[Ord. No. 1-31-77; amended by Ord. No. 11-3-78; Ord. No. 1985-4; Ord. No. 1993-14 § 1; Ord. No. 2014-02]
There is hereby established, pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-25c, a nine-member planning board to be named the Greenwich Township "Land Use Board" (also referred to as the "Board"), which Board shall exercise all powers of a planning board under the MLUL, N.J.S.A. 40:55D-1 et seq., and shall also exercise, to the same extent and subject to the same restrictions, all of the powers of a zoning board of adjustment under the MLUL, N.J.S.A. 40:55D-1 et seq. The Land Use Board shall consist of nine regular members and four alternate members, consisting of the four classes set forth below, but the Class I and the Class III members shall not participate in consideration of applications for development which involve relief pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-70d, and Class IV alternate members shall not replace Class I and Class III members in applications for development which involve relief pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-70d.
a. 
Class I: the Mayor, or the Mayor's designee in the absence of the Mayor.
b. 
Class II: one of the officials of the municipality other than a member of the governing body, to be appointed by the Mayor. If there is an Environmental Commission, the member of the Environmental Commission who is also a member of the Land Use Board as required by N.J.S.A. 40:56A-1 shall be deemed to be the Class II Land Use Board member in the event that there are among the Class IV or alternate members of the Land Use Board a member of the Historic Preservation Commission and a member of the Board of Education.
c. 
Class III: a member of the governing body, to be appointed by it.
d. 
Class IV: six other citizens of the municipality, to be appointed by the Mayor. The members of Class IV shall hold no other municipal office, position or employment, except that one member may be a member of the Historic Preservation Commission, one member may a member of the Board of Education, and one member may be a member of the Environmental Commission; provided, however, that if there are any designated Class IV regular or Class IV alternate members of the Land Use Board being a member of the Historic Preservation Commission and a member of the Board of Education, then the member of the Environmental Commission shall be deemed the Class II member of the Land Use Board. Membership on a municipal board or commission whose function is advisory in nature, and the establishment of which is discretionary and not required by statute, shall not be considered the holding of municipal office.
e. 
Class IV alternate members: four other municipal residents, to be appointed by the Mayor. Alternate members shall meet the qualifications of Class IV regular members. The alternate members shall be designated by the Mayor at the time of their appointments as "Alternate No. 1," "Alternate No. 2," "Alternate No. 3," and "Alternate No. 4." Alternate members may participate in all matters but shall not vote in except in the absence, ineligibility or disqualification of a regular member of any class. Participation of alternate members shall not be deemed to increase the size of the Land Use Board. A vote shall not be delayed in order that a regular member may vote instead of an alternate member. In the event that a choice must be made as to which alternate member is to vote, the choice shall be made in the order of alternate members, i.e.: Alternate No. 1 is the first choice; Alternate No. 2 is the second choice; Alternate No. 3 is the third choice; and Alternate No. 4 is the fourth choice.
[Ord. No. 1-31-77; amended by Ord. No. 1993-14 § 2; Ord. No. 2014-02]
a. 
If the Mayor is the Class I member, the term of the Class I member shall correspond with the official tenure of such member as Mayor. If the Class I member is the Mayor's designee in the absence of the Mayor, the designee shall serve at the pleasure of the Mayor during the Mayor's official tenure as Mayor. The terms of the members composing Class II and Class III shall be for one year or terminate at the completion of their respective term of office, whichever occurs first, except for a Class II or Class IV member who is also a member of the Environmental Commission. The term of a Class II or Class IV member who is also a member of the Environmental Commission shall be for three years or terminate at the completion of his term as a member of the Environmental Commission, whichever comes first. The term of a Class IV member who is also a member of the Board of Education shall terminate whenever he is no longer a member of the Board of Education or at the completion of his Class IV term, whichever comes first. The terms of all Class IV members of the existing Planning Board shall continue and remain in full force and effect on the Land Use Board until the completion of their respective terms. Thereafter, all Class IV members (other than members who are also members of the Environmental Commission or Board of Education as otherwise hereinbefore provided) shall be appointed for terms of four years.
b. 
All terms of Class I, II, III and IV members shall run from January 1 of the year in which the appointment is made.
c. 
The terms of Class IV alternate members of the existing Planning Board shall continue and be in full force and effect on the Land Use Board until the completion of their respective terms. Thereafter, the term of each Class IV alternate member shall be two years.
