City of Thibodaux Zoning Review - South Central Planning ...

Thibodaux Zoning Review 2010understand but don’t they work for you, I mean don’t you have control over what they do or theycompletely separate. Mr. Breaud replied completely separate. Mr. Harang stated are you dealingwith the Board of Adjustments, Simone? Ms. Caesar replied I’m sorry. Mr. Harang stated in yourreview, have you been asked to deal with the Board of Adjustments as well as Planning & Zoning.Ms. Caesar replied no. Mr. Breaud stated the Board of Adjustments is supposed to be followingthis book just like we are and I don’t attend their meetings to know what they are doing but it is thesame thing there is wording in here that you don’t use your personal judgment to make decisionson it, that you should use this book as a guideline. Ms. Erwin replied to insure there is no specialtreatment given. Mr. Kearns replied and understand that the changes that will be made because ofthis will impact them to - they are not separate and apart from the rules and the laws. Mr. Harangreplied that was my question. Mr. Kearns replied no, they’ve got to follow the same laws, whateverthe City Council sets down as this is it, they have to follow this also and whatever judgment theymake that has got to be the foundation that they work off of. Mr. Harang replied because theimpression is that every variance that is granted and every variance that is denied is at the whim ofthe Board of Adjustments, based on nothing other than their personal preference. Mr. Breaudreplied that is not the way it should be. Mr. Harang replied I understand that. Mr. Breaud repliedbut it is a separate Board from us. Mr. Donned stated but under you, under your guidelines. Mr.Breaud replied no. Mr. Kearns replied completely separate from us. Ms. Erwin replied under thezoning guidelines. Mr. Donnes replied and when I say under your guidelines if you classifysomething in an R-3 then they shouldn’t be able to take a component of R-2 or R-4 and put it in a3. Mr. Kearns replied we can’t tell you what they should or shouldn’t do. Mr. Price replied I don’tbring up those issues any more since the District Regulations were looked at back in December of’08, the Board of Adjustments cannot get involved into re-zoning so if a business is not allowed in azone it is prohibited and if it is not listed then it comes to the Planning & Zoning Commission to findout what zone they’re going to put them in, what district. Mr. Donnes replied so it is the intent tomake the variance committee to read their own rules and regulations and follow them. Mr. Breaudreplied that is always the case, there is always a case where we can’t grant a variance for, side lotline offsets and stuff like that have got to go back to the Board of Adjustments. We can grantcertain variances but there are certain ones that we cannot, that have got to go in front of theBoard of Adjustment. Mr. Donnes stated you would change the zoning if could be in area, youwouldn’t change the variances, you would change the zoning, you could change the zoning to fitthe structure. Mr. Breaud replied well keep in mind, we’re an advisory board, if we’re changinglaws, we can’t change a law, we can make a recommendation to the Council to get a law changed,ok so that is basically where it is, the laws that are on the books right now is what we are followingright now and that is what we base our decisions on. Mr. Harang stated since the Planning andZoning Commission and the Board of Adjustments are so closely intertwined, regardless of whoworks for who or who appoints who because if you do the zoning and they give people variancesthat is doing the same thing as far as I am concerned. Mr. Price replied they can’t give varianceson changing a district, the Board of Adjustments can say that, I’ll give you an example, in R-4you’re allowed a mobile home, the Board of Adjustments can’t say I’m going to give you a varianceand put it in an R-3 or R-2. Mr. Harang replied I understand but take parking for instance, thezoning requirements can require a certain number of parking spaces, the Board of Adjustmentscan waive parking spaces. Mr. Price replied correct. Mr. Harang replied ok, therein lies theproblem where the zoning and the Board of Adjustments, what you all do here is not necessarilycarried out out there, could we ask that the study being done include the Board of Adjustments andwhat they can and cannot do, is that outside of the scope of Planning & Zoning? Mr. Breaudreplied well I think that is something that they can address and I think it is addressed in here it isjust in my opinion the Board of Adjustments is not following some of the rules in here. If you readsome of this stuff it says you’re not supposed to grant a variance for certain circumstances and Idon’t think that is being followed all of the time you know. Mr. Kearns replied it is supposed toreally be for a hardship. Ms. Cathy Benoit replied I’d like to follow up on what Ben said and we atthe Chamber often receive complaints because X, Y, Z got a variance to sell fried chicken but A, B,C asked for the same variance and did not. So I think it has all be incorporated and viewed at thesame time, everybody has to be on the same page and an exception cannot be made for onebusiness and not the other or even a resident for that matter. Ms. Erwin stated do you find asmany since the… Mr. Price replied we don’t send them at all, since ’08… Ms. Erwin replied youdon’t even send them anymore since the ordinance has changed so much from ’08. Mr. Pricestated since December of ’08 we do not send any client that comes in and asks for a variance tochange a district regulation, no, it is either permitted or prohibited and if it is not listed than theycome here to find out what district the Planning & Zoning Commission wants to put them in. Itused to be conditionally permitted but in December of ’08 that was changed. Ms. Erwin replied thatis what created the problem. Mr. Price stated they still go to the Board of Adjustments for parkingvariances, they need to go for fence variances, setbacks; they have to go to the Board ofAdjustments for those. Mr. Breaud replied there is a whole section, it is Section 1003 in the zoningordinance that addresses variances and in the last sentence of that, and there are about 10paragraphs and in the last paragraph, the last sentence says “under no circumstances shall theBoard of Adjustments grant a variance to grant a use non-permissible under the terms of thisordinance in the district involved or any other use expressly or by implication prohibited by theterms of this ordinance in said district” so that tells me something right here and there is a wholesection on variances in here and I think if that section was enforced and followed that they wouldnot have to address that; but if it is not clear and you feel like it is not we can get South CentralPlanning to look at that issue also and give us their opinion on those actions. Mr. Harang replied1794