No member of the Planning Board or Zoning Board of Adjustment
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 manner, he shall not
continue to sit with the board on the hearing of such matter nor participate
in any discussion or decision relating thereto. All members of the
Planning Board or Zoning Board of Adjustment shall familiarize themselves
with the Municipal Land Use Law (N.J.S.A. 40:55D-1 et seq.) to ensure
their compliance with this section.
A member of the Planning Board or Board of Adjustment who was
absent for one or more of the meetings at which a hearing was held
shall be eligible to vote on the matter upon which the hearing was
conducted, notwithstanding his absence from one or more of the meetings;
provided, however, that such Board member has available to him a transcript
or recording of the meetings from which he was absent and certifies,
in writing, to the Board that he has read such transcript or listened
to such recording.
A.
Meetings of both the Planning Board and the Zoning Board of Adjustment
shall be scheduled no less often than once a month, and any meeting
so scheduled shall be held as scheduled unless canceled due to extenuating
circumstances.
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 a majority vote of the members of the
municipal agency present at the meeting except as otherwise required
hereunder.
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 Act, N.J.S.A. 10:4-6
et seq. (P.L. 1975, c. 231). An executive session for the purpose
of discussing and studying any matters to come before either Board
shall not be deemed a regular or special meeting in accordance with
the provisions of N.J.S.A. 40:55D-9.
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 transmitted to the Municipal Clerk
and made available for public inspection during normal business hours
at the office of the Municipal Clerk. Any interested party shall have
the right to obtain reproductions of the minutes as legally permissible
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.
Rules. The Planning Board and Zoning Board of Adjustment may make
rules governing the conduct of hearings before their respective bodies,
which 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.
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 attorney, 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 a stenographer, mechanical or electronic means.
The Board shall furnish a transcript or duplicate recording in lieu
thereof, on request, to any interested party at his, her or its expense.
Pursuant to the provisions of N.J.S.A. 40:55D-65, every application
for development submitted to the Planning Board or to the Zoning Board
of Adjustment 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 either 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 municipality
will be adequately protected.
A.
For the following classes of site plans, the Planning Board or Board
of Adjustment shall hold a public hearing prior to making a decision,
with notice in accordance with the provisions of this chapter and
the Municipal Land Use Law, N.J.S.A. 40:55D-1 et seq.
B.
Whenever a public hearing is required on an application for development
pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-1 et seq., the applicant shall give notice
in accordance with N.J.S.A. 50:55D-1 et seq.
Pursuant to the provisions of N.J.S.A. 40:55D-12c, the Administrative Officer shall, within seven days after receipt of a request therefor and upon receipt of payment of a fee as specified in the fee schedule, request a list from the current tax duplicate of names and addresses of owners to whom the applicant is required to give notice pursuant to § 51-29B of this chapter. This list shall be produced and certified by the Tax Assessor in accordance with the Municipal Land Use Law.
The Board of Adjustment or Planning Board may refer any application
to any appropriate person or agency, including from the Board of Adjustment
to the Planning Board, for a report, provided that such reference
shall not extend the period of time within which the Board of Adjustment
shall act.
Whenever review or approval of the application by the County
Planning Board is required by Section 5 of P.L. 1968, c. 285 (N.J.S.A.
40:27-6.3) in the case of a subdivision, or Section 8 of P.L. 1968,
c. 285 (N.J.S.A. 40:27-6.6) in the case of a site plan, the Planning
Board or Board of Adjustment shall condition any approval upon timely
receipt of a favorable report on the application by the County Planning
Board or upon approval by the County Planning Board by its failure
to report thereon within the required time; in the case of other variances,
the County Planning Board shall be notified of any application which
fronts on an existing or proposed county road, adjoins other county
land or is within 200 feet of a municipal boundary.
Time-of-decision requirements shall be in accordance with N.J.S.A.
40:55D-1 et seq.
Each decision on any application for development shall be memorialized
in accordance with N.J.S.A. 40:55D-1 et seq.
The longest time period for action by the Planning Board or
the Board of Adjustment shall be determined by N.J.S.A. 40:55D-1 et
seq.
[Added 5-26-2015 by Ord.
No. 26-2015[1]]
A.
An applicant shall provide public notice in accordance with the notice
requirements set forth in N.J.S.A. 40:55D-12.
B.
In addition, public notice in accordance with N.J.S.A. 40:55D-12
shall be given by an applicant for:
(1)
Preliminary site plan approval pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-46 and
minor site plan approval pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-46.1;
(2)
Appeals of determinations of the administrative officer pursuant
to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-70, Subdivision a; and
(3)
Requests for interpretation pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-70, Subdivision
b.
[1]
Editor's Note: This ordinance also repealed former § 51-36,
Publication of decisions.
The effective time period of any variance shall be determined
in accordance with N.J.S.A. 40:55D-1 et seq.
The effective time period of any site plan approval shall be
determined in accordance with N.J.S.A. 40:55D-1 et seq.