[Ord. No. 1-31-77; amended by Ord. No. 2014-02]
a. 
If a vacancy in any class of membership shall occur than by expiration of the Land Use Board term, it shall be filled by appointment as above provided for the unexpired term only.
b. 
Whenever a Board member, without being excused by a majority of the authorized members of the Board, fails to attend and participate at meetings of the Board for a period of eight consecutive weeks, or for four consecutive regular meetings, whichever shall be of longer duration, at the conclusion of such period, the office shall be deemed to be vacant; provided that the Board shall notify the Mayor of such determination; and provided further that the Board may refuse to excuse Board member failures to attend and participate only with respect to those failures which are not due to legitimate illness.
[Ord. No. 1-31-77; amended by Ord. No. 2014-02]
A member of the Land Use Board who was absent for one or more meetings at which a hearing was held shall be eligible to vote on the matter upon which the hearing was conducted, notwithstanding the absence from one or more of the meetings; provided, however, that such Board member has available the transcript or recording of all of the hearings from which he or she was absent and certifies, in writing, to the Board that he or she has read such transcript or listened to such recording.
[Ord. No. 1-31-77; amended by Ord. No. 2014-02]
The Land Use Board shall elect a Chairman and Vice Chairman from its Class IV members and select a Secretary who may or may not be a member of the Land Use Board or a municipal employee. Class IV alternate members may not serve as Chairman or Vice Chairman. The Board may employ, or contract for, and fix the compensation of legal counsel, other than the municipal attorney, and experts and other staff and services as it may deem necessary, not exceeding (exclusive of gifts or grants) the amount appropriated by the governing body for its use. The governing body shall make provision in its budget and appropriate funds for the expenses of the Land Use Board.
[Ord. No. 1-31-77; amended by Ord. No. 2014-02]
The Board shall adopt and may amend such reasonable rules and regulations as may be necessary to carry into effect the provisions and purposes of the Land Use Procedures, Site Plan, Land Subdivision and Zoning Ordinance provisions (Chapters 13 through 16 of the Revised General Ordinances of the Township of Greenwich), for the administration of its functions, powers and duties, and to govern hearings it conducts, provided that such rules are not inconsistent with the MLUL and all applicable Township ordinances.
[Ord. No. 1-31-77; amended by Ord. No. 2014-02]
The Land Use Board, when sitting as a planning board, shall have all the powers and duties authorized by the MLUL to be delegated to a planning board, including the following:
a. 
To make and adopt and from time to time amend a Master Plan for the physical development of the Township, including any areas outside its boundaries, which, in the Board's judgment, bear essential relation to the planning of the Township, in accordance with the provisions of N.J.S.A. 40:55D-28.
b. 
To administer the provisions of the Land Subdivision Ordinance and Site Plan Review Ordinance of the Township in accordance with the provisions of said ordinances and the Municipal Land Use Law, Chapter 291, P.L. 1975, N.J.S.A. 40:55D-1 et seq.
c. 
To approve conditional use applications in accordance with the provisions of the Zoning Ordinance pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-67.
d. 
To participate in the preparation and review of programs or plans required by state or federal law or regulations.
e. 
To assemble data on a continuing basis as part of a continuous planning process.
f. 
To consider and make report to the Township Committee within 35 days after referral as to any proposed development regulation submitted to it pursuant to the provisions of N.J.S.A. 40:55D-26(a), and also pass upon other matters, specifically referred to the Land Use Board by the Township Committee, pursuant to the provisions of N.J.S.A. 40:55D-26(b).
g. 
When reviewing applications for approval of subdivision plats, site plans or conditional uses, to grant :
1. 
Variances, pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-70c, from lot area, lot dimensional setback and yard requirements, provided that such relief from lot area requirements shall not be granted for more than one lot.
2. 
Direction, pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-34 of said act, for issuance of a permit for a building or structure in the bed of a mapped street or public drainageway, flood-control basin or public area reserved pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-32 of said act.
3. 
Direction, pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-36 of said act, for issuance of a permit for a building or structure not related to a street.
Whenever relief is requested to this subsection, notice of a hearing on the application for development shall include reference to the request for a variance of direction for issuance of a permit, as the case may be.
h. 
To perform such other advisory duties as are assigned to it by ordinance or resolution of the Township Committee for the aid and assistance of the Township Committee or other agencies or officers.
[Ord. No. 1-31-77; amended by Ord. No. 2014-02]
No member of the Land Use 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.
