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Every home occupation, as defined in § 130-4 of
this chapter, shall require a home occupation permit issued by the
Department of Community Improvement. No person shall engage in any
type of home occupation without first obtaining a home occupation
permit.
A. Application for home occupation permit
(1) Applications for home occupation permits shall be made on forms
supplied by the
Department of Community Improvement. The person making the
application must be
the principal person who will be engaged in the home occupation.
(2) Where the applicant is not the property owner, the consent form
portion of the
application must be completed and signed by the property owner(s).
(3) A nonrefundable application fee, to be set by resolution, shall
be submitted with the
application.
(4) Where the applicant proposes to conduct the home occupation in a
multifamily
complex, the applicant shall issue, by certified or registered mail,
upon applicant’s
permit request, notice to the condominium association office of
record in the case of a
dwelling unit positioned within said association, intended to be
used for the home
occupation and shall furnish the Department of Community Improvement
proof of
said certified mailing.
B. Requirements for issuance of home occupation permits
(1) In order to qualify for a permit, an applicant must meet the
following criteria and
must sign a statement agreeing to be bound by the following:
(a) The use of the dwelling unit for the home occupation shall be
clearly incidental
and secondary to its use for residential purposes.
(b) Not more than 20% of the living area of the dwelling unit shall
be used in the
conduct of the home occupation.
(c) Attached or detached carports, garages or accessory structures
shall not be used
in the conduct of the home occupation.
(d) No outside display, storage or use of land shall be utilized in
the conduct of the
home occupation.
(e) As part of the activities of the home occupation, there shall be
no mechanical or
electrical equipment used or other activities carried out on the
premises that
result in noise, vibration, glare, fumes, smoke, odors or electrical
interference to
others of a frequency and duration beyond that which is generally
considered
applicable to domestic or household activities.
(f) No commodity shall be sold or displayed on the premises such
that it can be seen
exterior to the premises.
(g) No additional traffic, pedestrian or vehicular, shall be
generated from the
activities of the home occupation that is greater in volume than is
normal for the
street or private driveway on which the home occupation is located.
(h) Not more than one home-occupation-related motor vehicle will be
parked on the
premises, and said motor vehicle shall not exceed 20 feet in overall
length and
six and one-half (6 1/2) feet in overall height.
(i) No accessory vehicles, such as trailers or equipment on wheels,
shall be home occupation
related and parked on or adjacent to the premises at any time.
(j) No change in the outside appearance of the building or premises
shall occur as a result of the home occupation, and no sign shall be displayed
anywhere which is home-occupation related.
(2) In addition to the requirements set forth in § 130-30B(1), the
Director of the Department of Community Improvement or his/her designee shall
consider the following and will only issue a home occupation permit if the
following conditions are satisfied:
(a) Considering the nature and character of the proposed home
occupation, it is
reasonable to assume that the applicant will be capable of meeting
the requirements of § 130-30B(1).
(b) The home occupation permit, if issued, will not alter the
character of the neighborhood in which the home occupation is proposed.
C. Duration of permit; requirement for business tax receipt;
renewals
(1) Home occupation permits shall be issued to coincide with the
effective dates of the
required City business tax receipt. Any person who receives a home
occupation
permit must also obtain a business tax receipt. The home occupation
permit shall
expire simultaneously with the business tax receipt and must be
renewed annually.
(2) Any home occupation permit which has not been the subject of a
complaint or
violation shall be entitled to automatic renewal upon re-execution
of the original
application. Said renewal shall not require a fee.
(3) In the event that a violation of any of the conditions of §
130-30B(1) has been
determined by the Code Enforcement Officer to have occurred during
the previous
year or allegations regarding a violation are pending, the applicant
must submit a new
application and application fee and provide a written statement
detailing what
changes, if any, have been taken to assure that no further
violations are likely to occur
if the permit is renewed.
(4) The Director of the Department of Community Improvement shall
consider the
alleged violation in making his/her determination of whether or not
the applicant has
met the criteria set forth in § 130-30B(2).
D. Enforcement; permit revocation The Department of Community
Improvement, through its
Code Enforcement Officer, shall immediately investigate any alleged
violation of
§ 130-30B(1) and, in the event that a violation is determined to
have occurred, shall take
enforcement action pursuant to § 12-7 of Chapter 12, Code
Enforcement Board. Violators
shall be subject to the penalties set forth in § 12-8 of Chapter 12.
In addition, the home
occupation permit of any person found by the Code Enforcement Board
to have violated
any of the provisions of § 130-30B(1) is automatically revoked.
E. Appeals Any applicant who is aggrieved by a decision of the
Director of the Department
of Community Improvement regarding the issuance or renewal of a home occupationpermit may appeal the Director’s decision to the City Commission.
Appeals must be in
writing and contain a brief summary of the facts upon which the
applicant is basing the
appeal. Appeals shall be filed with the office of the City Clerk and
will be placed on the
agenda to be heard at the next available regular City Commission
meeting. The City
Commission has the authority to reverse the decision of the Director
of the Department of
Community Improvement if the applicant demonstrates by clear and
convincing evidence
that the criteria set forth in § 130-30B(1) and (2) have been
satisfied.
F. Recognition of supplemental authority The issuance of a home
occupation permit by the
City shall not be construed to abridge the rights of individuals,
including condominium
associations, cooperative associations and other deed-restricted
communities, from further
regulating the conduct of persons within their jurisdiction.
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