Morrisville Unified Development Ordinance - October 2021

Article 2: Administration Section 2.5. Application-Specific Review Procedures 2.5.16. Variance

3.

Text Provisions

Interpretation of text provisions and their application shall be based on the standards in Section 11.1, Interpretation of Ordinance Text, and the following considerations: a. The clear and plain meaning of the provision’s wording, as defined by the meaning and significance given specific terms used in the provision — as established in Section 11.5, Terms and Uses Defined, and by the common and accepted usage of the term; b. The intended purpose of the provision, as indicated by purpose statements, its context and consistency with surrounding and related provisions, and any legislative history to its adoption; c. The general purposes served by this Ordinance, as set forth in Section 1.1.3, Purpose and Intent; and

d. Consistency with the Comprehensive Plan.

(Ord. No. 2014-22, 06/24/2014)

2.5.16. Variance

A. Purpose The purpose of a Variance is to allow certain deviations from standards of this Ordinance when the landowner demonstrates that, owing to spec ial circumstances or conditions beyond the landowner’s control (such as exceptional topographical conditions or the narrowness, shallowness, or shape of a specific parcel of land), the literal application of the standards would result in undue and unique hardship to the landowner and the deviation would not be contrary to the public interest. Variances are to be sparingly exercised and only in rare instances and under exceptional circumstances to relieve undue and unique hardships to the landowner. No change in permitted uses or increases in maximum allowable development intensity may be authorized by variance. Appropriate conditions may be imposed on any variance, provided that the conditions are reasonably related to the variance. B. Applicability The procedure and standards in this subsection apply to the review of applications for a Variance seeking hardship relief from the standards of this Ordinance other than the standards in Article 6: Riparian Buffers, and Article 7: Stormwater Management, provided that no Variance may be sought or granted that would permit a use not allowed by use standards applicable in a zoning district or increase development intensity (e.g., dwelling units per acre or floor area ratio) beyond that allowed by intensity standards applicable in a zoning district. (Procedures and standards for variances from riparian buffer standards are in Section 6.6, Variances from Riparian Buffer Regulations; those for variances from stormwater management regulations are in 7.2.5, Stormwater Variances.) C. Variance Procedure The following subsections identify those steps in the standard review procedure (see Section 2.4) applicable to the review of a Variance application and note any specific variations of, or additions to, those review steps.

1.

Pre-Application Conference

The applicant shall hold a pre-application conference with Town staff in accordance with Section 2.4.2.

Morrisville, NC

October 1, 2021

Unified Development Ordinance

Page 2-53