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Draft UDO adds flowcharts, evaluation standards and explicit findings-of-fact requirements for approvals
Summary
The draft ordinance requires flowcharts and standards of evaluation for each procedure, asks staff to provide recommendations and draft findings of fact for boards, clarifies which approvals are administrative and which require public hearings, and proposes an implementation/training plan for boards and staff.
Amy walked through administrative and procedural changes in the draft UDO designed to make decisions more consistent and better documented.
Flowcharts and documentation: Every procedure in the UDO will include a color-coded flowchart intended for day-to-day use by applicants and staff and a written applicability section explaining when the process applies. Amy emphasized that flowcharts are paired with full written procedures so users are not left to guess.
Standards of evaluation and findings: The draft lists evaluation criteria for approvals (rezoning, special exceptions, variances, development-plan review) and explicitly requires findings-of-fact to support approvals and denials. Amy recommended staff provide draft findings and a recommendation to boards and commissions so motions can cite the statutory standards.
Administrative approvals and appeals: Some development-plan and secondary-plat approvals can be handled administratively if they conform to an approved primary plan; special exceptions and variances continue to require BZA review and public hearings. Amy also clarified that waivers to subdivision standards are handled by Planning Commission rather than BZA.
Implementation: City staff said they will prepare checklists, templates and training for board members and staff and intend to proceed to Planning Commission hearings in January with Council review in early February.
Why it matters: The procedural changes aim to reduce ad hoc decision-making, improve record-keeping for legal defensibility, and make the review process more predictable for applicants and reviewers.
Next steps: Staff will finalize flowcharts and templates and publish them as part of the adoption package.
