No member of the Planning Board or Zoning Board of Adjustment
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.
A.
All applications for development shall be filed with the administrative
officer. At the time of filing of application, the applicant shall
also file the fee, a completed checklist (as set forth in the schedule
of forms attached to and made a part of this chapter), any request
for waiver and any and all maps required by this section. The applicant
shall file, at least 14 days before the date of the monthly meeting
of the Board, eight copies of a sketch plat, eight copies of an application
for minor subdivision approval, eight copies of an application for
site plan review, conditional use approval or planned development.
At the time of filing the application, but in no event less than 10
days prior to the date set for hearing, the applicant shall also file
all plot plans, maps or other papers required by virtue of any provision
of this chapter or any rule of the Planning Board. The applicant shall
obtain all necessary forms from the Secretary of the Board. The Secretary
of the Board shall inform the applicant of the steps to be taken to
initiate applications and of the regular meeting dates of the Board.
B.
Upon receipt of an application for development, the administrative
officer shall review the application and certify it as complete if
all requirements for completeness have been met.
C.
Within 45 days from the filing as required above, the administrative
officer shall review and certify the application to be complete or
incomplete in writing.
(1)
If incomplete, the administrative officer shall certify in writing
the deficiencies in the application on a checklist as specified in
the schedule of forms attached to and made part of this chapter.
(2)
The application shall be deemed complete within 45 days of the date
of its submission if the administrative office does not certify the
application to be complete.
D.
The applicant may request relief from one or more of the submissions
required above. The request must be in writing stating the reason
thereof. The administrative officer shall grant or deny the request
within 45 days of the request.
E.
The administrative officer shall assign a hearing date and notify
the applicant of the same after the application has been deemed complete.
Notice to the applicant shall be in writing by regular mail. Upon
receipt of a date of hearing, the applicant shall proceed to give
proper notice of the hearing and comply with all other provisions
of this chapter and the Municipal Land Use Law.
A.
Meetings of both the Planning Board and the Zoning Board of Adjustment
shall be scheduled as on an adopted calendar, and any meeting 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 provisions of Chapter 291 of the Laws of
1975 (see N.J.S.A. 40:55D-9 et seq.).
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 Act, Chapter 231 of the
Laws of 1975 (see N.J.S.A. 10:4-6 et seq.). An executive session for
the purpose of discussing and studying any matters to come before
either Board shall not be deemed a regular or special meeting in accordance
with the provisions of N.J.S.A. 40:55D-9.
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 Borough 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 reasonable fee as indicated in the Fee Ordinance for reproduction
of the minutes for his use as provided for in the rules of the Board.[1]
Forms and any other required documents for applications or for the rendering of any service by the Planning Board or the Zoning Board of Adjustment or any member of their administrative staffs which are not otherwise provided for by ordinance may be provided for and adopted as part of the rules of the Board. Copies of said rules or of the separate fee and submission schedule shall be made available to the public. A schedule of fees is detailed in Chapter 155 of this Code.
A.
Rules. The Planning Board and the Zoning Board of Adjustment may
make rules governing the conduct of hearings before such bodies, which
rules shall be consistent 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 the 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, as well as the provisions of the County and Municipal
Investigations Law, P.L. 1953, c. 38 (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 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 of 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.
F.
Absent member. When any hearing before either the Planning Board
or the Zoning Board of Adjustment shall carry over two or more meetings,
a member of the Board who was absent for one or more the meetings
shall be eligible to vote on the matter upon which the hearing was
conducted, notwithstanding his absence from one or more of the meetings;
provided, however, that such Board Member has available to him a transcript
or recording of the meeting from which he was absent and certifies
in writing to the Board from which he was absent that he has read
such transcript or listened to such recording.
A.
Whenever a hearing is required on an application for development,
except for minor subdivisions, minor site plans, final site plans
and final subdivisions, pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-1 et seq., the
applicant shall give notice thereof as follows:
(1)
Public
notice shall be given by publication in the official newspaper of
the municipality at least 10 days prior to the date of the hearing.
(2)
Notice
shall be given to the owners of all real property, as shown on the
current tax 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 municipality in which the applicant's land
is located. Such notice shall be given by serving a copy thereof on
the owner as shown on the said current tax duplicate or his agent
in charge of the property or by mailing a copy thereof by certified
mail to the property owner at his address as shown on the said 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.
(3)
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
to the owners of lands in such adjoining municipality which are located
within 200 feet of the subject premises.
(4)
Notice
shall be given by personal service or certified mail to the Middlesex
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 the Middlesex County Master Plan, adjoining
other county land or situated within 200 feet of a municipality boundary.
(5)
Notice
shall be given by personal service or certified mail to the New Jersey
Commissioner of Transportation of a hearing on an application for
development of property adjacent to a state highway.
(6)
Notice
shall be given by personal service or certified mail to the State
Planning Commission 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 Municipal Clerk pursuant to Section 6b of Chapter 291 of
the Laws of 1975 (see N.J.S.A. 40:55D-10).
B.
Minor applications.
(1)
Notice of hearings on applications for approval of minor subdivision or a site plan not defined as a minor site plan requiring public notice pursuant to Subsection A of this section shall be given by personal service or certified mail to the corporate secretary of all public utilities and the general manager of all cable television companies that own land on any facility or that possess a right-of-way or easement within 200 feet in all directions of the property which is the subject of this hearing.
(2)
In addition to any notification requirement otherwise imposed under this act, an applicant seeking approval of a development which does not require notice as provided in Subsection B(1) of this section shall be required to provide notice, by personal service or certified mail, to the corporate secretary of any public utility and the general manager of any cable television company that possesses a right-of-way or easement situated within the property limits of the property which is the subject of the application for development approval under this subsection.
(3)
The applicant shall file an affidavit of proof of service with the
municipal agency holding the hearing on the application for development
in the event that the applicant is required to give notice pursuant
to this section.
(4)
All notices hereinabove specified in this section 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.
(5)
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.
C.
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 and/or by
reference to lot and block numbers as shown on the current tax duplicate
in the Municipal 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.
Pursuant to the provisions of N.J.S.A. 40:55D-12c, the administrative officer of the municipality, the Municipal Tax Collector, shall, within seven days after receipt of a request therefor and upon receipt of payment of a fee as provided in Chapter 155, Fees, 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 Article III, § 50-34A(2), of this chapter.
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, and shall be memorialized
by resolution. Said adoption shall not occur later than 45 days after
the date of meeting at which the reviewing agency voted to grant or
deny approval. Only members of the Board who voted for the action
taken may vote on the memorialization resolution.
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 Municipal 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 fees
established for copies of other public documents in the municipality.
A brief notice of every final decision shall be published in
the official newspaper of the municipality. Such publication shall
be arranged by the applicant, and said notice shall be sent to the
official newspaper for publication within 10 days of the date of any
such decision.
Pursuant to the provisions of N.J.S.A. 40:55D-39 and 40:55D-65,
the requirement that every application for development submitted to
the Planning Board or to the Zoning Board of Adjustment shall be accompanied
by proof that no taxes or any other outstanding fees owed to the Borough
are due or delinquent on the property which is the subject of such
application may be waived at the discretion of the reviewing board.
No zoning permits, building permits, certificates of occupancy or
other permits shall be issued unless proof is submitted by the applicant
that no taxes or any other outstanding fees owed to the Borough are
due or delinquent on the property which is the subject of such application.
