No member of the Planning Board shall act on
any matter in which he or she has either directly or indirectly any
personal or financial interest. Whenever any such member shall disqualify
himself or herself from acting on a particular matter, he or she shall
not continue to sit with the Board on the hearing of such matter,
nor participate in any discussion or decision relating thereto.
A.
Meetings of the Planning Board shall be scheduled
no less often than once a month, and any meeting so scheduled shall
be held as scheduled unless cancelled due to lack of applications
for development to process or lack of other business.
B.
Special meetings may be provided for at the call of
the Chairman or on the request of any two Board members, which shall
be held on notice to its members and the public, in accordance with
all applicable requirements.
C.
No action shall be taken at any meeting without a
quorum being present.
D.
All actions shall be taken by majority vote of a quorum
except as otherwise required by any provision of C. 291, Laws of N.J.
1975.
E.
All regular meetings and all special meetings shall
be open to the public. Notice of all such meetings shall be given
in accordance with the requirements of the Open Public Meetings Law,
C. 231, Laws of N.J. 1975. An executive session, for the purpose of
discussing and studying any matters to come before the Planning Board,
shall not be deemed a regular or special meeting, in accordance with
the provisions of N.J.S.A. 40:55D-9.
A.
Minutes of every regular or special meeting shall
be kept and shall include the names of the persons appearing and addressing
the Board, and of the persons appearing by attorney; the action taken
by the Board; the findings, if any, made by it, and reasons therefor.
B.
The minutes shall thereafter be made available for
public inspection during normal business hours at the office of the
Borough Clerk. Copies of the minutes shall be forwarded to the Borough
Clerk, Borough Engineer, and Planning Board Attorney, the Construction
Code Official, and the Pinelands Commission.
C.
Any interested party shall have the right to compel
production of the minutes for use as evidence in any legal proceeding
concerning the subject matter of such minutes. Such interested party
may be charged a fee for reproduction of the minutes for his use,
as said fee is provided for in the rules of the Board.
Fees and documents for application or for the
rendering of any service by the Planning Board, or any member of its
administrative staff, which is not otherwise provided for by this
chapter, may be provided for and adopted as part of the rules of the
Planning Board. Copies of said rules shall be available to the public.
A.
Rules. The Planning Board may make rules governing
the conduct of hearings before it. These rules shall not be inconsistent
with the provisions of N.J.S.A. 40:55D-1 et seq. or of this chapter.
B.
Oaths. The officer presiding at the hearing, or such
person as he may designate, shall have power to administer oaths and
issue subpoenas to compel the attendance of witnesses and the production
of relevant evidence, including witnesses and documents presented
by the parties, and the provisions of the "County and Municipal Investigations
Law", P.L. 1953, c. 1938 (N.J.S.A. 2A:67A-1 et seq.) shall apply.
C.
Testimony. The testimony of all witnesses relating
to an application for development shall be taken under oath or affirmation
by the presiding officer and the right of cross examination shall
be permitted to all interested parties through their attorneys, if
represented, or directly, if not represented, subject to the discretion
of the presiding officer and to reasonable limitations as to time
and number of witnesses.
D.
Evidence. Technical rules of evidence shall not be
applicable to the hearing, but the Board may exclude irrelevant, immaterial
or unduly repetitious evidence.
E.
Records. The Planning Board shall provide for the
verbatim recording of the proceedings by either a stenographer, or
mechanical or electronic means, at the expense of the Board. The Board
shall furnish a transcript, or duplicate recording in lieu thereof,
on request to any interested party, at his expense.
[Amended 11-10-1988 by Ord. No. 88-10]
A.
