A.
Removal for cause. No member of the Board of Adjustment
shall be permitted to act on any matter in which he/she has, either
directly or indirectly, any personal or financial interest. A member
may, after public hearing if he/she requests it, be removed by the
governing body for cause. A vacancy occurring otherwise than by expiration
of term shall be filled for the unexpired term only.
B.
Absent members. When any hearing before a Zoning Board
of Adjustment shall carry over two or more meetings, a member of the
Board who was absent for one or more of the meetings shall be eligible
to vote on the matter upon which the hearing was conducted, notwithstanding
his absence from one or more of the meetings; provided, however, that
such Board member has available to him/her a transcript or recording
of the meeting from which he/she was absent and certifies in writing
to the Board that he/she has read such transcript or listened to such
recording.
C.
Quorum. A quorum of the Zoning Board of Adjustment
shall be a majority of the full authorized membership.
D.
Organization. The Zoning Board of Adjustment 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 municipal
employee.
A.
The Board of Adjustment shall have the power to:
(1)
Hear and decide appeals where it is alleged
by the appellant that there is error in any order, requirement, decision
or refusal made by an administrative officer based on or made in the
enforcement of the Zoning Ordinance.
(2)
Hear and decide in accordance with the provisions
of any such ordinance requests for the interpretation of the Zoning
Map or Ordinance or for decisions upon other special questions upon
which such Board is authorized to pass by an ordinance.
(3)
Where, by reason of exceptional narrowness,
shallowness or shape of a specific piece of property or by reason
of exceptional topographic conditions or by reason of other extraordinary
and exceptional situation or condition of such piece of property,
the strict application of any regulation of 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 relieve such
difficulties or hardship; provided, however, that no variance shall
be granted under this subsection to allow a structure or use in a
district restricted against such structure or use, 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 shall review the request for a variance.
(4)
Grant a variance to allow a structure or use
in a district restricted against such structure or use in particular
cases and for special reasons, but only by affirmative vote of at
least 2/3 of the full authorized membership of the Board.
(5)
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 Kingwood Township Road Supervisor or Township Engineer based on or made in the enforcement of Chapter 112, Article II, Driveway Construction. Driveway construction appeals shall be processed in accordance with § 112-22.
[Added 7-1-2013 by Ord.
No. 17-14-2013]
B.
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 Ordinance. An application under this section shall be referred
to the Planning Board for its report, provided that such reference
shall not extend the period of time within which the Zoning Board
of Adjustment shall act.
C.
Whenever the Planning Board shall have made a recommendation
to the Zoning Board of Adjustment, such recommendation may be rejected
only by a majority of the full authorized membership of the Board.
A.
The Board of Adjustment 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 shall deem
necessary, not exceeding, exclusive of gifts or grants, the amount
appropriated by the governing body for its use.
B.
The Board of Adjustment shall employ the services of a stenographic reporter to record the verbatim testimony and all related proceedings on every application made to the Board of Adjustment wherein a d-variance is sought pursuant to Kingwood Township Ordinance § 132-131A(4) and N.J.S.A. 40:55D-70d. The appearance fee of the stenographic reporter for the first hearing on a d-variance application is included in the application fee. Any subsequent appearance fees for continued or additional hearings shall be paid by the applicant from the applicant's escrow account. The applicant or any interested party shall pay for the cost of a transcript of the stenographic record and, at his or her cost, shall provide a copy thereof to the Board of Adjustment.
[Added 7-21-1997 by Ord. No. 9-10-97; amended 1-18-1999 by Ord. No. 10-1-99]
A.
Appeals to the Board of Adjustment may be taken by
any interested party affected by any decision of an administrative
officer of the municipality based on or made in the enforcement of
the Zoning Ordinance or Official Map. 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.
[Amended 11-4-2021 by Ord. No. 21-20-2021]
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.
A.
The Board of Adjustment shall render a decision not later than 120 days after the date an appeal is taken from the decision of an administrative officer or the submission of a complete application for development to the Board of Adjustment pursuant to §§ 132-120 and 132-121 Article XI of this chapter.
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 applicant shall constitute a decision favorable
to the applicant.
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 administrative 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/her, that by reason
of the facts stated in the certificates 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.
The Board of Adjustment shall exercise all other
powers granted to it by law.
[Added 8-12-1988 by Ord. No. 6-8-88]
A.
Who may appeal. Any interested party may appeal to
the governing body any final decision of the Board of Adjustment approving
an application for a variance granted pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-70d.
B.
Time of appeal. Such appeal shall be made within 10 days of the date of publication of such final decision pursuant to § 132-120C. The appeal to the governing body shall be made by serving the Township Clerk in person or by certified mail with a notice of appeal, specifying the grounds thereof and the name and address of the appellant and name and address of his attorney, if represented. Such appeal shall be decided by the governing body only upon the record established before the Board of Adjustment. Within 35 days of the service of the notice of appeal, the appellant shall submit a transcript to the Municipal Clerk; otherwise the appeal may be dismissed for lack of prosecution.
C.
Notice. Notice of the meeting to review the record below shall be given by the governing body by personal service or certified mail to the appellant, to those entitled to notice of a decision pursuant to § 132-121 and to the Board of Adjustment at least 10 days prior to the date of the meeting. The parties may submit oral and written argument on the record at such meeting, and the governing body shall provide for verbatim recording and transcripts of such meeting pursuant to § 132-120C.
D.
Time for decision. The governing body shall conclude a review of the record below not later than 95 days from the date of publication of notice of the decision below, unless the appellant consents in writing to an extension of such period. The appellant, at his cost, shall arrange for and provide a transcript pursuant to § 132-120C(6) for use by the governing body. Failure of the governing body to hold a hearing and conclude a review of the record below and to render a decision within such specified period, without such written consent of the appellant, shall constitute a decision affirming the action of the Board.
E.
Decision. The governing body may reverse, remand or
affirm, with or without the imposition of conditions, the final decision
of the Board of Adjustment. The affirmative vote of a majority of
the full authorized membership of the governing body shall be necessary
to reverse, remand or affirm with or without conditions, the final
action of the Board of Adjustment.
F.
Stay of proceedings. An appeal to the governing body
shall stay all proceedings in furtherance of the action in respect
to which the decision appealed from was made, unless the Board of
Adjustment certifies to the governing body, after the notice of appeal
shall have been filed with the Board, that, by reason of facts stated
in the certificate, a stay would, in its 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 on application, upon
notice to the Board of Adjustment and on good cause shown.
G.
Notice of decision. The governing body shall mail
a copy of the decision to the appellant or, if represented, then to
his attorney without separate charge and for a reasonable charge to
any interested party who has requested it, not later than 10 days
after the date of the decision. A brief notice of the decision shall
be published in the official newspaper of the municipality, if there
is one, or in a newspaper of general circulation in the municipality.
Such publication shall be arranged by the Township Clerk, provided
that nothing contained herein shall be construed as preventing the
applicant from arranging such publication if he/she so desires. The
governing body may make a reasonable charge for its publication. The
period of time in which an appeal to a court of competent jurisdiction
may be made shall run from the first publication, whether arranged
by the municipality or the applicant.
H.
Court review. Nothing in this chapter shall be construed
to restrict the right of any party to obtain a review by any court
of competent jurisdiction according to law.
