[Adopted 12-2-2010 by Res. No. 27-2010]
A.
The Town of Lowville Planning Board shall consist of five members.
Other members may be appointed by resolution of the Town Board as
alternate members.
B.
Planning Board members are expected to be knowledgeable of laws,
regulations and Board policies and to abide by them.
C.
Appointments. Appointments to the Board are made by the Town of Lowville
Board.
(1)
The Board consists of five voting members and may contain two alternate
members.
(2)
The term of each member is five years. Terms will be staggered.
[Amended 9-19-2013 by L.L. No. 3-2013]
(3)
When there is a permanent vacancy, the Town Board shall, within 30
days of its occurrence, appoint a person to serve for the unexpired
term.
(4)
Any member of the Board may be removed for cause in accordance with
these bylaws.
(5)
Appointees must be legal residents of the Village and/or Town of
Lowville when appointed and while serving.
D.
Planning Board members have an obligation to attend regular monthly
meetings and special meetings. A vacancy shall be declared whenever
a member is absent for two consecutive meetings without appropriate
excuse, or whenever a member absents himself or herself for more than
30% of the meetings in a calendar year without appropriate excuse.
E.
Planning Board members shall meet the minimum annual hourly requirements and obtain certified training in accordance to the standards set by their respective legislative boards to qualify for membership on the Board and reappointment. (See § 60-6, Training requirements.)
F.
Vacancies.
(1)
Should any vacancy occur among the members of the Board by reason
of death, resignation, disability or otherwise, immediate notice thereof
shall be given to the appropriate Municipal Clerk by the Chairperson
or Secretary of the Board. Should such vacancy occur among the officers
of the Board, the vacancy shall be filled by appointment by the Town
Board at the next regular meeting of the Board, the officer so elected
to serve the unexpired term of the office in which such vacancy occurred.
(2)
The Planning Board may make recommendations regarding the vacancy
to the Town Board for the appointment or to the respective managerial
legislative board for consideration for appointment to a vacancy.
If such recommendations are made on behalf of the Planning Board,
appointments shall be made only after an affirmative vote thereon.
This does not prohibit individual members of the Board from recommending
individual preferences to fill vacancies.
G.
Removal.
(1)
Any member of the Planning Board may be removed for cause at a meeting
of the Town Board at any time; provided, however, that before any
such removal, such member shall be given an opportunity to respond
to allegations of such cause, in writing, to the Town Board and at
a hearing before said Board as hereinafter provided. Cause for removal
of a member shall include:
(a)
Any undisclosed or unlawful conflict of interest.
(b)
Any violation of the codes, ordinances or rules applicable to
the member's performance of his or her duties.
(c)
Failure to complete the training requirements as required by
State of New York Town Law § 271 and these bylaws.
(d)
Failure to attend meetings in accordance with these bylaws.
(2)
Notice and hearing.
(a)
A notice stipulating the reasons for removal of a Planning Board
member pursuant to this article shall be given to the Planning Board
member scheduled for removal 10 days prior to such removal.
(b)
Removal of a Planning Board member from the Planning Board will
be effective 10 days after notice is given to the Planning Board member
scheduled for removal unless such Planning Board member requests a
hearing before a meeting of the Town Board to contest the removal.
The request for a hearing shall be directed to the Town Supervisor
and filed with the Town and Clerk.
(c)
A hearing request pursuant to this article will be held at a
special joint meeting of the Town Board following such request. The
decision of the Board at said hearing will be final and effective
as of the date of the decision or 10 days after notice of the Planning
Board member, whichever is later.
A.
The officers shall be a Chairperson and a Vice Chairperson and Secretary.
B.
The officers of the Board shall be appointed by resolution of the
Town Board from amongst the appointed members, and such officers shall
be appointed at the last regular meeting of the Town Board in the
month of December of each year, each of whom shall serve for a term
of one year commencing with the first day of January.
C.
The duties of the officers shall be as follows:
(1)
Chairperson:
(a)
To preside at all meetings.
(b)
To call special meeting in accordance with these bylaws.
(c)
To sign, together with the Secretary, all official documents
of the Planning Board in accordance with the requirements of these
bylaws.
(d)
To see that all reports, documents, and actions of the Planning
Board are properly made, executed, filed or taken, as the case may
be, in accordance with law and actions and regulations of the Planning
Board.
