Rockland Town City Zoning Code
ARTICLE I
General Provisions
§ 185-1 Repeal and replacement.
This chapter, upon its effective date, shall repeal, in its entirety, the Town of Rockland Zoning Ordinance adopted in 1967, amended in 1981, and all later amendments made prior to the effective date of this chapter, whether enacted as local law or by ordinance. This chapter shall replace said ordinance and amendments.
§ 185-2 Authority.
This chapter regulates, by district, the use of land, buildings and structures in the Town of Rockland in the County of Sullivan. It further provides for the administration and enforcement of these regulations and fixes penalties for this violation. It is adopted under the authority of Article 16 of the New York State Town Law as well as the Municipal Home Rule Law and shall be known as the "Town of Rockland Zoning Law." It is also, pursuant to the authority granted under § 10 of the Municipal Home Rule Law, the intent of this chapter to amend and supersede §§ 130, 274-a, 274-b, 267, 276, 277 and 278 of the Town Law to permit the coordinated and comprehensive regulation of manufactured homes and manufactured home parks, campgrounds and recreational parks, multifamily dwellings, junkyards and conservation subdivisions and specifically to allow:
A.
The coordination and combination of subdivision and zoning controls as they pertain to multifamily dwellings and conservation subdivisions.
B.
The integration of junkyard and other regulations adopted pursuant to § 130 of the Town Law with site plan and special use review criteria adopted pursuant to §§ 274-a and 274-b of the Town Law.
C.
The establishment of special use and site plan review procedures which provide for SEQRA action following public hearings rather than before, the use of preliminary site plans and employment of renewable special use permits.
D.
Authorization for the Planning Board to require the use of the conservation subdivision technique and allow density bonuses for using it in supersession of § 278, Subdivision 3(b), of the Town Law.
E.
Establishment of a procedure for designation of alternate members on the Zoning Board of Appeals.
F.
Setting different penalties for violations, such violations to be treated as offenses rather than criminal violations as the Town Law provides.
G.
Authorization for the Planning Board to modify yard requirements for accessory buildings with site plan review, to authorize lot owners to encroach upon these yards for purposes of nonresidential building construction in the case of lots served by central sewer/water facilities in supersession of § 267-b of the Town Law.
[Amended 10-2-2003 by L.L. No. 5-2003]
H.
The Town Board shall also supersede the New York State Town Law pursuant to the Municipal Home Rule Law so as to appoint alternate members of the Planning Board to serve for terms of one year each or until their successors are appointed. Such alternate members shall attend meetings and act in the capacity of full members whenever regular members cannot attend or must recuse themselves due to conflicts of interest.
§ 185-3 Purposes.
This chapter is intended to implement the recommendations and fulfill the goals and objectives of the Town of Rockland Comprehensive Plan, as amended. Specific purposes of this chapter include those contained in § 263 of the Town Law and the following:
A.
Preserving and enhancing the Town's open spaces, scenic character, aesthetics and general living environment by providing for the proper relationships between man, building and open space in all site planning.
B.
Designing appropriate districts in the Town for various land uses at densities which will conserve and enhance the value of property while meeting the community development needs of the Town.
C.
Providing for a variety of housing units, in compatible residential environments, to address the full range of needs in terms of incomes, ages and family sizes.
D.
Encouraging compatible mixes of permitted uses within specified zoning districts.
E.
Establishing reasonable standards of development to which uses, buildings or structures shall conform so as to provide for the health, safety and general welfare of residents and reduce future costs to the community.
F.
Promoting orderly development to maintain the stability of residential, business and agricultural areas and improve the overall economic base of the Town.
§ 185-4 Conflicts and interpretation.
In the interpretation and the application of the provisions of this chapter, they shall be held to be the minimum requirements for the promotion of the health, safety, morals and general welfare. It is not intended to interfere with or abrogate or annul other laws, rules, regulations, ordinances or private covenants, provided that where this chapter imposes greater restrictions upon the use of buildings or premises or upon the height or bulk of a building or requires larger open spaces, the provisions of this chapter shall apply. In the event of any internal conflict in any terms or conditions of this chapter, the more restrictive provisions shall apply.
§ 185-5 Amendments.
[Amended 1-19-2017 by L.L. No. 1-2017]
This chapter may be amended from time to time by the Town Board pursuant to the provisions of the New York State Town Law and the Municipal Home Rule Law. Further, the Town Board recognizes the value of periodic review of this law in order to identify components that could benefit from amendments that increase the effectiveness of this law and help carry out the goals of the comprehensive plan.