Building permits.

Certificates of occupancy and certificates of compliance. Certificates of occupancy and certificates of compliance shall be required and issued in accordance with the provisions of Chapter 83 of the Code of the Town of LaGrange.

No building permit, certificate of occupancy or certificate of compliance shall be issued unless all the provisions of this chapter have been complied with.

Purpose. Administration of this chapter pertaining to nonresidential uses and pertaining to the establishment or change of each particular separate business, trade, office, industry, institution or other nonresidential activity, including the change of owner, operator or name of any established nonresidential activity, requires a means for monitoring and enforcement of continuing compliance. That means shall be the use permit prescribed in this section.

Use permit required. A use permit shall be required before the establishment or change of any nonresidential use or activity, including the change of the owner, operator or name of any business, trade, office, industry, institution or other nonresidential activity.

Application and review. The owner or operator shall apply to the Building Inspector for a use permit on a form prescribed by the Building Inspector. There shall be a use permit application fee. The amount of the fee shall be set forth on the prevailing fee schedule adopted by resolution of the Town Board and as such schedule is modified from time to time by resolution of the Town Board. The Building Inspector shall review the application to determine whether the business, trade, office, industry, institution or other nonresidential activity complies with this chapter, including compliance with the current site plan approved for the site, if any. The Building Inspector shall also determine whether new or amended site plan approval is necessary prior to the issuance of a use permit. If such approval is necessary, the Building Inspector shall instruct the applicant to apply to the Planning Board for site plan approval pursuant to § 240-72 of this chapter. The Building Inspector shall provide a written report to the Planning Board as to why such approval is necessary.

If the business, trade, office, industry, institution or other nonresidential activity complies with this chapter and the applicant is in compliance with the site plan for the site, if any, a use permit shall be issued.

No certificate of occupancy shall be issued for a nonresidential structure unless a use permit has been issued pursuant to this section.

No temporary certificate of occupancy shall be issued for a nonresidential structure unless a use permit has been issued pursuant to this section.

A use permit shall expire automatically upon the change of business, trade, office, industry, institution or other nonresidential activity, including the change of owner, operator or name of any established nonresidential activity.

Revocation or suspension of use permit. If the Building Inspector determines that a use permit was issued in error because of incorrect, inaccurate or incomplete information and if the relevant deficiencies are not corrected to the satisfaction of the Building Inspector within such period of time as shall be specified by the Building Inspector, the Building Inspector shall revoke or suspend such use permit.

Violations and penalties. In case any building or structure is erected, constructed, reconstructed, altered, converted, located or maintained, or any building, structure, land or premises is used in violation of this chapter or any regulation or requirement made pursuant thereto, or under authority conferred thereby, in addition to other lawful remedies, the Town Board or, with its approval, the Building Inspector may, pursuant to § 268 of the Town Law, institute any appropriate action or proceedings to prevent such unlawful erection, construction, alteration, repair, maintenance or use; to restrain, correct or abate such violation; to prevent the occupancy of such buildings, land or premises or to prevent any illegal act, conduct, business or use in or about such premises. Any person or corporation whether as owner, lessee, architect, or builder or the agent or employee of any of them who violates or is accessory to the violation of any provision of this chapter or any regulation made under the authority conferred by this chapter or who shall erect, construct, alter, enlarge, convert or move any building or structure without a building permit or in violation or any statement or plans submitted and approved under the provisions of this chapter, or who shall use any building, structure or land in violation of this chapter or any regulation made under authority conferred by this chapter or in violation of the provisions of any building permit or certificate of occupancy or without a building permit or certificate of occupancy where one is required by this chapter shall be deemed to have committed an offense, as defined in the Penal Law, and shall be liable for the following penalties.

Procedure for abatement of violations. In case any building or structure is erected, constructed, reconstructed, altered, repaired, converted, or maintained or any building, structure, or land is used in violation of this chapter or of any provision of this chapter or law or regulation, the Town, in addition to other remedies, may institute any appropriate action or proceedings to prevent such unlawful erection, construction, or use to restrain, correct, or abate such violation, to prevent the occupancy of said building, structure, or land, or to prevent any illegal act, conduct, business, or use in or about such premises. If the Town is successful in obtaining preliminary and/or permanent injunctive relief, it shall be entitled to an award by the court of its reasonable attorney's fees.

Appearance tickets.

No building permit or certificate of occupancy shall be issued for any use for a property where there is an existing violation of this chapter. No certified municipal searches of the zoning or building code status of a property shall be issued where there is an existing violation. Further, upon receipt from the Building Inspector of a written report of a violation, or receipt of an order to cease and desist from a violation of this chapter, the Planning Board or the Zoning Board of Appeals, as the case may be, shall not review, hold public meetings or public hearings, and shall take no action regarding an application for subdivision, special use permit approval, site plan approval, area variance approval, use variance approval, or zoning interpretation until notified by the Building Inspector that such violation has been suitably cured or ceased by the applicant. The respective applications shall be deemed incomplete during a period of violation. However, the Planning Board or the Zoning Board of Appeals, as the case may be, may, upon written recommendation of the Building Inspector, review and act on an application involving property for which there is a violation where such application is a plan, independent of a larger project, to cure the violation and bring the property or use of the property into compliance with this chapter.

