Delaware City Zoning Code
ARTICLE V
Planning Board
§ 230-45 Appointments.
There is hereby created a municipal Planning Board, which will consist of nine members as follows:
A.
Class I. Mayor or Mayor's designee.
B.
Class II. One of the officials of the municipality other than a member of the governing body, to be appointed by the Mayor; the member of the Environmental Commission who is also a member of the Planning Board as required by Section 1 of P.L. 1968, c. 245 (N.J.S.A. 40:56A-1) shall be deemed to be the Class II Planning Board member for purposes of this act in the event that there be among the Class IV members of the Planning Board both a member of the Zoning Board of Adjustment and a member of the Board of Education.
C.
Class III. A member of the governing body to be appointed by it, except that no member for Class III shall be appointed to the Planning Board if the governing body consists of only three members.
D.
Class IV. Other citizens of the municipality, to be appointed by the Mayor. The members of Class IV shall hold no other municipal office, except that one such member may be a member of the Zoning Board of Adjustment, and one such member may be a member of the Board of Education. The member of the Environmental Commission who is also a member of the Planning Board, as required by Section 1 of P.L. 1968, c. 245 (N.J.S.A. 40:56A-1), shall be a Class IV Planning Board member, unless there be among the Class IV members of the Planning Board both a member of the Zoning Board of Adjustment and a member of the Board of Education, in which case, the member common to the Planning Board and the municipal Environmental Commission shall be deemed a Class II member of the Planning Board.
§ 230-46 Terms of office.
A.
Class I. The Mayor's terms shall correspond to his official tenure, or if the member is the Mayor's designee in the absence of the Mayor, the designee shall serve at the pleasure of the Mayor during the Mayor's official tenure.[1]
B.
Class II and Class III. The terms for these members shall be for one year or terminate at the completion of their respective terms of office, whichever occurs first, except for a Class II member who is also a member of the Environmental Commission.
C.
Environmental Commission member. The term of a Class II or Class IV member who is also a member of the Environmental Commission shall be for three years or terminate at the completion of his term of office as a member of the Environmental Commission, whichever first occurs.
D.
Class IV. The term of Class IV members shall be four years. The term of a Class IV member who is also a member of the Zoning Board of Adjustment, or Board of Education, shall terminate whenever he is no longer a member of such other body or at the completion of his Class IV term, whichever first occurs.
E.
Vacancy. If a vacancy in any class shall occur otherwise than by expiration of the Planning Board term, it shall be filled by appointment as above provided for the remaining unexpired term.
F.
Alternate members. The governing body may appoint two alternate members of Class IV who shall serve for terms of two years; provided that in the event that two alternate members of Class IV are appointed, the initial term of such members shall be one and two years, respectively. Such alternate members shall be designated by the Chairman as "Alternate No. 1" and "Alternate No. 2" and shall serve in rotation during the absence or disqualification of any regular member or members of Class IV.
§ 230-47 Removal for cause.
No member of the Planning Board shall be permitted to act on any matter, in which he or she has, either directly or indirectly, any personal or financial interest. Any member other than a Class I member, after a public hearing if he or she requests one, may be removed by the governing body for cause.
§ 230-48 Absent member.
When any hearing before the Planning Board shall carry over two or more meetings, a member of the Board, who was absent for one or more of the meetings, shall be eligible to vote on the matter upon which the hearing was conducted, notwithstanding his or her absence from one or more of the meetings. This is provided, however, that such Board member has available to him or her a transcript or recording of the meeting from which he or she was absent, and certifies in writing to the Board that such transcript or recording was listened to or read.
§ 230-49 Quorum. [1]
A quorum of the Planning Board shall be a majority of the full authorized membership. If the Planning Board lacks a quorum because any of its regular or alternate members is prohibited by N.J.S.A. 40:55D-23 or 40:55D-23.1 from acting on a matter due to the member's personal or financial interests therein, regular members of the Board of Adjustment shall be called upon to serve, for that matter only, as temporary members of the Planning Board in order of seniority of continuous service to the Board of Adjustment until there are the minimum number of members necessary to constitute a quorum to act upon the matter without any personal or financial interest therein, whether direct or indirect. If a choice has to be made between regular members of equal seniority, the Chair of the Board of Adjustment shall make the choice.
§ 230-50 Organization.
The Planning Board shall elect a chairman and vice chairman from the members of Class IV, select a secretary who may or may not be a member of the Planning Board or a municipal employee, and create and fill such other offices as established by this chapter.
§ 230-51 Powers of Planning Board.
The Planning Board shall follow the provisions of N.J.S.A. 40:55D-1 et seq., and shall accordingly exercise its power in regard to this chapter as follows:
B.
Conditional uses. Review of conditional uses shall be conducted pursuant to Article IV of this chapter.
D.
Referral powers.
