Ames 2304, LLC
v.
City of Ames, Zoning Board of Adjustment
The court granted further review of the court of appeals opinion that concluded because Ames 2304, LLC’s proposed remodeling project does not increase the number of dwelling units, it does not violate Ames’s ordinance’s prohibition against increases in intensity of a nonconforming use. The court of appeals found the City of Ames, Zoning Board of Adjustment’s interpretation of the ordinance is erroneous and denial of the permit on that basis illegal. Accordingly, the court of appeals remanded to the district court for an order sustaining the writ of certiorari.
Resister
Ames 2304, LLC
Applicant
City of Ames, Zoning Board of Adjustment
Attorney for the Resister
Debra Hulett
Attorneys for the Applicant
Eric M. Updegraff
Brent L. Hinders
Hugh J. Cain
Supreme Court
Oral Argument Schedule
15-15-5
Feb 12, 2019 9:00 AM
Briefs
Supreme Court Opinion
Opinion Number:
Date Published:
Court of Appeals
Court of Appeals Opinion
Opinion Number:
Date Published:
Summary
Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Story County, Michael J. Moon, Judge. REVERSED AND REMANDED. Heard by Vaitheswaran, P.J., and Doyle and Mullins, JJ. Opinion by Doyle, J. (16 pages)
Ames 2304, LLC appeals the district court order annulling its writ of certiorari. It contends the Ames Zoning Board of Adjustment acted illegally in denying it a permit for its proposed remodeling plan by incorrectly applying the law in interpreting the zoning ordinance concerning nonconforming use. It also contends substantial evidence does not support the Board’s finding that the plan would increase the intensity of the nonconforming use. OPINION HOLD: The municipal ordinance’s definition of “intensity” does not apply to residential uses. However, limiting the application of the “increase in intensity” test to just enlargements, expansions, or extensions of nonconforming uses would be contrary to the purposes of the zoning ordinance. Looking elsewhere in the ordinance for a definition of intensity to apply to residential uses, the only instance we could find ties intensity to the number of dwelling units. Because the proposed remodel does not increase the number of dwelling units, it would not increase the intensity of the nonconforming use. In relying on its erroneous interpretation of the zoning ordinance, the Ames Zoning Board of Adjustment acted illegally in denying Ames 2304 a permit for its proposed interior remodel. We reverse the district court order annulling the writ of certiorari and remand to the district court for entry of an order sustaining the writ.