West Virginia Code 8A-8-4 – County board of zoning appeals
(a) A county board of zoning appeals shall have five members to be appointed by the governing body of the county.
Terms Used In West Virginia Code 8A-8-4
- Governing body: means the body that governs a municipality or county. See West Virginia Code 8A-1-2
- Land development: means the development of one or more lots, tracts or parcels of land by any means and for any purpose, but does not include easements, rights-of-way or construction of private roads for extraction, harvesting or transporting of natural resources. See West Virginia Code 8A-1-2
- Planning commission: means a municipal planning commission, a county planning commission, a multicounty planning commission, a regional planning commission or a joint planning commission. See West Virginia Code 8A-1-2
- Zoning: means the division of a municipality or county into districts or zones which specify permitted and conditional uses and development standards for real property within the districts or zones. See West Virginia Code 8A-1-2
(b) The members of a county board of zoning appeals must be:
(1) Residents of the county for at least three years preceding his or her appointment;
(2) Cannot be a member of the county planning commission; and
(3) Cannot hold any other elective or appointive office in that county’s government: Provided, That a member of the county board of zoning appeals may also serve as a member of the county board of subdivision and land development appeals.
(c) Where only a portion of the county is zoned, the members of the board of zoning appeals for that part of the county that is zoned, must be:
(1) Residents of that part of the county that is zoned for at least three years preceding his or her appointment;
(2) Cannot be a member of the county planning commission; and
(3) Cannot hold any other elective or appointive office in the county government: Provided, That a member of the county board of zoning appeals may also serve as a member of the county board of subdivision and land development appeals.
(d) Upon the creation of a board of zoning appeals, the members shall be appointed for the following terms: One for a term of one year; two for a term of two years; and two for a term of three years. The terms shall expire on January 1, of the first, second and third year, respectively, following their appointment. Thereafter, members shall serve three-year terms. If a vacancy occurs, the governing body of the county shall appoint a member for the unexpired term.
(e) The governing body of the county may appoint up to three additional members to serve as alternate members of the county board of zoning appeals. The alternate members must meet the same eligibility requirements as set out in subsection (b) or subsection (c) of this section, as applicable. The term for an alternate member is three years. The governing body of the county may appoint alternate members on a staggered term schedule.
(f) An alternate member shall serve on the board when one of the regular members is unable to serve. The alternate member shall serve until a final determination is made in the matter to which the alternate member was initially called on to serve.
(g) The county board of zoning appeals shall establish rules and procedures for designating an alternate member. An alternate member shall have the same powers and duties of a regular board member.
(h) The members and alternate members of a county board of zoning appeals shall serve without compensation, but shall be reimbursed for all reasonable and necessary expenses actually incurred in the performance of their official duties.