Zoning ordinances enforce or develop a comprehensive plan to divide property within a governmental entity's borders. The ordinances restrict a property owner's use of his or her private property so that the public's health, safety, and welfare are protected, maintained, and developed. Zoning ordinances affect the structures that already exist within the governmental entity's borders at the time the ordinances are enacted.

Nonconforming Uses

Zoning ordinances must be strictly construed. That means that property owners must strictly comply with the provisions of a zoning ordinance. If a zoning ordinance is enacted that changes the allowable use of structures that already exist in a particular zoning district, the use of those structures in their current state may not be allowed under the ordinance. In such case, the owners of the affected properties may apply for a nonconforming use. If the use of the properties had been allowed before the enactment of the ordinance, the governmental entity will usually allow the nonconforming use, and the owners will not have to change their properties to conform to the ordinance's new requirements. A subsequent buyer of the property may not be entitled to continue the permitted nonconforming use, as the permission may end with the termination of the owner's interest in the property. The permitted nonconforming use may also terminate if the owner changes the use of the property to another nonconforming use.

Conditional Use Permits

While nonconforming uses refer to structures that already existed when the ordinance was enacted, a conditional use is a type of permit that can be obtained by an owner of structures that did not exist at the time of the ordinance's enactment. If, for example, a purchaser wants to buy property that had a structure with 2,400 square feet with the intent to build a larger building for his or her business, and an ordinance requires structures in that particular zoning district to have a minimum of 9,000 square feet, a conditional use permit could be issued to allow the purchaser to buy the nonconforming property conditioned on the construction of a structure that was no smaller than 9,000 square feet.

Variances

Although property owners must usually comply with the terms of a zoning ordinance, in some cases a variance is allowed that permits the owner to depart from the ordinance's strict terms. A variance may be granted, upon application to the governmental entity, when strict compliance with the ordinance would cause unreasonable hardship to the property owner or user. In order to establish hardship, the owner or user must establish, at a minimum, that:

(1) the actual size or physical condition of the property is such that it is impossible to comply with the ordinance;

(2) the physical condition of the property would render the costs of development unreasonable;

(3) the hardship condition was not created by the owner or user;

(4) a variance would not change the character of the neighborhood or zoning district; and

(5) the owner or user did not seek a drastic departure from the requirements of the ordinance.

If the government entity does not approve the application for a variance, the applicant can resort to the court system for review after exhausting all administrative remedies provided by the zoning ordinance..

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