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HomeMy WebLinkAboutOrd 1786 - zoning ; depth and width measurements City of West University Place Harris County, Texas Ordinance No. 1786 AN ORDINANCE CALLING A JOINT PUBLIC HEARING ON A PROPOSAL TO AMEND THE ZONING ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF WEST UNIVERSITY PLACE, TEXAS REGARDING DEPTH AND WIDTH MEASUREMENTS; PRESCRIBING PROCEDURES AND NOT1CES; CONTAINING FINDINGS AND OTHER PROVISIONS RELATING TO THE SUBJECT; AND DECLARING AN EMERGENCY. WHEREAS, the Zoning and Planning Commission C~Z&PC") of the City of West University Place, Texas C'Cityn) has submitted a prefiminary report on a proposar to . amend the comprehensive zoning ordinance of the City, as last reformatted and re- adopted by Ordinance No. 1672, adopted March 12,2001, and as amended thereafter (UZoning Ordinance"); and WHEREASt the Z&PC)s preliminary report is attached to this ordinance as Exhibit A and made a part of this ordinance by reference; and WHEREAS, the City Council desires to call a joint public hearing on such proposal; NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF WEST UNIVERSITY PLACE: Section 1.. The City Council hereby calls a joint public hearing before the City Council and Z&PC on the proposal described in Exhibit A. Unless rescheduled~ the hearing shall be held in the Council Chamber of the Municrpal Building, 3800 University Boulevard1 West University Place} Texas 77005 during the City Council meeting set to begin at 6:30 p.m~ on March 28~ 20056 The hearing may be recessed and continued to the City Council meeting set to begin at 6:30 p.m. on April 11 ~ 2005 at the same place, unless rescheduled. The City Manger may reschedule the hearing or the recess date1 or both, to accommodate other pending matters, but the rescheduled date(s) may not be later than 30 days past the dates set by this ordinance~ Section 2" The purpose for the hearing is to provide an opportunity for parties in interest and citizens to be heard in relation to the proposal described in Exhibit A. Section 3~ The procedures for adoption of the proposal shari be as follows: (1) notice as required by this ordinance, (2) hearing as called by this ordinance, (3) report by the Z&PCJ and (4) vote by the City Council on the question of adoption. The procedures for enforcing the proposal shall be as set out in the existing Zoning Ordinance. The proposal described in Exhibit A js hereby submitted and re-submitted to the Z&PC for its consideration. Section 4.. The City Secretary shall give notice of such hearing as prescrrbed by this section. The notice shall be in substantially the form set out in Exhibit B, whjch is attached and made a part of this ordinance by reference. The not;ce shall be published in the CityJs official newspaper (or another newspaper of generaJ circulation in the City) at least once on or before the 16th day preceding the date of the hearing. In addition1 the notice shaH be mailed to the persons on the mailing list for the City CLlrrents newsletteL The notices shall be deposited in the United States mail on or before ninth day preceding the date of the hearing, properly addressed with postage prepard. The notices may be included within the newsletter, or with utility bills or may be separate. The City Council specifically approves giving combined notice of two or more hearings in a single notice document, as this would save money and also provide better . information about the full scope of possible amendments to all interested persons. Section 5.. The City staff is authorized to make all necessary arrangements for the hearing and to assist the Zoning and Planning Commission and the City Council. Section 6.. If any word, phrase, clause, sentence, paragraph, section or other part of this ordinance, or the application thereof to any person or circumstancet shall ever be held to be invalid or unconstitutional by any court of competent jurisdiction, the remainder of this ordinance and the application of such word, phrasel clause1 sentence, paragraph, section or other part of this ordinance to any other persons or circumstances shall not be affected thereby. All ordinances and parts of ordinances in conflict herewith are hereby repealed to the extent of the conflict onJy. Section 7. The City Council officially finds, determines and decJares that sufficient written notice of the date, hour, place and subject of each meeting at which this ordinance was discussed, considered or acted upon was given in the manner required by the Open Meetings Law} Chapter 551, Texas Government Code, as amended, and that such meeting has been open to the public as required by law at all times during such discussion] consideration and action. The City Council ratifies, approves and confirms such notices and the contents and posting thereof. Section 8" Because the proposal to amend the Zoning Ordinance is vitally important and should be considered at the earliest possible date, a state of emergency is declared requiring that this ordinance be read and adopted finaUy at this meet\ng. Accordingly, this ordinance shall be adopted finally