Mountain Lakes City Zoning Code
ARTICLE III
Zoning Board of Adjustment
§ 245-15 Establishment; membership.
A.
A Zoning Board of Adjustment is hereby established which shall consist of seven regular members and two alternate members. All members shall be residents of the Borough and shall be appointed by the Council.
B.
Alternate members shall be designated at the time of appointment by the Council as "Alternate No. 1" and "Alternate No. 2."
C.
Alternate members may participate in discussions of the proceedings but may not vote except in the absence or disqualification of a regular member. A vote shall not be delayed in order that a regular member may vote instead of an alternate member. In the event that a choice must be made as to which alternate member is to vote, Alternate No. 1 shall vote.
§ 245-16 Terms of office.
A.
Regular members. The term of each regular member shall be four years. The terms of the members first appointed under this chapter shall be so determined that, to the greatest extent practicable, the expiration of such terms shall be distributed evenly over the first four years after their appointment, provided that the initial term shall not exceed four years.
B.
Alternate members. The term of each alternate member shall be two years, except that the terms of the alternate members shall expire in alternate years.
§ 245-17 Vacancies.
If a vacancy occurs other than by expiration of a term, it shall be filled by appointment as above provided for the unexpired term.
§ 245-18 Officers.
The Zoning Board of Adjustment shall elect a Chairperson and Vice Chairperson from among its members and shall also select a Secretary.
§ 245-19 Attorney.
The Zoning Board of Adjustment may annually appoint and, subject to the appropriation of funds, fix the compensation of the Zoning Board of Adjustment Attorney, who shall be an attorney other than the Borough Attorney.
§ 245-20 Experts and staff.
The Zoning Board of Adjustment may also employ or contract for and fix the compensation of such experts and other staff and services as it may deem necessary. The Board shall not authorize expenditures which exceed the amount appropriated by the Council for its use.
§ 245-21 Powers and duties generally.
A.
The Zoning Board of Adjustment shall have the following powers:
(1)
To hear and decide appeals where it is alleged by the applicant that there is error in any order, requirement, decision or refusal made by an administrative official or agency based on or made in the enforcement of the Zoning Ordinance.
(2)
To hear and decide requests for interpretation of the Zoning Map or Zoning Ordinance, or for decisions upon special questions upon which such Board is authorized by the Zoning Ordinance to pass.
(3)
Variance from zoning requirements.
(a)
Where, by reason of exceptional narrowness, shallowness or shape of a specific piece of property, or by reason of exceptional topographic conditions or physical features uniquely affecting a specific piece of property, or by reason of an extraordinary and exceptional situation uniquely affecting a specific piece of property or the structures lawfully existing thereon, the strict application of any regulation pursuant to Articles IX, X, XI, XII, XIV, and XV of this chapter would result in peculiar and exceptional practical difficulties to, or exceptional and undue hardship upon, the developer of such property, to grant, upon an application or an appeal relating to such property, a variance from such strict application of such regulation so as to relieve such difficulties or hardship.
(b)
Where, in an application or appeal relating to a specific piece of property, the purpose of N.J.S.A. 40:55D-1 et seq., the New Jersey Municipal Land Use Law, would be advanced by a deviation from the zoning ordinance requirements and the benefits of the deviation would substantially outweigh any detriment, to grant a variance to allow departure from regulations pursuant to Articles IX, X, XI, XII, XIV, and XV of this chapter; provided, however, that no variance from those departures enumerated in Subsection A(4) of this section shall be granted under this subsection, and provided further that the proposed development does not require approval by the Planning Board of a subdivision, site plan or conditional use in conjunction with which the Planning Board has power to review a request for a variance pursuant to § 245-10G of this chapter.
(4)
Variance in particular cases.
(a)
In particular cases and for special reasons, to grant a variance to allow departure from regulations, pursuant to this chapter, to permit:
[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 pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-67, pertaining solely to a conditional use.
[4]
An increase in the permitted floor area ratio, as defined in N.J.S.A. 40:55D-4.
[5]
An increase in the permitted density, as defined in N.J.S.A. 40:55D-4, 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.
[6]
A height of a principal structure which exceeds by 10 feet or 10% the maximum height permitted in the district for a principal structure.
(5)
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.
(6)
To direct issuance of a permit, pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-35 and 40:55D-36, for a building or structure not related to a street.
(7)
To grant, to 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 40:55D-59, or conditional use approval, pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-67, whenever the Board is reviewing an application for approval of a use variance, pursuant to Subsection A(4) of this section.
B.
No variance or other relief may be granted under the provisions of Subsection A(1) through (4) of this section unless such variance or other relief can be granted without substantial detriment to the public good and shall not substantially impair the intent and purpose of the zone plan and zoning ordinance.
C.
