Description: Recognizing that there may be situations where a zoning regulation that if enforced would cause unnecessary hardship to individual landowners, the state legislature established a mechanism to allow a municipality to issue a variance in those instances where a minor deviation would be appropriate to alleviate such hardship without circumventing or undermining the intent of the municipality’s zoning regulations. Division 26 of Article 7 describes the requirements and procedures for reviewing variance applications.

Initiation: The owner of the subject property may submit an application for a variance.

Decision-maker(s): Zoning Board of Appeals

Application fee: $300

Submittal deadline: 30 days before Board of Appeals meeting

Basis of decision: When making it decision, the Zoning Board of Appeals shall consider each of the following standards.The property owner bears the burden of proving "Unnecessary hardship," defined as follows:

1. For an area variance, the requirement in question would unreasonably prevent the property owner from using the property for a permitted purpose or would render conformity with such requirement unnecessarily burdensome
2. The circumstances call for the variance were not self-created by the current property owner or any prior owner.
3. The subject property has unique physical characteristics or limitations that prevent the property from being developed in compliance with the requirement in question.
4. The granting of the variance will not be contrary to or harm the public interest given the general purposes of the zoning regulations and the specific purposes of the requirement in question.

The Zoning Board of Appeals shall grant a variance only if the board can make an affirmative finding for all of the criteria listed above.

Procedure:

1. Submittal of application materials. The applicant shall submit a completed application and other required materials to the zoning administrator along with the application fee as may be established by the Common Council.
2. Staff review. Within 30 days of submittal, the zoning administrator shall either schedule a date for the public hearing with the Zoning Board of Appeals allowing for proper public notice or make a determination that the application is incomplete and notify the applicant of any deficiencies. If the application is incomplete, the applicant has 3 months to resubmit the application or forfeit the application fee. The zoning administrator shall take no further steps to process the application until the deficiencies are remedied. The incomplete application shall be retained as a public record.
3. Special notice to Department of Natural Resources. If the application relates to the floodplain regulations or shoreland-wetland regulations in this chapter, the zoning administrator shall mail a copy of the application and public hearing notice to the regional office of the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources at least 10 days before the date of the public hearing.
4. General notice. Consistent with Division 2 of Article 6, the zoning administrator shall provide for class 2 public notice, property owner notification, and meeting agenda notice.
5. Staff report preparation and distribution. The zoning administrator shall prepare a written staff report as described in this division and provide a copy to each member of the Zoning Board of Appeals and the applicant. The zoning administrator shall also provide a copy to interested people upon request.
6. Public hearing. Allowing for proper notice, the Zoning Board of Appeals shall hold a public hearing consistent with Division 3 of Article 6. Prior to the close of the public hearing, the applicant or the board may request a continuance consistent with Division 3 of Article 6.
7. Decision. After the public hearing has been closed, the Zoning Board of Appeals after considering the comments and the staff report shall make a decision based on the decision criteria contained in this division to (1) approve the variance, (2) approve the variance with conditions, or (3) deny the variance. The Zoning Board of Appeals may render its decision at the same meeting the public hearing is conducted or at a subsequent meeting, but no later than 40 days after the public hearing unless the applicant agrees to an extension of a specified duration.
8. Preparation of decision notice. Based on the action of the Zoning Board of Appeals, the zoning administrator shall prepare a decision notice consistent with this division.
9. Applicant notification. Within a reasonable time following the Zoning Board of Appeals’ decision, the zoning administrator shall mail the decision notice to the applicant by regular mail.
10. Notification to Department of Natural Resources. If the application relates to the floodplain regulations or shoreland-wetland regulations in this chapter, the zoning administrator shall mail a copy of the decision to the regional office of the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources.
11. Acceptance by property owner. If the Zoning Board of Appeals grants the variance with one or more condition of approval, the property owner shall sign the decision notice to acknowledge the imposition of such condition or conditions and return the same to the zoning administrator within 6 months of the decision. Prior to the expiration of the previously specified time period, the property owner may submit a petition to the City Clerk requesting an extension and the Common Council may, with cause, extend the period within which the decision notice must be signed. If the signed decision notice is not returned within the initial or extended time period, if any, the decision shall become null and void without any further action by the City. The decision notice shall only become effective when all required signatures have been obtained and the original signature copy is returned to the zoning administrator.
12. Public record copy. A duplicate copy of the decision notice shall be retained as a public record.
13. Additional procedural steps. If the Zoning Board of Appeals grants the variance, the applicant shall then follow other review procedures as may be required.

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