[Amended 11-17-2011 by L.L. No. 5-2011]
A.
The intent of this article is to set forth requirements which shall
apply to certain land uses and activities which, due to their characteristics
or the special characteristics of the area in which they are to be
located, require special consideration so that they may be properly
located and planned with respect to the objectives of this chapter,
their effect on the surrounding properties and community character.
The primary purpose of special use permit review is to ensure compatibility
with the surrounding neighborhood and to ensure the long-term benefit
of the use to the Town.
B.
While recognizing that certain types of uses may be desirable or
necessary in the Town, their nature can cause certain problems or
difficulties. Consequently, particular uses are controlled by a special
use permit procedure which requires additional regulations designed
for each use in order to mitigate such problems or difficulties and
to minimize the impact of these upon the zoning district in which
such use is located.
A.
The Planning Board is hereby authorized to administer and carry out the intent established in this article. The Planning Board shall conduct special use permit review in accordance with the procedures of this article for any use identified as requiring such review in Article III.
B.
Site plan review in accordance with the requirements and procedures of Article VI is required for all uses that receive a special use permit. Such review may occur concurrent with or subsequent to special use permit review, at the applicant's discretion. Regardless of whether the reviews occur separately or at the same meeting, separate applications and application fees are required for each review.
A.
It shall be the duty of the Code Enforcement Officer to refer to the Planning Board all uses identified in Article III which require special use permits.
(1)
Upon receipt of an application for a special use permit, the Planning
Board shall initiate an environmental review pursuant to the applicable
provisions of SEQRA, 6 NYCRR Part 617.
(2)
The Planning Board shall determine what items from the site plan submittal requirements in Article VI shall be submitted for the special use permit application. The Planning Board may empower the Code Enforcement Officer to make a preliminary determination of submittal requirements in order to place the matter on the Board's agenda.
(3)
An eligible applicant for a special use permit must be the owner,
lessee or purchaser under contract for the involved parcel. A lessee
and purchaser under contract must have the permission of the current
property owners to submit an application for a special use permit.
The applicant, or his duly authorized representative, shall attend
the meeting of the Planning Board to discuss the application.
(4)
The official time of submission of the special use permit application
shall be considered to be the date of the first meeting of the Board
for which the application is scheduled for discussion.
(5)
For applications within 500 feet of the Town boundary or a proposed
or existing state or county park or recreation area, right-of-way,
parkway, throughway, road or highway, stream drainage channel or easement,
public building or institution, not later than 10 days following receipt
of a complete application for said project, the Code Enforcement Officer
shall notify and furnish the Saratoga County Planning Board, in accordance
with General Municipal Law §§ 239-l and 239-m, with
such pertinent information as the Saratoga County Planning Board may
deem necessary for review and comment.
(6)
The Planning Board shall fix a time, within 31 days from the day
a complete application for special use permit approval is made, for
the hearing of any matter referred to under this section. The Planning
Board shall give public notice thereof by the publication in the official
newspaper of such hearing at least five days prior to the date thereof.
(7)
The Planning Board shall decide on the application within 31 days
after such a hearing; however, the time within which the Planning
Board must render its decision may be extended by mutual consent of
the applicant and the Planning Board.
(8)
The decision of the Planning Board shall promptly be filed in the office of the Town Clerk and a copy thereof mailed to the applicant. The decision shall contain such findings of fact as are required by §§ 210-47 and 210-48. The Planning Board, in conjunction with its approval of any special use permit, may impose such requirements and conditions as are allowable within the proper exercise of the police power, including limitations on the hours of use, the intensity of the use, the number of employees or vehicles, the number of structures, the use of structures and land, and any other condition it deems necessary to further the interest of this chapter. In addition, the Planning Board may require that the Code Enforcement Officer incorporate any such requirements and conditions in any permit issued with regard to such site plan review project.
(9)
As a condition of approval of a special use permit, the Planning
Board may require a performance bond or letter of credit to guarantee
satisfactory performance of the required improvements. Such performance
bond or letter of credit shall be part of or in addition to any required
by the Planning Board as part of a site plan review application.
(10)
The Planning Board, as a condition of granting any special permit,
may specify its term of validity. There are three types of permits
which may be granted by the Planning Board, described as follows:
(a)
Permanent: permits a specific use to continue indefinitely until
the specific use ceases for any reason for a period of six consecutive
months.
(b)
Temporary: permits a specific use to continue until a specific
date, at which time the special use permit shall automatically terminate
and the use shall be permanently discontinued. This type shall not
be extendable.
