Polk County Seeks to Appoint Members to Various Boards and Commissions

DES MOINES, Iowa – By State of Iowa law, the Polk County Board of Supervisors are responsible for appointing residents to various boards and commissions. The Board of Supervisors are currently seeking a number of Polk County residents to fulfill terms with each of the following boards and commissions:    

Board of Adjustment: This is a five-member board, of which all must reside in unincorporated Polk County. Members are appointed to a five-year term. The board is empowered through Iowa code to grant special exceptions as provided in the Zoning Ordinance and to hear appeals to decisions made in the enforcement of the Zoning Ordinance. The Board has the authority to allow variances to the Zoning Ordinance for individual properties where provisions of the Chapter impose a unique and unnecessary hardship on the property owner and where the granting of a variance is not contrary to the intent of the Zoning Ordinance or to the public interest. The Board is a quasi-judicial body whose decisions may be appealed directly to District Court. Meetings are held monthly.

Zoning Commission: This is a seven-member board, of which all must reside in unincorporated Polk County. Members are appointed to a two-year term. The Polk County Planning and Zoning Commission, reviews requests for zoning changes, plan amendments, text amendments and new subdivision developments and other items as required by law and makes recommendations to forward to the Board of Supervisors for action. The powers and duties of the Planning and Zoning Commission shall include: plan amendments, review proposed amendments to the Comprehensive Plan and Map, hold a public hearing and forward its recommendations to the Board of Supervisors. Meetings are held monthly.

Condemnation Compensation Commission: The Board of Supervisors appoints no fewer than 28 residents for one-year terms. One fourth are owner/operators of agricultural property, one fourth owners of city property, one fourth licensed real estate brokers and one fourth are knowledgeable of property values. The Chief Judge selects by lot six people from the list who constitute a commission to assess the damages to all property by the applicant. Meetings are held on an as-need basis.

Anyone interested in serving on one of these boards should contact:  Sarah.Boese@PolkCountyIowa.gov