[Added 12-4-1996 by L.L. No. 11-1996]
A. 
It is the purpose of this article to preserve and promote the character, appearances and aesthetics of the Village, and to conserve the property values of the Village by providing procedures for an architectural review of certain structures henceforth erected, reconstructed or altered in the Village, and thereby to encourage sound qualities of exterior building design, to prevent such design and appearances as are unnecessarily offensive to visual sensibilities and to preserve the character of historic sites and structures within the Village.
B. 
The Village Board hereby finds that structures which are visually offensive or inappropriate by reason of poor qualities of exterior design, monotonous similarity or striking visual discord in relation to their sites or surroundings mar the appearances of their areas, impair the use, enjoyment and desirability and reduce the values of properties, are detrimental to the characters of neighborhoods, prevent the most appropriate development and utilization of land and therefore adversely affect the functioning, economic stability, prosperity, health, safety and general welfare of the entire community.
The Planning Board of the Village of Fishkill is hereby designated as the Architectural Review Board. All members of the Planning Board shall also be members of the Architectural Review Board. The terms of office for both Boards shall run concurrently. All appointees to the Planning Board of the Village of Fishkill shall be deemed to be concurrently and simultaneously appointed to the Architectural Review Board. All meetings of the Planning Board shall be deemed to be meetings of the Architectural Review Board.
A. 
The time frame and procedures for the review of applications for approval by the Architectural Review Board shall be the same as those established for the review of site plan application by the Planning Board, as set forth in § 171-82A of this chapter. Notwithstanding the sentence immediately above, the Architectural Review Board may waive the holding of a public hearing when the Architectural Review Board determines that the application is minor in nature.
[Amended 2-11-2002 by L.L. No. 2-2002]
B. 
All applications to the Planning Board shall be deemed to be applications to the Architectural Review Board, and the approval of the Planning Board shall be deemed to be the approval of the Architectural Review Board.
In addition to the required application materials for site plans and certificates of appropriateness as set forth in §§ 171-81 and 171-79.6A of this chapter, the Architectural Review Board may require any additional information that it deems necessary in order to decide on the application.
A. 
Criteria for decisions regarding the issuance of certificates of appropriateness are set forth in § 171-79.5 of this chapter.
B. 
Grounds for approval of site plans. The Board may approve any application referred to it upon finding that the building or structure for which approval was requested, if erected or altered in accordance with the submitted plan:
(1) 
Would be in harmony with the purpose of this article;
(2) 
Would not be visually offensive or inappropriate by reason of poor quality of exterior design;
(3) 
Would not have monotonous similarity or striking visual discord in relation to the site or surroundings;
(4) 
Would not mar the appearance of the area;
(5) 
Would not impair the use, enjoyment and desirability and reduce the values of properties in the area;
(6) 
Would not be detrimental to the character of the neighborhood;
(7) 
Would not prevent the most appropriate development and utilization of the site or of adjacent lands; and
(8) 
Would not adversely affect the functioning, economic stability, prosperity, health, safety and general welfare of the community.
C. 
Grounds for disapproval of site plans. The Board may disapprove any application, provided that the Board has afforded the applicant an opportunity to confer upon suggestions for change of the plan, and provided that the Board finds and states that the structure for which approval was requested would, if erected or altered as proposed, provoke harmful effects to the community by reason of:
(1) 
Either monotonous similarity or striking dissimilarity, visual discord or inappropriateness with respect to any other structure or structures located or proposed to be located on the same street or a corner thereof with respect to one or more of the following features of exterior design and appearance:
(a) 
Facade, disregarding color;
(b) 
Size and arrangement of either doors, windows, porticos, porches or garages or other openings or breaks or extensions in the facade; or
(c) 
Other significant design features, such as but not limited to heights, widths and lengths of elements of the building design, exterior materials and treatments, roof structures, exposed mechanical equipment, service and storage areas, retaining walls, landscaping, signs, light posts, parking areas, fences, service and loading areas and setbacks from street lines; and/or
(2) 
Visual offensiveness or other poor qualities of exterior design, including considerations of the harmony or discord of colors, or incompatibility of the proposed structure with the terrain on which it is to be located, including but not limited to excessive divergences of the height or levels of any part of the structure from the grade of the terrain.
Any applicant aggrieved by the decision of the Architectural Review Board shall have the right to appeal such decision in accordance with § 171-6 of this chapter regarding appeals from Planning Board decisions.