(e)
To serve as liaison to the legislative board of the Town of
Lowville.
(2)
Vice Chairperson. During the absence, disability or disqualification
of the Chairperson, the Vice Chairperson shall perform all the duties,
exercise the powers and be subject to all the responsibilities of
the Chairperson.
(3)
Alternate note taker — not an officer of the Board:
(a)
Shall be responsible for minutes of any meetings that are not
transcribed by the Code Enforcement Office staff, before being presented
to the Planning Board for approval. Minutes shall be type written,
signed and submitted to the Code Enforcement Office for filing within
five business days in accordance with NYS Law.
(b)
Assure the Planning Board that all notices required by law or
by these bylaws are served, posted, or advertised by the Code Enforcement
Office staff.
(c)
To affix to any official document of this Planning Board the
official signature hereof whenever the same shall be required by law
or regulations of the Board.
(d)
Shall sign all minutes, after their preparation and at the end
of each year, and shall certify that all minutes of the proceeding
minutes are true and correct copy of the same.
The Code Enforcement Office staff shall perform such duties
listed below but not limited to:
A.
Administrative support to the Board and its Chairperson.
B.
Shall supervise all clerical work of the Board, including:
(1)
All correspondence of the Board.
(2)
Publishing, posting, advertising, and mailing all notices required
by law and these bylaws.
(3)
Receive all applications, petitions and related plans submitted to
the Board.
(4)
Approve all applications and plans for form and information content.
If a significant deficiency is noted during review of an application,
petition or other matter proposed to be brought before the Board,
the Board will be notified of such deficiency.
(5)
Maintain all files and indexes.
(6)
Shall cause each member to be notified of the time, date and place
for each meeting.
(7)
Shall provide each member applications, petitions, related plans
and information necessary and in accordance to law, before any regular
or special meeting of the Planning Board.
A.
The Town Board shall, at its discretion, appoint two alternate members.
B.
Alternate members may attend all meetings and participate in the
proceedings, but may vote only when designated by the Chairperson
to sit for a member.
C.
When a member is unable to participate for any reason, the Chairperson
shall designate an alternate member to act for the regular member
until the action is decided.
D.
Alternate members shall receive the same compensation as other Planning
Board members for any and all meetings which require their services
as stipulated by these bylaws.
E.
Alternate members shall serve a three-year term to be staggered if
members are appointed in any one fiscal year.
A.
A schedule of Planning Board meetings shall be posted annually at
the Town Hall.
B.
Special meetings may be called by the Chairperson, or by any three
members, on three days' written notice to each member, or shorter
notices may be waived by a motion of a majority of the Board voting
prior to conducting any business of the Board of a special meeting.
Notification of special meetings may be supplied via electronic mail
and/or telephone.
C.
A quorum shall consist of a majority of the members of the full Board
for any regular or special meeting.
D.
All members shall have equal voting rights.
E.
The following shall be the order of business of meetings of the Planning
Board:
(1)
Roll call.
(2)
Reading and approval of minutes of previous meetings.
(3)
Communications and reports.
(4)
Unfinished business.
(5)
Public hearings, if necessary.
(6)
New business.
(7)
Preliminary agenda for the next succeeding meeting based on unfinished
business or other items per the Chair.
(8)
Adjournment.
F.
Except where these rules and regulations otherwise provide, Robert's
Rules of Order, as revised, shall govern. All meetings shall be conducted
pursuant to the New York State Open Meetings Law, including regular,
annual and special meetings. Executive meetings shall be conducted
pursuant to § 105 of the Open Meetings Law.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: See § 105 of the Public Officers
Law.
G.
In the case of a referral made to the County Planning Department
in accordance with New York General Municipal Law § 239-m,
"Extraordinary vote upon recommendation of modification or disapproval.
If such county planning agency or regional planning council recommends
modification or disapproval of a proposed action, the referring body
shall not act contrary to such recommendation except by a vote of
a majority plus one of all the members thereof."
H.
No official business shall be conducted without a quorum present.
A quorum consists of three members, including any appointed alternates,
present and voting. It does not include anyone who cannot participate
due to a conflict of interest, as defined in these bylaws or state
or local law.
I.
A majority of members present and voting shall be required to pass
a motion, except where required by a supermajority.
J.
All meetings shall be adjourned no later than 10:30 p.m., except
with agreement of the majority of the Board.
