A.
The Zoning Board of Adjustment of the Township, as
heretofore established, is hereby continued. The Board of seven members
and two alternate members who shall serve in rotation during the absence
or disqualification of any regular member or members, pursuant to
N.J.S.A. 40:55D-1 et seq., shall not hold any elective office or position
in the Township. Members of the Board shall be appointed by the Township
Council.
B.
Said alternate members shall be designated at the
time of appointment as "Alternate No. 1" and "Alternate No. 2." 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.
B.
Thereafter, the term of each member shall be four
years, and the term of each alternate member shall be two years. A
vacancy occurring otherwise than by expiration of term shall be filled
for the unexpired term only. Members on the effective date of this
chapter shall continue in office until the completion of their terms
as provided by law immediately prior to the effective date of this
chapter. Any new appointments or reappointments to said Board shall
be governed by the provisions of this chapter.
[Added by Ord. No. 7-1992]
If the Board of Adjustment lacks a quorum because any of its regular or alternate members are prohibited by § 170-28 from acting on a matter due to the member's personal or financial interest therein, Class IV members of the Planning Board shall be called upon to serve, for that matter only, as temporary members of the Board of Adjustment. The Class IV members of the Planning Board shall be called upon to serve in order of seniority of continuous service to the Planning Board until there are the minimum number of members necessary to constitute a quorum to act upon the matter without any personal or financial interest therein, whether direct or indirect. If a choice has to be made between Class IV members of equal seniority, the Chairman of the Planning Board shall make the choice.
If a vacancy on the Board of Adjustment shall
occur otherwise than by expiration of the Board of Adjustment term,
it shall be filled by appointment, as above provided, for the unexpired
term.
A.
The Board shall elect a Chairman and Vice Chairman
from its members and select a Secretary who may or may not be a member
of the Board of Adjustment or a Township employee. The Board may employ
or contract for and fix the compensation of legal counsel, other than
the Municipal Attorney, and experts and other staff and services as
it may deem necessary, not exceeding, exclusive of gifts or grants,
the amount appropriated by the Township Council for its use.
B.
The 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 on its findings on Zoning
Ordinance provisions which were the subject of variance requests and
its recommendations for the Zoning Ordinance amendment or revision,
if any. The Board of Adjustment shall send copies of the report and
resolution to the governing body and Planning Board.
[Added by Ord. No. 6-1992]
The 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 on 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 Board of Adjustment shall send copies of the report and resolution
to the Township Council and Planning Board.
[Amended by Ord. No. 12-1987; Ord. No. 7-1992]
The Board of Adjustment shall have the power
to:
A.
Hear and decide appeals where it is alleged by the
appellant that there is error in any order, requirement, decision
or refusal made by the Zoning Officer based on or made in the enforcement
of the zoning regulations.
B.
Hear and decide requests for interpretation of the
Zoning Map or regulations or for decisions upon other special questions
upon which such Board is authorized to pass by any zoning regulation
or official map in accordance with this chapter or N.J.S.A. 55D-1
et seq.
C.
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 this chapter would result in peculiar and exceptional practical difficulties to or exceptional and undue hardship upon the developer of such property, grant, upon an application or an appeal relating to such property, a variance from such strict application of such regulation so as to receive such difficulties or hardship. Where in an application or appeal relating to a specific piece of property the purposes of P.L. 1975, c. 291 (N.J.S.A. 40:55D-1 et seq.) would be advanced by a deviation from the Zoning Ordinance requirements and the benefits of the deviation would substantially outweigh any detriment, grant a variance to allow departure from regulations pursuant to Article 8 of the New Jersey Municipal Land Use Law (P.L. 1975, Chapter 291); provided, however, that no variance from these departures enumerated in Subsection D as hereinafter outlined 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 Subsection 47a of P.L. 1975, c. 291 (N.J.S.A. 40:55D-60a).
D.
In particular cases and for special reasons, grant a variance to allow departure from regulations pursuant to Articles XI and XII of 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 pertaining
solely to a conditional use.
(4)
An increase in the permitted floor area ratio as defined
in this chapter.
(5)
An increase in the permitted density as defined in
this chapter, 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. A variance under this Subsection D shall be granted only by affirmative vote of at least five members of the Township of Livingston Board of Adjustment. If an application for development requests one or more variances, but not a variance for a purpose enumerated in this Subsection D, the decision on the requested variance or variances shall be rendered under Subsection D of this section.
