(A)

Authority of town council to adopt—Consistency with comprehensive plan. For the purpose of promoting the public health, safety, morals, and general welfare, the town council shall have the authority, in accordance with the provisions of R.I.G.L. title 45, chapter 24, to adopt, amend, and repeal the zoning ordinance. The zoning ordinance shall be consistent with the comprehensive community plan enacted pursuant to R.I.G.L. title 45, chapter 22.2.

(B)

Procedure for adoption or amendment.

(1)

A person proposing an amendment to the zoning ordinance shall submit an application to the town clerk on the form provided for that purpose.

(2)

The town clerk shall refer the amendment application to the town council and to the planning board for study and recommendation.

(3)

The planning board shall review the application and make a written recommendation on the proposed amendment to the town council within forty-five (45) days.

(C)

Planning board recommendation. A planning board recommendation to the town council concerning a proposed amendment to the zoning ordinance, whether the proposal originates from a property owner or from the planning board itself, shall include:

(1)

A statement about the consistency of the proposed amendment with the comprehensive plan, including the plan's goals and policies statement, implementation program, and all other applicable elements of the plan.

(2)

A statement concerning how the proposed amendment addresses each of the purposes of zoning in R.I.G.L. § 45-24-30 that are applicable to the proposal.

(D)

Public hearing. Within sixty-five (65) days of the receipt of an application for amendment to the zoning ordinance, the town council shall conduct a public hearing on the proposed amendment.

(E)

Newspaper advertisement. The public hearing shall be advertised at least once a week for three (3) successive weeks in a newspaper of local circulation in Hopkinton. The third week may be the week in which the public hearing is to be held. The notice shall:

(1)

State the date, time, and location of the hearing.

(2)

State that adoption, amendment or repeal of the zoning ordinance is under consideration.

(3)

Reproduce or summarize the proposed amendment.

(4)

State the time and place where a copy of the entire proposed amendment may be examined or copied.

(5)

State that the proposal may be altered or amended before the public hearing closes, without further advertising, because of further study or because of views expressed at the public hearing.

(F)

Map amendments. If the proposed amendment includes a specific change in a zoning map but does not affect zoning districts generally:

(1)

The newspaper advertisement shall include a map of the property that is the subject of the amendment, showing the existing lots and lot boundaries, the existing and proposed zoning district boundaries, existing streets and their names, and town boundaries if applicable, and

(2)

Written notice, which may be a copy of the newspaper advertisement, shall be mailed at least fourteen (14) days before the public hearing by first class mail. The notice shall be mailed to:

(a)

The owners of property within two hundred (200) feet of the property that is the subject of the amendment, whether located in Hopkinton or an adjacent town. The last known names and addresses of the property owners shall be obtained from current real estate tax assessment records.

(b)

The town council of any town adjacent to Hopkinton if the property is located within two hundred (200) feet of the boundary of that town.

(c)

The town council of any town 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, located within two thousand (2,000) feet of the property.

(d)

The governing body of any state or municipal water department or agency, special water district, or private water company, or any private property owner, that has riparian rights to a surface water resource or surface watershed that is used or is suitable for use as a public water source and that is within two thousand (2,000) feet of the property that is the subject of the application, provided that the governing body of the state or municipal water department or agency, special water district, or private water company, or the private property owner, has filed with the Hopkinton building official a map survey, which shall be kept as a public record, showing the areas of surface water resources or watersheds and parcels of land within two thousand (2,000) feet.

(e)

Any individual or entity holding a recorded conservation or preservation restriction on the property.

If the applicant mails the notices, the applicant must submit to the town clerk before the public hearing an affidavit attesting to the mailing, a copy of the notice mailed, and the names and addresses to which the notices were mailed.

(3)

At least fourteen (14) days before the date of the public hearing, the notice shall be posted in the town clerk's office, in one (1) other municipal building, and on the home page of the town's website.

(G)

Lot merger. If a proposed text amendment would cause one (1) or more lots to become nonconforming in area or frontage, written notice, which may be a copy of the newspaper advertisement, shall be mailed at least two (2) weeks before the public hearing, by first class mail, to the owner of each lot that would become nonconforming. If this zoning ordinance contains a section automatically merging nonconforming lots in the same ownership, the notice shall contain a copy of the merger section and shall state that adoption of the proposed amendment may cause a legal nonconforming lot to merge with an adjacent nonconforming lot if both lots are owned by the same person or persons.

(H)

Defect in notice. No defect in the form of any notice shall render any ordinance amendment invalid, unless the defect is found to be intentional or misleading. The applicant for the ordinance amendment shall bear the cost of the newspaper advertisement and any individual notice required.

(I)

Alteration of advertised amendment. If the advertised proposal is altered or amended, the change must be presented during the public hearing so that interested persons have an opportunity to comment on it.

(J)

Conditions and restrictions. The town council shall act on the proposed ordinance amendment within forty-five (45) days after the date the public hearing is closed, unless the property owner who requested the amendment consents to a longer period. When approving a zoning ordinance amendment, the town council may restrict the use of the property to one (1) or more of the permitted or conditionally permitted uses in the zoning district, and may impose limitations, conditions, and restrictions on the property that include, but are not limited to:

(1)

A requirement that a property owner obtain a permit or approval from any state or local governmental agency or instrumentality having jurisdiction over use of the land.

(2)

Limitations, conditions or restrictions related to the effectiveness or continued effectiveness of the zoning ordinance amendment.

(3)

Limitations, conditions or restrictions concerning the use of the land.

The town clerk shall clearly note any limitations, conditions, or restrictions on the zoning map, and shall record the limitations, conditions, or restrictions in the land evidence records. If any limitation, condition, or restriction in an ordinance is declared invalid by a court, the remainder of the ordinance shall not be invalid.

(Ch. 134, § 17, 12-19-94; Ch. 292, §(Exh. L), 12-4-23)