Where a meeting, hearing or other formal proceeding on
an application for development approval in the Pinelands Area is required,
the applicant shall provide notice to the Pinelands Commission, by
e-mail, regular mail or delivery of the same, to the principal office
of the Commission at least five days prior to such meeting, hearing
or other formal proceeding. Such notice shall contain at least the
following information:
[Amended 11-8-2018 by Ord. No. 2018-8]
(1)
The name and address of the applicant;
(2)
The application number of the certificate of filing issued
by the Pinelands Commission and the date on which it was issued;
(3)
The date, time and location of the meeting, hearing or
other formal proceeding;
(4)
The name of the approval agency or representative thereof
that will be conducting the meeting, hearing or other formal proceeding;
(5)
Any written reports or comments received by the approval
agency on the application for development that have not been submitted
previously to the Commission; and
(6)
The purpose for which the meeting, hearing or other formal
proceeding is to be held.
B.
The Pinelands Commission may participate in any hearing
held in the Borough involving the development of land, pursuant to
N.J.A.C. 7:50-4.36 of the Pinelands Comprehensive Management Plan.
Whenever public notice of a hearing is required
on an application for development, pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-10
et seq., and this chapter, the applicant shall give notice thereof
as follows:
A.
Public notice shall be given by publication in the
official newspaper of the Borough at least 10 days prior to the date
of the scheduled hearing.
B.
Notice shall be given to the owners of all real property,
as shown on the current tax duplicate, or duplicates, located within
200 feet in all directions of the property which is the subject to
such hearing, whether located within or without the Borough. Such
notice shall be given by: 1) serving a copy thereof on the owner as
shown on said tax duplicate, or his agent in charge of the property;
or 2) mailing a copy thereof by certified mail to the property owner
at his address, as shown on the tax duplicate. A return receipt is
not required. Notice to a partnership owner may be made by service
upon any partner. Notice to a corporate owner may be made by service
upon its president, vice president, secretary or other person authorized
by appointment or by law to accept service on behalf of the corporation.
C.
Notice of all hearings on an application for development involving property located within 200 feet of an adjoining municipality shall be given by personal service, or by certified mail, to the clerk of said municipality; this notice shall be in addition to the notice required under § 285-27B.
D.
Notice shall be given by personal service, or by certified
mail, to the County Planning Board of all hearings on an application
for development of property adjacent to an existing county road or
proposed road shown on the Official County Map or on the County Master
Plan, adjoining other County land, or situated within 200 feet of
a municipal boundary.
E.
Notice shall be given by personal service, or by certified
mail, to the Commissioners of Transportation of a hearing on an application
for development of property adjacent to a state highway.
F.
Notice shall be given by personal service, or by certified
mail, to the Director of the Division of State and Regional Planning,
in the Department of Community Affairs of a hearing on an application
for development of property which exceeds 150 acres or 500 dwelling
units. Such notice shall include a copy of any maps or documents required
to be on file with the Borough Clerk, pursuant to Section 6b of C.
291, Laws of N.J. 1975.
G.
All notices, hereinabove specified in this section,
shall be given at least 10 days prior to the date fixed for hearing,
and the applicant shall file an affidavit of proof of service with
the Planning Board.
H.
Any notice made by certified mail, as hereinabove
required, shall be deemed to be complete upon mailing, in accordance
with the provisions of N.J.S.A. 40:55D-14.
I.
All notices required to be given, pursuant to the
terms of this chapter, shall state: the date, time and place of the
hearing; describe specified exceptions sought to the design and performance
standards of this chapter, if applicable; the nature of the matters
to be considered; identification of the property proposed for development,
by street address, if any, or by reference to lot and block numbers
as shown on the tax duplicate; and the location and times at which
any maps and documents for which approval is sought are available
for inspection.
Pursuant to the provision of N.J.S.A. 40:55D-12c, the Borough Clerk shall within seven days after receipt of a request therefor and upon receipt of payment of a fee not to exceed $0.25 per name or $10, whichever is greater, make and certify a list from the current tax duplicate of names and addresses of owners to whom the applicant is required to given notice, pursuant to § 285-27B.
A.
Each decision on any application for development shall
be set forth in writing as a resolution of the Board, and shall include
findings of fact and legal conclusion based thereon.
B.
