There is hereby established, pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-1 et seq., in the Borough of Woodcliff Lake a Planning Board of nine members, consisting of the following four classes:
A. 
Class I: the Mayor of the Borough of Woodcliff Lake or the Mayor's designee in the absence of the Mayor.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I).
B. 
Class II: one of the officials of the municipality other than a member of the governing body, to be appointed by the Mayor, provided that if there is an Environmental Commission, the member of the Environmental Commission who is also a member of the Planning Board, as required by N.J.S.A. 40:55D-1 et seq., shall be deemed to be the Class II Planning Board member if there is both a member of the Zoning Board of Adjustment and a member of the Board of Education among the Class IV members.
C. 
Class III: a member of the governing body, to be appointed by it.
D. 
Class IV: six other citizens of the municipality to be appointed by the Mayor. The members of Class IV shall hold no other municipal office, except that one member may be a member of the Zoning Board of Adjustment and one may be a member of the Board of Education. A member of the Environmental Commission who is also a member of the Planning Board, as required by N.J.S.A. 40:56A-1, shall be a Class IV Planning Board member unless there is among the Class IV members of the Planning Board both a member of the Zoning Board of Adjustment and a member of the Board of Education, in which case, the member of the Environmental Commission shall be deemed to be the Class II member of the Planning Board.
A. 
The term of the member composing Class I shall correspond with the Mayor's official tenure or if the member is the Mayor's designee in the absence of the Mayor, the designee shall serve at the pleasure of the Mayor during the Mayor's official tenure.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I).
B. 
The terms of the members composing Class II and Class III shall be for one year or shall terminate at the completion of their respective terms of office, whichever occurs first.
C. 
All Class IV members shall be appointed for four-year terms; however, the term of a Class IV member who is also a member of the Board of Adjustment or the Board of Education shall terminate whenever he/she is no longer a member of such other body or at the completion of his/her Class IV term, whichever occurs first, and an appointment to fill the unexpired portion shall be made, if necessary.
D. 
All terms shall run from January 1 of the year in which the appointment was made. The Board Secretary shall maintain records to indicate the appointment date of each member or alternate, so that if a vacancy occurs, the length of the unexpired term shall be readily available. Upon the occurrence of a vacancy, the Board Chairman shall transmit to the Mayor the fact of the vacancy and the length of the unexpired term to be filled.
There shall be appointed by the Mayor, in January of each year, two alternate Class IV members of the Planning Board, whose terms shall expire at the end of each year of the appointment. An alternate member of Class IV shall be entitled to sit and participate as a member in any hearing before the Planning Board, and an alternate member who has attended the full hearing or complied with Article III, § 37-27, may participate in the Planning Board's decision during the absence or disqualification of any regular Class IV member. The two alternate Class IV members shall be designated by the Chairman of the Planning Board as "Alternate No. 1" and "Alternate No. 2," and each shall participate in the Planning Board's decision in rotation during the absence or disqualification of any Class IV regular member or members.
If a vacancy of any class shall occur otherwise than by expiration of term, it shall be filled by appointment as above provided for the unexpired term.
The Planning Board shall elect a Chairman and Vice Chairman from the Class IV members and shall select a Secretary, who may be either a member of the Planning Board or a municipal employee designated by it.
There is hereby created the office of Planning Board Attorney. The Planning Board may annually appoint, fix the compensation of or agree upon the rate of compensation of the Planning Board Attorney, who shall be an attorney other than the Municipal Attorney.
The Planning Board may also employ or contract for the services of experts and other staff and services as it may deem necessary. The Board shall not, however, exceed, exclusive of gifts a or grants, the amount appropriated by the governing body for its use.
A. 
The Board, pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-25, shall exercise its power:
(1) 
To make and adopt and from time to time amend a Master Plan for the physical development of the municipality, including any areas outside its boundaries which, in the Board's judgment, bear essential relation to the planning of the municipality, in accordance with the provisions of N.J.S.A. 40:55D-28.
(2) 
To administer the provisions of Chapter 332, Subdivision of Land, and Chapter 292, Site Plan Review, of the Code of the Borough of Woodcliff Lake in accordance with the provisions of said chapters and the Municipal Land Use Law, N.J.S.A. 40:55D-37.
(3) 
To approve conditional use applications in accordance with the provisions of Chapter 380, Zoning, of the Code of the Borough of Woodcliff Lake pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-67.
(4) 
To participate in the preparation and review of programs or plans required by state and federal law or regulations.
(5) 
To assemble data on a continuing basis as part of a continuous planning process.
