A.
Scheduled meetings. Meetings of the Planning Board and the Board
of Adjustment or any other municipal agency acting pursuant to the
Municipal Land Use Law, c. 291, P.L. of N.J. 1975, N.J.S.A. 40:55D-1
et seq., shall be scheduled not less than once a month and any meetings
so scheduled shall be held as scheduled unless canceled for lack of
applications or development to process.
B.
Special meetings. Special meetings may be provided for at the call
of the Chairperson 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.
Quorum required. No action shall be taken at any meeting without
a quorum being present.
D.
Majority vote. All actions shall be taken by majority vote of a quorum
except as otherwise required by any provision of c. 291, Laws of N.J.
1975, N.J.S.A. 40:55D-1 et seq.
E.
Meetings to be open to the public. All regular meetings and all special
meetings shall be open to the public. Notice of all such meetings
shall be given in accordance with the requirements of the Open Public
Meetings Law, Ch. 231, Laws of N.J. 1975, N.J.S.A. 10:4-1 et seq.
No member of any municipal agency shall act on any matter in
which he/she has either directly or indirectly any personal or financial
interest. Whenever any such member shall disqualify himself/herself
from acting on a particular matter, he/she shall not continue to sit
with the Board on the hearing of such matter nor participate in any
discussion or decision relating thereto.
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 Township Clerk.
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/her use as provided
in this chapter.
A.
Rules of conduct. The Planning Board and the Zoning Board of Adjustment
may make rules governing the conduct of hearings before such bodies,
which rules shall not be inconsistent with the provisions of c. 291,
P.L. of N.J. 1975, N.J.S.A. 40:55D-1 et seq., or with this chapter.
A copy of the rules and regulations shall be furnished to any person
upon request at a fee of $3 each.
B.
Notice of intention to seek relief. Any communication purporting
or intending to be, or in the nature of an appeal or application,
shall be regarded as a mere notice of intention to seek relief until
it is filed on the form prescribed by the rules of the Board. Upon
receipt of any such communication, the Chairperson shall, at his/her
discretion, instruct the secretary to supply the proper forms for
presenting an appeal or application. Until such appeal or application
is so filed in good faith, no consideration of the same shall be entertained
by the Board.
C.
Voluntary withdrawal of appeal—application. An applicant may,
on notice to the Board, withdraw his/her appeal or application voluntarily.
D.
Dismissal of appeal or application. Any applicant who shall fail
to prosecute his/her appeal or application at the time it is called
for hearing, shall have his/her appeal or application dismissed forthwith
by the Board, unless an adjournment is granted by majority vote of
the Board members present at the hearing.
E.
Return of fee. Any applicant whose appeal or application is withdrawn
or dismissed shall not be entitled to the return of his/her filing
fee.
F.
Maps; documents; records. Any maps and documents for which approval
is sought at a hearing shall be on file and available for public inspection
at least 10 days before the date of the hearing during normal business
hours in the office of the administrative officer. The applicant may
produce other documents, records, or testimony at the hearing to substantiate
or clarify or supplement the previously filed maps and documents.
G.
Powers of presiding officer; oaths; subpoenas; evidence. The officer
presiding at the hearing or such person as he/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 P.L. 1953, c.1938, N.J.S.A.
2A:67A-1 et seq., shall apply.
H.
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.
I.
Rules of evidence not applicable. Technical rules of evidence shall
not be applicable to the hearing, but the Board may exclude irrelevant,
immaterial or unduly repetitious evidence.
J.
Points of order procedure. The Chairperson shall declare on points
of order or procedure, unless otherwise overruled by a majority vote
of the Board in session at the time.
K.
Verbatim recording of proceedings; transcript. 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 of any interested
party, at a minimum charge of $15 per hour for reproduction thereof,
plus $5 per hour for each hour, or part thereof, over the first three
hours necessary to produce the transcript or duplicate recording.
Whenever a hearing is required on an application for development
pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-1 et seq., or to Township ordinances,
the applicant shall give notice thereof as follows:
A.
Public notice in newspaper. Public notice shall be given by publication
in the official newspaper of the Township at least 10 days prior to
the date of the hearing.
B.
Notice to property owners. 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 municipality 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 current tax duplicate
or his/her agent in charge of the property;
(2)
Mailing a copy thereof by certified mail to the property owner at
his/her address as shown on the current tax duplicate;
(3)
Notice to a partnership owner may be made by service of any partner.
Notice to a corporate owner may be made by service upon its president,
a vice president, secretary or by other person authorized by appointment
or law to accept service on behalf of the corporation.
C.
Notice to adjoining municipality. In addition, notice of all hearings
on applications for development involving property located within
200 feet of an adjoining municipality shall be given to the Clerk
of such municipality.
D.
Notice to County Planning Board. Notice shall be given to the County
Planning Board of a hearing on 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 to Commissioner of Transportation. Notice shall be given to
Commissioner of Transportation of a hearing on an application for
development of property adjacent to a state highway.
F.
Notice to Department of Community Affairs. Notice shall be given
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 Township Clerk pursuant to Section 6b of C.
291, Laws of N.J. 1975, N.J.S.A. 40:55D-1 et seq.
G.
Time for notice; proof of service. All notices hereinabove 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.
Notices to governmental bodies or agencies. All notices to governmental
bodies or agencies entitled thereto shall be given by personal service
or certified mail.
I.
