Argos Town Council members recently took action to help ensure the costs associated with applications for the Board of Zoning Appeals are covered in the future.
Clerk-Treasurer Lisa Mullaney informed the council last week that the town has not been charging a fee for BZA applications.
She noted that this month there were three separate BZA cases that had to be handled. Mullaney said she spent a total of approximately $80 on postage to send out the required notices to neighboring property owners.
She asked the council members if they would be interested in charging for the applications and explained that Marshall County officials charge a $75 application fee to help offset the associated costs.
Council President George Null proposed mirroring the County’s charge. A motion to that effect was made and seconded.
However, before the final vote was cast, Town Attorney Derek Jones weighed in. He mentioned that they may need to take a look at their existing ordinances as well as their land-use development code to ensure that no amendments are needed to allow the fees to be implemented. Clerk-Treasurer Mullaney said she would check into the matter.
Officials followed through with the motion and it passed with a vote of 4-1. Councilman Dylan Colburn presented the lone opposing vote, noting that he thought $75 was too expensive.