Where the Town Board, Planning Board or the Zoning Board of Appeals uses the services of private engineers, attorneys or other consultants for purposes of engineering, scientific, land use planning, environmental, legal or similar professional reviews of the adequacy or substantive aspects of applications, or of issues raised during the course of review of applications, for special permit approvals, site plan approvals, subdivision approvals, use or area variances, appeals to and requests for interpretation by the Zoning Board of Appeals, applications for rezoning of parcels to accommodate site-specific land development proposals or otherwise, open development areas, applications for permits to extract topsoil or natural resources, or for any other or ancillary land use or development permits or approvals required under the Town Code, or to assist in assuring or enforcing an applicant's compliance with the terms and conditions of all the aforementioned administrative and legislative permits or approvals, the applicant and landowner, if different, shall be jointly and severally responsible for payment of all the reasonable and necessary costs incurred by the Town for such services. In no event shall that responsibility be greater than the actual cost to the Town of such engineering, legal or other consulting services.

The Town Board, Planning Board, or Zoning Board of Appeals may require advance periodic monetary deposits to be held by the Town of LaGrange on account of the applicant or landowner to secure the reimbursement of the Town's consultant expenses. The Town Board shall establish policies and procedures for the fixing of escrow deposits and the management of payment from them. After audit and approval of itemized vouchers, by the Town Comptroller as to reasonableness and necessity of the consultant charges, based in part upon recommendation of the Administrator of Planning and Public Works, the Town may make payments from the deposited funds for engineering, legal or consulting services. Upon receipt of request by the applicant or landowner, the Town shall supply copies of such vouchers to the applicant and/or landowner reasonably in advance of audit and approval, appropriately redacted where necessary to shield legally privileged communications between Town officers or employees and the Town's consultants. When it appears that there may be insufficient funds in the account established for the applicant or landowner by the Town to pay current or anticipated vouchers, the Town shall cause the applicant or landowner to deposit additional sums to meet such expenses or anticipated expenses in accordance with policies and procedures established by the Town Board. No review shall be undertaken by consultants on any matter scheduled before the Town Board, Planning Board or Zoning Board of Appeals until the initial escrow deposit has been made, or until requested replenishment of the escrow deposit has been made. No reviewing agency shall be obligated to proceed unless the applicant is in compliance with escrow deposit requirements.

A consultant expense or part thereof is reasonable in amount if it bears a reasonable relationship to the customary fee charged by engineers, attorneys or planners within the region for services performed on behalf of applicants or reviewing boards in connection with comparable applications for land use or development. The Town may also take into account any special conditions for considerations as it may deem relevant, including but not limited to the quality and timeliness of submissions on behalf of the applicant and the cooperation of the applicant and agents during the review process. A consultant expense or part thereof is necessarily incurred if it was charged by the engineer, attorney or planner, or other consultant, for a service which was rendered in order to assist in the protection or promotion of the health, safety or welfare of the Town or its residents; to assist in the protection of public or private property or the environment from potential damage that otherwise may be caused by the proposed land use or development, including but not limited to damage from uncontrolled surface water runoff or other environmental factors; to assure or assist in compliance with laws, regulations, standards or codes which govern land use and development; to assure or assist in the orderly development and sound planning of a land use or development; to assure the proper and timely construction of public improvements, parks and other facilities consistent with conditions of approval, which affect the public welfare; to protect the legal interests of the Town, including receipt by the Town of good and proper title to dedicated highways and other facilities, to remedy correction of defects arising during any post-dedication maintenance period; to avoid claims against and liability of the Town; or to promote such other interests that the Town may specify as relevant.

Upon request of the applicant or landowner, the Town Board shall review and audit all vouchers and shall determine whether such engineering, legal and consulting expenses are reasonable in amount and necessarily incurred by the Town in connection with the review and consideration of applications for land use or development approvals or for the monitoring, inspection or enforcement of permits or approvals or the conditions attached thereto. In the event of request, the applicant or landowner shall be entitled to be heard by the Town Board on reasonable advance notice.

The owner(s) of the subject real property, if different from the applicant, shall be jointly and severally responsible to reimburse the Town of LaGrange for funds expended to compensate for services rendered to the Town under this section by private engineers, attorneys or other consultants. In order for a land use application to be complete, the applicant shall provide the written consent of all owners of the subject real property, both authorizing the applicant to file and pursue land development proposals and acknowledging potential landowner responsibility, under this section, for engineering, legal and other consulting fees incurred by the Town. The applicant and the owner shall remain responsible to reimburse the Town for its consulting expenses notwithstanding that the escrow account may be insufficient to cover such expenses. No plat or plans will be signed and no building permit or other permit shall be issued until reimbursement of costs and expenses determined by the Town to be due. In the event of failure to reimburse the Town for such fees, the following shall apply:

If a proposed action does not comply with the regulations of Article IV, § 240-49, Wireless communications towers and facilities, of this chapter, resulting in a request for use or area variances, the action will be considered a Type I action.

