The Board shall have the following powers and
duties:
A. To hear and decide appeals within 65 days of the date
of the filing of the appeal where it is alleged there is an error
in any order, requirement, decision, or determination made by an administrative
officer or agency in the enforcement or interpretation of this chapter,
or of any ordinance adopted pursuant hereto.
B. To hear and decide appeals from a party aggrieved
by a decision of the Historic District Commission, pursuant to the
Historical Zoning Enabling Legislation.
C. To authorize, upon application, in specific cases
of hardship, variances in the application of the terms of this chapter.
D. To authorize, upon application, in specific cases,
special use permits.
E. To refer matters to the Planning Board or to other
boards or agencies of the Town as the Board may deem appropriate for
findings and recommendations.
F. To authorize, upon application, conditional zoning
approvals where a proposed application would otherwise be approved,
except that one or more state or federal agency approvals which are
necessary are pending. A conditional zoning approval shall be revoked
in the instance where any necessary state or federal agency approvals
are not received within a specified time period.
G. To hear and decide such other matters according to
the terms of the ordinance or other statutes and upon which such Board
may be authorized to pass under such ordinance or other statutes.
H. To determine whether new evidence/information previously
unavailable would warrant the reconsideration of a previous decision
of the Board.
I. To amend and/or reconsider a previous decision of
the Board, including reconsiderations of parts of a decision.
J. To authorize by special use permit relief from the dimensional and intensity regulations of this chapter for any use the Board authorizes by special use permit. See Article
III, §
260-8E.
In granting a variance or in making any determination
upon which it is required to pass after public hearing under such
zoning ordinance, the Board may apply such special conditions that
may, in its collective opinion, be required to promote the intent
and purposes of the Comprehensive Community Plan and this chapter
of the Town Code. Failure to abide by any special conditions attached
to a grant of relief shall constitute a zoning violation. Such special
conditions shall be based on competent credible evidence on the record,
be incorporated into the decision, and may include, but are not limited
to, provisions as follows:
A. Minimizing adverse impact of the development upon
other land, including the type, intensity, design and performance
of activities;
B. Controlling the sequence of development, including
when it must be commenced and completed;
C. Controlling the duration of use or development and
the time within which any temporary structure must be removed;
D. Assuring satisfactory installation and maintenance
of required public improvements;
E. Designating the exact location and nature of development;
and
F. Establishing detailed records by submission of drawings,
maps, plats or specifications.
[Amended 5-22-2006 by Ord. No. 767]
A. Submission of applications. All applications for variances
and special use permits may be made by any person, group, agency or
corporation by filing a completed application with the Planning Department.
An appeal to the order, requirement, decision or determination made
by an administrative officer, agency or the Historic District Commission
may be made by any aggrieved party within 20 days of administrative
or Historic District Commission action. Completed applications shall
be submitted to the Planning Department prior to or on the 15th day
of the month in order to be heard on the following month's agenda.
Should the 15th fall on a day when the office is closed, the deadline
shall be at the end of the next regular business day.
(1) Complete applications for variances and special use
permits shall include, but not be limited to, the following information:
(a)
Completed application form;
(b)
Plat plan(s) drawn to scale showing the location
of all lot and street lines, existing and proposed structures, utilities,
access/egress, parking, on-site traffic flow, landscaping, drainage
systems, provisions for off-street (un)loading facilities, dumpsters,
assessment of noise/glare/odor effects on adjacent parcels, signs,
lighting facilities and other site features;
(c)
Plat map showing lot and street lines and approximate
location of structures on parcels immediately adjacent to the subject
site;
(d)
Elevation drawings, where relevant;
(f)
A map displaying the uses of all properties
within a five-hundred-foot radius of the subject property is also
required for use variances and special use permit applications.
(2) Applications for an appeal from an administrator or
agency shall include, but not be limited to, the following information:
(a)
A written description of the issue in question;
(b)
A scaled graphic representation of the issue,
where applicable;
(c)
Copies of any and all relevant correspondence
and paperwork, including copies of completed application forms;
(d)
A written discussion of the grounds on which
the appeal is being sought; and
(e)
The required application fees.
(3) Applications shall be accompanied by fees as follows:
[Added 5-22-2006 by Ord. No. 767]
(a)
Single-family and duplex residential, including
in-law apartments and residential accessory uses: $150.
(b)
Multifamily residential, commercial and industrial
uses: $350.
(d)
Appeals of single-family and duplex residential:
$200.
(e)
Appeals of multifamily, major and minor development,
and commercial and industrial: $500.
(f)
Telecommunications: $500.
(4) Applicants are responsible for the costs of advertising
and abutter notification. A nonrefundable deposit of $50 shall be
required to cover the expense of stenographic services.
[Added 5-22-2006 by Ord. No. 767; amended 12-17-2007 by Ord. No. 786.5]
(5) To protect the public health, safety and welfare,
the Zoning Board of Review may require peer review of expert witness
reports and testimony on behalf of applicants. A list of peers and
their fees shall be maintained by the Town for selection by the Town,
and the cost of peer review shall be borne by the applicant. All costs
associated with peer review shall be paid in full before Zoning Board
of Review approvals are recorded in the Land Evidence Records. The
Town reserves the right to place a lien on the subject property for
any fees not paid in full.
