Legal Documents of Sweetwater

Rules of procedure: annual report. The historic zoning commission shall adopt rules of procedure (by-laws) for the conduct of its business. The commission annually shall elect from its membership a chairman, vicechairman, and a secretary. The commission shall establish its own regular meeting time; however, the first meeting shall be held within thirty (30) days of the adoption of this ordinance and regular meetings shall be scheduled once every month. The commission shall keep a record of its members' attendance, meeting minutes, its resolutions, findings and recommendations, which record shall be public records.

An annual report shall be prepared and submitted to the Sweetwater Planning Commission and the mayor and board of commissioners by May 1 of each year. Such report shall include a review of the activities, problems and actions of the historic zoning commission.

1. As soon as practical after its creation, and consistent with the resources available to it, the historic zoning commission shall undertake an inventory of properties of historical, architectural, and cultural significance within its jurisdiction as a guide for the identification and evaluation of landmarks and districts.
2. Recommend to the mayor and board of commissioners areas to be designated by ordinance as an "historic district overlay" and buildings, structures, sites or objects to be designated by ordinance as "historic landmarks."
3. Conduct educational programs with respect to historic properties within its jurisdiction.
4. Cooperate with the state, federal and local governments in pursuit of the purposes of this chapter.
5. Review and act upon proposals for alterations, site improvements, demolitions, or new construction within historic districts or of designated landmarks, pursuant to this chapter.
6. Grant or deny certificates of appropriateness.
7. Adopt rules for design guidelines to determine appropriateness, whose purpose shall be to ensure, insofar as possible, that changes in designated historic properties shall be in harmony with the reasons for their designation. Said guidelines shall, insofar as possible, be consistent with local, state and federal guidelines and regulations, including, but not limited to, building codes, fire codes and the Secretary of the Interior's Standards for Rehabilitation.
8. Grant variances from its adopted design guidelines only when special circumstances or conditions, including but not limited to economic hardships; such that the strict application of the guidelines would deprive the property owner of a reasonable use of the property. (as added by Ord. #781, April 2006, and amended by Ord. #874, Nov. 2011)