[Amended 3-25-2019 by Ord. No. 2019-1[1]]
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.
[1]
Editor's Note: This ordinance also changed the title of this
article from "Provisions Applicable to Both Planning Board and Zoning
Board of Adjustment" to "Administrative Procedures Applicable to the
Planning Board."
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 for lack of applications for development to process.
[Amended 3-25-2019 by Ord. No. 2019-1]
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.
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.[2] An executive session for the purpose of discussing and
studying any matters to come before the agency shall not be deemed
a regular or special meeting, within the meaning of this chapter,
of the Municipal Land Use Law of 1975, P.L. 1975, c. 291.[3]
Minutes of every regular or special meeting shall be kept and
shall include the names of the persons appearing and addressing the
Board and the persons appearing by attorney, the action taken by the
Board, the findings, if any, made by it and the 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 3-25-2019 by Ord. No. 2019-1]
Fees for applications or for the rendering of any service by
the Planning Board or any member of its administrative staffs, which
is not otherwise provided by this chapter, may be provided for and
adopted as part of the rules of the Board, and copies of said rules
or of the separate fee schedule shall be available to the public.
A.
Rules. The Planning Board shall make rules governing the conduct
of hearings before said body, which rules shall not be inconsistent
with the provisions of N.J.S.A. 40:55D-1 et seq. or of this chapter.
[Amended 3-25-2019 by Ord. No. 2019-1]
B.
Oaths. The officer presiding at the hearing or such person as he
may designate shall have the 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,
P.L. 1953, c. 38 (N.J.S.A. 2A:67A-1 et seq.).
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. Each Board shall provide for the verbatim recording of the proceedings by either stenographer, mechanical or electronic means. The Board shall furnish a transcript or a duplicate recording in lieu thereof on request to any interested party at his expense. Said transcript shall be certified in writing by the transcriber to be accurate. The fee(s) payable hereunder shall be as set forth in Chapter 156, Fees.
[Amended 3-25-2019 by Ord. No. 2019-1; 4-29-2019 by Ord. No. 2019-3]
F.
Decisions.
(1)
Each decision on any application for development shall be reduced
to writing as provided in this subsection and shall include findings
of facts and conclusions based thereon.
(2)
Failure of a motion to approve an application for development to
receive the number of votes required for approval shall be deemed
an action denying the application.
(3)
The Board may provide such written decision and findings and conclusions
either on the date of the meeting at which the Board takes to grant
or deny approval or, if the meeting at which such action is taken
occurs within the final 45 days of the application for development,
within 45 days of such meeting by the adoption of a resolution of
memorialization setting forth the decision and the findings and conclusions
of the Board thereon.
(4)
Memorialization.
(a)
An action resulting from the failure of a motion to approve
an application shall be memorialized by resolution as provided above,
notwithstanding the time at which such action occurs within the applicable
time period for rendering a decision on the application.
(b)
The adoption of a resolution of memorialization pursuant to
this subsection shall not be constructed to alter the applicable time
period for rendering a decision on the application for development.
Such resolution shall be adopted by a vote of a majority of the members
of the Board who voted for the action previously taken, and no other
member shall vote thereon. The vote on such resolution shall be deemed
to be a memorialization of an action of the Board and not to be an
action of the Board, except that failure to adopt such a resolution
within the forty-five-day period shall result in the approval of the
application for development, notwithstanding any prior action taken
thereon.
(c)
Whenever a resolution of memorialization is adopted in accordance
with this subsection, the date of such adoption shall constitute the
date of the decision for purposes of the mailings, filings and publications
required by this chapter.
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:
A.
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.
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 of such hearing
and whether located within or without the municipality in which the
applicant's land is located. Said notice shall be given by serving
a copy thereof on the owner as shown on said current tax duplicate
or his agent in charge of the property or by 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 present 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 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.
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.
E.
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.
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 Section 6b of P.L. 1975, c. 291.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: See N.J.S.A. 40:55D-10b.