[Ord. No. 1-31-77; amended by Ord. No. 2014-02]
a. 
Meetings of the Land Use Board shall be scheduled no less often than once a month, and any meeting so scheduled shall be held as scheduled unless canceled for lack of applications for development to process.
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 majority vote of a quorum, except as otherwise required by any provision of C. 291, P.L. 1975.
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, Chapter 231, P.L. 1975.
[Ord. No. 1-31-77; amended by Ord. No. 2014-02]
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 made available for public inspection during normal business hours at the office of the Township 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.
[Ord. No. 1-31-77; amended by Ord. No. 2014-02]
a. 
Rules. The Land Use Board shall make rules governing the conduct of hearings before it, 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, and the provisions of the County and Municipal Investigations Law, C. 38, P.L. 1953 (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 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 duplicate recording in lieu thereof on request to any interested party at his expense.
[Ord. No. 1-31-77; amended by Ord. No. 2014-02]
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 Township 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 Township 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 Township in which applicant's land is located. Such notice shall be given by: (1) serving a copy thereof on the owner as shown on the current tax duplicate or his agent in charge of the property; or (2) mailing a copy thereof by certified mail to the property owner at his address as shown on the 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 president, a 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 paragraph b of this subsection 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 Township Clerk pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-10(b).
g. 
All notices hereinabove specified in this subsection shall be given at least 10 days prior to the date fixed for hearing, and the applicant shall file an affidavit of proof of service 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 lot and block numbers as shown on the current tax duplicate in the Township 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. 
List of property owners furnished. Pursuant to the provisions of N.J.S.A. 40:55D-12c, the Township Tax Assessor or such other administrative officer of the Township, if the Township Committee so designates, shall, within seven days after receipt of a request therefor and upon receipt of payment of a fee of $10, 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 paragraph b of this subsection.
[Ord. No. 1-31-77; amended by Ord. No. 2014-02]
a. 
Each decision on any application for development shall be set forth in writing as a resolution of the Board which shall include findings of fact and legal conclusions based thereon.
b. 
A copy of the decision shall be mailed by the Board within 10 days of the date of 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 Township 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 Township.
[Ord. No. 1-31-77; amended by Ord. No. 2014-02]
A brief notice of every final decision shall be published in the official newspaper of the Township. Such publication shall be arranged by the Secretary of the Land Use Board without separate charge to the applicant. The notice shall be sent to the official newspaper for publication within 10 days of the date of any such decision.
[Ord. No. 1-31-77; amended by Ord. No. 2014-02]
Pursuant to the provisions of N.J.S.A. 40:55D-39 and N.J.S.A. 40:55D-65, every application for development submitted to the Land Use Board 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 the 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 Township will be adequately protected.
[Added by Ord. No. 2014-02]
a. 
The Land Use Board, when sitting as a zoning board of adjustment, shall have all the powers authorized by the MLUL to be delegated to a zoning board of adjustment, including the following power to:
1. 
Hear and decide appeals where it is alleged by the appellant that there is error in any order, requirement, decision or refusal made by an administrative official or agency based on or made in the enforcement of the Zoning Ordinance.
2. 
Hear and decide requests for interpretation of the Map or Zoning Ordinance, or from decisions upon other special questions upon which the Board is authorized by the Zoning Ordinance to pass.
3. 
Grant variances:
(a) 
Grant "c(1)" or so-called "hardship" variances from Zoning Ordinance regulations pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-70c(1) where: by reason of exceptional narrowness, shallowness or shape of a specific piece of property; or by reason of exceptional topographic conditions or physical features uniquely affecting a specific piece of property; or by reason of an extraordinary and exceptional situation uniquely affecting a specific piece of property or the structure lawfully existing thereon, the strict application of any regulations... would result in peculiar and exceptional practical difficulties to, or exceptional and undue hardship upon, the developer of such property.
(b) 
Grant "c(2)" or so-called "benefits v. burdens" variances from Zoning Ordinance regulations pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-70c(2) where, in an application or appeal relating to a specific piece of property, the purposes of the MLUL would be advanced by a deviation from the Zoning Ordinance requirements and the benefits of the deviation from the Zoning Ordinance requirements would substantially outweigh any detriment.
