§ 50-74. Appeals from administrative orders.

(a)

Appeals. An appeal from any decision or order of the code enforcement officer may be taken by any person aggrieved thereby.

(1)

Any appeal from the code enforcement officer shall be taken within ten days from the rendering of the decision or service of the order, and shall be taken by filing with the code enforcement officer and with the zoning board of adjustment a notice of appeal which shall specify the grounds upon which the appeal is based. Upon the filing of any notice of appeal, the code enforcement officer shall forthwith transmit to the board all the papers constituting the record upon which the decision appealed from was made.

(2)

When an appeal is from a decision of the code enforcement officer refusing to allow the person aggrieved thereby to do any act, his decision shall remain in force until modified or reversed. When an appeal is from a decision of the code enforcement officer requiring the person aggrieved to do any act, the appeal shall have the effect of suspending the requirement until the hearing by the board, unless the code enforcement officer certifies to the board, after the notice of appeal is filed with him, that by reason of the facts stated in the certificate, a copy of which shall be furnished the appellant, a suspension of his requirement would cause imminent peril to life or property, in which case the requirement shall not be suspended except for due cause shown upon not less than one day's written notice to the code enforcement officer, by the board, or by a court of record upon petition made pursuant to G.S. 160A-446(f) and subsection (b) of this section.

(3)

The board shall fix a reasonable time for the hearing of all appeals, shall give due notice to all parties, and shall render its decision within a reasonable time. Any party may appear in person or by agent or attorney. The board may reverse or affirm, wholly or partly, or may modify the decision or order appealed from, and may make such decision and order as in its opinion ought to be made in the matter, and to that end it shall have all the powers of the code enforcement officer, but the concurring vote of four members of the board shall be necessary to reverse or modify any decision or order of the code enforcement officer. The board shall have the power also in passing upon appeals, in any case where there are practical difficulties or unnecessary hardships in the way of carrying out the strict letter of this article, to adapt the application of this article to the necessities of the case to the end that the spirit of this article shall be observed, public safety and welfare secured, and substantial justice done.

(4)

Every decision of the board shall be subject to review by proceedings in the nature of certiorari instituted within 15 days of the decision of the board, but not otherwise.

(b)

Petition to superior court by owner. Any person aggrieved by an order issued by the code enforcement officer or a decision rendered by the board shall have the right, within 30 days after issuance of the order or rendering of the decision, to petition the superior court for a temporary injunction restraining the code enforcement officer pending a final disposition of the cause, as provided by G.S. 160A-446(f).

(Code 1985, § 155.22; Code 1999, § 50-78(d))