E.
Direct the 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
pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-32. The Board of Adjustment shall not
exercise the power otherwise granted by this subsection if the proposed
development requires approval by the Planning Board of a subdivision,
site plan or conditional use in conjunction with which the Planning
Board has the power to direct the issuance of a permit pursuant to
N.J.S.A. 40:55D-60(b).
F.
Direct the issuance of a permit pursuant to N.J.S.A.
40:55D-36 for a building or structure not related to a street. The
Board of Adjustment shall not exercise the power otherwise granted
by this subsection if the proposed development requires approval by
the Planning Board of a subdivision, site plan or conditional use
in conjunction with which the Planning Board has the power to direct
the issuance of a permit pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-60(c).
G.
Grant, to the same extent and subject to the same restrictions as the Planning Board, subdivision or site plan approval pursuant to Article IX or conditional use approval pursuant to Articles XI and XII whenever the Board of Adjustment is reviewing an application for approval of a variance pursuant to Subsection D above.
(1)
In reviewing said subdivision or site plan, the Board of Adjustment shall follow the same procedures and be guided by the same standards as the Planning Board as provided in Article IX and, to that end, may establish a Subdivision and Site Plan Committee to function in the same manner as the Subdivision and Site Plan Committee of the Planning Board.
(2)
A developer may elect to submit a separate application
requesting approval of the variance or direction of the issuance of
a permit and a subsequent application for any required approval of
a subdivision, site plan or conditional use. The separate approval
of the variance or direction of the issuance of a permit shall be
conditioned upon grant of all required subsequent approvals by the
Board of Adjustment. No such subsequent approval shall be granted
unless the 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 Zoning Ordinance.
H.
No variance or other relief may be granted under the
terms of this section unless such variance or other relief can be
granted without substantial detriment to the public good and will
not substantially impair the intent and purpose of the zone plan and
zoning regulations.
An application under the terms of § 170-20 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.
A.
Appeals to the Board of Adjustment may be taken by
any interested party affected by any decision of the Zoning Officer
of the Township based on or made in the enforcement of this chapter.
Such appeal shall be taken within 20 days by filing a notice of appeal
with the officer from whom the appeal is taken, specifying the grounds
of such appeal. The officer from whom the appeal is taken shall immediately
transmit to the Board all the papers constituting the record upon
which the action appealed from was taken.
B.
A developer may file an application for development
with the Board of Adjustment for action under any of its powers without
prior application to an administrative officer.
B.
Failure of the Board to render a decision within such one-hundred-twenty-day period or within such further time as may be consented to by the developer shall constitute a decision favorable to the developer; provided, however, that the procedure as set forth in § 170-62C of this chapter must be complied with.
The 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, to that end, have
all the powers of the Zoning Officer from whom the appeal is taken.
An appeal to the Board of Adjustment shall stay
all proceedings in furtherance of the action in respect to which the
decision appealed from was made unless the officer from whose action
the appeal is taken certifies to the Board of Adjustment, after the
notice of appeal shall have been filed with him, that, by reason of
facts stated in the certificate, a stay would, in his opinion, cause
imminent peril to life or property. In such case, proceedings shall
not be stayed other than by an order of the Superior Court upon notice
to the officer from whom the appeal is taken and on due cause shown.
Whenever review or approval of the application
by the County Planning Board is required by N.J.S.A. 40:27-6.3 in
the case of a subdivision or N.J.S.A. 40:27-6.6 in the case of a site
plan, the Board of Adjustment shall condition any approval that it
grants upon timely receipt of a favorable report on the application
by the County Planning Board or approval by the County Planning Board
by its failure to report thereon within the required time.
A.
Any exception or variation from this chapter granted
by the Board to a developer shall expire if no construction, alteration
or conversion has been commenced within one year from the date of
granting such variations or exception unless otherwise provided in
the resolution of the Board granting the exception or variation.
B.
Any variance granted as an integral part of a site
plan or subdivision shall be valid for the same period of time and
shall run concurrently with the approved site plan or subdivision.
No member of the Board of Adjustment shall be
permitted to act on any matter in which he has, either directly or
indirectly, any personal or financial interest.
