[Amended 10-17-2003 by L.L. No. 12-2003]
East Hampton Village contains many residential
and commercial structures of historic value. It is famed as one of
America’s most beautiful and uniquely situated villages. Distinct
commercial areas still retain desirable features which make them compatible
with the Village’s character and scale. East Hampton residents
derive considerable peace of mind from their congenial physical surroundings.
As old ways of farming and fishing have waned, it is that character
and charm that now provide the basis for its resort economy. It is
that resort economy that now poses the greatest threat to the Village’s
physical appearance. Much requires preservation and stabilization
while inevitable growth and development require compatibility and
tasteful “fit” into an existing fabric. Commercial and
industrial properties interface with residential and historical areas.
It is essential that that rural-residential aspect be maintained:
green open spaces, screening, rear yard parking, limited vehicular
access, etc. The Village Board finds that new development can otherwise
have a substantial adverse impact on the character, health and safety
of the area in which it is located. Inappropriate exterior design
of buildings or structures and development of grounds adversely affect
the desirability of immediate and neighboring areas for residential
and commercial purposes and, by so doing, impair the benefits of occupancy
of existing property in such cases, impair the stability of values
of both improved and unimproved real property in such areas and preclude
the most appropriate development of such areas. The Village Board
finds that the aggravation and intrusion of further restrictions on
the use and enjoyment of private property is more than offset by the
common advantage in the maintenance of overall values and avoidance
of assaults on the senses which in this Village’s case are especially
dependent on the aesthetic quality and physical attributes of the
community. Some harmful effects of one land use upon another can be
prevented through zoning, subdivision controls and building codes.
Other aspects of construction or development are more subtle and less
amenable to rules promulgated without regard to specific construction
or development proposals. Among these are the general form of the
land before and after development, the spatial relationships of the
structures and open spaces to proximate land uses and the appearance
of buildings and open spaces as they contribute to an area as it is
being developed. Such mailers require the timely exercise of judgment
in the public interest by people qualified to evaluate the design
of new construction and development.
The purposes of design review are:
A. To promote those qualities in the environment which
retain or bring quality to life as well as material value to the community.
B. To foster the attractiveness and functional utility
of the community as a place to live and work.
C. To preserve the character and quality of our heritage
by maintaining the integrity of those areas which have a discernible
character or are of special historic significance.
D. To protect existing investments in the area.
E. To encourage, where appropriate, a mix of uses within
permissible use zones.
F. To raise the level of community expectations for the
quality of its environment.
G. To control the exterior color of buildings so as to
best promote and protect the abovesaid purposes.
[Added 12-17-1982 by L.L. No. 3-1982]
H. To maintain and enhance the desirable character and
the best features of individual commercial areas.
[Added 10-17-2003 by L.L. No. 12-2003]
I. To encourage development that is compatible with the
scale and character of the Village.
[Added 10-17-2003 by L.L. No. 12-2003]
J. To control the distribution of open space so as to
maintain and enhance the desirable character and best features of
a property or area.
[Added 10-17-2003 by L.L. No. 12-2003]
The Design Review Board, in examining applications
for building permits, shall consider the various aspects of design,
with special emphasis on these objectives:
A. Landscape and environment: to prevent the unnecessary
destruction or blighting of the natural or cultural landscape or of
the achieved man-made environment.
B. Relationship of structures and open spaces: to ascertain
that the design treatment of built-up and open spaces has been such
that they relate harmoniously to the terrain and to existing buildings
that have a visual relationship to the proposed development.
C. Circulation: to determine that the proposal facilitates
appropriate pedestrian and vehicular access, interior traffic circulation,
loading facilities, servicing and parking.
D. Lighting facilities shall be placed and shielded in
such a manner as not to cause direct light to shine upon adjacent
properties, and such illuminating source, together with lighted signs,
shall not cause a hazard to be created upon a public street.
E. Parking areas, where required by Chapter
278, Zoning, of the Code of the Village of East Hampton, shall be located to the rear of the structures, shall be screened from adjoining properties and public view and shall be adequately drained.
F. Where the site is located adjacent to a dwelling or
a residential district (zone), appropriate buffer landscaping, natural
screening and fencing shall be required in order to protect all property
values and lessen the impact of development upon adjoining areas.
G. The preservation of existing large trees and the unique
natural features of the site shall be accomplished wherever possible.
When extensive clearing and grading is necessary, the Board may require
a landscaping plan demonstrating that plants, bushes or trees acceptable
to the Board will be planted and maintained.
H. Protection of neighbors: to protect neighboring owners
and users by making sure that reasonable provision has been made for
such matters as surface water drainage, sound and sight buffers, the
preservation of views, light and air and those aspects of design,
not adequately covered by other regulations, which may have substantial
effects on neighboring land uses. With few exceptions, commercial
and industrial properties interface with residential areas, and the
development of the former must not destroy the latter.
I. Compliance with other regulations: to coordinate compliance
with other municipal ordinances that affect design and aspect, such
as zoning, sign and billboard control provisions and provisions for
underground utilities.
J. Color: to control the exterior color of existing and
new stores to ensure that the stores relate both to each other and
to the natural or landscaped environment.
[Added 12-17-1982 by L.L. No. 5-1982]
K. Exterior materials.
[Added 3-16-1984 by L.L. No. 7-1984]
(1) Exterior materials shall be either clapboard, natural
wood, shingles or brick, all with trim.
(2) Notwithstanding the above, the Design Review Board
may waive this requirement if, in the Design Review Board's judgment,
the purpose and objectives of this chapter will be met through the
use of other exterior materials.
