Cranston City Zoning Code
Chapter
17.120 AMENDMENTS
§ 17.120.010 Power of the city council to adopt-Consistency with the comprehensive plan.
For the purpose of promoting the public health, safety, morals
and general welfare of the city, the city council may adopt, amend
or repeal and provide for the administration, interpretation and enforcement
of this chapter or any part thereof. The provisions of a zoning ordinance
shall be set forth in text and map(s) and may incorporate charts or
other material. The zoning ordinance and all amendments thereto, shall
be consistent with the city's comprehensive plan, as described in
Rhode Island General Laws Section 22-2 and shall provide for the implementation
of the city's comprehensive plan.
(Prior code § 30-36)
§ 17.120.020 Procedure for adoption or amendment.
The city clerk is designated as the officer to receive a proposal for adoption, amendment or repeal of the zoning ordinance or zoning map(s), as well as any proposal for amendment to the comprehensive plan of the city. Immediately upon receipt of the proposal, the city clerk shall refer the proposal to the city council and to the planning commission for study and recommendation. The planning commission shall, in turn, notify and seek the advice of the city planning department and shall report to the city council within forty-five (45) days after receipt of the proposal, giving its findings and recommendations as prescribed in Rhode Island General Laws Section 45-24-52. Where a proposal for adoption, amendment or repeal of a zoning ordinance or zoning map or any proposal for amendment to the comprehensive plan of the city is made by the city planning commission, the requirements for study by the commission may be waived, provided that the proposal by the planning commission includes its findings and recommendations pursuant to Rhode Island General Laws Section 45-24-52. The city council shall hold a public hearing within sixty-five (65) days of receipt of a proposal, giving proper notice as prescribed in Section 17.120.040. The city council shall render a decision on any proposal within forty-five (45) days after the date of completion of the public hearing. The provisions of this section pertaining to deadlines shall not be construed to apply to any extension consented to by an applicant.
Each proposal for adoption, amendment or repeal of a zoning
ordinance or zoning map, as well as any proposal for amendment to
the comprehensive plan of the city shall be accompanied by a fee in
an amount of four hundred dollars ($400.00). Payment of said fee shall
be due from the applicant and shall be made at the time of application
to the city clerk and no application for adoption, amendment or repeal
of a zoning ordinance or zoning map or proposal for amendment to the
comprehensive plan of the city shall be accepted by the city clerk
without payment of said fee. Where a proposal for adoption, amendment
or repeal of a zoning ordinance or zoning map or proposal for amendment
to the comprehensive plan of the city is made by the city planning
commission, the requirements for a fee shall be waived.
(Prior code § 30-37; Ord. 2024-5, § 1, 3/25/2024)
§ 17.120.030 Review by planning commission.
Among its findings and recommendation to the city council with
respect to a proposal for adoption, amendment or repeal of a zoning
ordinance or zoning map, the planning commission shall:
A.
Include
a statement on the general consistency of the proposal with the comprehensive
plan of the city, including the goals and policies statement, the
implementation program and all other applicable elements of the comprehensive
plan; and
(Prior code § 30-38)
§ 17.120.040 Notice and hearing requirements.
A.
No zoning ordinance shall be adopted, repealed or amended until after a public hearing has been held upon the question before the city council. The city council shall first give notice of the public hearing by publication of notice in a newspaper of general circulation within the city at least once each week for three successive weeks prior to the date of the hearing, which may include the week in which the hearing is to be held, at which hearing opportunity shall be given to all persons interested to be heard upon the matter of the proposed ordinance. Written notice, which may be a copy of the newspaper notice shall be mailed to the Associate Director of the Division of Planning of the Rhode Island Department of Administration and, where applicable, to the parties specified in subsections (B), (C), (D) and (E) of this section, at least two weeks prior to the hearing. The newspaper notice shall be published as a display advertisement, using a type size at least as large as the normal type size used by the newspaper in its news articles and shall:
1.
Specify the place of the hearing and the date and time of its commencement;
2.
Indicate that adoption, amendment or repeal of a zoning ordinance
is under consideration;
3.
Contain a statement of the proposed amendments to the ordinance that
may be printed once in its entirety, or summarize and describe the
matter under consideration;
4.
