No member of the Land Use Board shall act on any matter in which
such member has either directly or indirectly any personal or financial
interest. Whenever any such member shall disqualify himself/herself
from acting on a particular matter, he/she shall so state for the
record, not sit with the Board on the hearing of such matter nor participate
in any discussion or decision relating thereto.
B.
Special meetings may be provided for at the call of the Chairperson
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
legal requirements.
C.
No action shall be taken at any meeting without a quorum present.
D.
All actions shall be taken by a roll call majority vote of members
present, all of whom shall have been present for the complete presentation
and discussion on the question or decision or have certified, in writing,
that they have read the transcript or listened to the recording from
the meeting missed. A quorum shall be considered as five members.[2]
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 N.J.S.A. 10:4-6 et seq.
Minutes of every regular or special meeting shall be kept and
shall include proofs of notice and service, 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. The minutes shall thereafter be made available
for public inspection during normal business hours at the office of
the Secretary of the Board. 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/her
use, as provided for in the rules of the Board.
A.
The fees for informal or preliminary discussions, major site review, minor site review and/or sketch plat, major subdivision, minor subdivision, zoning variances, and miscellaneous typing and reproduction shall be in accordance with the schedule set forth in Chapter 146, Fee Schedule, of the Code of the City of Burlington.
B.
All application fees are nonrefundable, except the Board may elect
in its sole discretion to refund part or all of such application fees
based on the stage of the application or the hardship it may cause
the applicant.
C.
Fees for professional review of any proposed application as required
by the Board, such as review by the Board attorney or engineer, shall
be billed directly by the appropriate City office directly to the
applicant. No certificate of approval, permit or signed map shall
be given to the applicant until all such fees have been paid.
Pursuant to the provisions of N.J.S.A. 40:55D-39 and 40:55D-65,
every application for development submitted to the Land Use 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 such application; or, if it is shown that taxes or assessments
are delinquent on such property, any approvals or other relief granted
by the Board shall be conditioned upon either the prompt payment of
such taxes or assessments, or the making of adequate provision for
the payment thereof in such manner that the City will be adequately
protected.
B.
Oaths. The officer presiding at the hearing or such person as he/she
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,
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 reasonable limitations by the presiding
officer 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, unfair,
inflammatory or repetitious evidence.
E.
Records. The Board shall provide for the verbatim recording of the
proceedings by either stenographic, mechanical or electronic means.
The Board shall furnish a transcript, or duplicate recording in lieu
thereof, to any interested party at his/her expense upon request.
Such records or recording shall be kept for a minimum of three years.
A.
Notice required.
(1)
Whenever a hearing is required on an application for development,
the applicant must follow the notice requirements of N.J.S.A. 40:55D-1
et seq. Public notice shall be given by publication in the official
newspaper of the City or in a newspaper of general circulation within
the City at least 10 days prior to the date of the hearing.
B.
To property owners.
(1)
Notice shall be given for a zoning variance application to the owners
of all real property located within 200 feet in all directions of
the property which is the subject of such hearing, and whether located
within or without the City, as shown on the current tax duplicate
or duplicates. Such notice shall be given by:
(2)
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,
a vice president, secretary or other person authorized by appointment
or by law to accept service on behalf of the corporation.
C.
To other municipalities. Notice of all hearings for applications for development involving property located within 200 feet of an adjoining municipality shall be given by personal service or certified mail to the clerk of such municipality, which notice shall be in addition to the notice required to be given, pursuant to Subsection B of this section, to the owners of lands in such adjoining municipality which are located within 200 feet of the subject premises.
D.
To County Land Use Board. Notice shall be given by personal service
or certified mail to the County Land Use Board of a hearing 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 situate within 200 feet
of a municipal boundary.
E.
To Commissioner of Transportation. Notice shall be given by personal
service or certified mail to the Commissioner of Transportation of
a hearing on an application for development of property adjacent to
a state highway.
F.
To Division of State and Regional Planning. Notice shall be given
by personal service or 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 where so
required by those agencies and in accordance with their requirements.
G.
Time of notice. 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 Board holding the hearing on the application for development.
H.
Notice by certified mail. Any notice made by certified mail, as hereinabove
permitted, shall be deemed complete upon mailing in accordance with
the provisions of N.J.S.A. 40:55D-14.
I.
Contents of notice. The notice shall state the date, time and place
of the hearing, the nature of the matters to be considered and identification
of the property proposed for development by street address, if any,
or by reference to lot and block numbers, as shown on the current
tax duplicate in the City Tax Assessor's office, and the location
and times at which any maps and documents for which approval is sought
are available as required by law.
Pursuant to the provisions of N.J.S.A. 40:55D-12c, the Construction Official shall, within seven days after receipt of a request therefor and upon receipt of payment of a fee in accordance with the schedule set forth in Chapter 146, Fee Schedule, make and certify a list from the current tax duplicate of the names and addresses of owners to whom the applicant is required to give notice.
A.
Each decision on any application for development shall be set forth
in writing as a resolution of the Board, which shall include findings
of fact and legal conclusions based thereon.
B.
A copy of the decision shall be mailed by the Board within 10 days
of the date of memorialization of decision to the applicant, or if
represented, then to his/her attorney, without separate charge. A
copy of the decision shall also be mailed to all persons who have
requested it and who have paid the fee prescribed by the Board for
such service. A copy of the decision shall also be filed in the office
of the Municipal 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 City.
[Amended 6-14-2011 by Ord. No. 05-2011]
A notice of every final decision shall be published in the official
newspaper of the City. Such publication shall be arranged by the Secretary
of the Land Use Board without separate charge to the applicant. Such
notice shall be sent to the official newspaper for publication within
10 days of the date of memorialization of any such decision.
An appeal from any final decision of the Land Use Board may
only be taken to the Superior Court of New Jersey.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: Original § 16.16.120, Appeals from
Zoning Board of Adjustment, and original § 16.16.130, Joint
Planning/Zoning Committee to review applications for development,
which immediately followed this section, were deleted 6-14-2011 by
Ord. No. 05-2011.