(c)
Renewable: permits a specific use to continue until a specific
date, unless renewed or extended by the Planning Board for an additional
period of time. If not extended, the use shall be permanently discontinued.
It is the responsibility of the applicant, and not the Town of Stillwater,
or any board, officer, or employee thereof, to initiate the request
for the renewal or extension prior to the expiration of the original
term of such renewable special use permit. If not extended or renewed
prior to the date set for expiration, the right to continue such special
use shall terminate on such expiration date, subject to the right
of the applicant to seek an extension or renewal. Applications for
permit extensions of renewals shall follow the same process as for
new permits.
B.
Any applicant who receives a temporary or renewable special use permit
and who decides to proceed with the special use does so realizing
that the temporary special use permit has a fixed duration, and that
all rights to continue that use terminate upon the expiration of the
specified time, and that the renewable special use permit may not
be extended beyond its original term without approval pursuant to
this section. The applicant, in accepting a temporary or renewable
special use permit, acknowledges and agrees that such special use
permit confers no rights or privileges other than those specifically
contained therein.
In addition to the fee listed on the schedule of fees, the Planning
Board may charge a fee to developers of projects requiring legal and
technical review, provided that the fee charged reflects the actual
cost of legal and technical assistance to the Planning Board. This
fee is not to exceed $1,500 without notice to the applicant.
A use requiring the issuance of a special use permit is not
granted as of right and is therefore subject to the discretion of
the Planning Board. Before granting approval to any special use, the
Planning Board shall consider the positive and negative impact of
the use on the following characteristics:
A.
The extent to which the use is in harmony with and promotes the general
purposes and intent of the Comprehensive Plan and this chapter and
its effect on the health, welfare and safety of the Town and its residents.
B.
The overall compatibility of the use with the neighborhood and the
positive and negative impacts on community character, including the
character of adjoining properties, districts and uses, and the positive
and negative impacts on density, including the density of adjoining
properties, districts and uses.
C.
The positive and negative impacts of the use on vehicular congestion
and parking, including the provision of adequate parking and the absence
of hazardous parking or traffic conditions, including ingress and
egress.
D.
The positive and negative impacts on infrastructure and services,
including utilities, public facilities and services, including the
extent to which the project extends or provides infrastructure and
services to areas in need of such infrastructure and services.
E.
The positive and negative impacts on environmental and natural resources,
including the environmental and physical suitability of the site for
development, the risk of fire, flood or erosion and impacts such as
emissions of electrical charges, dust, light, vibration or noise detrimental
to the public health, safety and welfare.
F.
The extent to which the use provides positive or negative effects
on the long-term economic stability and community character of the
Town and surrounding properties, districts and uses.
A.
Junkyards.
(1)
Intent. The Town Board hereby declares that junkyards, by their very
nature, constitute a hazard to property and persons and are a public
nuisance. Materials in junkyards may be highly flammable and sometimes
explosive. Junkyards can constitute attractive nuisances to children
and certain adults. The presence of junkyards is unsightly and tends
to detract from the value of surrounding land and property unless
such areas are properly maintained and operated.
(2)
Standards and requirements.
(a)
The person requesting the special use permit to operate the
junkyard must personally manage or be responsible for the activity
or business for which the permit is issued.
(b)
A junkyard shall be enclosed by a six-foot-tall opaque fence
of wood or other material adequate to prohibit the entrance of children
and others into the area of activity or business and to contain within
such fence the materials dealt in by the business. If the property
abuts a residential use or district, or a public street or highway,
the fence shall be at least 25 feet from the boundary line of the
property or street. All materials dealt in by the business shall be
kept within the area enclosed by the fence at all times.
(c)
Where topography, natural growth of timber or other considerations
accomplish the purposes of this chapter in whole or in part, the fencing
requirements hereunder may be reduced by the Planning Board, provided
that such natural barrier conforms with the purposes hereof.
(d)
When the area is not supervised, the fence shall be locked at
a secure gate in a secure manner.
(e)
In considering the application, the Planning Board shall take
into account the nature and development of the property surrounding
the land described in the application, such as the proximity of places
of worship, schools, public buildings or other places of public gathering,
and whether or not the proposed location can be reasonably protected
from affecting the public health and safety by reason of odors, smoke
or other causes. The Planning Board may also consider the type of
road servicing the proposed location, the natural or artificial barriers
protecting it from view, and its proximity to established residential
and recreational areas.
