Variance Request - Board of Zoning Adjustments

Board of Zoning Adjustments Application

Fees

• Single and Two-Family Residential Projects: $150.00
• Three or more Residential Unit Projects: $250.00
• Commercial Projects: $250.00
• Rehearing: Same as Original Fee

Acceptable forms of in-person payment include: Checks, Cashier’s Checks, Money Orders, Visa, MasterCard, and Discover.

Please make all checks and money orders payable to City of New Orleans.

Required documents/steps

1. Contact the Department of Safety and Permits and obtain a Referral Letter indicating exactly what variances are necessary for your project (highly recommended). 
2. Have a pre-application meeting or phone call with Board of Zoning Adjustments staff to discuss the variance application procedure, requirements, etc. No appointment is required. Contact (504) 658-7033 or visit 1340 Poydras Street, 8th Floor, and request the planner on duty (optional). 
3. Complete the Neighborhood Participation Program process, if applicable (single- and two-family variance projects are exempt; all other variance projects must have an NPP). 
4. File a complete application with all required supplemental documents by emailing CPCinfo@nola.gov or visiting 1340 Poydras Street, 8th Floor and asking for the planner on duty. Applicants are strongly encouraged to file well in advance of the deadline to allow time to resolve any deficiencies prior to the filing deadline. 
5. Board of Zoning Adjustments staff have ten (10) days to review your application for completeness. They may request additional information in order to mark the application “complete” and schedule it for the corresponding BZA meeting. Please note that applications that are incomplete as of 5:00 pm on the filing deadline will not be docketed for the upcoming Board of Zoning Adjustments meeting. An application will not be docketed until all deficiencies, as identified by BZA staff during the official completeness review, have been addressed and the application deemed complete following a completeness re-review. Once complete, an application will be docketed for the next available meeting date.
6. Board of Zoning Adjustments staff will notify you when your application has been deemed complete and will provide instructions to pay application fees and post signage.  
7. Board of Zoning Adjustments staff will notify you when your application has been docketed and assigned to a city planner for review.
8. The official journal of record will publish notice of the request, and Board of Zoning Adjustments staff will mail notification postcards to nearby property owners and residents.
9. The city planner assigned to your case will prepare a report and recommendation, which will be made available to you and the public on the Wednesday prior to the hearing. Note: The report contains the recommendation. The Board will make the final decision.
10. The Board will hear your request at the first available BZA meeting after the application is marked “complete.” Meetings are held the third Monday of every month in City Council Chambers at City Hall unless otherwise noticed. CLICK HERE FOR SCHEDULE. Applicants or their representative should plan to attend the meeting to support their request(s).
11. The Board will take action on your application (note: in some cases, the Board may choose to defer an application to a subsequent meeting if they are requesting plan revisions or additional information). Within ten (10) days of the Board’s final action at the meeting, BZA staff will send you a written record, or resolution, of the Board’s action.
    • When a variance is approved, the Board may assign conditions, or provisos, to the approval. You must meet the conditions within one (1) year, prior to obtaining a building permit or certificate of occupancy from the Department of Safety and Permits. If you do not meet these conditions within one (1) year, or if you do not request an extension in writing within that time, the approval expires.
    • When a variance request for an “after the fact” situation is denied, you have thirty (30) days to bring the violation into compliance.
12. You or any other person may appeal the Board’s decision to Civil District Court within thirty (30) days of the date on the resolution. You cannot appeal the Board’s decisions to the City Council.
13. Approvals expire one (1) year from the date of approval unless a building permit is obtained and substantial construction is started or the use is commenced within one (1) year, or unless an extension is requested within that time period. Please email your planner by that date if an extension is desired.

TIP: Check the status of a case on the One Stop App.