City Seeks Board, Commission Nominees

Candidates need to submit names by Feb. 8

The City of Milton is seeking residents interested in serving on one of several boards and commissions.

Candidates are needed for the Planning Commission, Board of Zoning Appeals, Design Review Board, Construction Board of Adjustments and Appeals, and the Board of Ethics. Interested persons should contact Erika Sherman in the city’s Community Development Department, 678.579.9449. Starting Feb. 5 when the new city hall opens, that number changes to 678.242.2534.

Deadline to submit your name for consideration is Feb. 8. The Mayor and Council members will make their appointments at the Feb. 15 regular meeting. Appointees to the Planning Commission, Design Review Board and Board of Zoning Appeals must go through a training session on Saturday, Feb. 17 starting at 8 a.m. at City Hall, located in building 100 of the Deerfield Professional Centre, 13000 Deerfield Parkway.

Here is a synopsis of the duties, responsibilities, qualifications and meeting schedules of the various boards and commissions.

Board of Zoning Appeals

The Board of Zoning Appeals consists of seven members and meets on the third Tuesday of each month. The meeting time will be determined once the board is seated. The purpose of the BZA is to hear and decide on requests for relief from the provisions of the City of Milton Zoning Ordinance. The BZA also considers appeals of any decision or interpretation made by the Community Development director. The Community Development staff provides the application submitted by the applicant with any supporting documentation. The staff does not make any recommendations to the BZA. The BZA will vote to approve, deny or defer the request if additional information would be helpful in making the determination. There are no specific qualifications for the BZA other than residency within the city, citizenship or legal residence and be a minimum of 21 years old. The terms of the members will run concurrently with the Mayor and each Council member. The Mayor’s nominee can reside anywhere within the City and each Council member’s appointee must reside within his or her council district.

Northwest Fulton Overlay District Design Review Board

The NWFDRB consists of seven members and meets once a month. The day and time of the meeting will be determined once the board is seated. The DRB reviews all non-residential plans for development within the Northwest Fulton Overlay Zoning District and all plans for development including single-family residential properties within the Crabapple and Birmingham Crossroads Overlay Districts for compliance with the standards within the Zoning Ordinance. The board shall make recommendations to the Community Development Department prior to the approval of a Land Disturbance Permit, Building Permit or Primary Variance within all of the above overlay districts. Each Council member and the Mayor will nominate his or her designee for one of the seven positions on the DRB. Each of the Council member’s designees shall be residents, own land, be a business owner, professional architect and /or land planner, who either maintain primary residence and/or business within his or her respective council district; the Mayor’s designee shall reside or own a business anywhere within the City. Citizenship or legal residence is required and the nominee must be a minimum of 21 years old. The terms of the members will run concurrently with the Mayor and each Council member.

Planning Commission

The Planning Commission consists of seven members and meets on the fourth Thursday of every month. The meeting time will be determined once the board is seated. The PC is an advisory board which reports its findings and recommendations to the Mayor and City Council. The commission is charged with upholding the policies of the City of Milton Comprehensive Plan when reviewing rezonings, use permits, concurrent variances, and any changes to the City of Milton Zoning Ordinance, associated Zoning Map and Comprehensive Plan. There are no specific qualifications for the PC other than residency within the city, citizenship or legal residence and be a minimum of 21 years old. The terms of the members will run concurrently with the Mayor and each Council member. The Mayor’s nominee can reside anywhere within the City and each Council member appointee must reside within his or her council district. The first meeting of the Planning Commission will be Thursday, Feb. 22.

Construction Board of Adjustments and Appeals

The construction Board of Adjustment and Appeals is a seven-member board charged to grant variance to the adopted building codes/construction materials and techniques. This board meets only as needed, but must meet within 30 days of the Community Development Department accepting an appeals application. There are no requirements for board members, but one would expect the members to be knowledgeable in the field of construction and be familiar with construction techniques and materials. Appropriate members would be architects, builders, tradesman including plumbers, electricians and mechanical contractors. Each Council member and the Mayor will nominate his or her designee for one of the seven positions.

Board of Ethics

The Board of Ethics consists of seven members whose terms shall run concurrently with their nominating Council member or Mayor. Members shall have been a resident of the city for at least one year preceding the date of taking office and remain a resident during their term. Members shall not be elected officials, persons appointed to elective office, full-time appointed officials (whether exempt or non-exempt) or city employees and shall hold no elected public office nor any other city office or emplacement The board shall elect one of its members to serve as chairperson. No person may serve more than two consecutive terms. Members are volunteers and shall receive no compensation.

The board shall develop and adopt written procedures, be authorized to administer oaths, conduct hearings to review specific cases in which a violation of the Ethics Ordinance is alleged, submit an annual report to the Mayor and City Council. The board shall also establish process for evaluating all significant aspects of the administration and implementation of the Ethics Ordinance. The board shall determine their meeting frequency as necessary to perform their duties.The Board of Ethics meets only as needed.

The City of Milton, incorporated on Dec. 1, 2006, is a community of some 20,000 residents in northwest Fulton County. With its numerous horse farms, family-friendly neighborhoods and limited commercial development spread out over 23,000 acres, Milton offers a rural, small-town atmosphere that still affords easy access to the big-city amenities of nearby Atlanta.