The purpose of this article is to establish the authority of
certain land use boards and commissions, pursuant to C.G.S. § 8-1c,
to pass through the cost of engaging outside engineering and consulting
services in connection with a technically complex application and
beyond the expertise of the town resources.
Certain applications for extraordinarily technically complex
projects may pose environmental, traffic, and/or other problems beyond
the expertise of the Planning, Zoning or Wetlands Commissions' staff
to evaluate and make appropriate recommendations. In such instances,
if these commissions with the concurrence of the Board of Selectmen,
after reviewing the matter with staff, reasonably conclude that an
outside, independent study or consultation is necessary for the Commission
to decide the issue before it, the Commission may require an applicant,
as a condition of processing its application, to pay for the cost
of such study or consultation. In such cases, the applicant will be
required to place a sum not to exceed $10,000 total into a fee account
to be used for payment for such studies or consultation. The balance
of the funds, if any, will be returned to the applicant after the
study and/or consultation is completed.
Any application for an affordable housing project submitted
pursuant to C.G.S. § 8-30g shall require a fee to the Planning
and/or Zoning Commission in the amount of $250.
Any fees or charges imposed pursuant to this article will be
in addition to any other application fee imposed under any other ordinance
or local regulation.