on first reading and shall become effective immediately upon adoption and signature. PASSED, APPROVED, ADOPTED AND SIGNED on ~A-#F /f'< 20 oS Attest/Sea ~-=---- Signed: &i: ~JP.f-~ City Secretary Mayor .' Recommended: ~arr City Manager R:j~ City Attorney codes\wup\54 0 CA LUN G Exhibit A Zoning & Planning Commission City of West University Place, Texas 3800 University Boulevard West University Place, Texas 77005 JQJ')J1ar~, 2005 t Honorable Mayor & Members of the City Council City of West University Place 3808 University Boulevard Houston, Texas 77005 Subject: Preliminary report on a proposal to amend the zoning ordinance of the City of West University Place, Texas (~CityH) relating to depth and width measurements To the Honorable Mayor & Members of City Council: The Zoning & Planning Commission of the City submits this, its preliminary report, on the subject proposal, for the assistance of the Council as well as other interested persons. ~ Scope of Proposal. The proposal is to amend the definitions of ~depth" and ~widthH in Article 2 of the Zoning Ordinance, as indicated in the attachment to this report. The principal purposes are to: (1) allow the building official to accept nominal site dimensions from a recorded plat; and (2) thereby, avoid putting sites into non-compliance when later surveys show the actual dimensions a few inches different from the platted dimensions; and (3) reduce the number of cases sent to the ZBA (for variances) when later surveys show minor discrepancies from platted dimensions. The proposal extends the approach that has long been used for "depth" measurements. Preliminary Recommendation. Based on the limited review given this matter so far, and subject to further review following public hearing, the Commission: (i) finds that the proposal, if adopted, would be in the public interest, (ii) makes a preliminary recommendation favorable to the proposal, (ii) recommends that the City Council call a joint public hearing to consider this matter. The Commission invites all interested persons to participate in the joint public hearing. The Vote. The vote on approval of this report was as follows: Commissioners BrOW() I-bro.cit:z.j 'Po.E:6umOJ)'o Ord BekfF voted "aye i" no "noe s i ff R.c&s ):Cr-lQ.btL)Q.(l(.l.st~"'iabsen t. Respectfully submitted: ZONING AND PLANNING COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF WEST UNIVERSITY PLACE, TEXAS By: c:qj2> For ~~~r;n - -- Amendment relating to depth and width and measurement (Definitions) 1-12-05 Amend the definition of "depth" as follows: Depth. With respect to the deptll of an area, tIle average horizontal distance between the front and the rear~ For irregularly-shaped building sites, the depth is deemed to be equal to the average distance from th.e front street line to the rear or side of the site when the distance is measured perpendicularly from points along the front street line. f01 pU1.po5e~ of dctGIlIlinin.g the depth of the, [1.0111 yard, the nominal depth of it building site sho ~n un any 1 GGOldcd plat shall contIol over tI1G actual nlGaSUICd dCptil. For this purpose" the building official may accept the nominal dimensions of a building site as shown on a recorded plat in lieu of the actual .measured dimensions., when they are approximately the same. Amend the definition of "width" as follows: Width. In the case of a building site, the length of the front street line. For this .purpose, the building official may accept the nominal width of a building site as shown on a recorded plat in lieu of the actual measured width, when they are approximately the same. Exhibit B NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARINGS The Zoning & Planning Commission and the City Council of the City of West University Place, Texas C~CityH) will hold joint public hearings in the Council Chamber of the Municipal Building, 3800 University Boulevard, HoustonJ Texas 77005 during the City Council meeting set to begin at 6:30 PM on March 28, 2005. Each hearing may be recessed and continued to the City Council meeting set to begin at 6:30 p.m. on April 11, 2005, at the same place~ The purpose for the hearings is to provide an opportunity for parties in interest and citizens to be heard in relation to proposed amendments to the City's Zoning Ordinance} as follows: [INSERT DESCRIPTION OF ALL PROPOSED AMENDMENTS WITH HEARINGS SET FOR THIS MEETING] Depth and Width Measurements. This amendment would allow the BuHding Official to accept nominal site dimensions from a recorded plat, in lieu of actual measure dimensions, when they are approximate'y the same. Additional details on the proposed amendments as well as the Zoning Ordinance are all available for public inspection in the Municipal Bu ild ing, 3800 University BouJevard, Houston, Texas 77005. The proposed amendments would be generaHy applicable within the City~ and any person interested in such matters should attend the hearings. No amendment may be adopted until after notice and hearing, and any amendment adopted would control over any inconsistent provision in the current Zoning Ordinance. Isl Kay Holloway, City Secretary Date: