Lysander City Zoning Code
ARTICLE XXIII
Administration
§ 320-64 Codes Enforcement Officer; building permits; certificate of occupancy.
A.
Codes Enforcement Officer. The Town Board shall appoint a Codes Enforcement Officer who shall be charged with the general and executive administration of this chapter. The Town Board shall fix the salary or remuneration of such officer and shall provide for the payment thereof.
B.
Building permits.
(1)
No building or structure shall be excavated for, erected, added to or structurally altered until a permit therefor has been issued by the Codes Enforcement Officer. Except upon a written order of the Board of Appeals, no such building permit nor a certificate of occupancy shall be issued for any building where said construction, addition or alteration or use thereof would not conform to the provisions of this chapter.
(2)
There shall be submitted with all applications for building permits three copies of a layout or plot showing the actual dimensions of the lot to be built upon, the actual size and location on the lot of the building and accessory buildings to be erected and such other information as may be necessary to determine and provide for the enforcement of this chapter.
(3)
One copy of such layout or plot shall be returned when approved by the Codes Enforcement Officer, together with such building permit, to the applicant upon payment of a fee as set by the Town Board.
(4)
A building permit shall be effective to authorize the commencement of work in accordance with the application, plans and other information upon which it is based for a period of 12 months after the date of issuance.
C.
Certificate of occupancy.
(1)
After the effective date of this chapter, no land or buildings shall be changed in use and no buildings thereafter erected, altered, moved or extended shall be used until a certificate of occupancy shall have been issued by the Codes Enforcement Officer stating that the building or proposed use thereof is valid under the provisions of this chapter.
(2)
All nonconforming uses shall be required to register with the Codes Enforcement Officer a layout or plot plan of such use within the first six months following the date when said use shall become nonconforming under the provisions of this chapter.
(3)
All certificates of occupancy shall be applied for coincident with the application for a building permit. Said certificates shall be issued within 10 days after the erection or alteration shall have been approved as complying with the provisions of this chapter.
(4)
The Codes Enforcement Officer shall maintain a record of all certificates of occupancy, and copies shall be furnished, upon request, to any person having a propriety or tenancy interest in the building affected.
(5)
Pending the issuance of a regular certificate of occupancy, a temporary certificate of occupancy may be issued for a period not to exceed six months. Temporary certificates of occupancy may be renewed for additional six-month periods; such renewals shall not exceed a total of three in number. Such temporary certificates of occupancy shall only be issued in case of emergency or hardship and only for the following purposes: temporary use of a building as a dwelling while a permanent dwelling is under construction or alteration or the use of an uncompleted dwelling under construction. A building shall be considered "under construction" and "uncompleted" until there is a complete exterior of a story other than a basement.
§ 320-65 Board of Appeals.
A.
Creation, appointment and organization. A Board of Appeals, as previously created by the 1974 Zoning Ordinance of the Town of Lysander, is hereby continued. Said Board shall consist of five permanent members and two alternate members, appointed by the Town Board, who shall also designate the Chairman. The terms of office of said permanent members of the Board of Appeals shall be five years. Of the alternate members of the Board first appointed, one shall be appointed for a term of one year, and one person shall be appointed for a term of two years, and all successors shall be appointed for a term of two years. If a vacancy shall occur otherwise than by expiration of term, it shall be filled by the Town Board, which shall appoint an alternate member with the longest tenure for the unexpired term or, if the alternate members have the same tenure, the appointment of an alternate member shall be at the discretion of the Town Board. The Board of Appeals shall prescribe rules for the conducting of its affairs, including rules relating to notice of neighbors regarding area variance requests.
B.
Substitutions/alternates. The Chairperson of the Zoning Board of Appeals may designate an alternate to substitute for a member when such member is unavailable or unable to participate on an application or matter before the Board. When so designated, the alternate member shall possess all the powers and responsibilities of such member of the Board. Such designation shall be entered into the minutes of the Zoning Board meeting at which the substitution is made.
C.
Powers and duties. The Board of Appeals shall have all the powers and duties prescribed by law and by this chapter, which are more particularly specified as follows:
(1)
Interpretation. Upon appeal from a decision by the Codes Enforcement Officer, to decide any question involving the interpretation of any provision of this chapter, including determination of the exact location of any district boundary if there is uncertainty with respect thereto.
(3)
Variances. To vary or adapt the strict application of any of the requirements of this chapter in accordance with the applicable provisions of the Town Law.
§ 320-66 Procedures for appeals and applications.
A.
The Board of Appeals shall act in strict accordance with the procedures specified by law and by this chapter. All appeals and applications made to the Board of Appeals shall be in writing on forms prescribed by the Board of Appeals.
B.
Every appeal or application shall refer to the specific provision of the zoning law involved and shall exactly set forth the interpretation that is claimed, the use for which the special use permit is sought or the details of the variance that is applied for and the grounds on which it is claimed, as the case may be. The Board of Appeals shall fix a reasonable time for the public hearing required for every appeal or application and shall give public notice thereof by the publication in the official paper of a notice of such public hearing at least 10 days prior to the date thereof and shall, at least 10 days before such public hearing, mail notices thereof to the parties involved.
C.
Except for area variance applications, at least 10 days before the date of the public hearing required by law on an application or appeal to the Board of Appeals, the Secretary of said Board shall transmit to the Planning Board of the Town of Lysander a copy of said application or appeal, together with a copy of the notice of the aforesaid public hearing, and shall request that the Planning Board submit to the Board of Appeals its advisory opinion on said application or appeal, and the Planning Board shall submit a report of such advisory opinion prior to the date of said public hearing.
D.
In addition to the notice required by statute, notice shall be given of any application made under the provisions of this article by mailing, at least five days prior to the hearing upon such application, written notice of the substance of the application and the date, time and place of the hearing to all the owners of land which immediately adjoins the premises for which said application is made or which abuts the same street or streets as said premises and is within a distance of 300 feet, exclusive of street rights-of-way, of the exterior boundaries of said premises, as the names and addresses of said owners appear in the latest completed assessment roll of the Town. Failure to comply with this section shall not invalidate any action taken by the Board of Appeals.
E.
Every decision of the Board of Appeals shall be made by resolution, each of which shall contain a full record of the findings of the Board in the particular case. Each such resolution shall be filed in the office of the Town Clerk. The Board of Appeals shall notify the Town Board and the Planning Board of the Town of Lysander of each special permit use and each variance granted under the provisions of this chapter.
§ 320-67 Penalties for offenses.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I)]
A.
Any person, firm or corporation found guilty of violating any provision of this chapter shall upon conviction be guilty of a violation punishable by a fine not to exceed $300 except that:
(1)
Where the person, firm or corporation is found guilty of violating the same provision of this chapter within the preceding five years, the penalty shall be a fine of not less than $300 nor more than $500 or imprisonment for a maximum of 15 days, or both such fine and imprisonment.
(2)
Where the person, firm or corporation is found guilty of violating the same provision of this chapter on two or more occasions within the preceding five years, the penalty shall be a fine of not less than $400 nor more than $1,000 or imprisonment for a maximum of 30 days, or both such fine and imprisonment.
§ 320-68 Conflict with other provisions.
Notwithstanding anything contained in this Article XXIII to the contrary, in the event that there is a conflict between this Article XXIII and Chapter 122, Construction Codes, Uniform, Article I, Administration and Enforcement, of the Code of the Town of Lysander, Chapter 122, Article I, shall supersede and be preeminent over this article.