(f)
Special use permits for junkyards are issued for a one-year period and must be renewed annually. Junkyards in existence at the date of enactment of this chapter shall apply for a special use permit within six months of enactment of this chapter. Junkyards which are nonconforming with respect to location at the time of enactment of this chapter may be considered as nonconforming uses pursuant to Article XIII of this chapter; however, such nonconforming junkyards shall also be required to obtain a special use permit pursuant to this section.
B.
Kennels. Kennels shall be located on parcels of at least five acres.
All dog runs or other areas in which dogs are kept must be located
at least 200 feet from any property line.
C.
Adult use establishments.
(1)
Intent. In the development and execution of this chapter, it is recognized
that adult use establishments, because of their very nature, are recognized
as having serious objectionable operational characteristics, particularly
when several of them are concentrated under certain circumstances
and in close proximity to one another, thereby having a deleterious
effect upon the adjacent area. Special regulation of such uses is
necessary to insure that these adverse effects will not contribute
to the blighting or downgrading of the surrounding neighborhood, thereby
have a direct deleterious affect on the health, safety and general
welfare of the Town and its inhabitants. The primary control or regulation
is for the purpose of preventing a concentration of this use in any
one area.
(2)
Location. No adult use establishment shall hereafter be located within
2,500 feet from the nearest property line of any public, private or
parochial school, municipal building, library, park or playground,
church, convent, monastery, synagogue or other place of worship. No
adult use establishment shall hereafter be located within 2,500 feet
from the nearest property line of an adult entertainment establishment.
No adult use establishment shall be located within 500 feet of the
boundary of any residential zoning district.
(3)
Hours of operation. No adult use establishment shall operate between
the hours of 12:00 midnight and 9:00 a.m.
(4)
Penalties. In addition to the penalties specified by Article XVIII of this chapter, violation of this section is punishable by a fine not exceeding $1,000 or by imprisonment not exceeding six months, or by both fine and imprisonment. Each day or any portion thereof in which any violation of this section is committed, permitted or continued shall constitute a separate offense. In addition to these penalties, the Town may institute any appropriate action or proceedings to enjoin the establishment or continuance of such use in violation of the provisions hereof, or take such other legal or administrative action deemed necessary or desirable to correct or abate such violation.
D.
Gasoline stations. The Town of Stillwater finds that, although vehicle
refueling stations are a necessary part of everyday life in this day
of the internal combustion engine, they also present a considerable
potential for risk to the public health, welfare and safety of the
Town and the inhabitants thereof. Accordingly, in order to provide
for the safe and proper coexistence of vehicle refueling stations
and other land uses permitted within the Town, the following additional
regulations are adopted which all vehicle refueling stations are hereby
made subject to:
(1)
The area for use by motor vehicles, except access drives thereto,
as well as any structures, shall not encroach on any applicable required
yard area requirements contained in this chapter.
(2)
No fuel pump shall be located closer than 20 feet from any street
line, measured from the outside edge of the fuel island and the closest
edge of the public right-of-way.
(3)
No vehicle refueling station property line shall be within 500 feet
of a school, public library, theater, place of worship or other place
of public assembly, as defined by the New York State Uniform Fire
Prevention and Building Code, park, playground or fire station, nor
within 250 feet of ingress or egress ramps to limited-access highways,
nor within 250 feet of an abutting residential zone as measured linearly
along the fronting street or streets.
(4)
All major repair work and servicing shall be done within a completely
enclosed building. Such repair work shall not include body repair
work nor spray painting, which shall only be allowed within an auto
body repair shop, as that term is defined by this chapter.
(5)
No new or used cars, travel trailers or other trailers, or motorized
mobile homes shall be sold or rented at a vehicle refueling station.
(6)
A copy of all other permits pertaining to the project, including
tank permits, and inspection reports shall be submitted to the Code
Enforcement Officer on an annual basis.
Unless otherwise specified or extended by the Planning Board,
decision on any request for a special use permit granted after the
effective date of this chapter shall expire if the applicant fails
to obtain the necessary building permit to construct any existing
building(s) and begin actual construction or to comply with the conditions
of said authorization within one year from the filing date of such
decision thereof. Unless otherwise specified or extended by the Planning
Board, all special use permits granted prior to the effective date
of this chapter shall expire if the applicant fails to obtain the
necessary building permit and begin actual construction or comply
with the conditions of said authorization within one year from the
effective date of this chapter.
A use authorized by special permit may be revoked by the Planning
Board if it is found and determined that there has been a material
failure of compliance with any one of the terms, conditions, limitations
or requirements imposed by said permit.
All special use permits shall be subject to the provisions of Article XVIII of this chapter.
