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Board clears changes to appeals code; removes automatic stay and expands notice request for appeals
Summary
The Planning & Zoning Board recommended changes to Article 12 of the Land Development Regulations to clarify the appeals process, remove an automatic stay for appealed work, and directed staff to change owner/neighbor notice from 400 to 1,000 feet; the board approved the revision for City Commission consideration.
The City of Newberry Planning & Zoning Board on June 2 recommended that the City Commission adopt an amendment to Article 12 (Appeals, Special Exceptions, Variances and Interpretations) of the City land development regulations (Ordinance 2025-13) to clarify the appeals process and remove the automatic stay that previously allowed work to continue while an appeal was pending.
Staff presented the revised text after a recent case (Trackline) in which an appeal had placed a stay on work; the board requested quicker code clarification. The draft ordinance removes or limits language allowing an automatic stay and replaces it with a clear process by which an applicant may seek a stay (for example, via appropriate court orders such as a temporary injunction) rather than automatic continuation. The revision also modernizes outdated procedural language and clarifies steps for filing an appeal.
Board members discussed public-notice practices. The proposed code used a 400-foot radius for mailed notices to surrounding property owners in some appeal contexts; board members asked for a larger notice radius given rural and agricultural parcels around city lands. The board motion included a recommended change to provide notice to surrounding parcel owners within 1,000 feet rather than 400 feet; staff agreed to present that change to the City Commission with the ordinance.
The motion to recommend adoption, with the 1,000-foot notice change, passed unanimously. Staff said the item would go to City Commission for first reading on June 9 and second reading on June 23. Staff emphasized that the change is intended to clarify procedures, not to remove judicial remedies for parties who wish to seek stays or injunctions through the courts.
