[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Trustees of the Village
of Walden 9-23-1986 by L.L. No. 7-1986.[1] (Ch. 12 of the 1982 Code). Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Planning Board — See Ch. 67.
Building construction — See Ch. 121.
Zoning — See Ch. 305.
[1]
Editor's Note: This local law also repealed former Ch.
12, Architectural and Community Appearance Board of Review, adopted
3-27-1973 as Section 190 of Ch. IX of the Walden Village Code, effective
5-23-1973.
The Board of Trustees hereby finds that inappropriateness or
poor quality of design in the exterior appearance of buildings or
land developments adversely affects the desirability of the immediate
area and neighboring areas and by so doing impairs the stability and
value of both improved and unimproved real property in such areas,
retards the most appropriate development of such areas, produces degeneration
of property in such areas with attendant deterioration of conditions
affecting the health, safety, morals and general welfare of the inhabitants
thereof and creates an improper relationship between the taxable value
of real property in such areas and the cost of municipal services
provided therefor. It is the purpose of this chapter to prevent these
and other harmful effects of such exterior appearance of buildings
and land developments and thus to promote and protect the health,
safety, morals and general welfare of the community.
The Planning Board of the Village of Walden is hereby designated
as the Architectural Review Board. All members of the Planning Board
shall also be members of the Architectural Review Board. The terms
of office for both Boards shall run concurrently. All appointees to
the Planning Board of the Village of Walden shall be deemed to be
concurrently and simultaneously appointed to the Architectural Review
Board.
A.
The Chairman of the Planning Board shall schedule meetings of the
Architectural Review Board at such times as the Chairman may designate.
A majority of the Board shall constitute a quorum for the transaction
of business. The Board shall keep stenographic minutes of its proceedings.
B.
A report, recommendation or decision made by the Review Board must
have the approval of the majority of the Board and shall be officially
filed with the Village Clerk and the referring board or department
(hereinafter cited as the "referring agency") within 30 days. Where
changes or modifications on any submission are recommended, there
shall be set forth the specific changes and reason(s) for the same.
After having referred an application for a building or land development
permit to the Review Board, the referring agency shall not take final
action prior to receiving a decision of the Review Board. The referring
agency shall provide a full set of plans and accompanying data to
the Review Board for its use and permanent file. The applicant may
be requested to appear to review with the Board any submission to
it. The referring agency shall not finally approve any application
until the Board shall first approve said application or until the
Board shall not file its decision within 30 days of the meeting at
which it was considered, in which case the application shall be deemed
to be approved.
C.
In addition to all other fees required by local laws or ordinances
to be paid in connection with the application, every applicant shall
also reimburse the Village for the actual cost of the stenographic
minutes in connection with the application. No certificate of occupancy
shall be issued unless such charge is paid.
A.
Every application for a building permit for the construction, reconstruction or alteration of any structure in excess of 1,000 cubic feet of cubic volume proposed for construction and every application for the development or subdivision of land and any such application for a building permit, land use or any other development within the Village of Walden, filed with the Board of Trustees or the Building Inspector, shall be referred to the Architectural Review Board within seven days of the submission of the application, provided that it conforms in all respects to all other applicable laws and ordinances. All applications to the Planning Board shall be deemed to be simultaneously referred to the Review Board, and the approval of the Planning Board shall be deemed to be an approval of the Review Board. This chapter shall not apply to an application for a single- or two-family residence or residential accessory structure on individual property, except that the Building Inspector, in his discretion, may refer such an application to the Review Board if it appears, in the light of the standards set forth in § 13-5, that there is a need for such referral.
B.
Fees for appearances.
(1)
Each appearance shall be subject to a nonreturnable fee as set forth
by resolution of the Board of Trustees.
[Amended 5-9-1989 by L.L No. 2-1989]
(2)
All reimbursable fees shall be paid within 30 days after receipt
of the initial bill notice. No certificate of occupancy shall be issued
until all fees are paid. Where an application is abandoned or not
completed and the fees remain unpaid at the end of said period, such
item shall be forwarded to the Village Attorney by the Village Clerk
for collection, subject to the approval of the Board of Trustees.
The Board shall base its recommendations on the following criteria: No building or structure or land development shall be so detrimental to the desirability, property values or development of the surrounding area as to provoke one or more of the harmful effects set forth in § 13-1 by reason of:
A.
The repeated and adjacent use of identical or nearly identical facades
or structures arranged without respect to natural features of terrain
or other existing structures.
B.
Inappropriateness of structure or land development in relation to
any other structure or land development existing or for which a permit
has been issued or to any other structure or land development included
in the same application with respect to one or more of the following
features:
(1)
Total volume in cubic feet.
(2)
Gross floor area.
(3)
Height of building or height of roof.
(4)
Other significant design features, such as material or quality of architectural design, roof structures, chimneys, exposed mechanical equipment and service, service and storage enclosures, signs, landscaping, retaining walls, parking areas, service and loading docks, dividing walls, fences, lighting posts and standards, provided that a finding of inappropriateness existed to provoke beyond reasonable doubt one or more of the harmful effects set forth in § 13-1.
Any person or persons jointly or severally aggrieved by any
decision of the Architectural Review Board shall have the right to
review said decision by a public hearing before the Zoning Board of
Appeals and by a proceeding under Article 78 of the Civil Practice
Law and Rules, which proceedings must be commenced within 30 days
of the filing of such decision with the Village Clerk.