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 services with the Board holding
the hearing on the application for development.
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.
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 a lot and block number 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.
J.
The public notice to be required pursuant to this section shall include
a notice to all record owners and deed holders in condominium associations
or business parks which are within 200 feet of the property which
is the subject of an application for a hearing. This requirement shall
also apply to Amendments to zoning to be adopted by the Township Mayor
and Council.
[Added 9-13-1991 by Ord. No. 1990-16]
[Amended 4-29-2019 by Ord. No. 2019-3]
Pursuant to the provisions of N.J.S.A. 40:55D-12c, the administrative officer of the municipality shall, within seven days after receipt of a request therefor and upon receipt of payment of a fee(s) as set forth in Chapter 156, 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 § 200-39B of this chapter.
A.
Each decision on any application for development shall be set forth
in writing as a resolution of the Board in accordance with N.J.S.A.
40:55D-10g, as amended, and which shall include findings of facts
and legal conclusions.
[Amended 10-9-1984]
B.
A copy of the decision shall be mailed by the Board within 10 days
of the 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 3-25-2019 by Ord. No. 2019-1]
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.
Nothing contained in this section shall be construed as preventing
the applicant from arranging such publication if he so desires. The
period of time in which an appeal of the decision may be made shall
run from the first publication of the decision, whether arranged by
the Township or the applicant.
[Amended 3-25-2019 by Ord. No. 2019-1]
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 tax assessment for local improvements
are due, 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 provisions for the payment
thereof in such manner that the municipality will be adequately protected.
[Added 12-8-1997 by Ord. No. 1997-30]
A.
Conditions precedent.
(1)
Whenever any application for development is approved subject to specified
conditions intended to be fulfilled before the approval becomes effective,
said conditional approval shall lapse and become null and void unless
all specified conditions, other than those contemplated by N.J.S.A.
40:55D-22b, are fulfilled within 90 days of the date of conditional
approval, unless otherwise specified by the Board.
(2)
Proof that applications have been filed with all other agencies having
jurisdiction over any aspect of the application for development shall
forthwith be filed with the Board.
(3)
The fulfillment of all other conditions precedent shall forthwith
be reported in writing to the Board which may cause such reports to
be verified in an appropriate manner. Only upon fulfillment of all
conditions shall any subdivision map or site plan be signed or any
required building permit, occupancy permit or zoning permit be issued.
(4)
When all conditions precedent have been fulfilled with respect to
any minor or major subdivision, applicant shall, within 30 days of
the fulfillment of all such conditions submit his deed or map for
signature in accordance with N.J.S.A. 40:55D-48 or 40:55D-54, or any
such approval shall lapse and be of no force and effect; provided,
however, that the applicant may, for good cause shown, obtain an extension
before the lapse of said thirty-day period within the reasonable exercise
of the Board's judgment.
B.
Conditions subsequent.
(1)
Whenever any application for development is approved subject to conditions,
which by their terms are incapable of being fulfilled, or are not
required to be fulfilled, prior to the final approval of the application,
and the performance of which are not guaranteed by bonds or securities
of any type, the failure to fulfill any such condition within six
months from the date of the final approval of the application for
development shall be grounds for the issuance of a stop-work order
by the enforcing official and the withholding of any zoning permit,
certificate of occupancy or any other approval until such condition
or conditions are fulfilled.
(2)
Nothing herein contained shall be construed as preventing the Board
from specifying a longer period of time within which any specific
condition must be fulfilled, or from granting, upon an ex parte application,
an extension of time for good cause shown.
(3)
The fulfillment of all conditions shall be reported in writing to
the Board which may cause such reports to be verified in an appropriate
manner. Only upon fulfillment of all conditions shall any subdivision
map or site plan be signed or any required occupancy permit, zoning
permit or other remaining required approval be issued.
C.
Counting the time. For purposes of calculating the time period within
which conditions must be fulfilled, such time periods shall commence
from the date on which the resolution of approval was adopted.
