[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town Board of the Town of Bedford 5-16-2023 by L.L. No. 7-2023. Amendments noted where applicable.]
The Planning Board is composed of five members that review,
hear and decide cases. This number is reduced when a member cannot
attend a meeting of the Planning Board or, because of conflict of
interest, cannot vote on a matter to be considered by the Planning
Board, which could affect the quorum of three members needed to conduct
official business. The appointment of alternate members is appropriate
to aid in successful planning and will provide assistance to the Planning
Board when members are unavailable and when members need to recuse
themselves. It is the legislative intent of the Town Board to provide
for the appointment of an alternate member to the Planning Board as
a reasonable response to such concerns.
A.
The Chairperson, or the member deputized to chair the meeting in
the absence of the Chairperson, shall designate the alternate member
to hear and vote on matters and applications coming before the Planning
Board when a regular member of the Planning Board is absent or unable
to participate on an application or matter before the Planning Board.
The Chairperson, or the member deputized to chair the meeting in the
absence of the Chairperson, shall also designate an alternate member
to vote when a vacancy exists on the Planning Board. When so designated,
the alternate member shall have the same voting privileges as regular
members of the Planning Board. All such designations of voting privileges
to the alternate member shall be noted in the minutes of the Planning
Board meeting at which such designations are made.
B.
The alternate member may be allowed to fully participate in all meetings
of the Planning Board, as regular members do, at the discretion of
the Chairperson, or the member deputized to chair the meeting in the
absence of the Chairperson, but cannot vote until designated to do
so by the Chairperson, or the member deputized to chair the meeting
in the absence of the Chairperson.
C.
All provisions of state law and local law relating to Planning Board
membership, including but not limited to member eligibility, attendance,
vacancy in office, removal, compatibility of office and service on
other boards, training and continuing education requirements, shall
also apply to alternate members, except that alternate members shall
not receive compensation.
This chapter is adopted pursuant to the authority granted by
§ 10, Subdivision 1e(3), of the Municipal Home Rule Law.
It is the intent of the Town Board to supersede the provisions of
§ 271, Subdivision 15, of the Town Law, relating to the
appointment of alternate members, to amend and expand the circumstances
under which an alternate member of the Planning Board may serve.
