[Amended 10-26-1992 by L.L. No. 8-1992, effective 11-4-1992; 9-27-2010 by L.L. No. 22-2010, effective 10-18-2010; 3-14-2011 by L.L. No.
5-2011, effective 3-21-2011; 9-6-2016 by L.L. No. 17-2016, effective 11-16-2016]
The Board of Appeals is hereby created pursuant to the provisions
of § 7-712 of the Village Law of the State of New York and shall
consist of five members. Board membership shall include a total of
five members. The Board of Trustees shall appoint the members and
Chairperson of the Zoning Board of Appeals and fill vacancies in those
offices. Terms of membership for members shall be five years.
The Board shall have exclusive jurisdiction
of all matters prescribed by § 7-712 of the Village Law
or by this chapter or as may hereafter be referred to it by law or
the Village Board. The following provisions relating to its powers
and duties shall not be deemed to limit any power conferred by law
upon the Board of Appeals.
[Added 10-26-1992 by L.L. No. 8-1992, effective 11-4-1992]
For the purpose of this chapter, the following
terms shall have the meanings herein indicated:
The authorization by the Board of Appeals for the use of
land in a manner which is not allowed by the dimensional or topographical
requirements of the applicable zoning regulations.
The authorization by the Board of Appeals for the use of
land in a manner or for a purpose which is otherwise not allowed or
is prohibited by the applicable zoning regulations.
[Amended 10-26-1992 by L.L. No. 8-1992, effective 11-4-1992]
The Board shall hear and decide appeals from
and review from any order, requirement, decision, interpretation or
determination made by any administrative official or board charged
with the implementation or enforcement of this chapter and may reverse
or affirm, wholly or partly, or may modify the order, requirement,
decision, interpretation or determination appealed from and make such
determination and order as, in its opinion, ought to be made in the
premises.
On such an appeal, the Board may decide the
following questions:
A.
Determination of the meaning and applicability of
any portion of the text of this chapter or of any condition or requirement
specified or made under or pursuant to the provisions hereof.
[Amended 10-26-1992 by L.L. No. 8-1992, effective 11-4-1992]
A.
Use variances.
(1)
The Board of Appeals, on appeal from the decision
or determination of the administrative officer charged with the enforcement
of this chapter, shall have the power to grant use variances, authorizing
a use of the land which otherwise would not be allowed or would be
prohibited by the terms of this chapter.
(2)
No such use variance shall be granted by the Board
of Appeals without a showing by the applicant that applicable zoning
regulations and restrictions have caused unnecessary hardship. In
order to prove such unnecessary hardship, the applicant shall demonstrate
to the Board of Appeals that:
(a)
Under applicable zoning regulations, the applicant
is deprived of all economic use or benefit from the property in question,
which deprivation must be established by competent financial evidence;
(b)
The alleged hardship relating to the property
in question is unique and does not apply to a substantial portion
of the district or neighborhood;
(c)
The requested use variance, if granted, will
not alter the essential character of the neighborhood; and
(d)
The alleged hardship has not been self-created.
(3)
The Board of Appeals, in the granting of use variances,
shall grant the minimum variance that it shall deem necessary and
adequate to address the unnecessary hardship proved by the applicant
and at the same time to preserve and protect the character of the
neighborhood and the health, safety and welfare of the community.
B.
Area variances.
(1)
The Board of Appeals shall have the power, upon an
appeal from a decision or determination of the administrative official
charged with the enforcement of this chapter, to grant area variances
from the area or dimensional requirements of this chapter.
(2)
In making its determination, the Board of Appeals
shall take into consideration the benefit to the applicant if the
variance is granted, as weighed against the detriment to the health,
safety and welfare of the neighborhood or community by such grant.
In making such determination, the Board shall also consider:
(a)
Whether an undesirable change will be produced
in the character of the neighborhood or a detriment to nearby properties
will be created by the granting of the area variance;
(b)
Whether the benefit sought by the applicant
can be achieved by some method feasible for the applicant to pursue,
other than an area variance;
(c)
Whether the requested area variance is substantial;
(d)
Whether the proposed variance will have an adverse
affect or impact on the physical or environmental conditions in the
neighborhood or district; and
(e)
Whether the alleged difficulty was self-created,
which consideration shall be relevant to the decision of the Board
of Appeals, but shall not necessarily preclude the granting of the
area variance.