Any proposed construction or proposed development in the following protective overlay zones shall be considered a Type I action: Stream Corridor Overlay Zone (§ 240-31B), Farmland Preservation Overlay Zone (§ 240-31C), Historic Overlay Zone (§ 240-31D), Scenic Overlay Zone (§ 240-31E) and the Ridgeline Protection Overlay Zone (§ 240-31F).

Permit application. Application for a sign permit shall be in writing to the Building Inspector or Deputy Building Inspectors on forms prescribed and provided by the Town. The sign permit application must be co-signed by the owner of the real property where the sign is proposed. The owner of the real property shall be jointly and severally responsible for violations related to the sign or signs. The application for sign permit shall indicate the owner's responsibility.

Filing fee and deposit. A nonrefundable filing and administration fee shall accompany all sign permit applications as specified in the Town's fee schedule. A refundable deposit shall accompany all sign permit applications for temporary signs requiring a permit as specified in the Town's fee schedule. Said deposit shall be to guarantee removal upon expiration of the permit or the period permitted for display of the sign. If the sign is removed on or before the date required for removal, the deposit shall be forfeited and used toward the cost of gaining compliance.

Within 30 days following the filing of a completed application for a sign permit and the payment of the required fee, the Building Inspector or Deputy Building Inspectors shall review the application to determine whether the proposed sign is in compliance with all the requirements of § 240-43 of this chapter.

If the proposed sign is in compliance with all the requirements of this chapter and is not related to a proposal otherwise undergoing review by the Planning Board or is a business temporary sign, the Building Inspector or Deputy Building Inspectors shall render a decision on the issuance of a sign permit no later than 30 days after the application is received. If the sign proposal is related to a matter under Planning Board review, the Building Inspector or Deputy Building Inspectors shall refer the application to the Planning Board for site plan review. If the Planning Board approves the sign, it shall direct the Building Inspector or Deputy Building Inspector to issue a permit for the sign.

If the Building Inspector or Deputy Building Inspectors determines that the proposed sign is not in compliance with all of the requirements of this chapter he or she shall notify the applicant in writing that the application has been denied and the reason(s) for the denial and file a copy of the denial in the office of the Building Inspector or Deputy Building Inspectors. The applicant may appeal the decision to the Zoning Board of Appeals within 60 days of the filing of the denial in the office of the Building Inspector or Deputy Building Inspectors.

Administration and enforcement; authorization. No sign, except for signs regulated by § 240-43F which are exempt from permit requirements, shall be erected, modified or displayed without a current valid permit or approval having first been granted by the Building Inspector or deputies of the Town of LaGrange. Applicants for site plan, special use permit or subdivision approval who intend to erect signs as part of the proposed project shall submit a separate application for a sign permit to obtain approval for any proposed signs. No approval for said signs shall be given by the Planning Board unless the permit procedures are followed, and no sign requiring a permit shall be erected, modified or displayed until a permit has been issued by the Building Inspector or Deputy Building Inspectors. At the sole discretion of the Town Board, the reasonable and necessary costs, including consultant costs and attorney fees, incurred for the removal of any sign pursuant to § 240-43C(14) of this chapter shall be charged against the real property from which the sign was removed by adding that charge to, and making it a part of, the next annual real property tax assessment roll of the Town. The process for cost recovery is set forth within Subsection I.

Confiscation of signs. Any sign deemed to be in violation of the code that is placed within the road right-of-way will be confiscated and discarded without notice. Confiscated signs will not be retained by the Town or returned to the owner of the sign or of the land from which it was confiscated.

Permit revocation and sign removal.

Costs of removal of signs. At the sole discretion of the Town, the reasonable and necessary costs incurred by the Town for removal of any sign shall be charged against the real property from which the sign was removed by adding that charge to and making it a part of the next annual real property tax assessment roll of the Town. Such charges shall be levied and collected at the same time and in the same manner as Town-assessed taxes and shall be paid to the Town Clerk to be applied in reimbursing the fund from which the costs of sign removal were paid. Prior to charging such assessments, the owners of the real property shall be provided written notice to their last known address of record, by certified mail, return receipt requested, of an opportunity to be heard and object before the Town Board to the proposed real property assessment, at a date to be designated in the notice, which shall be no less than 14 days after its mailing. The owner of the land, in addition to the tenant or owner of the sign, shall be jointly and severally responsible for reimbursement of the Town's expenses.

Duration of sign permits. Signs shall be erected, modified or displayed within 12 months following the issuance of a sign permit, otherwise the sign permit shall be null and void.