A copy of the decision shall be mailed by the Board,
within 10 days of the date of decision, to the applicant, or if represented,
to his attorney, without separate charge. A copy of the decision shall
also be mailed to all persons who have requested it and who have paid
a fee of $0.75 per page for the first 10 pages; $0.50 per page for
the next 10 pages and $0.25 per page thereafter for such service.
A copy of the decision shall also be filed in the office of the Borough
Clerk, who shall make a copy of such filed decision available to any
interested party, upon payment of a fee calculated in the same manner
as those established for copies of other public documents in the Borough.[1]
A brief notice of every final decision shall
be published in the official newspaper of the Borough. Such publication
shall be arranged promptly by the applicant. The ten-day period of
time in which an appeal of the decision may be made shall run from
the first day of publication of the decision.
Pursuant to the provisions of N.J.S.A. 40:55D-39
and 40:55D-65, every application for development submitted to the
Planning Board shall be accompanied by proof that no taxes or assessments
for local improvements are due or delinquent on the property which
is the subject of the application.
The Borough Clerk shall file with the County
Planning Board and the Pinelands Commission, as soon after passage
as possible, all development regulations, including this chapter and
any amendments or revisions thereto, and file and maintain for public
inspection copies of said regulations, ordinances, and amendments
in the office of the Borough Clerk.
A.
Any interested party may appeal to the Borough Council a final decision of the Planning Board approving a variance, pursuant to § 285-16M of this chapter. Such appeal shall be made within 10 days of the date of publication of such final decision, pursuant to § 285-30. The appeal to the Borough Council shall be made by serving the Borough Clerk in person or by certified mail with a notice of appeal, specifying the grounds therefor and the name and address of the appellant and name and address of his attorney, if represented. Such appeal shall be decided by the Borough only upon the record established before the Planning Board.
B.
Notice of a meeting to review the record shall be given by the Borough Council, by personal service or by certified mail, to the appellant, to the Pinelands Commission, to those entitled to notice of a decision, pursuant to § 285-27, and to the Board from which the appeal is taken, at least 10 days prior to the date of the meeting. The parties may submit oral and written argument on the record at such meeting, and the Borough Council shall provide for verbatim recording and transcripts of such meetings, pursuant to § 285-25 of this chapter.
C.
The Borough Council shall conclude a review of the
record not later than 45 days from the date of receipt of the transcript
of the hearing, unless the applicant consents in writing to an extension
of such period. The appellant shall arrange for a transcript for use
by the Borough Council and shall submit proof, upon the filing of
his notice of appeal or within 10 days thereof, that he has ordered
said transcript.
(1)
Failure of the appellant to order the transcript within
the above-specified time shall result in dismissal of the appeal.
(2)
Failure of the Borough Council to hold a hearing and
conclude a review of the record and to render a decision within the
specified time period, without written consent to an extension, shall
constitute a decision affirming the action of the Board.
D.
The Borough Council may reverse, remand or affirm,
wholly or in part, or may modify the final decision of the Planning
Board.
E.
The affirmative vote of a majority of the full authorized
membership of the Borough Council shall be necessary to reverse, remand
or modify any final action of the Board.
F.
An appeal to the Borough Council shall stay all proceeding
in furtherance of the action in respect to which the decision appealed
from was made, unless the Board from whose action the appeal is taken
certifies to the Borough Council, after the notice of appeal shall
have been filed with such Board, that by reason of facts stated in
the certificate a stay would, in its opinion, cause imminent peril
to life or property. In such case, proceedings shall not be stayed,
other than by an order of the Superior Court on application upon notice
to the Board from whom the appeal is taken and on showing good cause.
G.
The Borough Council shall mail a copy of the decision
to the appellant or, if represented, to his attorney, without separate
charge, and for a fee to be established by the Borough Council, to
any interested party requesting it, not later than 10 days after the
date of decision. A brief notice of the decision shall be published
in the official newspaper of the Borough, as arranged by the applicant.
H.
Nothing herein shall be construed to restrict the
right of any party to obtain a review by any court of competent jurisdiction
according to law.
