# Zoning Board of Appeals decisions in Chicago The Zoning Board of Appeals (ZBA) hears requests for variations and special uses as well as appeals to decisions that the Zoning Administrator made. The ZBA is a five-member body (with two alternates who serve when a permanent member is sick or out of town) that meets monthly to hear dozens of requests to build a gas station, open a hair salon, establish a shelter, and reduce a building setback requirement. ## How to find ZBA decisions 1. Open a Chicago-based Place Report (this could be a ward, a community area, a ZIP code, or a Personal Place). 2. Scroll down to the Table of Contents. 3. In the Table of Contents, select "Zoning & Other ordinances". This will scroll the webpage to the section where Zoning Board of Appeals tab is shown (see *screenshot 1*). 4. Select the Zoning Board of Appeals tab and then select the "Load ZBA" button. 5. After a moment, the ZBA decisions will appear on the map and in the data table below the map (see *screenshot 2*).  *Screenshot 1 showing the zoning section and the Zoning Board of Appeals tab*  *Screenshot 2 showing the ZBA decisions map and data table* ## Filtering ZBA decisions Below the data table are three filters (see *screenshot 3*): 1. Application type. Options include administrative adjustment, variation, and special use. 2. Judgment. Whether the application was approved, denied, withdrawn, or has another result. 3. Year. The first year of data is 1972.  *Screenshot 3 showing filters* # Related articles - [[Zoning Assessment]]