission shall within fifteen (15) days, hold a hearing of the appeal, after public notice of such hearing, as well as, due notice to the parties in interest, and decide the appeal within fifteen (15) days. Upon the hearing, any party may appear in person or by agent or by attorney. (Ord. 292 § 1802, 1980)

The city planning and zoning commission shall have the power to hear and decide appeals where it is alleged there is error in any order, requirement, decision or determination made by an administrative official or agency based on or made in the enforcement of any zoning regulation relating to the location or soundness of structures or to interpret any map. (Ord. 292 § 1901, 1980)

The city planning and zoning commission shall have power to hear and decide, in accordance with the provisions of this title, requests for special exceptions or for decisions upon other special questions upon which the city planning and zoning commission is authorized by this title to pass; to decide such questions as are involved in determining whether special exceptions should be granted; and to grant special exceptions with such conditions and safeguards as are appropriate under this title, or to deny special exceptions when not in harmony with the purpose and intent of this title. A special exception shall not be granted by the city planning and zoning commission unless and until:

A. A written application for a special exception is submitted (see Appendix E of this title) indicating the section of this title under which the special exception is sought and stating the grounds on which it is requested;

B. Notice shall be given at least ten (10) days in advance of public hearing. The owner of the property for which special exception is sought or the owner’s agent shall be notified by mail (see Appendix F of this title). Notice of such hearing shall be posted on the property for which special exception is sought, at City Hall and in one other public place at least ten (10) days prior to public hearing;

C. The public hearing shall be held. Any party may appear in person, or by agent or attorney;

D. The city planning and zoning commission shall make a finding that it is empowered under the section of this title described in the application to grant the special exception, and that the granting of the general exception will not adversely affect the public interest;

E. Before any special exception shall be issued, the city planning and zoning commission shall make written findings certifying compliance with the specific rules governing individual special exceptions and that satisfactory provision and arrangement has been made concerning the following, where applicable:

1. Ingress and egress to property and proposed structures on such property with particular reference to automotive and pedestrian safety and convenience, traffic flow and control and access of fire or catastrophe,

2. Off-street parking and loading areas where required, with particular attention to the items in subsection (E)(1) of this section and the economic, noise, glare or other effects of the special exception in adjoining properties and properties generally in the district,

3. Refuse and service areas, with particular reference to the items in subsections (E)(1) and (E)(2) of this section,

4. Utilities, with reference to location, availability and compatibility,

5. Screening and buffering with reference to type, dimensions and character,

6. Signs, if any, and proposed exterior lighting with reference to glare, traffic safety, economic effect and compatibility and harmony with properties in the district,

7. Required yards and other open spaces, and

8. General compatibility with adjacent properties and other property in the district. (As amended by ordinance dated 7/25/05: Ord. 292 § 1902, 1980)

The city planning and zoning commission shall have the power, where, by reason of exceptional narrowness, shallowness or shape of a specific piece of property at the time of the enactment of the ordinance codified in this title, or by reason of exceptional topographic conditions or other extraordinary and exceptional situation or condition of such piece of property, the strict application of any regulation under this title would result in peculiar and exceptional difficulties to, or exceptional and undue hardships upon, the owner of such property, to authorize, upon an appeal relating to the property, a variance from such strict application so as to relieve such difficulties or hardships, as such relief may be granted without substantially impairing the intent and purpose of this title.

A. No such variance shall be authorized by the commission unless it finds that the strict application of this title would produce undue hardship: such hardship is not shared generally by other properties in the same zoning district and the same vicinity; the authorization of such variance will not be of substantial detriment to adjacent property; and the character of the district will not be changed by the granting of the variance; and the granting of such variance is based upon reasons demonstrable and exceptional hardship as distinguished from variations for purposes of convenience, profit and caprice.

B. No variance shall be authorized unless the commission finds that the condition or situation of the property concerned or the intended use of the property concerned is not of so general or recurring a nature as to make reasonably practicable the formulation of a general regulation to be adopted as an amendment to this title.

C. A variance from the terms of this title shall not be granted by the city planning and zoning commission unless and until a written application for a variance is submitted demonstrating that special conditions and circumstances exist which are peculiar to the land, structure or building involved and which are not applicable to other lands, structures, or buildings in the same district; that literal interpretation of the provisions of this title would deprive the applicant of rights commonly enjoyed by other properties in the same district under the terms of this title; that the special conditions and circumstances do not result from the action of the applicant; that granting the variance requested will not confer on the applicant any special privilege that is denied by this title to other lands, structures or buildings in the same district.

D. No nonconforming use of neighboring lands, structures or buildings in the same district, and no permitted or nonconforming use of lands, structures or buildings in other districts shall be considered grounds for the issuance of a variance.

E. Notice of public hearing shall be given as in Section 17.64.040; the public hearing shall be held. Any party may appear in person, or by agent or by attorney; the city planning and zoning commission shall make findings that the requirements of this section have been met by the applicant for a variance; the commission shall further make a finding that the reasons set forth in the application justify the granting of the variance, and that the variance is the minimum variance that will make possible the reasonable use of the land, building or structure; the commission shall further make a finding that the granting of the variance will be in harmony with the general purpose and intent of this title and will not be injurious to the neighborhood or otherwise detrimental to the public welfare.

F. In granting any variance, the city planning and zoning commission may prescribe appropriate conditions and safeguards in conformity with this title. Violation of such conditions and safeguards, when made a part of the terms under which the variance is granted, shall be deemed a violation of this title and punishable under Section 17.80.020 of this title.

G. Under no circumstances shall the city planning and zoning commission grant a variance to allow a use not permissible under the terms of this title in the district involved, or any use expressly or by implication prohibited by the terms of this title. (Ord. 292 § 1903, 1980)

The city planning and zoning commission may reverse or affirm, wholly or partly, or may modify the order, requirement, decision or determination appeal from, and may make such order, requirement, decision or determination appeal as ought to be made, and to that end shall have all the powers of the administrator from whom the appeal is taken. The concurring vote of three-fourths of the full membership of the planning and zoning commission shall be necessary to reverse any order, requirement, decision or determination of any such administrator, or to decide in favor of the applicant on any matter upon which it is required to pass under this title or to effect any variation in this title. (Ord. 292 § 1904, 1980)