K.
Work sessions.
(1)
With approval of the majority of the Board, work sessions may be
called to consider amendments to the Comprehensive Plan, Zoning Ordinance,
Site Plan and Subdivision Regulations,[2] bylaws and other items related to the Board's activities.
(2)
Work sessions shall be open to the public. The public is not permitted
to address the Board at work sessions except with permission of the
Board.
The Town Board has enacted by resolution New York State training
required by Chapter 662 of the Laws of 2006 which shall include:
A.
Training is or may be provided by a municipality, county planning
office, state agency, college, or other similar entity by, but not
limited to, electronic media, video, distance learning or classroom
training or other such training as approved by the Town Board.
B.
Shall require that members appointed by the legislative boards shall
complete a minimum of four hours of training each year for the first
five years of service. Training received by a member in excess of
four hours in any one year may be carried over by the member to succeeding
years to meet the requirement of the legislative office.
C.
Any member not meeting the minimum requirements in any year may be removed for noncompliance relating to the training requirements established by the Town Board. (See § 60-1G, Removal.)
D.
Any member having received 20 hours of training shall qualify for
reappointment and not be required to receive further training.
E.
Any appointee may receive training in advance of appointment to be
a member of a board or reappointment, and the training received shall
be the minimum training requirements for the length of term of the
appointed member.
Any application, petition, plan or request brought before the
Board for action pursuant to any rule, ordinance or regulation shall
state the name and nature of interest of any Board member, municipal
officer or employee herein as defined in § 809, Article
18, of the General Municipal Law, Chapter 646 or the Consolidated
Laws of New York State. Any member of the Board having such interest
in any matter brought before the Board shall recuse himself or herself
from any consideration, discussion or vote on such matters. Such recusal
shall be noted in the minutes by the Chairperson or Secretary, who
shall note that no vote was cast by such member, or no further information
was provided to that member on said matter.
The fiscal year shall be the same as the Town fiscal year (begin
January 1).
These rules and regulations of organization and procedure may
be amended at any regular or special meeting at which a quorum of
the Board is present and consent thereto, or at any regular or special
meeting of which at least 10 days' written notice has been given to
the members, which shall contain the proposed amendment to be voted
upon.
A.
The Town of Lowville Zoning Board of Appeals shall consist of five
members. Other members may be appointed by resolution of the Town
Board as alternate members.
B.
Zoning Board of Appeals members are expected to be knowledgeable
of laws, regulations and Board policies and to abide by them.
C.
Appointments. Appointments to the Board are made by the Town Board.
(1)
The Board consists of five voting members and may contain two alternate
members.
(3)
When there is a permanent vacancy, the Town Board shall, within 30
days of its occurrence, appoint a person to serve for the unexpired
term.
(4)
Any member of the Board may be removed for cause in accordance with
these bylaws.
(5)
Appointees must be legal residents of the Village and/or Town of
Lowville when appointed and while serving.
D.
Zoning Board of Appeals members have an obligation to attend regular
monthly meetings and special meetings. A vacancy shall be declared
whenever a member is absent for two consecutive meetings without appropriate
excuse, or whenever a member absents himself or herself for more than
30% of the meetings in a calendar year without appropriate excuse.
E.
Zoning Board of Appeals members shall meet the minimum annual hourly requirements and obtain certified training in accordance to the standards set by their respective legislative boards to qualify for membership on the Board and reappointment. (See § 60-15, Training requirements.)
F.
Vacancies.
(1)
Should any vacancy occur among the members of the Board by reason
of death, resignation, disability or otherwise, immediate notice thereof
shall be given to the appropriate Municipal Clerk by the Chairperson
or Secretary of the Board. Should such vacancy occur among the officers
of the Board, the vacancy shall be filled by appointment by the Town
Board at the next regular meeting of the Board, the officer so elected
to serve the unexpired term of the office in which such vacancy occurred.
(2)
The Zoning Board of Appeals may make recommendations regarding the
vacancy to the Town legislative board for the joint appointment or
to the respective managerial legislative board for consideration for
appointment to a vacancy. If such recommendations are made on behalf
of the Zoning Board of Appeals, appointments shall be made only after
an affirmative vote thereon. This does not prohibit individual members
of the Board from recommending individual preferences to fill vacancies.
G.
Removal.
