Special uses as enumerated in this chapter shall be
permitted only upon authorization of the Board of Trustees after review
by the Planning Board, provided that such uses shall be found to comply
with this article and other applicable requirements set forth in this
chapter.
The purpose of site plan review is to determine compliance
with the objectives of this chapter in those zoning districts where
inappropriate development may cause a conflict between uses in the
same or adjoining zoning districts by creating unhealthful or unsafe
conditions and thereby adversely affecting the public health, safety
and general welfare.
Authorization to grant or deny site plan approval.
The power to approve, approve with conditions or deny site plans,
as required by this chapter, is vested in the Village Board of Trustees
after review by the Planning Board. Prior to issuing a building permit
or special use permit, the Code Enforcement Officer shall refer the
site plan and supporting documentation of such project to the Planning
Board for its review and recommendation. All site plan information
and building designs shall be prepared by a New York State licensed
architect or engineer. All plans shall show the seal and signature
of said architect or engineer. In addition, the architect or engineer
shall submit to the Village a signed affidavit that the plans for
the project were prepared by said architect or engineer, or his or
her employees. No building permit under a special use permit shall
be issued except in accordance with the standards and procedures set
forth in this chapter.
Preliminary application. Application for preliminary
site plan approval shall be made, in writing, to the Code Enforcement
Officer, who shall refer the application, when complete in all respects,
to the Planning Board for its review and recommendation.
A certified or notarized economic analysis of
the project indicating the profit and loss of the project and including,
but not limited to, the following: income, costs, rentals, taxes,
market area and utilities. In addition, the applicant shall provide
a full disclosure statement concerning the project.
For proposed projects exceeding $100,000 in
construction costs, documented evidence shall be provided of the applicant's
financial ability to undertake and successfully complete the proposed
project within the specified project construction period. Such evidence
may be in the form of bank deposits, financing commitments, or the
like.
An area map showing the applicant's entire holding,
that portion of the applicant's property under consideration, and
all properties, their ownership and uses thereon, subdivisions, streets,
zoning districts, easements and adjacent buildings within 500 feet
of the applicant's property.
If grades exceed 3% or portions of the site
have a moderate to high susceptibility to erosion or a moderate to
high susceptibility to flooding and ponding, a topographic map showing
contour intervals of not more than two feet of elevation, with an
overlay outlining the above susceptible areas, if any.
The location of all existing or proposed site
improvements, including streets, drains, culverts, retaining walls,
fences and easements, whether public or private.
The location of all parking and truck loading areas with access and egress drives thereto. There shall be adequate parking spaces for each professional and his or her clientele, plus staff. Adequate off-street parking (see § 245-113) will be of significant consideration for site plan approval.
Delineation of the various residential
areas, if applicable, indicating for each such area its general extent,
size and composition in terms of total number of dwelling unit types,
a general description of the intended structure and a calculation
of the residential density, in dwelling units per gross acre, for
each such area.
When applicable, a general description
of the provision of other community facilities, such as schools, fire
protection services and cultural facilities, if any, and some indication
of how these needs are proposed to be accommodated.
If the development is to be staged, a general
indication of how the staging is to proceed. Whether or not the development
is to be staged, the preliminary plan shall show the intended total
project. Any project that requires more than 24 months to complete
shall be staged.
Within 90 days of its receipt of a certified
complete preliminary site plan application from the Code Enforcement
Officer, the Planning Board shall act on it. If no decision is made
within said ninety-day period, the preliminary site plan shall be
considered conditionally recommended for approved. The Planning Board's
action shall be in the form of a written statement to the Board of
Trustees, with a copy to the applicant, stating clearly its approval,
or its conditional approval with the conditions enumerated, or its
denial with its reasons therefor. A copy of the appropriate minutes
of the Planning Board will be considered a sufficient written statement.
Adequacy, type and arrangement of trees, shrubs
and other landscaping constituting a visual and/or noise-deterring
buffer between adjacent uses and adjoining lands.
The Planning Board's statement may include recommendations
as to desirable revisions to be incorporated in the final site plan,
conformance with which shall be considered a condition of approval.
If the preliminary site plan is disapproved, the Planning Board's
statement shall contain the reasons for such findings. In such case,
the Planning Board may recommend further study of the site plan and
resubmission of the preliminary site plan to the Planning Board after
it has been revised or redesigned. No modification of existing stream
channels, filling of lands with a moderate to high susceptibility
to flooding, grading or removal of vegetation in areas with moderate
to high susceptibility to erosion or excavation for and construction
of site improvements shall begin until the developer has received
preliminary site plan approval. Failure to comply shall be construed
as a violation of this chapter, and, where necessary, final site plan
approval may require the modification or removal of unapproved site
improvements.