Advise those interested where and when a copy of the matter under
consideration may be obtained or examined and copied; and
5.
State that the proposals shown thereon may be altered or amended
prior to the close of the public hearing without further advertising,
as a result of further study or because of the views expressed at
the public hearing. Any alteration or amendment must be presented
for comment in the course of the hearing. However, the city council
shall limit the scope of alterations or amendments to comments expressed
at the public hearing that do not substantially alter the original
intent of the ordinance as advertised. If the city council determines
that amendments offered through the public hearing do, in fact, substantially
alter the content of the ordinance as advertised, then the city council
shall require readvertising of the public hearing to include proposed
amendments.
B.
Where a proposed general amendment to an existing zoning ordinance includes changes in an existing zoning map, public notice shall be given as required by subsection (A) of this section.
C.
Where a proposed amendment to an existing ordinance includes a specific change in a zoning district map, but does not affect districts generally, public notice shall be given as required by subsection (A) of this section, with the additional requirements that:
1.
Notice shall include a map showing the existing and proposed boundaries,
zoning district boundaries and existing streets and roads and their
names and city boundaries where appropriate.
2.
Written notice of the date, time and place of the public hearing
and the nature and purpose thereof shall be sent to all owners of
real property whose property is located in or within not less than
four hundred (400) feet of the perimeter of the area proposed for
change, whether within the city or within an adjacent city or town.
The notice shall be sent by registered or certified mail/return receipt
requested to the last known address of the owners, as shown on the
current real estate tax assessment records of the city or town in
which the property is located.
D.
Notice
of public hearing shall be sent by first class mail to the city or
town council or any city or town to which one or more of the following
pertain:
1.
Which is located in or within not less than four hundred (400) feet
of the boundary of the area proposed for change; or
2.
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 two thousand (2,000) feet of any real property that is the
subject of proposed zoning change, regardless of municipal boundaries.
E.
Notice
of a public hearing shall be sent to the governing body of any state
or municipal water department or agency, special water district or
private water company that has riparian rights to a surface water
district or private watershed that is used or is suitable for use
as a public water source and that is within two thousand (2,000) feet
of any real property which is the subject of a proposed zoning change,
provided, however, that the governing body of any state or municipal
water department or agency, special water district or private water
company has filed with the building inspector in the city or town
a map survey, which shall be kept as a public record, showing areas
of surface water resources and/or watersheds and parcels of land within
two thousand (2,000) feet thereof.
F.
No
defect in the form of any notice under this section shall render any
ordinance or amendment invalid, unless the defect is found to be intentional
or misleading.
G.
The
actual cost of all notices required under this section including the
cost of newspaper advertising for notice by publication, as well as
the cost of postage for written notice shall be borne by the applicant.
Payment of said costs shall be made at the time of application to
the city clerk and no application shall be accepted by the city clerk
without payment of said costs.
H.
In
granting a zoning ordinance amendment, notwithstanding the provisions
of RIGL Section 45-24-37, the city council may limit the change to
one of the permitted uses in the zone to which the subject land is
rezoned and impose such limitations, conditions and restrictions,
including, without limitation:
1.
Requiring the petitioner to obtain a permit or approval from any
and all state and local governmental agencies or instrumentalities
having jurisdiction over the land and use which are the subject of
the zoning change;
2.
Those relating to the effectiveness or continued effectiveness of
the zoning change; and/or
3.
Those relating to the use of the land, as it deems necessary.
The responsible city official shall cause the limitations and
conditions so imposed to be clearly noted on the zoning map and recorded
in the land evidence records; provided, however, in the case of a
conditional zone change, the limitations, restrictions and conditions
shall not be noted on the zoning map until the zone change has become
effective. If the permitted use for which the land has been rezoned
is abandoned or if the land is not used for the requested purpose
for a period of two years or more after the zone change becomes effective,
the city council may, after a public hearing as hereinbefore set forth,
change the land to its original zoning use before the petition was
filed. If any limitation, condition or restriction in an ordinance
is held to be invalid by a court in any action, that holding shall
not cause the remainder of the ordinance to be invalid.
(Prior code § 30-39)