(1)
Any member of the Zoning Board of Appeals may be removed for cause
at a meeting of the Town Board at any time; provided, however, that
before any such removal, such member shall be given an opportunity
to respond to allegations of such cause, in writing, to the Town Board
and at a hearing before said Board as hereinafter provided. Cause
for removal of a member shall include:
(2)
Notice and hearing.
(a)
A notice stipulating the reasons for removal of a Zoning Board
of Appeals member pursuant to this article shall be given to the Zoning
Board of Appeals member scheduled for removal 10 days prior to such
removal.
(b)
Removal of a Zoning Board of Appeals member from the Zoning
Board of Appeals will be effective 10 days after notice is given to
the Zoning Board of Appeals member scheduled for removal unless such
Zoning Board of Appeals member requests a hearing before the Town
Board to contest the removal. The request for a hearing shall be directed
to the Town Supervisor and filed with the Town Clerk.
(c)
A hearing request pursuant to this article will be held at a
special meeting of the Town Board following such request. The decision
of the Board at said hearing will be final and effective as of the
date of the decision or 10 days after notice of the Zoning Board of
Appeals member, whichever is later.
A.
The officers shall be a Chairperson and a Vice Chairperson and Secretary.
B.
The officers of the Board shall be appointed by resolution of the
Town Board from amongst the appointed members, and such officers shall
be appointed at the last regular meeting of the Town Board in the
month of December of each year, each of whom shall serve for a term
of one year commencing with the first day of January.
C.
The duties of the officers shall be as follows:
(1)
Chairperson:
(a)
To preside at all meetings.
(b)
To call special meeting in accordance with these bylaws.
(c)
To sign, together with the Secretary, all official documents
of the Zoning Board of Appeals in accordance with the requirements
of these bylaws.
(d)
To see that all reports, documents, and actions of the Zoning
Board of Appeals are properly made, executed, filed or taken, as the
case may be, in accordance with law and actions and regulations of
the Zoning Board of Appeals.
(e)
To serve as liaison to the legislative board of the Town of
Lowville.
(2)
Vice Chairperson. During the absence, disability or disqualification
of the Chairperson, the Vice Chairperson shall perform all the duties,
exercise the powers and be subject to all the responsibilities of
the Chairperson.
(3)
Alternate note taker — not an officer of the Board:
(a)
Shall be responsible for minutes of all meetings that are not
transcribed by the Code Enforcement Office staff, before being presented
to the Zoning Board of Appeals for approval. Minutes shall be type
written, signed and submitted to the Code Enforcement Office for filing
within five business days in accordance with NYS Law.
(b)
Assure the Zoning Board of Appeals that all notices required
by law or by the bylaws are served, posted, or advertised by the Code
Enforcement Office staff.
(c)
To affix to any official document of this Zoning Board of Appeals
the official signature hereof whenever the same shall be required
by law or regulations of the Board.
(d)
Shall sign all minutes, after their preparation and at the end
of each year and shall certify that all minutes of the proceeding
minutes are true and correct copy of the same.
A.
The Code Enforcement Office staff shall perform such duties listed
below but not limited to:
(1)
Administrative support to the Board and its Chairperson.
(2)
Shall supervise all clerical work of the Board, including:
(a)
All correspondence of the Board.
(b)
Publishing, posting, advertising, and mailing all notices required
by law and these bylaws.
(c)
Receive all applications, petitions and related plans submitted
to the Board.
(d)
Approve all applications and plans for form and information
content. If a significant deficiency is noted during review of an
application, petition or other matter proposed to be brought before
the Board, the Board will be notified of such deficiency.
(e)
Maintain all files and indexes.
(f)
Shall cause each member to be notified of the time, date and
place for each meeting.
(g)
Shall provide each member applications, petitions, related plans
and information necessary and in accordance to law, before any regular
or special meeting of the Zoning Board of Appeals.
A.
The Town Board shall, at its discretion, appoint two alternate members.
B.
Alternate members may attend all meetings and participate in the
proceedings, but may vote only when designated by the Chairperson
to sit for a member.
C.
When a member is unable to participate for any reason, the Chairperson
shall designate an alternate member to act for the regular member
until the action is decided.
D.
Alternate members shall receive the same compensation as other Zoning
Board of Appeals members for any and all meetings which require their
services as stipulated by these bylaws.