L. To control the location and screening of dish antennas
in conformance with the requirements of § 57-3B(5)(c).
[Added 7-31-1986 by L.L. No. 13-1986; amended 4-17-1992 by L.L. No. 5-1992]
M. Integrated parking: In order to improve interior traffic
circulation, reduce the number of accesses on existing streets and
maximize the number of parking spaces, parking areas shall be, at
the discretion of the Design Review Board, designed and located so
as to permit their integration with existing or prospective parking
areas on adjoining properties. In this regard, the Board may require
shared access and shared interior drives (aisles).
[Added 4-21-1989 by L.L. No. 8-1989]
N. All applications for site plan approval shall demonstrate that all runoff is contained on site in accordance with the standards of §
121-9D.
[Added 9-16-1994 by L.L. No. 30-1994]
O. To control the color, shape, location and size of signs and awnings and to ensure that signs and awnings comply with the requirements of §
278-4 of Chapter
278, Zoning, of this Code.
[Added 12-15-1989 by L.L. No. 4-1989; amended 4-17-1992 by L.L. No. 6-1992; 12-15-1995 by L.L. No. 33-1995]
P. Protection of landmarks and historic districts: to protect, maintain and enhance the setting of landmarks and historic districts designated under Chapter
176. When reviewing any application for a property that is adjacent to, across a public way from or within 100 feet of a designated landmark or historic district, the Design Review Board shall take into account the impact of the proposed action on the designated property and its setting. The Board shall consider alternatives that would protect, maintain or enhance the setting of a designated property.
[Added 2-1-1996 by L.L. No. 1-1996]
Q. Maintenance of character: to maintain features that
contribute to the desirable character of a commercial area, including
buildings, features of buildings, landscape features and open space.
[Added 10-17-2003 by L.L. No. 12-2003]
R. Compatibility of design: to determine that the aspects
of a design, including the orientation, setback, rhythm, size, height,
width, proportion of the front facade, massing, building form, roof
form, materials, color, proportion and arrangement of windows, storefront,
building details, the distribution and location of open space and
other considerations of site design, will maintain and enhance the
desirable character and the best features of the commercial area in
which the property is situated and will maintain the overall character
and scale of the Village.
[Added 10-17-2003 by L.L. No. 12-2003]
S. Location of open space: to control the location of
the required percentage of permeable surface on a property so that
it will be located to have the greatest benefit to the desirable setting
of that property and to the desirable setting of the commercial area
in which the property is situated.
[Added 10-17-2003 by L.L. No. 12-2003]
[Added 10-17-2003 by L.L. No. 12-2003]
A. The Design Review Board may adopt, and from time to
time amend, guidelines for applying the policy, purposes and objectives
provided in §§ 13-1, 13-2 and 13-3.
B. Guidelines may be adopted for any aspect of review
or for any specific area or district and will identify its desirable
character, important qualities and best features.
C. The Design Review Board may adopt guidelines for the
“allocation of open space” for each commercial area to
best enhance the setting of a property or area.
[Added 12-15-1989 by L.L. No. 43-1989; amended 10-20-2006 by L.L. No. 12-2006; 6-15-2012 by L.L. No.
12-2012]
Whenever the Chairman or, in the Chairman’s absence, the Vice Chairman of the Board finds that a proposal regarding signs and/or awnings or an improvement that relates solely to improving access for persons with disabilities raises no substantial design problem and fulfills the goals outlined in §§
121-1,
121-2 and
121-3, he is hereby authorized to grant an exemption and approve the application.
Whenever the Board disapproves a submission,
at the request of the applicant it shall specify in writing the conditions
under which a majority of the Board would accept the submission. However,
it is not the intent of this section to require the Board to furnish
the applicant with a design.
The Chairman or, in his absence, the Vice Chairman
shall conduct the meetings of the Board. The Secretary shall keep
the minutes and a permanent record of all resolutions, motions, transactions
and determinations. These records, including all documents submitted
by the applicant, shall be available on request for public inspection
at reasonable times. The Board shall tender a full statement in writing
to each applicant on whose submission action is taken, explaining
in detail the reasons and basis for the decision.
[Amended 5-18-2007 by L.L. No. 5-2007]
The Board shall meet as required, pursuant to
the following time schedule:
A. Within 62 days of the receipt of a complete application
for site plan review, the Board shall conduct a public hearing, unless
the Board adopts a resolution waiving the requirement for a public
hearing. Notice of public hearing shall be mailed to the applicant
at least 10 days before such hearing, and the Board shall give public
notice of said hearing in a newspaper of general circulation in the
Village at least five days prior to the date thereof.
B. The Board may, in its discretion, schedule a public
hearing on any application before it, which if scheduled, shall be
noticed and held as set forth in the other provisions of this section.
C. The Board shall make a decision on the application
within 62 days after such hearing, or if no hearing is held, within
62 days after the receipt of a complete application. The decision
of the Board shall be filed in the office of the Village Clerk within
five days after such decision is rendered and a copy thereof mailed
to the applicant. This schedule or any portion thereof may be extended
by consent of the applicant or his architect or agent.
The Design Review Board shall apprise the Board
of Trustees of its decisions. The report may from time to time include
a survey of the appearance and condition of buildings in the Village,
an analysis of community trends in design, methods that might be employed
to improve the quality of new building and prevent the deterioration
of existing structures and recommendations that might be enacted to
make the design review process more satisfactory.