[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Trustees
of the Village of Irvington 11-19-1962. Amendments noted where applicable.]
[Amended 10-18-1965 by L.L. No. 2-1965; 10-17-1983 by L.L. No. 1-1983; 2-1-2010 by L.L. No.
1-2010; 4-6-2015 by L.L. No. 4-2015]
The Village Board hereby finds that in order to protect the
property, safety and health of the inhabitants of the Village of Irvington,
it is desirable to establish a Board of Architectural Review to pass
on the exterior appearance of all buildings and other structures to
be constructed, reconstructed or altered. In addition, in order to
protect the historic and architectural character of the Irvington
Historic District, it is desirable to have the Board of Architectural
Review pass on applications to demolish architecturally and historically
significant buildings in the Historic Overlay District. In particular,
the purposes of this chapter are to:
A.
Improve the
exterior appearance of buildings and other structures throughout the
Village.
B.
Continue
the harmonious development of the Village.
C.
Prevent the
impairment of the property values of improved and unimproved property.
D.
Protect the
historic character of the Village, including, in particular, the Irvington
Historic District, which as of January 2014, is listed on the National
Register of Historic Places.
[Added 10-18-1965 by L.L. No. 2-1965]
All residences to be constructed hereafter in
the Village of Irvington shall conform to the following requirements:
A.
Except for attached one-family dwellings, houses adjacent
to each other in any direction shall not look alike. Minimum variety
in appearance shall be achieved by changes in any two of the following
factors when approved by the Board:
[Amended 10-19-2016 by L.L. No. 9-2016]
(1)
Exterior materials.
(2)
Fenestration, where changes are the result of omission,
grouping or adding windows, including bay and full-height windows.
(3)
Geometry of the structure where this is the result
of plan changes, roof slope changes exceeding 15º, roof ridge
direction changes or ridge height different by at least five feet;
the addition or deletion of breezeways, porches and similar features,
of at least 200 square feet in floor area; or the provision of dormers
or mansard or hip roof configurations.
B.
In approved subdivisions when building permits are
applied for, location of all houses on the lots adjacent to and opposite
the one being applied for shall also be shown.
C.
Where three or more houses front on a straight or
slightly curved street or road, they shall not be similarly oriented
with equal front yard dimensions. In such cases one of each of three
houses shall be located with either an increased front yard of at
least 10 feet or oriented differently by at least 30º.
There is hereby created a Board of Architectural
Review which shall consist of five members, who shall serve without
compensation. All members of the Board shall be residents of the Village
of Irvington, and at least one member shall be a registered architect
licensed by the State of New York. The members of the Board of Architectural
Review shall be appointed by the Board of Trustees for a term of five
years, and the Board of Trustees shall have authority to remove any
member of such Board of Architectural Review for cause after public
hearing. The Board of Trustees shall designate one member of the Board
of Architectural Review to be Chairman, and the Board of Architectural
Review shall designate one of the members as Acting Chairman and one
as Secretary. The respective terms of the members first appointed
shall be one, two, three, four and five years from and after their
appointments. The term of all appointments shall expire at 12:00 noon
on the first Monday of April. Vacancies shall be filled for the unexpired
term of the members whose place has become vacant. The Village Clerk
or Deputy Clerk shall act as the Clerk of the Board.
[Amended 9-18-1967 by L.L. No. 1-1967]
Meetings of the Board of Architectural Review shall be held on the second and fourth Monday each month and at such other times as the Board shall determine. The Chairman, or in his absence the Acting Chairman, may administer oaths and compel the attendance of witnesses. A majority of said Board shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business. The Board shall keep minutes of its proceedings showing the vote of each member upon each question, or if absent or failing to vote, indicating such fact, and shall also keep copies of the examinations and other official actions. The Board shall have power from time to time to adopt, amend and repeal rules and regulations, not inconsistent with law or the provisions of this chapter, governing its procedure and the transaction of its business and for the purpose of carrying into effect the standards outlined in § 9-6 hereof.
