[Ord. No. 2015-20 § 10B-11; Ord. No. 2015-33]
(a)
The Zoning Board of Adjustment heretofore created is continued and
is hereby established pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-1 et seq.
(b)
The Board shall consist of seven regular members and four alternate
members.
(c)
Regular members shall be appointed by the Princeton Council for terms
of four years each, computed from January 1 of the year of their appointment,
except that full terms of regular members filled for the first time
under this article shall be so fixed (for four or less years) and
arranged so that, to the greatest practicable extent, the expiration
of all terms of regular members will be distributed evenly over the
first four years after the initial appointment under this chapter.
(d)
Alternate members shall also be appointed by the Princeton Council,
and their terms shall be two years each, computed from January 1 of
the year of their appointment, except that of the appointments to
alternate membership first made under this chapter, one shall be for
a term of one year. They shall be designated by the Princeton Council
at the time of their appointment as "Alternate No. 1," "Alternate
No. 2," "Alternate No. 3" and "Alternate No. 4."
(e)
A vacancy occurring in either type of membership otherwise than by
expiration of a term shall be filled for the unexpired term only.
(f)
No regular or alternate members may hold any elective office or other
municipal office in the Municipality, nor shall any members be permitted
to act on any matter in which they have, directly or indirectly, any
personal or financial interest.
(g)
Alternate members may participate in discussions of the proceedings,
but may not vote except in the absence or disqualification of a regular
member. 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, alternate members
shall vote in the order of their numerical designations.
(h)
Officers. The Zoning Board of Adjustment shall elect a chair and
a vice-chair from among its members and shall also select a secretary,
who may but need not be a member of the Board.
(i)
Except for members exempted by statute from this requirement, persons
who serve as members or alternate members of the Zoning Board of Adjustment
shall be required to complete an approved basic course in land use
law and planning within 18 months of their appointment in accordance
with the provisions of N.J.S.A. 40:55D-23.3(b) and (c).
[Ord. No. 2015-20 § 10B-12]
If the Zoning Board of Adjustment lacks a quorum because any
of its regular or alternate members is prohibited by section 56 of
P.L. 1975, c.291 (C.40:55D-69) from acting on a matter due to the
member's personal or financial interest therein, Class IV members
of the Planning Board shall be called upon to serve, for that matter
only, as temporary members of the Zoning Board of Adjustment. The
Class IV members of the Planning Board shall be called upon to serve
in order of seniority of continuous service on the Planning Board
until there are the minimum number of members necessary to constitute
a quorum to act upon the matter without any personal or financial
interest therein, whether direct or indirect. If a choice has to be
made between Class IV members of equal seniority, the Chair of the
Planning Board shall make the choice.
[Ord. No. 2015-20 § 10B-13]
The Zoning Board of Adjustment shall have the power to:
(a)
Appeals. Hear and decide appeals where it is alleged by the appellant
that there is error in any order, requirement, decision or refusal
made by any municipal official based on or made in enforcement of
the zoning ordinance;
(b)
Interpretations. Hear and decide requests for interpretation of the
zoning map or ordinance;
(c)
Hardship and flexible "c" variances.
(1)
Where (a) by reason of exceptional narrowness, shallowness or
shape of a specific piece of property, (b) or by reason of exceptional
topographic conditions or physical features uniquely affecting a specific
piece of property, or (c) by reason of an extraordinary and exceptional
situation uniquely affecting a specific piece of property or the structures
lawfully existing thereon, the strict application of any zoning regulation
would result in peculiar and exceptional practical difficulties to,
or exceptional and undue hardship upon, the developer of such property,
grant, upon an application or an appeal relating to such property,
a variance from such strict application of such regulation so as to
relieve such difficulties or hardship;
(2)
Where in an application relating to a specific piece of property the purposes of the Municipal Land Use Law (N.J.S.A. 40:55D-1 et seq.) or of the Educational Facilities Construction and Financing Act (N.J.S.A. 18A:7G-1 et al.) would be advanced by deviation from the zoning ordinance requirements and the benefits of the deviation would substantially outweigh any detriment, grant a variance to allow departure from zoning regulations; provided, however, that the fact that a proposed use is an inherently beneficial use shall not be dispositive of a decision on a variance under this subsection and provided that no variance from those departures enumerated in Section T10B-13(d) shall be granted under this subsection; and provided, further, that the proposed development does not require approval by the Planning Board of a subdivision, site plan or conditional use in conjunction with which the Planning Board has power to review a request for a variance pursuant to Section T10B-13(c).
