The purpose of the zoning and planning laws and regulations of the Village of Montgomery is to provide for, encourage and promote superior design and execution of land use, construction and development in the Village for the benefit of both the present and future residents of the Village. Too often the laws and regulations are regarded as mere minimum requirements which are strictly implemented without regard to physical, aesthetic and neighborhood concerns which must be taken into account to ensure land use of the highest caliber.

The original jurisdiction over land use regulation in the Village lies with the elected Board of Trustees. The Board of Trustees has delegated its authority over many matters to administrative boards and/or officers. However, such boards and officers are limited in their administrative capacities by the strict text of the laws and regulations constituting the Village's Comprehensive Plan.

In order to promote and encourage superiority of design and development of land, to provide flexibility to provide for the best and most appropriate use of land, to assure proper provision of services, utilities and streets of good quality and to preserve and promote the aesthetic and community qualities of the Village, the Board of Trustees has enacted this article.

Subdivision of land into more than three lots.

Approval of four or more dwelling units.

Creation of new streets, whether or not offered for dedication.

Creation of parks, parkland or designated open space, whether or not offered for dedication.

Water and/or sewer facilities requiring pump or booster stations.

Industrial or commercial uses requiring more than 5,000 gallons of water per day.

Industrial or commercial uses having more than 4,000 square feet gross floor area.

Projects adjacent to or within 200 feet of property owned by the Village.[1]

Any planned residential development.

All review procedures shall, to the extent practical, be implemented to provide prompt review of applications and early identification of area of concern and potential impact as is consistent with a complete and thorough review of the application.

All applications subject to approval by the Board of Trustees pursuant to this article shall be submitted simultaneously to the Board of Trustees and other Village agencies having jurisdiction.

Applications shall not be deemed to be before the Board of Trustees until the application has received the preliminary approval of all other Village agencies having jurisdiction.

Any preliminary approval shall be deemed conditional upon the approval of the Board of Trustees.

The Board of Trustees may present comments to other Village agencies prior to their granting preliminary approval.

The Board of Trustees may conduct such proceedings and/or hold such hearings as it deems appropriate for proper review of the application before it.

No application shall be deemed approved unless it has received the affirmative vote of the majority of the Board of Trustees.

Applications approved by the Board of Trustees shall thereafter be subject to the final approval of other Village agencies consistent with the approval of the Board of Trustees. No Village agency shall give final approval to an application subject to this article unless the Board of Trustees has approved the application.

The Board of Trustees is hereby authorized to approve applications upon such reasonable conditions as it deems appropriate to further the purposes of this article.