[Added 2-1-2010 by L.L. No. 1-2010[1]
Every application for site development plan approval for the construction, reconstruction or alteration of any building or structure shall be referred to the Board of Architectural Review for its recommendation and report to the Planning Board. This referral shall be in addition to the referral required by § 9-6.
[Amended 9-18-1967 by L.L. No. 1-1967; 10-17-1983 by L.L. No. 1-1983; 4-15-2003 by L.L. No.
5-2003; 2-6-2017 by L.L. No. 1-2017]
Every application for a building permit for
the construction, reconstruction or alteration of a one- or two-family
dwelling or any other structure in excess of 2,000 cubic feet of cubical
content, or for a permit for the erection of signs, solar energy equipment,
walls or fences, shall be filed with the Building Inspector at least
10 days prior to the next scheduled meeting of the Board of Architectural
Review, and such application shall be approved or disapproved by the
Board of Architectural Review, provided that the Building Inspector
has certified that the application is appropriate for review by the
Board of Architectural Review.
[Amended 2-1-2010 by L.L. No. 1-2010]
The Board of Architectural Review may disapprove any building permit referred to it, provided that such disapproval shall be by majority of all the members of the Board present at any meeting where said vote is taken, and provided that the Board finds that the construction, reconstruction or alteration for which the permit was applied would not be compatible with the purposes set forth in § 9-1 and thereby be detrimental to the desirability, property values or development of the surrounding area or not be in keeping with the harmonious development of the district in which the proposed structure is to be located. Any such finding shall not be based on personal preference by the members of the Board of Architectural Review as to taste or choice of architectural style, but shall be limited to the harmonious development of the district and the Village of Irvington.
[Amended 9-18-1967 by L.L. No. 1-1967]
The Building Inspector shall refuse any building permit application disapproved as provided in § 9-6. If the Board of Architectural Review shall approve or fail to act on any building permit application referred to it under § 9-5 within 15 days of the date of the first scheduled meeting following the filing of the application of a building permit in accordance with § 9-5 hereof, the Building Inspector shall forthwith issue the permit as applied for.
[Amended 8-15-2016 by L.L. No. 7-2016]
A.
Findings
of fact. Any person aggrieved by the action of the Board of Architectural
Review (ARB) in disapproving a building permit application may request
the ARB to make formal findings of fact. Such request shall be filed
in the office of the Village Clerk within 20 days after the date of
such disapproval. If such a request is made, the ARB shall make findings
of fact within 30 days after the request is filed, file them in the
office of the Village Clerk, and send a copy of them to the requesting
person.
B.
Appeal to
Board of Trustees.
[Amended 7-17-2017 by L.L. No. 5-2017]
(1)
Within
30 days after delivery of the ARB decision to the applicant, or within
20 days after the findings of fact are filed, if findings are requested,
the aggrieved person may take an appeal from the ARB's disapproval
to the Board of Trustees of the Village of Irvington by serving a
written notice on the Village Clerk.
(2)
A public
hearing shall be held by said Board on every appeal and application
made to it. A notice of such hearing and of the substance of the appeal
or application shall be given by publication in the official newspaper(s)
of the Village at least 10 days before the date of such hearing. The
applicant shall be required to notify any property owners within 200
feet of the subject property by a method of mail or a delivery service
company providing proof of mailing or delivery or by personal service
of such notice on the property owners, evidenced by their signature
as acknowledgment of receipt of such notice on a form supplied or
similar to one supplied by the Village Clerk. Said notice shall describe
the substance of the appeal or application; advise the recipient of
the date, time and place of the hearing; and shall advise the recipient
that copies of the application or appeal and all papers filed with
the Board by the applicant or appellant with respect thereto will
be furnished to the recipient by the applicant or appellant upon request.
On or before the date of the public hearing, the applicant or appellant
shall file with the Board a verified statement evidencing compliance
with the notice provisions of this subsection. Should the Board deem
it advisable, it may require the notification of property owners within
a distance of up to 500 feet of the subject property.
C.
