Watervliet City Zoning Code
ARTICLE II
Permits and Approvals
§ 272-7 Permits and approvals.
No development may be commenced within the City of Watervliet prior to the issuance of all relevant permits or approvals. The required permits and approvals include the following:
A.
Building permits and certificates of occupancy. The issuing, posting and expiration of building permits and the issuance of certificates of occupancy will be done according to Article XIII.
B.
Planned development districts. All planned development district applications shall be subject to the provisions of Article VI.
C.
Site plan approvals. Site plan review and approval shall be required for all proposed uses except single- and two-family dwellings and their accessory uses. The site plan review and approval process is provided in Article XI.
F.
Zoning permit. A zoning permit shall be required for the construction or alteration of a sign, the conversion or change in use of any existing building, structure, or parcel of land, to verify that such use is in accordance with this chapter. The zoning permit process is provided in Article XIII.
§ 272-8 Fees and expenses.
A.
Fees required by this chapter shall be paid upon the submission of applications and appeals.
B.
Fees related to this chapter shall be set forth in a fee schedule established by the City Council.[1] The City Council shall each year, at its organizational meeting, readopt its fee schedule for the new City fiscal year. The City Council shall also have the power to amend the fee schedule from time to time in its discretion when circumstances warrant such changes to the fee schedule. The fee schedule shall be available for public inspection in the offices of the City Clerk and Zoning Enforcement Officer and on the City's webpage.
C.
No required fee shall be substituted for any other fee.
D.
The following actions may require fees or reimbursement of expenses:
§ 272-9 Professional assistance.
In addition to any application fees, the Planning Board or the Zoning Board of Appeals may, at their discretion, engage the services of planning, engineering, legal, environmental or other professional consultants, at the expense of the applicant, for the review of applications involving significant issues beyond the scope or complexity of normal review. The Planning Board and the Zoning Board of Appeals may require costs to be paid in advance into an escrow account to be held and managed by the City and may deny an application upon failure of the applicant to make such payment in a timely manner. The City Corporation Counsel and the Director of Finance shall establish the terms of the account and shall provide a monthly accounting of the escrow account to the applicant and provisions for further funding of the escrow account when the balance is drawn down to a specified amount.
§ 272-10 Performance bond.
To ensure the completion of required improvements, such as, but not limited to, roads, landscaping, or other improvements required by the Planning Board as part of Article XI, Site Plan Review, the Planning Board may require as a condition of approval a performance bond or other security in such form and from a source acceptable to the City's Corporation Counsel in an amount sufficient to cover the estimated cost of completion of the improvements. Such bond or other acceptable form of security shall comply with the requirements of § 33, Subdivision 8, of Article 27.b[1] of the General City Law of New York State. A period of one year (or such other period as the Planning Board and/or the Zoning Board may determine appropriate, not to exceed three years) shall be set forth in the bond within which required improvements must be completed.
[1]
Editor's Note: So in original.
§ 272-11 State Environmental Quality Review Act.
The City shall comply with the provisions of the New York State Environmental Quality Review Act under Article 8 of the Environmental Conservation Law and its implementing regulations as codified in Title 6, Part 617, of the New York Codes, Rules and Regulations. Upon receipt of any complete application, the City or any officer, department or board of the City shall initiate the New York State environmental quality review process by issuing a determination of significance.