[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town Board of the Town of Amherst 9-3-2019 by L.L. No.
18-2019. Amendments noted where applicable.]
A.
The
members of the Design Advisory Board shall be appointed by the Town
Board.
B.
The
Design Advisory Board shall consist of five (5) members who shall
serve without compensation and as now constituted shall continue in
office until the expiration of their present term. Thereafter, their
successors shall be appointed for terms of five (5) years.
C.
At
least one member must be a Planning Board member who will also act
as the Board Chair. At least one member of such Board shall be a professional
architect licensed to practice in the State of New York.
D.
All
members of the Design Advisory Board shall be residents of the Town
of Amherst and qualified by reason of training or experience in art,
architecture, community planning, land development, real estate, or
landscape architecture.
E.
If
a vacancy shall occur otherwise than by expiration of term, it shall
be filled by the Town Board for the unexpired term. The Town Board
shall have the power to remove any member of the Design Advisory Board
for cause and after public hearing.
F.
The
Planning Director shall designate a member of the Planning Department
staff to act as the Clerk to the Design Advisory Board.
G.
The
Planning Director shall designate a Planning Department staff person
to act as liaison to the Design Advisory Board.
H.
Membership
on the Design Advisory Board is limited to two consecutive full terms.
Review Authority: The Design Advisory Board shall
be responsible for reviewing and making recommendations to the Planning
Board regarding the following:
A.
Meetings
of the Design Advisory Board shall be held monthly, or at the call
of the Chair.
B.
All
meetings of the Design Advisory Board shall be held at Town Offices
and shall be open to the public
C.
Notice
of the meetings shall be posted on the Town website.
D.
The
Design Advisory Board shall keep minutes of its proceedings, and shall
keep records of its findings and other official actions.
E.
Three
(3) members of the Design Advisory Board shall constitute a quorum
for the transaction of business.
F.
Member
training(s) shall be held from time to time.
See Town of Amherst Design Guidelines -Mixed Use
A.
Design Advisory Board application process.
(1)
Pre-Application Conference: Before submitting an application
for design review approval, each petitioner shall schedule a
pre-application conference with the Planning Department to
discuss the procedures, standards and regulations for design review
approval in accordance with the standards and design guidelines of
the Zoning Ordinance.
(2)
Application Requirements. The following requirements
shall apply to all applications for Design review.
(a)
Who May Submit Applications. Applications shall be accepted
only from persons having the legal authority to submit such applications
(owners or lessees of property, persons who have contracted to purchase
property contingent upon their ability to acquire the necessary approval
under the Zoning Ordinance, or persons with written authorization
from the owner).
(b)
Forms. Application forms shall be available from the
Planning Department. The content of such application forms shall be
determined by the Planning Director and may be amended from time to
time.
(c)
Acceptance of Applications for Review. An application
will be accepted for review when it contains all information necessary
to determine whether or not the design as proposed will comply with
all the requirements of the standards and guidelines, as determined
by the Planning Director.
(d)
Meeting Notice. At least 5 days prior to the meeting date, the Town
shall post notice, via the Town's website, of the meeting agenda.
These notice provisions are non-jurisdictional. Failure to provide
notice or failure of the notice to provide the information called
for shall not affect the validity of any action taken by the Design
Advisory Board, Planning Board and Town Board.
(3)
Application Requirements. The following information
shall be submitted as part of the formal application for Design Advisory
Board review.
(a)
Application form with checklist, including all necessary documentation
(c)
Aerial views; photographs.
(d)
Site Plan.
(e)
Elevations and cross sections.
(f)
Renderings and floor plans.
(g)
Manufacturer samples of exterior colors, materials, roofing, window
and door design.
(h)
Sign concepts and locations.
(4)
Action by the Design Advisory Board
(a)
The Design Advisory Board shall review the petition and evaluate
the application. The Design Advisory Board shall schedule a meeting
and give notice via the Town's website.
(b)
Within 10 days following the close of the meeting, the Design Advisory
Board shall furnish to the Planning Board and petitioner its findings
that:
[1]
The application is generally consistent with the design standards,
guidelines and purpose of the Zoning Ordinance, and approval is recommended;
[2]
The application is recommended for approval with modification(s);
or,
[3]
The application is inconsistent with the design standards, guidelines
and purpose of the Zoning Ordinance and the Board recommends disapproval.
(c)
The Design Advisory Board may include in a favorable report a recommendation
that conditions be included as a part of any resolution approving
the application.
(d)
An unfavorable report shall state clearly the reasons therefore and,
if appropriate, point out to the petitioner what changes might be
necessary in order to receive a favorable report.
A.
The
decision of the Design Advisory Board shall immediately be filed in
the Building and Planning Departments and the Town Clerk's Office.
All decisions shall be public record.
B.
The
Design Advisory Board shall recommend to approve, approve with modification(s)
or disapprove an application to the Planning Board; provided that,
prior to disapproval, the applicant has been afforded an opportunity
to confer upon suggestions for any change(s) to the proposed action.
C.
Approval
of any application hereunder shall be by a majority of the Design
Advisory Board members.
Application of the standards is required for any development
as follows:
A.
All
major site plan applications in the following Specific Zoning Districts:
Traditional Infill 2.5 (TI-2.5); Traditional Infill 4 (TI-4); Center
2.5 (CTR-2.5); Center 5 (CTR-5); Center 8 (CTR-8); Deep Corridor 5
(DC-5) and Shallow Corridor 3 (SC-3) and any other minor site plans
as determined by the Planning Director.
B.
Minor
changes as defined below are exempt from this Section:
(1)
Ordinary maintenance and repair, including in-kind replacement of
windows and doors; and siding if less than 25% of the existing exterior
surface. (Replacement of or use of materials with types allowed in
the District is encouraged.)
C.
The
Planning Department may send referrals to the Design Review Board.