(1)
Referral reports. Prior to the adoption of a zoning ordinance, revision, or amendment thereto, the Planning Board shall make and transmit to the governing body, within 35 days of referral, a written report including recommendations concerning the proposed ordinance, revision or amendment. The governing body, when considering the adoption of a zoning ordinance, revision or amendment thereto, shall approve or change any recommendation by a vote of a majority of its full authorized membership and shall record in its minutes the reasons for not following such recommendations. Failure of the Planning Board to transmit its written report within the thirty-five-day period provided herein shall relieve the governing body from the requirements of this section in regard to the proposed ordinance, revision or amendment thereto referred to the Planning Board. The provisions of the proposed zoning ordinance or any amendments or revisions thereto shall be substantially consistent with the land use plan element of the Master Plan and shall be composed with reasonable consideration to the character of each district and to encourage the most appropriate use of the land. The regulations in the zoning ordinance shall be uniform throughout each district for each class or kind of buildings or other structures or use of land, but the regulations in one district may differ from those in other districts.
(2)
Zoning Board of Adjustment referrals. The Planning Board shall review all use variances referred to them by the Zoning Board of Adjustment and shall return a written report with recommendations to them within 120 days, the time for action by the Board of Adjustment. Failure of the Planning Board to transmit its report within the mandated time period shall relieve the Board of Adjustment from the requirements of this subsection.
(3)
Referrals by other agencies. The Planning Board shall review all other zoning matters referred to it by any municipal body or municipal officer which by ordinance shall be referred to them. A written report within the time limit and under the same circumstances as Subsection D(2) above shall be made to the referring body or officer.
(4)
Rejection of recommendations. Whenever the Planning Board shall have made a recommendation regarding a matter authorized by this act to another municipal body, such recommendation may be rejected only by a majority of the full authorized membership of such other body.
§ 230-52 Expenses and costs.
A.
Appropriation of funds. The governing body shall make provision in its budget and appropriate funds for the expenses of the Planning Board.
B.
Compensation for professional services. The Planning Board may employ, or contract for, and fix the compensation of legal counsel, other than the municipal attorney, and experts, and other staff and services as it may deem necessary, not exceeding, exclusive of gifts and grants, the amount appropriated by the governing body for its use.
§ 230-53 Ancillary powers.
The Planning Board, when reviewing applications for approval of subdivision plats, site plans or conditional uses, shall have the power to grant approval to the same extent and subject to the same restrictions as the Board of Adjustment in the following instances:
A.
Bulk variances. Pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-70c, commonly known as "c" or "bulk" variances, from lot area, lot dimensional, setback, and yard requirements for reasons of:
(1)
Hardship. Where: (a) by reason of exceptional narrowness, shallowness or shape of a specific piece of property; or (b) by reason of exceptional topographic conditions or physical features uniquely affecting a specific piece of property; or (c) by reason of an extraordinary and exceptional situation uniquely affecting a specific piece of property or the structures lawfully existing thereon, the strict application of any regulation pursuant to this chapter would result in peculiar and exceptional practical difficulties to, or exceptional and undue hardship upon the developer of such property, grant, upon an application or an appeal relating to such property, a variance from such strict application of such regulation to relieve such difficulties or hardship; or
(2)
Purposes of chapter promoted. Where in an application relating to a specific piece of property, the purposes of this chapter would be advanced by a deviation from the Zoning Ordinance requirements and the benefits of the deviation would substantially outweigh any detriment, grant a variance to allow departure from regulations pursuant to the Zoning Ordinance; provided, however, that no variance from those departures enumerated in § 230-63D of this chapter relating to the powers of the Board of Adjustment shall be granted under this section.
B.
Variances from the Official Map. Direct the issuance of a permit for a building or structure in the bed of a mapped street or public drainageway, flood control basin or public area reserved pursuant to the Official Map of the municipality, if such has been adopted.
C.
Variance related to a street. Direct, pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-36, the issuance of a permit for a building or structure not related to a street.
D.
Notice of a variance request. Whenever relief is requested pursuant to this section, notice of the hearing on the application for development shall include reference to the request for a variance, or direction for issuance of a permit, as the case may be.
§ 230-54 Time for decision.
A.
Time frame for Township Planning Board approval. Whenever an application for approval of a site plan or conditional use includes a request for relief pursuant to § 230-53 of this chapter, the Planning Board shall conditionally grant or deny approval of the application within 120 days after determination of completeness of the application or within such further time as may be consented to by the applicant. Failure of the Planning Board to act within the period prescribed shall constitute approval of the application and a certificate of the Municipal Clerk as to the failure of the Planning Board to act shall be issued on request of the applicant, and it shall be sufficient in lieu of the written endorsement or other evidence of approval, herein required, and shall be so accepted by the County Recording Officer for purposes of filing subdivision plats.
B.
Time frame for County Planning Board approval. Whenever review or approval of the application by the County Planning Board is required in the case of a subdivision or site plan, the Municipal Planning Board shall condition any approval that it grants upon timely receipt of a favorable report on the application by the County Planning Board or approval by the County Planning Board by its failure to report thereon within the thirty-day time period.
§ 230-55 Environmental Commission review.
Whenever the Environmental Commission has prepared and submitted to the Planning Board an index of the natural resources of the municipality, the Planning Board shall make available to the Environmental Commission an informational copy of every application for development submitted to the Planning Board. Failure of the Planning Board to make such informational copy available to the Environmental Commission shall not invalidate any hearing or proceeding.
§ 230-56 Citizens Advisory Committee.
After the appointment of a Planning Board, the Mayor may appoint one or more persons as a Citizens Advisory Committee to assist or collaborate with the Planning Board in its duties, but such person or persons shall have no power to vote or take other action required of the Board. Such person or persons shall serve at the pleasure of the Mayor.