Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Zoning topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Resident asks Hawarden council to require seven-day notice before board of adjustments hearings
Summary
At the March 11 Hawarden meeting, resident John Greece asked the council to place a zoning-rule change on the next agenda to require a minimum seven-day gap before a zoning board decision goes to the board of adjustments, arguing it would increase transparency and give citizens time to object.
John Greece, a Hawarden resident, used the public-comment period at the March 11 council meeting to ask the council to add an item to the next agenda to change the city's zoning regulations. "What I want changed is I want a minimum of 7 days in there," Greece said, arguing the change would give residents time to learn of actions and, if necessary, object before an item proceeds to the board of adjustments.
Greece described a process he said has allowed decisions to move quickly: the zoning board approves a matter and, within a 30-day statutory window, the board of adjustments can act — in his example, on the same day — which he said can short-circuit public awareness. He said preserving the 30-day maximum is acceptable, but the city should set a minimum notification period to improve transparency.
Greece also asked the council to take a more active role in economic development, saying he expected an annual economic-development report and more overt council engagement in planning. The council did not take action on the request at the March 11 meeting; the chair invited staff to place the zoning change request on the next agenda.
