be notified within ten (10) days of the final action. Action by the Board of Adjustment shall become final only when the provisions of Minnesota Rules, part 6105.0230, subpart 3; or successor rules, have been satisfied.
E. Floodplain Overlay District. In instances where the affected property is located within the Floodplain Overlay District, a copy of the final decision granting a variance shall be forwarded by mail to the Commissioner of the Department of Natural Resources within ten (10) days of the final action.
4.9.5 Flood Insurance Notice
Notice regarding the issuance of a variance to construct below the base flood level shall be given in accordance with Section 10.1.17 of this Ordinance. No variance shall have the effect of allowing in any district uses prohibited in that district, permit a lower degree of flood protection than the regulatory flood protection elevation for the particular area, or permit standards lower than those required by state law. The following additional variance criteria of the Federal Emergency Management Agency must be satisfied:
A. Variances shall not be issued by a community within any designated regulatory floodway if any increase in flood levels during the base flood discharge would result.
B. Variances shall only be issued by a community upon (i) a showing of good and sufficient cause, (ii) a determination that failure to grant the variance would result in exceptional hardship to the applicant, and (iii) a
determination that the granting of a variance will not result in increased flood heights, additional threats to public safety, extraordinary public expense, create nuisances, cause fraud on or victimization of the public, or conflict with existing local laws or ordinances.
C. Variances shall only be issued upon a determination that the variance is the minimum necessary, considering the flood hazard, to afford relief.
4.9.6 Expiration of Variance
A variance shall expire and be considered null and void one (1) year after the Board of Adjustment’s final decision to grant the variance if no construction has begun. For the purposes of this Section, construction shall include the installation of footings, slabs, foundations, posts, walls or other portions of a building. Site preparation, land clearing or the installation of utilities shall not constitute construction. One (1) administrative extension of up to one (1) year may be granted by the Director upon written request of the property owner, provided there is reasonable cause for the request and further provided that the written request is made no less than thirty (30) days prior to expiration of the variance.
4.9.7 Reapplication
No application for the same variance, as ruled upon by the Board of Adjustment, shall be resubmitted for a period of twelve (12) months from the date of the decision of the previous application unless there has been a change in circumstances as it relates to the request.
4.9.8 Appeals
All decisions by the Stearns County Board of Adjustment in granting variances or in hearing appeals from any administrative order, requirement, decision or
determination shall be final except that any aggrieved person or persons, or any department, board or commission of the jurisdiction or of the state shall have the right to appeal within thirty (30) days, after receipt of notice of the decision, to the Stearns County District Court pursuant to Minnesota Statutes, section 394.27, subdivision 9; or successor statutes.
4.10 Zoning Ordinance Amendments 4.10.1 Criteria
The Board may adopt amendments to the text of this Ordinance, the primary zoning district maps as adopted by reference in Section 8.2 of this Ordinance, Flood Insurance Rate Maps as adopted by reference in Section 10.1.3 of this Ordinance, and the Conservation Design Overlay and the Airport Overlay Map as incorporated in Appendix D of this Ordinance. Amendments may be adopted to reflect changes in the goals and policies of the County Comprehensive Plan. Any change in this Ordinance or to any zoning map shall be in compliance with the County Comprehensive Plan.
4.10.2 Procedure
A. An amendment to the text of this Ordinance may be initiated by the Board, the Planning Commission or by application of a property owner. An amendment to the zoning map may be initiated by the Board, the Planning Commission or by application of the property owner. An amendment not initiated by the Planning Commission shall be referred to the Planning Commission for their review and recommendation.
B. Before the enactment of any ordinance amending the text of this Ordinance or any zoning map, a public hearing shall be held in the manner provided in Minnesota Statutes, sections 394.26 and 375.51; or successor statutes.
4.10.3 Public Hearings
A. Public hearings regarding any amendment to the zoning maps shall be held by the Planning Commission. Upon completion of the public hearing, the Planning Commission shall forward the application for final action together with their findings and recommendation of either approval or non-approval to the Board.
B. Public hearings regarding any amendment to the text of this Ordinance shall be held by the Board.
4.10.4 Application for Change of Text
An application to change the wording of this Ordinance shall include:
A. Reason for the requested change;
B. Statement regarding compatibility with the County Comprehensive Plan;
C. Text portion of the existing language to be amended; and D. Proposed amended text.
E. Complete applications for a change of text submitted by a property owner of an establishment, the use of which involves protected expression, shall be processed and a public hearing scheduled within ninety (90) days of their receipt.
4.10.5 Application for Change in District Boundary (Rezoning)
An application to change district boundaries shall include the following:
A. The name and address of owner/owners;
B. A specific description of the area proposed to be rezoned;
C. The present zoning district and the proposed zoning district;
D. Proposed use of the land to be rezoned;
E. A statement describing how the proposed change in district boundary will be compatible with the County Comprehensive Plan; and
F. A recommendation of the appropriate Township Board of Supervisors, provided that the township has planning and zoning authority.
G. Complete applications for a change in district boundary (rezoning) submitted by the property owner and involving a current or proposed use which
involves protected expression, shall be processed and a public hearing scheduled within thirty (30) days of their receipt.
H. No application for a change in zoning district boundary on the same parcel of land and for the same zoning district shall be resubmitted for a period of twelve (12) months from the date of the decision on the previous application unless growth boundaries for the applicable township have been established or modified to include said parcel of land; or unless an adjoining parcel of land has been rezoned during the twelve (12) months since the initial application; or unless, in the opinion of the Director, the request is substantially changed from the original request.
4.10.6 Floodplain Map Amendments and Revisions
The County recognizes that new data may become available that better defines the floodplain areas within the County and further recognizes that the original flood maps and profiles may be in error. For these reasons, it is expected that the floodplain maps and profiles may periodically need revision or amendment. The map amendments and revisions are issued by the Federal Emergency
Management Agency (FEMA). There are three basic types of floodplain map amendments or revisions that may occur as follows:
A. Map Amendment. A map amendment will exclude an individual structure