Completion of notice. Any notice made by certified mail as hereinabove
required shall be deemed to be complete upon mailing in accordance
with the provisions of N.J.S.A. 40:55D-14.
J.
Form of notice. All notices required to be given pursuant to the
terms of this chapter shall state:
(1)
The time, date and place of hearing;
(2)
The nature of the matters to be considered;
(3)
The 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 Township Tax Assessor's office;
(4)
The location and times 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-30 and 40:55D-65,
every application for development submitted to the Planning Board
or to the Zoning Board of Adjustment shall be accompanied by a certification
from the Tax Collector of the Township that no taxes or assessments
for local improvements are due or delinquent on the property which
is the subject of such application. If such taxes are due or, in the
alternative, if no certification is presented, the Planning Board
or the Zoning Board of Adjustment shall not consider such application
for processing and the application shall not be deemed to be complete.
The Township Clerk, within seven days after receipt of a request
therefor and upon receipt of payment of a fee of $10, shall 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 hereunder.
A.
Written Board resolution. 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.
Copies of decision. A copy of the decision shall be mailed by the
Board within 10 days of the date of decision to the applicant, or
if represented, then to his/her attorney, without separate charge,
and to all persons who have requested it at a fee specified in this
chapter. A copy of the decision shall also be filed in the office
of the Township Clerk, for public inspection, and a copy shall be
made available to any interested party upon payment of the fee set
forth for copies in this chapter.
A brief notice of every final decision shall be published in
the official newspaper of the Township. Such publication shall be
arranged by the Township Clerk or the secretary of the Planning Board
or the Zoning Board of Adjustment, as the case may be, at a charge
to the applicant of $10, which sum shall be paid, together with the
application fee, at the time the application is made. Such notice
shall be sent to the official newspaper for publication within 10
days of the date of any such decision.
A.
Approval conditional upon removal of legal barrier. Pursuant to the
provisions of N.J.S.A.40:55D-22, an application for development that
is barred or prevented, directly or indirectly, by a legal action
instituted by any state agency, political subdivision or other party
to protect the public health and welfare or by directive or order
issued by any state agency, public subdivision or court of competent
jurisdiction, shall be processed in accordance with N.J.S.A. 40:55D-1
et seq. and this chapter, and, if such application for development
complies with the development regulations of this Township, the Zoning
Board of Adjustment or the Planning Board shall approve such application
conditional on removal of such legal barrier to development. In that
event, the requirement shall be that construction actually commence
on the project nine months subsequent to the final approval of such
legal barrier to development.
B.
Approval by other governmental agencies. In the event that the development
proposed by an application for development requires approval by a
governmental agency other than the Township Planning Board or the
Township Zoning Board of Adjustment, such boards shall condition their
approval upon the subsequent approval of such governmental agency.
The Township Planning Board or Zoning Board of Adjustment shall withhold
signature on the final plat or map to be filed, as well as the final
site plans, until such time as all other government agencies have
approved such application. The other governmental agency approvals
required for development shall include, but not be limited to, the
following:
[Amended 7-18-2023 by Ord. No. 2023-12]
(1)
Ocean County Planning Board;
(2)
Ocean County Utilities Authority;
(3)
Township of Ocean Water and Sewer Department;
(4)
State of New Jersey Department of Transportation;
(5)
State of New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection;
(6)
New Jersey Pinelands Commission;
(7)
Ocean County Soil Conservation District;
(8)
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers: and
(9)
Any other local, state, county, or federal agency or entity.
C.
Prior to the signature of the final plat, map, or site plan, the
applicant for development shall have posted all of the required fees,
deposits, and bonds with the Township and appropriate department thereof,
which shall include but not be limited to:
[Added 7-18-2023 by Ord.
No. 2023-12]
The Township shall include as a condition of approval of an
application for development the installation of streetlighting on
a dedicated public street connected to a public utility. Upon notification
in writing by the developer to the approving authority and the governing
body of the Township that: the streetlighting on a dedicated public
street has been installed and accepted for service by the public utility;
and that certificates of occupancy have been issued for at least 50%
of the dwelling units and 50% of the floor area of the nonresidential
uses on the dedicated public street or portion thereof indicated by
section pursuant to Section 29 of P.L. 1975, c.291 (N.J.S.A. 40:55D-38),
the Township shall, within 30 days following receipt of the notification,
make appropriate arrangements with the public utility for, and assume
the payment of, the costs of the streetlighting on the dedicated public
street on a continuing basis. Compliance by the municipality with
the provisions of this section shall not be deemed to constitute acceptance
of the street by the municipality.
For the purposes of this chapter and Chapter 410, Zoning, of the Code of the Township of Ocean, the Township shall make all the payments to professionals for services rendered to the municipality for review of applications for development, review and preparation of documents, inspection of improvements or other purposes under the provisions of P.L. 1975, c.291. The Township shall require of the developer a deposit towards anticipated Township expenses for these professional services, and the deposit shall be placed in an escrow account pursuant to Section 1 of P.L. 1985, c.315 (N.J.S.A. 40:55D-53.1). The amount of the deposit required shall be reasonable in regard to the scale and complexity of the development. All payments charged to the deposit shall be pursuant to vouchers from the Township professionals stating the hours spent, the hourly rate and the expenses incurred. The Township shall render a written final accounting to the developer on the uses to which the deposit was put. Thereafter the Township shall, upon written request, provide copies of the vouchers to the developer. The charges from the professionals to the deposit shall be at the same rate as all other work of the same nature by that professional for the Township.
