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HomeMy WebLinkAboutA025 - Legal Opinion dated September 1, 1999 - notice of hearing and voting on enactment of ordinance - City Attorney's Office 515 Clark Avenue,P. O.Box 811 Owing People Ames,IA 50010 Q� Ig Phone: 515-239-5146 • Fax: 515-239-5142 Euepnoea/Service September 1, 1999 2 1099 The Honorable Ted Tedesco, Mayor, —� and Members of the City Council of the City of Ames, Iowa Re: Enactment of New Zoning District, Zoning Map for Entire City, Notice of Hearing, Voting Dear Mayor Tedesco and Council Members: This is in response to the Mayor's request for a memorandum of law pertaining to notice of hearing and voting on enactment of an ordinance to establish new zoning district boundaries for the entire City. The matter is governed by Sections 414.4 and 414.5, Code of Iowa. Those sections state, respectively, that: "The council of the city shall provide for the manner in which the regulations and restrictions and the boundaries of the districts shall be determined, established and enforced, and from time to time amended, supplemented, or changed. However, the regulation, restriction or boundary shall not become effective until after a public hearing at which parties in interest and citizens shall have an opportunity to be heard. The notice of the time and place of the hearing shall be published as provided in Section 362.3 except that at least seven days notice must be given and in no case shall the public hearing be held earlier than the next regularly scheduled City Council meeting following the published notice." "In case, however, of a written protest against a change or repeal which is filed with the city clerk and signed by the owners of twenty percent or more of the area of the lots included in the proposed change or repeal, or by the owners of twenty percent or more of the property which is located within two hundred feet of the exterior boundaries of the property for which the change or repeal is proposed, the change or repeal shall not become effective except by the favorable vote of at least three-fourths of all the members of the Council. The protest, if filed,must be filed before or at the public hearing. The provisions of section 414.4 relative to public hearings and official notice apply equally to all changes or amendments." It is not a requirement of the Iowa zoning statute, or of the City of Ames zoning ordinances, that personal or mailed notice of a proposed change in zoning regulations be given to anyone. The published notice is all that is required by statute and ordinance. Constitutional due process does not require personal notice to landowners or adjacent property owners, the statutory published notice being sufficient to meet the constitutional standard. 1 Ziegler,Rathkopf s The Law of Planning and Zoning, 10.03[l], citing: Fortier v City of Spearfish, 433 N.W.2d 228 (S.D. 1988). A super majority affirmative vote by five members of the city council will be required for passage if the owners of 200/.of the area of all the lots in the city file a written protest. A super majority is also required if the owners of 20% of the land area within 200 feet of the corporate limits file a written protest. 1 Ziegler,Rathkopf's The Law of Planning and Zoning, 10.09, citing rulings from the Courts of New Jersey, Kansas, Colorado, Illinois, Connecticut and California. Yours truly, John R. Klaus City Attorney JRK:gmw c: Brian O'Connell Steve Schainker Press Release Clare Bills,Public Relations Officer,239-5204 Contact: Director of Planning and Housing,Brian O'Connell or Planner Eden Schmitt: 239-5400 September 2, 1999 For Immediate Release Zoning In! The process of reviewing and updating the City's zoning ordinance has gone through many phases and is now moving into a phase where the public can take a closer look at the implications for their property. Maps have now been created with the new zoning designations and the City Council members are holding meetings in their wards to present the new zoning maps. Planning and Housing Director Brian O'Connell and Planner Eden Schmitt are coordinating an effort to give every citizen an opportunity to see the new maps and learn about any changes which will affect their property. The public meetings are scheduled for: September 8 -for commercial and industrial groups in Ward 1, at the Ames Public Library, Farwell T. Brown Auditorium at 7 p.m. September 16 -for Ward 3, at the Collegiate Methodist Church,Wesley Hall at 7 p.m. September 22 -for Ward 1 residents, at the Ames Public Library,Farwell T. Brown Auditorium at 7 p.m. September 29 -for Ward 2 residents at the Ames Public Library,Farwell T. Brown Auditorium at 7 p.m. October 14 - for everyone in Ward 4, at St. Andrews Lutheran Church, Fellowship Hall at 7 p.m. In addition to the public meetings,citizens are invited to view a"meeting in a box"on the zoninig issue. Boxes will be available for check out at the Ames Public Library and at the Department of Plan- ning and Housing starting September 7. Boxes will include copies of the current and proposed zoning -- more -- regulations, a video tape explaining more about the process and a map of the propozed zones. Residents are encouraged to invite their neighbors over to view the regulations together. Copies of the proposed map and the new and current zoning regulations will also be available at the following locations: HyVee west,K-Mart,North Grand Mall, City Hall and the Ames Public Library. Those who cannot attend a meeting are encouraged to view the current and proposed maps and to pick up literature about the changes which will be available at each site. Following the public input meetings,the City Council will decide if they want to make any recom- mendations for changes to the zoning maps. The zoning ordinance is available on the City's web site: www.city.ames.ia.us in the Planning and Housing page under city departments.