(c) 
Grant "d" or so-called "special reasons" variances in particular cases and for special reasons to allow departure from Zoning Ordinance regulations pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-70d to permit: a use or principal structure in a district restricted against such use or principal structure; an expansion of a lawfully created preexisting nonconforming use; a deviation from a specification or standard pertaining solely to a conditional use pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-67; an increase in the permitted floor area ratio as defined in N.J.S.A. 40:55D-4; an increase in the permitted density as defined in N.J.S.A. 40:55D-4; and a height of a principal structure which exceeds by 10 feet or 10% the maximum height permitted in the zoning district for a principal structure. A "d" variance shall be granted only by affirmative vote of at least five members, and the Class I and Class III members of the Board shall recuse themselves from applications involving "d" variances, and Class IV alternate members shall not replace Class I and Class III members in applications involving "d" variances.
(d) 
The Board may not exercise its power to grant a "c(1)," "c(2)" and/or any "d" variances otherwise warranted, however, unless the so-called "negative criteria" has been satisfied. Pursuant to the last unlettered paragraph of N.J.S.A. 40:55D-70, no variance or other relief may be granted, including a variance or other relief involving an inherently beneficial use, without a showing that such variance or other relief can be granted without substantial detriment to the public good and will not substantially impair the intent and purpose of the zone plan and Zoning Ordinance.
b. 
Any pending application before the existing Zoning Board of Adjustment as of the effective date of this amendment shall be transferred as of that date to the Land Use Board.
[Added by Ord. No. 2014-02]
The Land Use Board, when sitting as a zoning board of adjustment, shall have the additional powers authorized by the MLUL to be delegated to a zoning board of adjustment, including the following power to:
a. 
Direct issuance of a permit pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55-D-34 for a building or structure in a bed or a mapped street or public drainageway, flood-control basin or public area reserved on the Official Map.
b. 
Direct issuance of a permit pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-36 for a building or structure not related to a street.
[Added by Ord. No. 2014-02]
In exercising the above-mentioned additional powers, the Land Use Board may, in conformity with the provisions of the MLUL, N.J.S.A. 40:55D-1 et seq., reverse or affirm, wholly or partly, or may modify the order, requirement, decision, or determination appealed from, and make such other requirement, decision, or determination as ought to be made and, to that end, have all the powers of the administrative officer from whom the appeal was taken.
[Added by Ord. No. 2014-02]
a. 
Appeals to the Land Use Board may be taken by any interested party affected by any decision of an administrative officer of the municipality based on or made in the enforcement of the zoning provisions of the Revised General Ordinances of the Township of Greenwich or a duly adopted Official Map. Such appeal shall be taken within 20 days by filing a notice of appeal with the official from whom the appeal is taken, with three copies of the notice given to the Secretary of the Land Use Board. The notice shall specify the grounds for the appeal. The official from whom the appeal is taken shall immediately transmit to the Board all the papers constituting the record upon which the action appealed from was taken.
b. 
An appeal to the Land Use Board shall stay all proceedings in furtherance of the action in respect to which the decision appealed from was made unless the municipal official from whose action the appeal is taken certifies to the Land Use Board, after the notice of appeal shall have been filed with him, that, by reason of facts stated in the certificate, a stay would, in his opinion, cause imminent peril to life or property. In such case, proceedings shall not be stayed other than by an order of the Superior Court upon notice to the municipal official from whom the appeal is taken and due cause shown.
c. 
An applicant may file an application for development with the Land Use Board for action under any of its powers without prior application to a municipal official.
[Added by Ord. No. 2014-02]
The Land Use Board shall act upon any appeal or any application for development within 120 days either from the date the appeal is taken from the decision of the municipal official or from the date the application is deemed to be a complete application, as the case may be, or within such further time as may be consented to by the applicant, except that when an applicant elects to submit separate consecutive applications for "d" variance approval and subsequent site plan, subdivision or conditional use approval, the one-hundred-twenty-day time period for action shall apply to the application for approval of the "d" variance, and the time period for granting or denying any subsequent approval shall be as otherwise provided in the MLUL, N.J.S.A. 40:55D-1 et seq.
[Added by Ord. No. 2014-02]
Any variance granted by the Land Use Board in accordance with N.J.S.A. 40:55D-70c and/or N.J.S.A. 40:55D-70d shall expire by limitation unless construction under the variance shall have been completed with all permits and certificates issued, and/or unless the use permitted by the variance shall have been actually commenced, within two years from the date of the adoption of the Land Use Board's resolution memorializing the grant of the variance, except that the Land Use Board is authorized to extend this period of limitation on a case-by-case basis for good cause shown.