[Amended 12-20-2004]
No member of the Planning Board shall act on any matter in which
he has, either directly or indirectly, any personal or financial interest.
Whenever any such member shall disqualify himself from acting on a
particular matter, he 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 canceled for lack of applications for development to process.
[Amended 12-20-2004]
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
legal 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 P.L. 1975, c. 291.
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, P.L. 1975, c. 231.
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.
The minutes shall thereafter be made available for public inspection
during normal business hours at the office of the Municipal Clerk.
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 provided for
in the rules of the Board.
[Amended 3-7-1988; 9-2-1997; 12-20-2004; 7-5-2005; 9-5-2006; 4-6-2009 by Ord. No.
7-2009; 5-4-2009 by Ord. No. 12-2009[1]]
No subdivisions, developments or site plans shall be approved and no building permits shall be issued by the Borough of Swedesboro until such time as all application fees have been paid and all escrow accounts established for inspections, in accordance with the following provisions. The escrow fees are required at the time of submission and are considered minimum deposits. An application for development shall not be deemed complete until all required fees have been paid. Fees and escrow deposits shall be as set forth in Chapter 140, Fees.
[Added 3-7-1988; amended 12-20-2004; 4-6-2009 by Ord. No. 7-2009; 5-4-2009 by Ord. No. 12-2009]
Escrow fees shall be applied to professional costs charged by
the Borough's professional consultants for services rendered
in the review of the application. Additional escrow fees shall be
required when the original escrow amount is depleted by 50% or more
and the application review is still in progress. The amount of additional
escrow fees required shall be the difference between the remaining
escrow amount and the original escrow fees deposited. The review of
any application which is found to be deficient in the required escrow
monies shall cease until the additional escrow fees are deposited.
[Added 3-7-1988]
All moneys received by the Borough in accordance with the provisions
of this chapter shall be paid to the Borough of Swedesboro Treasurer,
who shall provide a suitable depository therefor and shall establish
individual escrow accounts where required by this chapter. Such funds
shall be used only for the purpose and requirements herein stated.
The cash security for plan review and inspection shall be held by
the Borough Treasurer in escrow trust accounts. Under no circumstances
shall the Borough pay or be liable for an interest on any funds deposited
with the Borough as a performance or maintenance guaranty. Any unused
funds shall be returned by the Borough Treasurer to the applicant.
[Added 3-7-1988; amended 12-20-2004]
Fees for applications or for the rendering of any service by
the Planning Board or any member of their administrative staff which
are not otherwise provided by ordinance may be provided for and adopted
as part of the rules of the Board, and copies of said rules of the
separate fee schedules shall be available to the public.
A.
Rules. The Planning Board shall make rules governing the conduct
of hearings before it, which rules shall not be inconsistent with
the provisions of N.J.S.A. 40:55D-1 et seq. or of this chapter.
[Amended 12-20-2004]
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. 38 (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 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, on request to any interested party at his expense.
[Amended 12-20-2004]
A.
Whenever a hearing is required on an application for development
pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-1 et seq. or pursuant to the determination
of the municipal agency in question, the applicant shall give notice
thereof as follows:
(1)
Public notice shall be given by publication in the official newspaper
of the municipality at least 10 days prior to the date of the hearing.
(2)
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 of such hearing
and whether located within or without the municipality in which the
applicant's land is located. Such notice shall be given by:
(a)
Serving a copy thereof on the owner, as shown on said current
tax duplicate, or his agent in charge of the property; or
(b)
Mailing a copy thereof by certified mail to the property owner
at his address as shown on said current 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, a vice president, secretary or other person authorized
by appointment or by law to accept service on behalf of the corporation.
(3)
Notice of all hearings on 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 § 200-31B of this chapter to the owners of lands in such adjoining municipality which are located within 200 feet of the subject premises.
(4)
Notice shall be given by personal service or certified mail to the
County Planning 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.
(5)
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.
(6)
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 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 Municipal Clerk pursuant to Subsection 6b of P.L. 1975, c.
291.
B.
All notices hereinabove specified in this section shall be given
at least 10 days prior to the date fixed for hearings, and the applicant
shall file an affidavit of proof of service with the Board holding
the hearing on the application for development.
C.
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.
D.
Form of notice. All notices required to be given pursuant to the
terms of this chapter 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 Municipal 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.
[Amended 9-6-1977[1]]
Pursuant to the provisions of N.J.S.A. 40:55D-12c, the Tax Assessor of the Borough of Swedesboro shall, within seven days after receipt of a request therefor and upon receipt of payment of a fee as set forth in Chapter 140, Fees, make and certify a list from the current tax duplicate of names and addresses of owners to whom the applicant is required to give notice pursuant to Article III, § 200-31B, of this chapter.
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 decision to the applicant or, if represented, then
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
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 municipality.
[Amended 12-20-2004]
A brief notice of every final decision shall be published in
the official newspaper of the municipality. Such publication shall
be arranged by the Secretary of the Planning Board without separate
charge to the applicant. Said notice shall be sent to the official
newspaper for publication within 10 days of the date of any such decision.
[Amended 12-20-2004]
Pursuant to the provisions of N.J.S.A. 40:55D-39 and N.J.S.A.
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 such application, or if it is shown that taxes or assessments
are delinquent on said 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 Borough of Swedesboro
will be adequately protected.