E.
Alternate members shall serve a three-year term to be staggered if
members are appointed in any one fiscal year
A.
A schedule of Zoning Board of Appeals meetings shall be posted yearly
at the Town Hall.
B.
Special meetings may be called by the Chairperson, or by any three
members, on three days' written notice to each member or shorter notices
may be waived by a motion of a majority of the Board voting prior
to conducting any business of the Board of a special meeting. Notification
of special meetings may be supplied via electronic mail and/or telephone.
C.
A quorum shall consist of a majority of the members who are eligible
to vote for any regular or special meeting.
D.
All members shall have equal voting rights.
E.
The following shall be the order of business of meetings of the Zoning
Board of Appeals:
(1)
Roll call.
(2)
Reading and approval of minutes of previous meetings.
(3)
Communications and reports.
(4)
Unfinished business.
(5)
Public hearings, if necessary.
(6)
New business.
(7)
Preliminary agenda for the next succeeding meeting based on unfinished
business or other items per the Chair.
(8)
Adjournment.
F.
Except where these rules and regulations otherwise provide, Robert's
Rules of Order, as revised, shall govern. All meetings shall be conducted
pursuant to the New York State Open Meetings Law; including regular,
annual and special meetings. Executive meetings shall be conducted
pursuant to § 105 of the Open Meetings Law.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: See § 105 of the Public Officers
Law.
G.
In the case of a referral made to the County Planning Department
in accordance with New York General Municipal Law § 239-m,
"Extraordinary vote upon recommendation of modification or disapproval.
If such county planning agency or regional planning council recommends
modification or disapproval of a proposed action, the referring body
shall not act contrary to such recommendation except by a vote of
a majority plus one of all the members thereof."
H.
No official business shall be conducted without a quorum present.
A quorum consists of three members, including any appointed alternates,
present and voting. It does not include anyone who cannot participate
due to a conflict of interest, as defined in these bylaws or state
or local law.
I.
A majority of members present and voting shall be required to pass
a motion, except where required by a supermajority.
J.
All meetings shall be adjourned no later than 10:30 p.m., except
with agreement of the majority of the Board.
K.
Work sessions.
(1)
With approval of the majority of the Board, work sessions may be
called to consider amendments to the Comprehensive Plan, Zoning Ordinance,
Site Plan and Subdivision Regulations,[2] bylaws and other items related to the Board's activities.
(2)
Work sessions shall be open to the public. The public is not permitted
to address the Board at work sessions except with permission of the
Board.
The Town Board has enacted by resolution New York State training
required by Chapter 662 of the Laws of 2006 which shall include:
A.
Training is or may be provided by a municipality, county planning
office, state agency, college, or other similar entity by, but not
limited to, electronic media, video, distance learning or classroom
training or other such training as approved by the Town Board.
B.
Shall require that members appointed by the legislative boards shall
complete a minimum of four hours of training each year for the first
five years of service. Training received by a member in excess of
four hours in any one year may be carried over by the member to succeeding
years to meet the requirement of the legislative office.
C.
Any member not meeting the minimum requirements in any year may be removed for noncompliance relating to the training requirements established by the Town Board. (See § 60-10G, Removal.)
D.
Any member having received 20 hours of training shall qualify for
reappointment and not be required to receive further training.
E.
Any appointee may receive training in advance of appointment to be
a member of a board or reappointment, and the training received shall
be the minimum training requirements for the length of term of the
appointed member.
Any application, petition, plan or request brought before the
Board of action pursuant to any rule, ordinance or regulation shall
state the name and nature of interest of any Board member, municipal
officer or employee herein as defined in § 809, Article
18, of the General Municipal Law, Chapter 646 or the Consolidated
Laws of New York State. Any member of the Board having such interest
in any matter brought before the Board shall recuse himself or herself
from any consideration, discussion or vote on such matters. Such recusal
shall be noted in the minutes by the Chairperson or Secretary, who
shall note that no vote was cast by such member, or no further information
was provided to that member on said matter.
The fiscal year shall be the same as the Town fiscal year (begin
January 1).
These rules and regulations of organization and procedure may
be amended at any regular or special meeting at which a quorum of
the Board is present and consent thereto, or at any regular or special
meeting of which at least 10 days' written notice has been given to
the members, which shall contain the proposed amendment to be voted
upon.
