A. A person who is aggrieved or a taxpayer who is affected by a decision of a board of adjustment, or a governing body of a political subdivision or a joint airport zoning board that is of the opinion that a decision of a board of adjustment is invalid, may file a verified petition in the superior court setting forth that the decision is invalid, wholly or partially, and specifying the grounds. The petition shall be filed within thirty days after the decision is filed in the office of the board.

Terms Used In Arizona Laws 28-8475

  • Airport: means an area of land or water that is designed and set aside for the landing and taking off of aircraft and that is utilized or to be utilized in the interest of the public for those purposes. See Arizona Laws 28-8461
  • Board: means the transportation board. See Arizona Laws 28-101
  • Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
  • Person: means an individual, firm, partnership, corporation, company, association, joint stock association or body politic, including any trustee, receiver, assignee or other representative of a trustee, receiver or assignee. See Arizona Laws 28-8461
  • Political subdivision: means a city, town or county and includes a school district. See Arizona Laws 28-8461
  • Property: includes both real and personal property. See Arizona Laws 1-215
  • State: means a state of the United States and the District of Columbia. See Arizona Laws 28-101
  • Structure: means an object that is constructed or installed by a human including a building, tower, smokestack or overhead transmission line. See Arizona Laws 28-8461
  • United States: includes the District of Columbia and the territories. See Arizona Laws 1-215
  • Writ: A formal written command, issued from the court, requiring the performance of a specific act.
  • Writ: means an order or precept in writing issued in the name of the state or by a court or judicial officer. See Arizona Laws 1-215
  • Writ of certiorari: An order issued by the Supreme Court directing the lower court to transmit records for a case for which it will hear on appeal.

B. On presentation of the petition, the court may allow a writ of certiorari directed to the board of adjustment to review the decision of the board. The allowance of the writ does not stay proceedings on the decision appealed from, but on application and on notice to the board and on good cause shown, the court may grant injunctive relief.

C. The board of adjustment is not required to return the original record acted on. It is sufficient for the board of adjustment to return certified or sworn copies of the record or parts of the record as may be called for by the writ. The return shall concisely set forth other facts that are material to show the grounds of the decision appealed from and shall be verified.

D. The court has exclusive jurisdiction to:

1. Affirm, modify or set aside the decision reviewed, wholly or partially.

2. If necessary, order further proceedings by the board of adjustment.

E. The court shall accept findings of fact by the board as conclusive if they are supported by substantial evidence. The court shall not consider an objection to a decision of the board unless the objection has been urged before the board, or if it was not urged, unless there are reasonable grounds for failure to do so.

F. The court shall not allow costs against the board of adjustment unless it appears to the court that the board of adjustment acted with gross negligence, in bad faith or with malice in making the decision that is appealed.

G. In a case in which the court holds that airport zoning regulations adopted under this article, although generally reasonable, interfere with the use or enjoyment of a particular structure or parcel of land to such an extent or are so onerous in their application to the structure or parcel of land as to constitute a taking of property in violation of the constitution of this state or the United States, the holding does not affect application of the regulations to other structures and parcels of land.