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<baltimore-city-law heading="§ 5-508 Approval standards.">
  <section prefix="§" num="5-508" heading="Approval standards.">
    <para num="(a)" heading="In general.">Legislative authorizations must be evaluated by the Planning Commission and the City Council in accordance with the standards set forth in this section.</para>
    <para num="(b)" heading="Map amendments.">
      <para num="(1)" heading="Required findings.">As required by the State Land Use Article, the City Council may approve the legislative authorization based on a finding that there was either:<para num="(i)">a substantial change in the character of the neighborhood where the property is located; or</para>
        <para num="(ii)">a mistake in the existing zoning classification.</para>
      </para>
      <para num="(2)" heading="Required findings of fact.">In making the determination required by subsection (b)(1) of this section, the City Council must also make findings of fact that address:<para num="(i)">population changes;</para>
        <para num="(ii)">the availability of public facilities;</para>
        <para num="(iii)">present and future transportation patterns;</para>
        <para num="(iv)">compatibility with existing and proposed development for the area;</para>
        <para num="(v)">the recommendations of the City agencies and officials; and</para>
        <para num="(vi)">the proposed amendment’s consistency with the City’s Comprehensive Master Plan.</para>
      </para>
      <para num="(3)" heading="Additional standards – General.">Additional standards that must be considered for map amendments are:<para num="(i)">existing uses of property within the general area of the property in question;</para>
        <para num="(ii)">the zoning classification of other property within the general area of the property in question;</para>
        <para num="(iii)">the suitability of the property in question for the uses permitted under its existing zoning classification; and</para>
        <para num="(iv)">the trend of development, if any, in the general area of the property in question, including changes, if any, that have taken place since the property in question was placed in its present zoning classification.</para>
      </para>
      <para num="(4)" heading="Additional standards – Rezoning from MI District.">
        <para num="(i)">To rezone land from the Maritime Industrial (“MI”) District to any other zoning district, the Planning Commission must find that the proposed amendment:<para num="(A)">is consistent with the most current Baltimore City Comprehensive Master Plan;</para>
          <para num="(B)">sustains or enhances transportation access into and out of the Port of Baltimore;</para>
          <para num="(C)">ensures the long-term preservation of the deep water assets of the Port of Baltimore for maritime industrial use;</para>
          <para num="(D)">protects maritime industrial land uses from the intrusion of non- industrial uses;</para>
          <para num="(E)">sustains or enhances the current and future maritime industrial economic development growth in the District;</para>
          <para num="(F)">establishes an adequate physical separation that will buffer non-industrial land uses from maritime industrial uses; and</para>
          <para num="(G)">adheres with federal and state laws regarding homeland security, generally, and port safety, specifically.</para>
        </para>
        <para num="(ii)">If an application is filed to rezone property from the Maritime Industrial District, the Director of Planning must notify the Maryland Port Administration and any adjacent property owners of the application.  At least 30 days before the Planning Commission hearings on the application, the Director of Planning must seek an opinion from the Maryland Port Administration on the application of the criteria listed in subparagraph (i) of this paragraph.</para>
      </para>
    </para>
    <para num="(c)" heading="Text amendments.">Standards that must be considered for text amendments are:<para num="(1)">the amendment’s consistency with the City’s Comprehensive Master Plan;</para>
      <para num="(2)">whether the amendment would promote the public health, safety, and welfare;</para>
      <para num="(3)">the amendment’s consistency with the intent and general regulations of this Code;</para>
      <para num="(4)">whether the amendment would correct an error or omission, clarify existing requirements, or effect a change in policy; and</para>
      <para num="(5)">the extent to which the amendment would create nonconformities.</para>
    </para>
    <annotation type="History">Ord. 16-581</annotation>
    <annotation type="History">Ord. 18-171</annotation>
  </section>
</baltimore-city-law>
