Keansburg City Zoning Code
§ 22-3.2 Planning Board
Zoning Functions.
[Ord. #1045, § 3.2; Ord. #1063, § II; Ord. #1258, § 1]
a.
Zoning Powers of the Planning Board.
1.
The Planning Board shall have the power to:
(a)
Hear and decide appeals where it is alleged by the appellant that there is an error in any order, requirement, decision or refusal made by an administrative official or agency based on or made in the enforcement of the provisions of this Chapter adopted pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-62 through 68.
(1)
Appeals to the Planning Board may be taken by an interested party. Each appeal shall be taken within the 20 days prescribed by N.J.S.A. 40:55D-72 by filing a notice of appeal with the officer from whom the appeal was taken, together with three copies of said notice with the Administrative Officer. Said notice of appeal shall specify the grounds for said appeal. The officer from whom the appeal is taken shall immediately transmit to the Board all the papers constituting the record upon which the action appealed from was taken.
(2)
An appeal stays all proceedings in furtherance of the action in respect of which the decision appealed from was made, unless the officer form whom the appeal is taken certifies to the Planning Board after the notice of appeal shall have been filed with him that by reason of facts stated in the certificate a stay would, in his opinion, cause imminent peril to life or property. In such cases, proceedings shall not be stayed otherwise than by a restraining order which may be granted by the Planning Board or by the Superior Court of New Jersey on application or notice to the officer whom the appeal is taken and on due cause shown.
(3)
The Planning Board may, in conformity with the provisions of N.J.S.A. 40:55D-1 et seq., reverse or affirm wholly or partly or may modify the order, requirement, decision or determination appealed from, and make such other requirement, decision or determination as ought to be made, and to that end have all the powers of the administrative officer from whom the appeal was taken.
(b)
Hear and decide requests for interpretation of the Zoning Map or zoning provisions of this Chapter adopted pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-62 through 68, or for decisions upon other special questions upon which such Board is authorized by this Chapter to pass.
(c)
Grant, upon an application or an appeal, relief from regulations pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-62 through 68, except those departures enumerated in N.J.S.A. 40:55D-70d, where:
(1)
The strict application of such regulation would result in peculiar and exceptional practical difficulties to, or exceptional and undue hardship upon the developer of a property for any of the following reasons:
(i)
By reason of exceptional narrowness, shallowness or shape of the specific piece of property, or
(ii)
By reasons of exceptional topographic conditions or physical features uniquely affecting the specified piece of property, or
(iii)
By reason of an extraordinary and exceptional situation uniquely affecting a specific piece of property or the structures lawfully existing thereon; or
(2)
The purposes of N.J.S.A. 40:55D-1 et seq. would be advanced by a deviation from the Zoning Ordinance requirements and the benefits of the deviation would substantially outweigh any detriment.
(d)
Grant, upon an application or an appeal, in particular cases and for special reasons, by affirmative vote of at least five members, a variance to allow departures from regulations pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-62 through 68 to permit the following:
(1)
A use or principal structure in a district restricted against such use or principal structure;
(2)
An expansion of a nonconforming use;
(3)
Deviation from a specification or standard pertaining solely to a conditional use;
(4)
An increase in the permitted floor area ratio;
(5)
An increase in the permitted density except as applied to the required lot area for a lot or lots for detached one or two dwelling unit buildings which lot or lots are either an isolated undersized lot or lots resulting from a minor subdivision.
No variance or other relief may be granted under the terms of N.J.S.A. 40:55D-70d unless such variance or other relief can be granted without substantial detriment to the public good and will not substantially impair the intent and purposes of the zone plan and this Chapter. An application under this section may be referred to any appropriate person or agency, provided such reference shall not extend the period of time within which the Planning Board shall act.
2.
The Planning Board shall have the power to grant the same extent and subject to the same restrictions as the Planning Board subdivision or site plan approval pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-37 through 59 or conditional use approval pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-67 whenever the proposed development requires approval by the Planning Board of a variance pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-70d. The developer may elect to submit a separate application requesting approval of the variance and a subsequent application for any required approval of a subdivision, site plan or conditional use. The separate approval of the variance shall be conditioned upon grant of all required subsequent approvals by the Planning Board. No such subsequent approval shall be granted unless such approval can be granted without substantial detriment to the public good and without substantial impairment of the intent and purposes of the zone plan and zoning regulations. The number of votes of the Board members required to grant any such subsequent approval shall be as otherwise provided in N.J.S.A. 40:55D-1 et seq. for the approval in question, and the special vote pursuant to the aforesaid subsection d of N.J.S.A. 40:55D-70 shall not be required.
3.
The Planning Board shall have the power to direct issuance of a permit pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-34 for a building or structure in the bed of a mapped street or public drainageway, flood control basin or public area reserved on the official map.
4.
The Planning Board shall have the power to direct issuance of a permit pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-36 for a building or structure not related to a street.
b.
Reports. The Planning Board shall, at least once a year, review its decision on applications and appeals for variances and prepare and adopt by resolution a report on its findings on zoning ordinance provisions which were the subject of variance requests and its recommendations for zoning ordinance amendment or revision, if any. The Planning Board shall send copies of the report and resolution to the Borough Council and the Planning Board.
c.
through l. (Reserved)