Agenda - Planning Commission - 02/03/2011

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August 10, 2010 I Volume 4 I No. 15 Zoning Bulletin See also: Omnipoint Communications, Inc. v. City of White Plains, 430 F.3d 529 (2d Cir. 2005). Case Note: It its decision, the court addressed the fact that S 332(c) (7) of the Telecommunications Act "preserves the authority of State and local governments over zoning and land use matters." The court said that "this authority does not extend to technical and op- erational matters, over which the FCC and the federal government have exclusive authority." Here, the Ordinance went beyond the au- thority granted it by the S 332(c)(7) "into the area of technological and operational standards" regulated by the federal government. Case Note: In the decision, the court also differentiated the case at hand from those where the court had held that a local government could reject an application for approval of the construction of a wireless service facility on the grounds that "less intrusive means" for providing service could be utilized. Those other cases were "in- dividual permit cases involving specific applications to build specific facilities on specific sites." In those cases, "[p]articular aesthetic con- cerns over specific sites were at stake." In comparison, here, the Or- dinance applied "to all applications for the construction of wireless service facilities within the [t]own, and the [t]own's legislated prefer- ence for alternate technologies .... [was] very much in issue " Spot Zoning —City Rezones Individual Property as a "Historic Preservation Overlay District" Adjacent property owners contend this is illegal spot zoning that decreases the commercial value of nearby properties Citation: Ely v. City Council Of City Of Ames, 2010 WL 2598244 (Iowa Ct. App. 2010) IOWA (06/30/10) —This case involved the issue of spot zoning. The Background/Facts: Since 1920, the Martin family owned a home in the city. From approximately 1920 to the late 1940s, the Martins pro- vided room and board to African- American students attending Iowa State University who were denied housing elsewhere. Over time, the area where the Martin home was located became a major commercial artery. It was designated as a "Highway- Oriented Commercial" zoning district. The Martin home continued to be used as residential rental property. Since it was used as a household living space prior to enactment of'the commercial zoning legislation, the Martin home's residential use was permitted as a nonconforming use. 4 © 2010 Thomson Reuters