Any person intending to subdivide land in the Town of Portsmouth shall follow the procedure established in these Rules and Regulation and shall provide all the material required in the checklists for the appropriate subdivision. The Planning Board shall refuse to consider a plat of a subdivision until all items in the appropriate checklists have been submitted by the applicant, and no subdivision shall be considered as having been submitted to the Board unless the proposed plat is accompanied by all the material required by the appropriate checklist.
All proposed subdivisions must meet at least the minimum design requirements set forth in these Rules and Regulations. No streets or other improvements may be installed until the Planning Board has approved the final plat. No lots may be sold until the final plat has been signed by the Planning Board Chairman or Secretary and recorded in the land evidence records of the Town.
1. 
One (1) or more pre-application meetings shall be held for all major land development or subdivision applications. Pre-application meetings may be held for administrative and minor applications, upon request of either the Planning Board or the applicant. Pre-application meetings shall allow the applicant to meet with the Planning Board or appropriate officials, boards and/or commissions, planning staff, and, where appropriate, state agencies, for advice as to the required steps in the approvals process, the pertinent Town plans, ordinances, regulations, rules and procedures and standards which may bear upon the proposed development project.
2. 
At the pre-application stage the applicant may request the Planning Board for an informal concept plan review for a development. The purpose of the concept plan review is also to provide Planning Board input in the formative stages of major subdivision and land development concept design. (Note: a "concept plan" is not to be confused with a "preliminary plan" or a "master plan".)
3. 
Applicants seeking a pre-application meeting or an informal concept review shall submit materials on or before the twenty-fifth (25th) of any month in order to be heard at the regular meeting of the Board held on the second (2nd) Wednesday of the month. However, the Board may, in its discretion, order a different date for such meeting.
4. 
Pre-application meetings shall aim to encourage information sharing and discussion of project concepts among the participants. Pre-application discussions are intended for the guidance of the applicant and shall not be considered approval of a project or its elements. Any tentative approval or acceptance of a pre-application concept plan by the Board shall not be binding upon the Board. Pre-application discussions are not to be considered as vesting of any sort in subdivision, zoning or any other land use ordinances of the Town. The plat shall not be entitled to be recorded nor shall the Board be required to hold a public hearing on the pre-application concept plan filed.
5. 
Concept plan submittal contents. Plan drawn on sheet at least eight point five inches by eleven inches (8.5" x 11") and not more than twenty-four inches by thirty-six inches (24" x 36"), on which shall be at least the following:
a) 
Notations with date, scale, north arrow, original parcel size;
b) 
Existing Plat(s) and Lot(s) number(s) and owner(s);
c) 
A locus map at a scale of approximately one inch equal one thousand feet (1" = 1,000');
d) 
Boundaries of the entire original tract in a shaded heavy line;
e) 
All lots and parcels shall be drawn in approximate location and designated numerically in sequence. The frontage and area in square feet shall be shown for every proposed lot or parcel.
f) 
Plan must show all existing and proposed streets, existing streams, wetlands and other environmental features in their approximate size and location.
1. 
Initial application. Applications for subdivision approval shall be made to the Administrative Officer, who shall review all applications for form and content in conformity with the requirements set forth herein. Complete applications shall then be officially filed for review by the Planning Board, and the Administrative Officer shall stamp all such applications with the date of official submission to the Town.
2. 
Classification. The Administrative Officer shall advise the applicant as to which approvals are required and the appropriate Board for hearing an application for a land development or subdivision project. The following three (3) types of applications, as defined in Article II. Definitions, may be filed:
a) 
Administrative subdivision. Re-subdivision of existing lots which yields no additional lots for development, and involves no creation or extension of streets.
b) 
Minor subdivision or minor land development plan. A plan for a residential subdivision of land consisting of five (5) or fewer units or lots, provided that such subdivision does not require waivers or modifications.
c) 
Major subdivision or major land development plan. Any subdivision not classified as either an administrative subdivision or a minor subdivision. All nonresidential subdivisions shall be considered as major subdivisions.
See also Article II. Definitions of "Concept Plan", "Preliminary Plan", "Master Plan", and "Pre-application conference".
3. 
Application submission requirements.
a) 
Contents of an application shall be, at a minimum, the requirements set forth in these regulations and applicable checklists found in Appendix A.[1] for the three (3) types of applications. The Administrative Officer may, at his discretion, waive or allow later submission of any minor submission requirements, provided that such information is deemed by him to be unnecessary for proper review of the application by the Planning Board. Such decision shall be in writing only.
[1]
Editor's Note: Appendix A is included as an attachment to this chapter.
b) 
Applicants seeking an application meeting shall submit materials on or before the twenty-fifth (25th) of any month in order to be heard at the regular meeting of the Board held on the second (2nd) Wednesday of the month following, provided, however that the Board may in its discretion order a different date for such meeting.
4. 
Certificate of completeness. An application shall be complete for purposes of commencing the applicable time period for action when so certified in writing on the appropriate checklist by the Administrative Officer. In the event such certification of the application is not made within the time specified in these regulations for the type of plan, the application shall be deemed complete for purposes of commencing the review period. If the application lacks information required for such applications as specified in these regulations and the Administrative Officer has notified the applicant in writing of the deficiencies in the application, the application shall be deemed not complete.
5. 
Technical review committee. The Planning Board reserves the right to establish a Technical Review Committee for any specific subdivision application and to make recommendations to the Planning Board. When reviewed by the Technical Review Committee:
a) 
If the land development or subdivision plan is approved by a majority of the committee members, the application shall be forwarded to the Planning Board with a recommendation for approval with or without further review.
b) 
If the plan is not approved by a majority vote of the committee members, the application shall be referred to the Planning Board with a recommendation to deny.
6. 
Planning board consideration.
a) 
Notwithstanding Subsections 2, 3 and 4 above, the Planning Board may subsequently require correction of any information found to be in error and submission of additional information specified in these Rules and Regulations but not required by the Administrative Officer prior to certification, as is necessary to make an informed decision.
b) 
Where the review is postponed with the consent of the applicant, pending further information or revision of information, the time period for review shall be stayed and shall resume when the Planning Board determines that the required application information is complete.
c) 
Certificate from the Town Tax Collector that all taxes due on the subject land have been paid and that there are no outstanding tax liens thereon must be filed. No plat shall be approved by the Planning Board in the absence of such certificate.