Final application. After receiving conditional recommendation
from the Planning Board on a preliminary site plan and approval for
all necessary permits and curb cuts from state and county officials,
the applicant may prepare his or her final site plan and apply, in
writing, to the Code Enforcement Officer, who shall refer the application
for a building permit, when complete in all respects, to the Planning
Board for its review and recommendation. If the Planning Board finds
that conditions have changed significantly in the interim, the Planning
Board may require a resubmission of the preliminary site plan for
further review and possible revision prior to accepting the proposed
final site plan for review. The final site plan and application for
a building permit shall conform to the approved preliminary site plan
and shall incorporate any revisions or other features that may have
been required by the Planning Board at the preliminary review. All
compliances shall be clearly indicated by the applicant.
Within 62 days of the receipt of the certified complete
final site plan application from the Planning Board, the Village Board
of Trustees shall hold a public hearing thereon and, within 62 days,
shall render a decision to the Code Enforcement Officer.
Upon approval, the Village Board of Trustees
shall endorse its approval on a copy of the final site plan and shall
forward it to the Code Enforcement Officer, who shall then issue a
building permit if the project conforms to all other applicable requirements.
Upon disapproval, the Village Board of Trustees
shall so inform the Code Enforcement Officer, and he or she shall
deny a building permit. The Village Board of Trustees shall also notify
the applicant, in writing, of its decision and its reasons for disapproval.
A copy of the appropriate minutes may suffice for this notice.
Any person, firm, or corporation applying for
a special use or site plan approval shall, at the time of applying,
execute a guaranty to assume all the costs of advertising. The applicant
shall pay all costs, charges, and expenses of advertising and readvertising
in the event of adjournments or otherwise.
If a special use or site plan approval is requested,
the applicant shall send notice of the same to all property owners
within 200 feet of the boundaries of the lot or lots under construction.
Such notice shall be by mail and shall state the time and day of the
public hearing, the relief sought, the type of use contemplated, the
applicant's name and the location of the property in question. Such
notices shall be mailed so as to arrive at least five days prior to
the public hearing date. An affidavit of mailing shall be submitted
as proof in each case.
Whenever the Village Board of Trustees, after
hearing all the evidence presented upon an application under the provisions
of this chapter, denies the same, the Board of Trustees shall refuse
to hold further hearings on said or a substantially similar application
by the same applicant or his or her successor or assignee for a period
of one year, except and unless the Board of Trustees shall find and
determine from the information supplied by the request for a rehearing
that changed conditions have occurred relating to the promotion of
public health, safety, convenience, comfort, prosperity, and general
welfare and that a reconsideration is justified. Such rehearing would
be allowable only upon a motion initiated by a member of the Board
of Trustees and adopted by the unanimous vote of the members present,
but not less than a majority of all members.
Stormwater pollution prevention plan. A stormwater pollution prevention plan (SWPPP) consistent with the requirements of Chapter 217, the Stormwater Management and Erosion and Sediment Control Law of the Village of Horseheads, shall be required for site plan approval. The SWPPP shall meet performance and design criteria and standards set forth in the Stormwater Management and Erosion and Sediment Control Law of the Village of Horseheads. The approved site plan shall be consistent with the provisions of Chapter 217, the Stormwater Management and Erosion and Sediment Control Law of the Village of Horseheads.
Any project involving more than 20 persons which is
subject to fire hazards with only one access road shall have an alternate
clear accessway available for the use of emergency vehicles.
All projects shall be suitably landscaped, including
all the provision of vegetation of suitable species and at appropriate
levels of maturity in order to screen effectively dissimilar uses
from one another, both visually and acoustically, and to protect and
enhance the overall quality of the environment. A landscaping plan
shall be prepared by a New York State licensed landscape architect
or one authorized to practice such profession and shall show his or
her seal and signature.
All projects shall have landscaping equal to a minimum
expenditure of 1 1/2% of the total project cost. Landscaping
shall be considered as any living plant but shall not include excavating,
earth moving, fill, grading or paving associated with normal requirements
of building. In addition, all projects shall contain on the site artwork
of a minimum expenditure of 1/2 of 1% of the total project cost.
Artwork may be sculptures, gardens, fountains, pools, or other artwork
approved by the Planning Board.
Buildings shall be located so that the privacy of
individual units is protected and so that their arrangement creates
usable open green spaces, avoids monotonous, undifferentiated silhouettes
and produces a satisfactory microclimate. Sidewalks shall be provided
and be integrally designed so as to provide safe and convenient access
between buildings and internal recreation, parking and service areas.
Before a final site plan is approved, the proposed final site plan shall be considered by the Village Board of Trustees at a public hearing. Notice of said hearing shall be given as provided in § 245-135.