§ 10.02.03. Hearing Before the Land Use Hearing Officer

A.

Participants

The participants before the Land Use Hearing Officer shall be the applicant, County staff, County agencies, proponents, and opponents, inclusive of the public and witnesses with relevant testimony. The proponent shall be defined as a participant in favor of the application, exclusive of the applicant; whereas, the opponent shall be defined as a participant against the application. Both definitions are inclusive of the public and any other parties of record.

B.

Order of Presentation

The order of and total time allotments for Non-Variance applications shall be as follows:

1.

Applicant and witnesses; proposal: 15 minutes

2.

Administrator; summary of the application, County staff and department findings: five minutes

3.

Proponents; argument for the application: 15 minutes

4.

Opponents; argument against the application: 15 minutes

5.

Staff; amended recommendations, if any: five minutes

6.

Applicant; rebuttal and summation: five minutes

The order of and total time allotments for Variance applications shall be as follows:

1.

Administrator; summary of the application, County staff and department findings: five minutes

2.

Applicant and witnesses; proposal: 15 minutes

3.

Proponents; argument for the application: 15 minutes

4.

Opponents; argument against the application: 15 minutes

5.

Staff; amended recommendations, if any: five minutes

6.

Applicant; rebuttal and summation: five minutes

For good cause shown, the Land Use Hearing Officer may grant additional time.

C.

Nature of Hearings

To the maximum extent practicable, the hearings shall be informal. Questioning shall be confined as closely as possible to the scope of direct testimony. The Land Use Hearing Officer may call and question witnesses as he deems necessary and appropriate. The Land Use Hearing Officer shall decide all questions of procedure.

D.

Evidence

Irrelevant, immaterial, or unduly repetitious evidence shall be excluded. Any part of the evidence may be received in written form, and all testimony shall be under oath. Hearsay evidence may be used for the purpose of supplementing or explaining other evidence, but it shall not be sufficient, in itself, to support a finding by the Land Use Hearing Officer unless it would be admissible over objections in a civil action.

E.

Matters To Be Considered by the Land Use Hearing Officer in Making Decision

The Land Use Hearing Officer shall consider, in addition to all evidence presented at the hearing, the following as are relevant in making his decision on an application, which are not listed in any particular order:

1.

The history of the subject parcel.

2.

Applicable regulations and development standards promulgated.

3.

Applicable goals, objectives, and policies contained in the Comprehensive Plan.

4.

Reports and recommendations filed by reviewing agencies.

5.

Physical characteristics of the subject parcel and surrounding lands.

6.

Impact on the surrounding transportation network.

7.

Availability and capacity of public services.

8.

Nature of and impacts on surrounding land use.

9.

Environmental impact of the proposed development activity.

F.

Findings and Decision of the Land Use Hearing Officer

1.

The decision of the Land Use Hearing Officer shall be in writing and include:

a.

Summary of proposed development activity and the evidence presented.

b.

Findings of fact.

c.

Conclusions of law, including compliance or noncompliance of the proposed development activity with applicable provisions of the Comprehensive Plan and this Land Development Code.

d.

A decision to either approve or deny the application with reasons therefore specified, including any recommended conditions.

Persons wishing to receive a copy of the decision by mail may supply the Clerk of the Board with their name, address, and a stamped, self-addressed envelope for that purpose.

G.

Record of Hearing Before the Land Use Hearing Officer

1.

An audio recording of all hearings before the Land Use Hearing Officer shall be recorded by the Clerk of the Board and also recorded by an official court reporter.

2.

The record of the hearing before the Land Use Hearing Officer shall consist of:

a.

The application and accompanying documents.

b.

Staff reports and recommendations.

c.

All exhibits and documentary evidence.

d.

The decision of the Land Use Hearing Officer.

e.

The audio recording of testimony at the hearing.

f.

Verbatim transcript of the proceedings.

H.

Decision of the Land Use Hearing Officer

A copy of the decision of the Land Use Hearing Officer is required to be filed with the Clerk of the Board within 15 working days after the conclusion of the public hearing before said officer.

I.

Reconsideration of Matter by the Land Use Hearing Officer

1.

On motion and upon such terms as are just, the [Land Use] Hearing Officer may grant a rehearing on an application for the following reasons:

a.

Mistake, inadvertence or excusable neglect;

b.

Newly discovered evidence which by due diligence could not have been discovered in time for the original hearing; or

c.

Fraud, misrepresentation or other misconduct of an adverse party.

2.

The motion shall be made prior to the deadline for filing an appeal to Appeal Board. The filing of such a motion tolls the time for filing an appeal. The time for filing an appeal shall begin anew in full upon the [Land Use] Hearing Officer's denial of such a motion.

J.

Changes to Approved Special Use Permits

Requests to modify the existing conditions and/or site plan associated with an approved special use shall follow the same review process as a new application. Approval of the modification shall serve to amend the original permit.

(Ord. No. 97-18, § 2, 12-18-97; Ord. No. 98-43, § 2, 7-17-98; Ord. No. 06-18, § 2, 8-1-06; Ord. No. 07-25, § 2, 11-1-07, eff. 2-1-08; Ord. No. 08-15, § 2, 6-12-08, eff. 10-1-08; Ord. No. 09-62, Item J, 10-26-09, eff. 2-1-2010)