No member of the Planning Board shall act on
any matter in which he or she has either directly or indirectly any
personal or financial interest. Whenever any such member shall disqualify
himself or herself from action on a particular matter, he or she shall
not continue to sit with the Board on the hearing of such matter nor
participate in any discussion or decision relating thereto.
A.
Meetings of the Planning Board shall be scheduled
no less often than once a month, and any meeting so scheduled shall
be held as scheduled unless canceled for lack of applications for
development to process.
B.
Special meetings may be provided for at the call of
the Chairperson or on the request of any two Board members, which
shall be held on notice to its members and the public in accordance
with all applicable legal requirements.
C.
No action shall be taken at any meeting without a
quorum being present.
D.
All actions shall be taken by majority vote of a quorum
except as otherwise required by any provision of N.J.S.A. 40:55D-1
et seq.
Minutes of every regular or special meeting
shall be kept and shall include the names of the persons appearing
and addressing the Board and of the persons appearing by attorney,
the action taken by the Board, the findings, if any, made by it and
reasons therefor. The minutes shall thereafter be made available for
public inspection during normal business hours at the office of the
Borough Clerk/Municipal Administrator. Any interested party shall
have the right to compel production of the minutes for use as evidence
in any legal proceeding concerning the subject matter of such minutes.
Such interested party may be charged a fee for reproduction of the
minutes for his or her use as provided for in the rules of the Board.
Fees for applications or for the rendering of
any service by the Planning Board or any member of its administrative
staff which is not otherwise provided for by ordinance may be provided
for and adopted as part of the rules of the Board, and copies of said
rules or of the separate fee schedule shall be available to the public.
A.
Rules. The Planning Board shall make rules governing
the conduct of hearings which rules shall not be inconsistent with
the provisions of N.J.S.A. 40:55D-1 et seq., or of this article.
B.
Oaths. The Chairperson presiding at the hearing or
such person as he or she may designate shall have power to administer
oaths and issue subpoenas to compel the attendance of witnesses and
the production of relevant evidence, including witnesses and documents
presented by the parties, and the provisions of the County and Municipal
Investigations Law, Ch. 38, P.L. 1953 (N.J.S.A. 2A:67A-1 et seq.)
shall apply.
C.
Testimony. The testimony of all witnesses relating
to an application for development shall be taken under oath or affirmation
by the presiding officer, and the right of cross examination shall
be permitted to all interested parties through their attorneys, if
represented, or directly, if not represented, subject to the discretion
of the presiding officer and to reasonable limitations as to time
and number of witnesses.
D.
Evidence. Technical rules of evidence shall not be
applicable to the hearing, but the Board may exclude irrelevant, immaterial
or unduly repetitious evidence.
E.
Records. Each Board shall provide for the verbatim
recording of the proceedings by either stenographer, mechanical or
electronic means. The Board shall furnish a transcript or duplicate
recording in lieu thereof on request to any interested party at his
or her expense.
Whenever a hearing is required on an application
for development pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-1 et seq. or pursuant
to the determination of the municipal agency in question, the applicant
shall give notice thereof as follows:
A.
Public notice shall be given by publication in the
official newspaper of the Borough at least 10 days prior to the date
of the hearing.
B.
At least 10 days prior to the date of the hearing,
notice shall be given to the owners of all real property as shown
on the current tax duplicate or duplicates located within 200 feet
in all directions of the property which is the subject of such hearing
and whether located within or without the Borough in which the applicant's
land is located. Such notice shall be given by:
(1)
Serving a copy thereof on the owner as shown on the
said current tax duplicate or his or her agent in charge of the property;
or
(2)
Mailing a copy thereof by certified mail to the property
owner at his or her address as shown on the said current tax duplicate.
A return receipt is not required. Notice to a partnership owner may
be made by service upon any partner. Notice to a corporate owner may
be made by service upon its president, a vice president, secretary
or other person authorized by appointment or by law to accept service
on behalf of the corporation.
C.
Notice of all hearings on applications for development involving property located within 200 feet of an adjoining municipality shall be given by personal service or certified mail to the clerk of such municipality, which notice shall be in addition to the notice required to be given pursuant to § 46-27B of this article to the owners of lands in such adjoining municipality which are located within 200 feet of the subject premises.
D.
Notice shall be given by personal service or certified
mail to the County Planning Board of a hearing or an application for
development of property adjacent to an existing county road or proposed
road shown on the Official County Map or on the County Master Plan,
adjoining other county land or situate within 200 feet of a municipal
boundary.
E.
Notice shall be given by personal service or certified
mail to the Commissioner of Transportation of a hearing on an application
for development of property adjacent to a state highway.
F.
Notice shall be given by personal service or certified
mail to the Director of the Division of State and Regional Planning
in the Department of Community Affairs of a hearing on an application
for development of property which exceeds 150 acres or 500 dwelling
units. Such notice shall include a copy of any maps or documents required
to be on file with the Borough Clerk/Municipal Administrator pursuant
to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-10.
G.
All notices specified in this section shall be given
at least 10 days prior to the date fixed for hearing, and the applicant
shall file an affidavit of proof of service with the Board holding
the hearing on the application for development.
H.
Any notice made by certified mail as required shall
be deemed to be complete upon mailing in accordance with the provisions
of N.J.S.A. 40:55D-14.
I.
Form of notice. All notices required to be given pursuant
to the terms of this article shall state the date, time and place
of the hearing, the nature of the matters to be considered and identification
of the property proposed for development by street address, if any,
or by reference to lot and block numbers as shown on the current tax
duplicate in the Municipal Tax Assessor's office and the location
and times at which any maps and documents for which approval is sought
are available as required by law.
Pursuant to the provisions of N.J.S.A. 40:55D-12c, the Borough's designated representative shall, within seven days after receipt of a request therefor, and upon receipt of payment of a fee not to exceed $0.25 per name or $10, whichever is greater, make and certify a list from the current tax duplicate of names and addresses of owners to whom the applicant is required to give notice pursuant to Article III, § 46-27B, of this article.
A.
Each decision on any application for development shall
be set forth in writing as a resolution of the Board which shall include
findings of fact and legal conclusions based thereon.
B.
A copy of the decision shall be mailed by the Board
within 10 days of the date of the adoption of the resolution to the
applicant, or, if represented, then to his or her attorney, without
separate charge. A copy of the decision shall also be mailed to all
persons who have requested it and who have paid the fee prescribed
by the Board for such service. A copy of the decision shall also be
filed in the office of the Borough Clerk/Municipal Administrator,
who shall make a copy of such filed decision available to any interested
party upon payment of a fee calculated in the same manner as those
established for copies of other public documents in the Borough.
A brief notice of every final decision shall
be published in the official newspaper of the Borough. Such publication
shall be arranged by the Secretary without separate charge to the
applicant. Said notice shall be sent to the official newspaper for
publication within 10 days of the date of any such decision.
Pursuant to the provisions of N.J.S.A. 40:55D-39
and 40:55D-65, every application for development submitted to the
Planning Board shall be accompanied by proof that no taxes or assessments
for local improvements are due or delinquent on the property which
is the subject of such application; or, if it is shown that taxes
or assessments are delinquent on said property, any approvals or other
relief granted by the Board shall be conditioned upon either the prompt
payment of such taxes or assessments, or the making of adequate provision
for the payment thereof in such manner that the Borough will be adequately
protected.