(6) 
To annually prepare a program of municipal capital improvement projects projected over a term of six years, and amendments thereto, and recommend the same to the governing body.
(7) 
To consider and make report to the governing body within 35 days after referral as to any proposed development regulation submitted to it, pursuant to the provisions of N.J.S.A. 40:55D-26a, and also pass upon other matters specifically referred to the Planning Board by the governing body, pursuant to the provisions of N.J.S.A. 40:55D-26b.
B. 
Whenever the proposed development requires approval of a subdivision, site plan or conditional use, but not a variance pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-70d, the Planning Board shall have the power to grant, to the same extent and subject to the same restrictions as the Board of Adjustment:
(1) 
Variances pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-70c.
(2) 
Directions, pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-34, for issuance a of a permit for a building or structure in the bed of a mapped street or public drainageway, flood-control basin or public area reserved pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-32.
(3) 
Directions, pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-36, for issuance of a permit for a building or structure not related to a street.
C. 
Whenever relief is requested pursuant to this section, notice of the hearing on the applications for development shall include reference to the request for a variance or direction for issuance of a permit, as the case may be. The developer may elect to submit a separate application requesting approval of the variance or direction of the issuance of a permit and a subsequent application for any required approval of a subdivision, site plan or conditional use. A separate approval of the variance or direction of the issuance of a permit shall be conditioned upon grant of all required subsequent approvals by the Planning Board. No such subsequent approval shall be granted unless the approval can be granted without substantial detriment to the public good and without substantial impairment for the intent and purpose of the zone plan and Chapter 380, Zoning.
D. 
The Board shall also have the power to perform such other advisory duties as are assigned to it by ordinance or resolution of the governing body for the aid and assistance of the governing body or other agencies or officers.
A. 
Minor subdivisions.
(1) 
Minor subdivision approvals shall be granted or denied within 45 days of the date of submission of a complete application to the Planning Board or within such further time as may be consented to by the applicant.
(2) 
Approval of a minor subdivision shall expire 190 days from the date of Planning Board approval, unless, within such period, a plat in conformity with such approval and the provisions of the Map Filing Law,[1] or a deed clearly describing the approved minor subdivision, is filed by the developer with the county recording officer, the Municipal Engineer and the Municipal Tax Assessor.
[1]
Editor's Note: See N.J.S.A. 46:23-9.9 et seq.
(3) 
Any such plat or deed must be signed by the Chairman and Secretary of the Planning Board before it will be accepted for filing by the county recording officer.
B. 
Preliminary approval of major subdivisions.
(1) 
Upon submission of a complete application for a subdivision of 10 or fewer lots, the Planning Board shall grant or deny preliminary approval within 45 days of the date of such submission or within such further time as may be consented to by the developer.
(2) 
Upon submission of a complete application for a subdivision of more than 10 lots, the Planning Board shall grant or deny preliminary approval within 95 days of the date of such submission or within such further time as may be consented to by the developer. Otherwise, the Planning Board shall be deemed to have granted preliminary approval for the subdivision.
C. 
Ancillary powers.
(1) 
Whenever the Planning Board is called upon to exercise its ancillary powers before the granting of relief requested in § 37-8B and C of this chapter, the Planning Board shall grant or deny approval of the application within 120 days after submission by the developer of a complete application or within such further time as may be consented to by the applicant.
(2) 
In the event that the developer elects to submit separate consecutive applications, the aforesaid provision shall apply to the application for approval of the variance or direction for issuance of a permit. The period for granting or denying any subsequent approval shall be as otherwise provided in the municipal ordinances or the Municipal Land Use Law.
(3) 
Failure of the Planning Board to act within the period prescribed shall constitute approval of the application, and certification of the administrative officer as to failure of the Planning Board to act shall be issued upon request of the applicant.
D. 
Final approval.
(1) 
Application for final subdivision approval shall be granted or denied within 45 days of submission of a complete application or within such further time as may be consented to by the applicant.
(2) 
Final approval of a major subdivision shall expire 95 days from the date of signing of the plat, unless within such period the plat shall have been duly filed by the developer with the county recording officer.
(3) 
The Planning Board may, for good cause shown, extend the period for recording for an additional period not to exceed 190 days from the date of signing of the plat.
The Mayor may appoint one or more persons as a Citizens' Advisory Committee to assist or collaborate with the Planning Board in its duties, but such person or persons shall have no power to vote or take other action required of the Board. Such person or persons shall serve at the pleasure of the Mayor.