[Added 5-22-2006 by Ord. No. 767]
B. Accepting and processing applications.
(1) Variances and special use permits. Upon receipt and
acceptance of a completed application, the Planning Department shall
schedule the matter before all applicable advisory boards (including
the Planning Board, the Historic District Commission and the Conservation
Commission) as well as the Zoning Board of Review. The Planning Board
shall only review those matters where it has approval authority under
the Rhode Island Development Review Act (R.I.G.L. § 45-23-25
et seq.) or when the Zoning Board specifically requests an advisory
opinion. All advisory boards as well as Planning Department staff
shall report their findings and recommendations (including a general
statement of consistency of the request with the Comprehensive Community
Plan) in writing to the Zoning Board of Review within 30 days of receipt
of the application.
(2) Appeals:
(a)
The Planning Department shall schedule the completed appeal application for the next available Zoning Board public hearing. Notice of the appeal shall be placed in the newspaper as provided for in Subsection
C of this section. Additionally, notice shall likewise be provided to the individual or agency from which the appeal is sought.
(b)
The filing of an appeal shall stay all proceedings
in furtherance of the action appealed from unless the Building Official
certifies to the Board (after an appeal has been duly filed) that,
by reason of facts stated in the decision that is being appealed,
a stay would cause imminent peril to life or property based on the
Rhode Island State Building Code. In such a case, the proceedings
shall only be stayed by a restraining order which may be granted through
a court of competent jurisdiction.
C. Notification of public hearing.
(1) Prior to holding its public hearing, the Board shall
require public notice at least 14 days prior to the date of the hearing
in a newspaper of general circulation in the Town. Notice of hearing
shall be sent by certified mail, return receipt requested, by the
applicant to the following:
(a)
All owners of real property whose property is
located in or within not less than 200 feet of the perimeter of the
parcel(s) covered in the application, whether within the Town or within
an adjacent municipality;
(b)
The Associate Director of the Division of Planning
of the Rhode Island Department of Administration; and
(c)
The city or town council of any municipality
which is located in or within 200 feet of the boundary of the area
covered in the application and/or where there is a public or quasi-public
water source or private water source that is used or is suitable for
use as a public water source within 2,000 feet of any real property
that is the subject of the application, regardless of municipal boundaries.
(2) Said notice shall include the street address of the
subject property and a reference to the relief or appeal sought. The
Chair may order that the notice be posted at the location in question.
Such notice shall not constitute required notice of public hearing.
The responsibility and cost for all abutter notification and legal
notice in the newspaper of general circulation shall be borne by the
applicant.
[Amended 9-22-2014 by Ord. No. 838]
A. Appeals to Zoning Board of Review. An appeal to the Zoning Board of Review from a decision, order, requirement or determination made by an administrative officer or agency such as the Historic District Commission or Planning Board may be taken by an aggrieved party. The appeal shall be taken within 30 days of the recording of the decision by the officer or agency by filing with the officer or agency from whom the appeal is taken and with the Zoning Board of Review a notice of appeal specifying the grounds of the appeal. Said appeal shall be accompanied by a radius map showing all real property within 200 feet of the subject property and a list of all real property owners therein for purposes of notification consistent with §
260-89C of this chapter. The officer or agency from whom the appeal is taken shall promptly transmit to the Zoning Board of Review all the papers constituting the record upon which the action appealed from was taken. Notice of the appeal shall also be transmitted to the officer, agency or board from whom the appeal is taken.
B. Stay of proceedings. An appeal shall stay all proceedings
in furtherance of the action being appealed.
C. Public hearing by Zoning Board of Review. The Zoning Board of Review shall hear the appeal within 45 days of the receipt of the appeal. Public notice is to be provided, at least 14 days prior to the date of the hearing in a newspaper of general circulation. Notice of the hearing, which shall include the street address of the subject property, shall be sent by first-class mail, postage prepaid, to the appellant and to those requiring notice under §
260-89C of this chapter. The cost of any notice required for the hearing shall be borne by the appellant.
D. Procedure for zoning hearing. The hearing of any appeal shall be
at a separate meeting, distinct from the hearing of any variance or
special use permit, although such hearings may be held on the same
day or night. At the hearing, any party may appear in person or by
agent or attorney. The officer or a designated individual of the agency,
commission or board from whom the appeal is taken shall appear before
the Zoning Board at the hearing to represent such agency, commission
or board. The Board shall render a decision within 10 days of the
close of the public hearing.
E. Decisions; standards of review.
(1) Review
of Planning Board or Historic District Commission decisions.
(a) In instances of the Board of Appeal's review of a Planning Board
or Historic District Commission decision, the Board of Appeal shall
not substitute its own judgment for that of the Planning Board or
Historic District Commission but must consider the issue upon the
findings and record of the Planning Board or Historic District Commission.
The Board of Appeal shall not reverse a decision except on a finding
of prejudicial procedural error, clear error, or lack of support by
the weight of the evidence in the record.
(b) The concurring vote of three of the five members of the Board of
Appeal sitting at a hearing is necessary to reverse any decision of
the Planning Board or Historic District Commission.
(c) In the instance where the Board of Appeal overturns a decision of
the Planning Board or Historic District Commission, the proposed project
application is remanded to the Planning Board or Historic District
Commission, at the stage of processing from which the appeal was taken,
for further proceedings and/or for the final disposition, which shall
be consistent with the Board of Appeal's decision.
(d) The Board of Appeal shall keep complete records of all proceedings,
including a record of all votes taken, and shall put all decisions
on appeals in writing. The Board of Appeal shall include in the written
record and the reasons for each decision.
(2) In
exercising its powers with respect to all other appeals, the Zoning
Board of Appeal may reverse or affirm wholly or partly and may modify
the order, requirement, decision or determination appealed from and
may make any orders, requirements, decisions or determinations that
ought to be made, and to that end has the powers of the officer from
whom the appeal was taken.