A.
Zoning Board of Appeals, Select Board and Community Planning Commission. Appeals, applications for variances and applications for special permits shall be heard and decided by the Zoning Board of Appeals, Select Board or the Community Planning Commission, as applicable, pursuant to the powers enumerated in §§ 200-24B, 200-25B, and 200-25.1 of this Zoning Bylaw.
[Amended 11-6-1978 ATM by Art. 12, approved 2-6-1979; 10-6-2014 OTM by Art. 13, approved 1-20-2015; 6-4-2018 ATM by Art. 29, approved 9-21-2018]
B.
Adoption of rules. The Zoning Board of Appeals, Select Board and the Community Planning Commission shall adopt and from time to time may amend rules for conducting business and otherwise carrying out the purposes of this Zoning Bylaw. A copy of such rules shall be filed in the office of the Town Clerk.
[Amended 10-6-2014 OTM by Art. 13, approved 1-20-2015; 6-4-2018 ATM by Art. 29, approved 9-21-2018]
C.
Public hearings.
[Amended 10-6-2014 OTM by Art. 13, approved 1-20-2015; 6-4-2018 ATM by Art. 29, approved 9-21-2018]
(1)
The Zoning Board of Appeals, Select Board and the Community Planning Commission shall hold hearings under this article within sixty-five (65) days of receipt of any appeal, application for variance or application for special permit.
(2)
Hearings under this article shall be advertised and conducted in accordance with Sections 9, 11 and 15 of the Zoning Act and shall be open to the public. Hearings shall be held at the call of the Chairman or when called in such other manner as the Zoning Board of Appeals, Select Board or the Community Planning Commission shall determine in their rules.
D.
Notice of public hearing.
(1)
The Zoning Board of Appeals, Select Board or the Community Planning Commission shall cause notice of hearings under this article to be sent to parties in interest as provided for in Section 11 of the Zoning Act; shall cause notice to be published in a newspaper of general circulation in the Town once in each of two (2) successive weeks, the first publication to be not less than fourteen (14) days before the day of the hearing; and shall cause such notice to be posted in a conspicuous place in Town Hall for a period of not less than fourteen (14) days before the day of such hearing.
[Amended 10-6-2014 OTM by Art. 13, approved 1-20-2015; 6-4-2018 ATM by Art. 29, approved 9-21-2018]
(2)
"Parties in interest" as used in this article shall mean the petitioner, abutters, owners of land directly opposite on any public or private street or way and owners of land within three hundred (300) feet of the property line, all as they appear on the most recent applicable tax list, notwithstanding that the land of any such owner is located in another town, the Planning Board of every abutting town and the Community Planning Commission of the Town of North Reading.
E.
Record of proceedings. There shall be kept a detailed record of all proceedings under this article indicating the vote of each member upon each question, or if absent or failing to vote indicating such fact. Such record shall set forth clearly the reason or reasons for the decision reached or action taken. Copies of such record shall, within fourteen (14) days, be filed in the office of the Town Clerk and shall be a public record.
F.
Notice of decision. Copies of the decision or finding shall be mailed to parties in interest as defined in Subsection D(2) above and to every person present at the hearing who requested that notice be sent to him and stated the address to which such notice was to be sent. Each notice shall specify that appeals, if any, shall be made pursuant to Section 17 of the Zoning Act and shall be filed within twenty (20) days after the date of filing of such notice in the office of the Town Clerk.
G.
Repetitive application. Except as provided in Section 16 of the Zoning Act, no appeal or application which has been denied by the Zoning Board of Appeals, Select Board or the Community Planning Commission shall be acted favorably upon within two (2) years after the date of final unfavorable action.
[Amended 10-6-2014 OTM by Art. 13, approved 1-20-2015; 6-4-2018 ATM by Art. 29, approved 9-21-2018]
H.
Withdrawal of application or appeal. Any appeal, application for a variance or application for a special permit which has been transmitted to the Zoning Board of Appeals, Select Board or the Community Planning Commission may be withdrawn, without prejudice, by the petitioner prior to the publication of the notice of the public hearing thereon but thereafter may be withdrawn without prejudice only with the approval of the Board or Commission to which application was made.
[Amended 10-6-2014 OTM by Art. 13, approved 1-20-2015; 6-4-2018 ATM by Art. 29, approved 9-21-2018]
I.
Other requirements.
(1)
The granting of any appeal, variance or special permit by the Zoning Board of Appeals, Select Board or the Community Planning Commission shall not exempt the applicant or the subject property from any provision of this Zoning Bylaw not specifically ruled upon by the Zoning Board of Appeals, Select Board or the Community Planning Commission and specifically set forth in its findings. Construction, reconstruction, alteration, change and use of structures and premises which are the subject of an appeal, variance or special permit shall be in conformity with the provisions of this Zoning Bylaw except where specifically exempted in said findings and shall be in conformity with any restrictions, limitations, or special conditions imposed therein unless the applicant shall file a subsequent application seeking to modify the initial findings.
[Amended 10-6-2014 OTM by Art. 13, approved 1-20-2015; 6-4-2018 ATM by Art. 29, approved 9-21-2018]
(2)
Where authorization of a use of land or of a structure is required by the Zoning Board of Appeals, a copy of such authorization shall be sent by the Clerk of the Board to the Building Inspector, within ten (10) days of granting of approval and shall be received by the Building Inspector prior to the issuance of a permit.
J.
Appeal to Superior Court.
[Amended 10-6-2014 OTM by Art. 13, approved 1-20-2015; 6-4-2018 ATM by Art. 29, approved 9-21-2018]
(1)
Any person aggrieved by a decision or finding of the Zoning Board of Appeals or the Community Planning Commission, or any municipal officer or board, or by a special permit decision for registered marijuana dispensaries issued by the Select Board, may appeal to the Superior Court for Middlesex County or the Land Court by bringing an action within twenty (20) days after the decision or finding has been filed in the office of the Town Clerk.
(2)
The Town may provide any officer or board of the Town with independent legal counsel for appealing a decision or finding of the Zoning Board of Appeals, Select Board or the Community Planning Commission and for taking such other subsequent action as parties are authorized to take, all as provided in Section 17 of the Zoning Act.