Opinion ID: 1749609
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 7

Heading: whether board erred in denying lamar's application

Text: In their second assignment of error, Appellants assign that the district court erred in affirming the Board's denial of Lamar's application for a sign permit. Appellants argue first that Lamar's [a]pplication complied with all requirements of the [Omaha Municipal] Code and Lamar was entitled to a permit as a matter of right. Brief for appellants at 26. In support of their argument, Appellants direct us to the definition of advertising sign location, found at Omaha Mun. Code, ch. 55, art. XVIII, § 55-822(b) (1980), and contend that Waitt's pending application had no effect on Lamar's application because an advertising sign location was considered established upon issuance of a valid sign permit. § 55-822(b). The Board, however, argues that (1) Neb.Rev.Stat. § 14-410 (Reissue 1997) required that Lamar's application be denied due to Waitt's pending application and request for variances; (2) the city planning department had a first in time, first in right policy to handle applications, thus Waitt's application and request for variances had to be resolved before Lamar's application could be acted upon; and (3) due process dictated that Waitt's application and request for variances be resolved before Lamar's application could be acted upon. The meaning of a statute is a question of law. In re Petition of SID No. 1, 270 Neb. 856, 708 N.W.2d 809 (2006). When reviewing questions of law, an appellate court has an obligation to resolve the questions independently of the conclusion reached by the trial court. Magistro v. J. Lou, Inc., 270 Neb. 438, 703 N.W.2d 887 (2005). In the absence of anything to the contrary, statutory language is to be given its plain and ordinary meaning; an appellate court will not resort to interpretation to ascertain the meaning of statutory words which are plain, direct, and unambiguous. Heitzman v. Thompson, 270 Neb. 600, 705 N.W.2d 426 (2005). Section 14-410 provides in relevant part that [a]n appeal stays all proceedings in furtherance of the action appealed from. . . . A stay is defined as [t]he postponement or halting of a proceeding, judgment, or the like. Black's Law Dictionary 1453 (8th ed. 2004). A plain reading of § 14-410, then, provides that when Waitt filed its request for variances on May 29, 2003, all proceedings in furtherance of that action were halted. Appellants argue, however, that § 14-410 is inapplicable, as that statute only stays proceedings during an appeal, but that, rather than filing an appeal, Waitt simply requested certain variances. Alternatively, Appellants argue that § 14-410 only operates to stay proceedings `in furtherance of the action appealed from' and that any appeal by Waitt had no effect on Lamar's application. Brief for appellants at 28. To begin, we disagree with Appellants' contention that Waitt did not file an appeal, but instead only requested certain variances. According to the record, Waitt filed with the city planning department an application for a sign permit on May 19, 2003. Due to the sign's location adjacent to an area which was zoned for residential use, the city planning department informed Waitt that it could not issue the permit. On May 29, Waitt filed with the Board an application for a variance, requesting a waiver of Omaha Mun. Code, ch. 55, art. XVIII, § 55-826(a)(4) (1980), which provided that a billboard could not be erected within 150 feet of an area zoned for residential use. In addition, Waitt subsequently requested other variances. Though the request for variances was not termed an appeal, a review of the record indicates that the request was in response to the city planning department's action in initially denying Waitt's application for a sign permit. Moreover, Neb.Rev.Stat. § 14-411 (Reissue 1997) sets forth a zoning board's power to grant variances and provides in relevant part: Where there are practical difficulties or unnecessary hardships in the way of carrying out the strict letter of such ordinance, the board of appeals shall have the power in passing upon appeals, to vary or modify the application of any of the regulations or provisions of such ordinance relating to the use, construction or alteration of buildings or structures or the use of land, so that the spirit of the ordinance shall be observed, public safety and welfare secured, and substantial justice done. (Emphasis supplied.) A plain reading of § 14-411 provides that a zoning board's power to grant variances exists as the board pass[es] upon appeals. Given this language, we conclude that a zoning board's variance power is appellate in nature. See 4 Kenneth H. Young, Anderson's American Law of Zoning § 22.05 (4th ed. 1997). Even if we were to assume that Waitt's request for variances was not considered an appeal, an assumption which is not supported by the record, we conclude that in granting those variances, the Board was exercising appellate jurisdiction. Accordingly, Appellants' contention that Waitt's application for variances was not an appeal and thus did not implicate § 14-410 is without merit. We also disagree with Appellants' argument that Lamar's application was not in furtherance of Waitt's appeal. The zoning ordinances at issue make it clear that, notwithstanding the zoning board's power to grant variances, there can be only one billboard in a 700-foot area. See § 55-826(a)(3). If Lamar's application was to be approved and a permit issued while Waitt's appeal was pending, it would effectively deny Waitt its right of appeal. It would make little sense for § 14-410 to stay proceedings with respect to an appeal if another party was permitted to render that appeal moot by altering the circumstances upon which the appeal is based. The right to appeal from the denial of an application for a sign permit cannot be protected unless the statutory stay extends not only to the application at issue, but to other applications that would affect an appellant's ability to obtain relief upon a successful appeal. Thus, we agree with the Board that under the circumstances of this case, § 14-410 gave the Board the authority to deny Lamar's application until such time as Waitt's application was resolved. Appellants also argue that the Board should have granted Lamar's request for a variance of the 700-foot rule. Appellants contend that the Board created the hardship faced by Lamar when it granted Waitt's requests for variances. As noted, § 14-411 grants to zoning boards the discretion to vary or modify the application of any of the regulations or provisions of such ordinance in the event of practical difficulties or unnecessary hardships in the way of carrying out the strict letter of such ordinance. In Eastroads v. Omaha Zoning Bd. of Appeals, 261 Neb. 969, 979, 628 N.W.2d 677, 684 (2001), this court held that administrative boards such as the board of zoning appeals provide expertise and an opportunity for specialization unavailable in the judicial or legislative branches. They are able to use these skills, along with the policy mandate and discretion entrusted to them by the legislature, to make rules and enforce them in fashioning solutions to very complex problems. Thus, their decisions are not to be taken lightly or minimized by the judiciary. Quoting Bowman v. City of York, 240 Neb. 201, 482 N.W.2d 537 (1992). Our review of this issue is limited to the question of whether the district court abused its discretion or made an error of law. Given the discretion granted to the Board as outlined in Eastroads, we cannot conclude that the district court either abused its discretion or made an error of law in affirming the Board's decision to deny Lamar's requested variance. Appellants' second assignment of error is without merit.