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 Zoning Board of Adjustment. 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 purpose of the zone plan and the zoning ordinance. The number of votes of Board members required to grant any such subsequent approval shall be as otherwise provided in the Municipal Land Use Law, N.J.S.A. 40:55D-1 et seq., for the approval in question, and the special vote, pursuant to Subsection A(4), shall not be required. Any application under any provision of this section may be referred to any appropriate person or agency for its report, provided that such reference shall not extend the period of time within which the Zoning Board of Adjustment shall act.
§ 245-22 Appeals and applications.
A.
Appeals to the Zoning Board of Adjustment may be taken by any interested party. Each appeal shall be taken within the 20 days prescribed by N.J.S.A. 40:55D-72(a) by filing a notice of appeal with the officer from whom the appeal was taken, together with three copies of such notice with the Secretary of the Zoning Board of Adjustment. Such notice of appeal shall specify the grounds of the appeal. The officer from whom the appeal is taken shall forthwith transmit to the Board all the papers constituting the record upon which the action appealed from was taken.
B.
Application addressed to the original jurisdiction of the Zoning Board of Adjustment, without prior application to an administrative officer or the Planning Board, shall be filed with the Secretary of the Zoning Board of Adjustment. At the time of filing the appeal or application, but in no event less than 10 days prior to the date set for hearing, the applicant shall also file all plot plans, maps, or other papers required by virtue of any provision of this chapter or any rule of the Zoning Board of Adjustment.
C.
An appeal to the Board shall stay all proceedings in furtherance of the action in respect of which the decision appealed from was made, unless the officer from whom the appeal is taken certifies to the Zoning Board of Adjustment after the notice of appeal shall have been filed with him/her that by reason of facts stated in the certificate a stay would, in his/her opinion, cause imminent peril to life or property. In such case, proceedings shall not be stayed other than by a restraining order which may be granted by the Zoning Board of Adjustment or by the Superior Court of New Jersey on application or notice to the officer from whom the appeal is taken and on due cause shown.
D.
An appeal or application to the Zoning Board of Adjustment shall be complete for purposes of commencing the applicable time period for action by the Board when so certified by the Board or its authorized designee. In the event that the Board or designee does not certify the application to be complete within 45 days of the date of its submission, the application shall be deemed complete upon expiration of the forty-five-day period for purposes of commencing the applicable time period unless:
(1)
The application lacks information in the form and substance required by the checklist set forth in this chapter for the particular type of application, which list of requirements and forms shall be provided to the applicant; and
(2)
The Zoning Board of Adjustment, or its designee, has notified the applicant, in writing, of the deficiencies in the application within 45 days of submission of the application. The applicant may request that one or more of the submission requirements be waived, in which event the Zoning Board of Adjustment shall grant or deny the request within 45 days. Nothing herein shall be construed as diminishing the applicant's obligation to prove in the application process that (s)he is entitled to approval of the application. The Zoning Board of Adjustment may subsequently require correction of any information found to be in error and submission of additional information not specified in the chapter or any revisions in the accompanying documents as are reasonably necessary to make an informed decision as to whether the requirements necessary for approval of the application for development have been met. The application shall not be deemed incomplete for lack of any such additional information or any revisions in the accompanying documents so required by the Zoning Board of Adjustment.
§ 245-23 Reversal or modification on appeal.
The Zoning Board of Adjustment may reverse or affirm, wholly or in part, or may modify the action, order, requirement, decision, interpretation or determination appealed from, and make such other requirement, decision or determination as ought to be made, and to that end have all powers of the officer from whom the appeal was taken.
§ 245-24 Time for decision.
The Zoning Board of Adjustment shall render its decision no later than 120 days after the date an appeal is taken from the decision of an administrative official, or the submission of a complete application for development to the Board, pursuant to the provisions of N.J.S.A. 40:55D-70(b). In the event that the developer elects to submit separate consecutive applications in accordance with the provisions of § 245-21C, the aforesaid provisions shall apply to the application for approval of the variance. The period for granting or denying any subsequent approval shall be as otherwise provided in this chapter. Failure of the Zoning Board of Adjustment to act within the period prescribed shall constitute approval of the application.
§ 245-25 Rules and regulations.
The Board shall adopt such rules and regulations as may be necessary to carry into effect the provisions and purposes of this article. In the issuance of subpoenas, administration of oaths and taking of testimony, the provisions of the County and Municipal Investigations Law of 1953, N.J.S.A. 2A:67A-1 et seq., shall apply.
§ 245-26 Lack of quorum.
If the Zoning Board of Adjustment lacks a quorum because any of its regular or alternate members is prohibited from acting on a matter due to the member's personal or financial interest therein, the provisions of N.J.S.A. 40:55D-69.1 shall apply.
§ 245-27 Report.
The Zoning Board of Adjustment shall, at least once a year, review its decisions on applications and appeals for variances and prepare and adopt by resolution a report of 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 Zoning Board of Adjustment shall send copies of the report and resolution to the governing body and Planning Board.