(3)
The Board of Appeals, in the granting of area variances,
shall grant the minimum variance that it shall deem necessary and
adequate and at the same time preserve and protect the character of
the neighborhood and the health, safety and welfare of the community.
C.
Imposition of conditions. The Board of Appeals, in
the granting of both use variances and area variances, shall have
the authority to impose such reasonable conditions and restrictions
as are directly related to and incidental to the proposed use of the
property or the period of time such variance shall be in effect. Such
conditions shall be consistent with the spirit and intent of this
chapter and shall be imposed for the purpose of minimizing any adverse
impact such variance may have on the neighborhood or community.
D.
Existing violations. In the absence of clear proof
by the applicant of extenuating circumstances satisfactory to the
Board of Appeals, no variance or special permit shall be granted where
there is an existing violation of this chapter against the property
in question.
The Board of Appeals, pursuant to Article X, shall determine all applications for special permits and exceptions as provided in this chapter or as may hereafter be referred to it by the Village Board.
A.
The powers and duties of the Board shall be exercised
in accordance with its own rules of conduct and procedure, which rules
shall be consistent with and pursuant to all the provisions of the
Village Law.
B.
Notice. The Board is not permitted to act upon any application for a variance or a special permit without first holding a public hearing. The applicant must comply with the notification requirements set forth in Chapter 372 of this Code (Land Use Application Notice Requirements), which supersede the requirements of § 7-712-a, Subdivision 7, and § 7-725-b, Subdivision 5, of the Village Law of the State of New York.
[Amended 10-26-1981 by L.L. No. 12-1981, effective 11-2-1981; 10-26-1992 by L.L. No. 8-1992, effective 11-4-1992; 3-27-2006 by L.L. No.
4-2006, effective 4-10-2006; 5-10-2010 by L.L. No. 12-2010, effective 5-26-2010; 9-12-2023 by L.L. No. 15-2023, effective 9-21-2023; 11-27-2023 by L.L. No.
20-2023, effective 12-4-2023]
C.
If the land involved in an appeal or application lies
within 500 feet of the boundary of any other municipality, the Village
Clerk shall transmit to the Municipal Clerk of such other municipality
a copy of the official notice of the public hearing thereon not later
than five days before the hearing and shall thereafter send a copy
of the decision of the Board of Appeals to the Clerk of such other
municipality.
[Amended 10-26-1992 by L.L. No. 8-1992, effective 11-4-1992]
D.
At least five days before such hearing, the Board
of Appeals shall mail notice thereof, to the Regional State Park Commission
having jurisdiction over any state park or parkway within 500 feet
of the property affected by such appeal, and to the county, metropolitan
or regional planning agency as required by § 239-m of the
General Municipal Law, which notice shall be accompanied by a full
statement of the matter under consideration, as defined in Subdivision
1 of § 239-m of the General Municipal Law.
[Added 10-26-1992 by L.L. No. 8-1992, effective 11-4-1992[1]]
E.
The Board of Appeals shall comply with the provisions
of the State Environmental Quality Review Act under Article 8 of the
Environmental Conservation Law and its implementing regulations as
codified in Title 6, Part 617, of the New York Codes, Rules and Regulations.
[Added 10-26-1992 by L.L. No. 8-1992, effective 11-4-1992[2]]
F.
Unless a building permit is obtained within 12 months
of the date of the granting of a variance, such variance shall become
null and void. The Board, without public hearing, may, for good cause
shown, extend the time for which a building permit must be obtained
or extend the time for completion of work under a variance or special
permit theretofore granted by it for whatever time period deemed to
be appropriate.
[Amended 11-28-1988 by L.L. No. 20-1988, effective 12-7-1988]
G.
Every appeal and application shall refer to the specific
provisions of the Village Law of the ordinance involved and shall
precisely set forth, as the case may be, the interpretation that is
claimed, the specific variance or special permit that is applied for
and the grounds on which it is claimed that the variance or special
permit should be granted.
H.
Every decision of the Board of Appeals shall be, by
resolution, recorded on the minutes of the Board, shall fully set
forth the circumstances of the case, shall contain a full record of
the findings on which the decision is based, shall be signed by the
Chairman and Secretary of the Board and shall constitute a public
record.
I.
The Board of Appeals will comply with the requirements of the Open
Meetings Law of the State of New York (Public Officers Law § 100
et seq.), even if that law does not apply because the Board of Appeals
is acting in an advisory capacity.
[Added 6-11-2018 by L.L.
No. 7-2018, effective 6-19-2018]
