17-6-4 Conditions for Variances.
A. Variances shall only be issued upon:
1. A showing of good and sufficient cause;
2. A determination that the variance is the minimum necessary, considering the flood hazard, to afford relief;
3. A determination that failure to grant the variance would result in exceptional hardship to the applicant;
4. A showing that the use cannot perform its intended purpose unless it is located or carried out in close proximity to water. This includes only facilities defined in Article 17-2 in the definition of “functionally dependent use” (which is unlikely due to the Town of Oro Valley’s arid climate); and
5. A determination that the granting of a variance will not result in increased flood heights, additional threats to public safety, extraordinary public expense, create nuisances, cause fraud on or victimization of the public, or conflict with existing local laws or ordinances.
B. Variances shall not be issued within any regulatory floodway if any increase in the base flood elevation would result.
C. Variances may be issued for the repair, rehabilitation, or restoration of structures listed in the National Register of Historic Places or the State Inventory of Historic Places upon a determination that the proposed repair or rehabilitation will not preclude the structure’s continued designation as a historic structure, and that the variance is the minimum necessary in order to preserve the historic character and design of the structure.
D. The Floodplain Administrator, at his/her discretion, may grant a variance for non-FEMA regulated flood hazard areas.
E. Generally, variances may be issued for new construction and substantial improvements to be erected on a lot of one-half (0.5) acre or less in size contiguous to and surrounded by lots with existing structures constructed below the regulatory flood elevation, provided the procedures of Articles 17-4 and 17-5 have been fully considered. As the lot size increases beyond one-half (0.5) acre, the technical justification required for issuing the variance increases. ((O)21-06, 11/17/2021; (O)17-04, 04/05/2017; (O)05-35, 10/05/2005)