(d)
Grant a variance to allow departure from zoning regulations in particular
cases and for special reasons to permit (1) a use or principal structure
in a district restricted against such use or principal structure,
(2) an expansion of a nonconforming use, (3) deviation from a specification
or standard pertaining solely to a conditional use, (4) an increase
in the permitted floor area ratio, or (5) an increase in the permitted
density as applied to the required lot area for a lot or lots for
detached one or two dwelling unit buildings which lot or lots are
either an isolated undersized lot or lots resulting from a minor subdivision,
or (6) a height of a principal structure which exceeds by 10 feet
or 10% the maximum height permitted in the district for a principal
structure. A variance under this subsection shall be granted only
by the affirmative vote of at least five members.
(e)
No variance or other relief may be granted under the terms of this
section, 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.
[Ord. No. 2015-20 § 10B-14]
(a)
The Zoning Board of Adjustment, in lieu of the Planning Board and to the same extent and subject to the same restrictions as such board, shall receive, review and act upon applications for approval of subdivision plats, site plans and conditional uses, but only in conjunction with the Zoning Board of Adjustment's review of applications for approval of variances pursuant to Section T10B-13(d).
(b)
The developer may elect to submit a separate application requesting approval of the variance and a subsequent application for any required approval of a subdivision, site plan, or conditional use. The separate approval of the variance shall be conditioned upon the grant of all required subsequent approvals by the Zoning Board of Adjustment. No such subsequent approval shall be granted unless such approval can be granted without substantial detriment to the public good and without substantial impairment of the intent and purpose of the zone plan and zoning ordinance. The number of votes of Board members required to grant any such subsequent approval shall be as otherwise provided in this chapter for the approval in question, and the special vote for variances pursuant to Section T10B-13(d) shall not be required.
[Ord. No. 2015-20 § 10B-15]
The Zoning Board of Adjustment shall receive, review and act
upon appeals or applications for the issuance of special permits,
except where such authority is conferred upon the Planning Board in
conjunction with the Planning Board's review of applications for approval
of subdivision plats, site plans or conditional uses.
[Ord. No. 2015-20 § 10B-16]
The Zoning Board of Adjustment shall, at least once a year,
review its decisions on applications and appeals for variances and
prepare and adopt by resolution a report on its findings on zoning
ordinance provisions which were the subject of variance requests and
its recommendations for zoning ordinance amendment or revision, if
any. The Zoning Board of Adjustment shall send copies of the report
and resolution to the Princeton Council and Planning Board.
[Ord. No. 2015-20 § 10B-17]
(a)
Appeals to the Zoning Board of Adjustment may be taken by any interested
party affected by any decision of any official of the municipality
based on or made in the enforcement of the zoning ordinance. Such
appeal shall be taken within 20 days by filing a notice of appeal
with the administrative officer and with the official from whom the
appeal is taken, specifying the grounds of such appeal. The official
from whom the appeal is taken shall immediately transmit to the Board
through the administrative officer all the papers constituting the
record upon which the action appealed from was taken.
(b)
A developer may file an application for development with the Zoning
Board of Adjustment for action under any of its powers without prior
application to any municipal official.
[Ord. No. 2015-20 § 10B-18]
An appeal to the Zoning Board of Adjustment shall stay all proceedings
in furtherance of the action with respect to which the decision appealed
from was made unless the officer from whose action the appeal is taken
certifies to the Zoning Board of Adjustment, after the notice of appeal
has been filed, that by reason of facts stated in the certificate
a stay would, in the opinion of the officer, 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 officer
from whom the appeal is taken.
[Ord. No. 2015-20 § 10B-19]
The Zoning Board of Adjustment may reverse or affirm, wholly
or in part, or may modify the action, order, requirement, decision,
interpretation, or determination appealed from and to that end have
all the powers of the official from whom the appeal is taken.
