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A. Appeals to the Board of Adjustment:

1. The Board of Adjustment may hear appeals made by any person who is aggrieved by the Zoning Administrator's interpretation or administration of this section.

2. Board appeals shall be filed with the Zoning Administrator on forms furnished for that purpose within fifteen (15) days after the action appealed from, and shall specify the grounds therefore, The Zoning Administrator shall forthwith transmit to the Board all papers constituting the record upon which the appealed action is taken.

3. The appeal stays all proceedings in the matter appealed from, unless the Zoning Administrator certifies to the Board that, by reason of the facts stated in the certificate, a stay would, in his opinion, cause imminent peril to life or property. In such case, proceedings shall not be stayed, except by a restraining order granted by the Board, on application and notice to the Zoning Administrator, or by a court of record.

4. The Board shall hear the appeal at the next regularly scheduled meeting after the required advertising requirements have been fulfilled. Notice of the hearing shall be made by publishing a notice thereof in the official newspaper of the Town and by posting the property affected not less than fifteen (15) days prior to the hearing. The notice shall set forth the time and place of the hearing and include a general explanation of the matter to be considered.

5. The Board may reverse or affirm, wholly or partly, or modify the order, requirement or decision of the Zoning Administrator or other staff members, appealed from and make such order, requirement, decision or determination, as it may deem necessary.

6. Any party may appear at the hearing in person or by agent or attorney. Parties shall have the right to present their case by oral or documentary evidence, to submit rebuttal evidence, and to conduct such inquiry of facts of opposing parties through the Chairman. The Chairman may limit or prevent questions or inquiries that are irrelevant or inappropriate. The Board shall, as a matter of policy, provide for the exclusion of irrelevant, immaterial or unduly repetitious evidence and in furtherance of this policy may limit cross-examination.

B. Variance:

1. Any aggrieved person may appeal to the Board of Adjustment for a variance from the terms of the Zoning Ordinance if, because of special circumstances applicable to the property, including its size, shape, topography, location, or surroundings, the strict application of the Zoning Ordinance will deprive such property owner of privileges enjoyed by owners of other property of the same classification in the same Zoning District. Any variance granted shall be made subject to such conditions as will assure that the adjustment authority shall not constitute a granting of special privileges inconsistent with the limitations upon other properties in the zone in which such property is located.

2. The Board shall hear the appeal at the next regularly scheduled meeting after the required advertising requirements have been fulfilled. Notice of the hearing shall be made by publishing a notice thereof in the official newspaper of the Town and by posting the property affected not less than fifteen (15) days prior to the hearing. The notice shall set forth the time and place of the hearing and include a general explanation of the matter to be considered.

3. A variance shall not be granted by the Board unless the alleged hardship caused by literal interpretation of the provisions of this section results in more than personal inconvenience and/or personal financial hardship, and is not the result of actions of the applicant.

4. In granting a variance, the Board shall impose such conditions and safeguards as are appropriate to ensure that the purpose and intent of this section remain intact.

5. No nonconforming use or violations of this section with respect to neighboring lands, structures, or buildings in the same zoning district, and no permitted use of lands, structures or buildings in other zoning districts shall be considered grounds for granting a variance.

6. Every variance shall be personal to the applicant therefore and shall be transferable and shall run with the land only after completion of any structure or structures authorized thereby.

7. Nothing herein contained shall be construed to empower the Board to change the terms of this section, to authorize uses which violate any other Town ordinance, to affect changes in the zoning map, or to add to or change the uses permitted in any Zoning District.

C. Appeals from the Board: The decision of the Board shall be final, provided, however, that any person aggrieved by a decision of the Board may, at any time within thirty (30) days after the filing of the decision in the office of the Development Services Director, file a special action in the nature of certiorari with the Arizona Superior Court in and for Maricopa County for review of the Board's decision. Allowance of the writ shall not stay proceedings upon the decision appealed from, unless the court shall grant a restraining order. If a special action is brought for review of a matter in which the Board held a hearing which was not stenographically or electronically recorded, then upon request of any party to the special action or the court, the Board shall forthwith arrange a hearing in accordance with the public hearing and posting requirements for a variance for the purpose of causing a stenographic or electronic record to be made of the evidence presented by the parties. If evidence is presented at this hearing, which is new, or different from that originally presented the same shall be noted in the record by the Board Chairman.

D. Fees:

1. Upon filing an application for appeal, the appellant shall pay a filing fee in the amount established by a schedule adopted by resolution of the Council and filed in the offices of the Town Clerk. The filing fee may be waived when the petitioner is the Town, County, State, or Federal Government.

2. In the case of an appeal for a variance to more than one provision of this section, the filing fee shall equal the total amount chargeable for all provisions as prescribed by the fee schedule.