Remand to
ARB. If the Board of Trustees reverses the action of the Board of
Architectural Review, it shall remand the application to the Board
of Architectural Review for approval and the imposition of reasonable
conditions, or other further action, consistent with the decision
of the Board of Trustees. Any such subsequent decision of the ARB
shall be appealable to the Board of Trustees.
[Amended 7-17-2017 by L.L. No. 5-2017]
This chapter shall supersede such provisions
of the Building Code of the Village of Irvington[1] and applicable provisions of the laws of the State of
New York to the extent that they conflict with or are contrary to
the provisions of this chapter.
[Added 4-6-2015 by L.L. No. 4-2015]
A.
Approval required. Every application to demolish (Note: The term "demolish" is defined in the Zoning Code at § 224-197.) a contributing building (Note: "Contributing buildings" in the Historic Overlay District are those identified in Appendix A to the Irvington Zoning Code.) in the Historic Overlay District shall be referred by the Building Inspector to the Board of Architectural Review (ARB) for its approval or disapproval.
B.
Application.
An applicant seeking to demolish such building shall provide the following
information:
(1)
Legal
description, property address and age of building.
(2)
Names,
addresses, e-mail addresses, telephone numbers, and signatures of
the applicant and the building owner.
(3)
Detailed
explanation of the reason demolition is requested.
(4)
All
appraisals obtained within the last two years by the owner or applicant
in connection with the purchase, financing or ownership of the property,
if any exist.
(5)
Date
the property was purchased and purchase price.
(6)
Any
listing of the property for sale or rent, price asked, and offers
received, if any, within the previous two years, including testimony
and relevant documents regarding:
(7)
If the
reason for demolition relates to the safety of the building, a report
from a licensed engineer or architect with experience in rehabilitation
as to the structural soundness of the building and its suitability
for rehabilitation.
(8)
If the
reason for demolition relates to the safety of building, written detailed
cost estimates to restore or repair the structure.
(9)
Economic
incentives and/or funding available to the applicant through federal,
state, local government or private programs.
(10)
Description
of the proposed replacement project in sufficient detail to permit
the ARB to visualize the proposed replacement.
(11)
Where
only a portion of the building is sought to be demolished, photographs
of the building in its existing condition and of adjacent buildings,
drawings depicting what is being removed or modified, and drawings
depicting what the building will look like after reconstruction or
modification.
[Added 3-6-2017 by L.L.
No. 2-2017[1]]
[1]
Editor's Note: This local law also renumbered former Subsection
B(11) as Subsection B(12).
(12)
Such
other information as the ARB finds necessary to make its determination.
(13)
The
ARB may waive the provision of any of the above information if it
does not believe it is relevant to its determination.
[Added 3-6-2017 by L.L.
No. 2-2017]
C.
Public hearing.
(1)
The
ARB shall hold a public hearing on the application for demolition.
(2)
Notice
of such hearing shall be given by publication in the official newspaper(s)
of the Village at least 10 days before the date of the hearing.
(3)
In addition,
the applicant shall erect a sign facing each public street on which
the property abuts, giving notice that an application for demolition
has been made. The sign, on a placard to be provided by the Village,
shall be posted not less than 15 days immediately preceding the hearing
date and shall be displayed continuously until the application is
decided. The sign shall be placed to assure visibility from the street.
Prior to the public hearing, the applicant shall provide proof that
the sign was posted as required by this subsection. The applicant
shall remove the sign the day after the application is decided.
(4)
A written
record shall be made of the public hearing and the ARB's deliberations
on the application.
(5)
During
the public hearing, the ARB may solicit expert testimony or opinion
by an architect, real estate consultant, and/or other professional
experienced in historic properties and rehabilitation, on any question
relevant to its determination.
D.
Criteria
for approval. The Board of Architectural Review shall not approve
the application for demolition unless the applicant establishes all
of the following:
(1)
For
buildings sought to be demolished for safety reasons:
(a)
The
building represents a hazard to the safety of the public or the applicant
or owner.
(b)
The
safety hazard cannot be corrected within economic means reasonably
available to the applicant or owner.
(c)
Good
faith efforts to find a purchaser interested in acquiring the property
and preserving it have failed.
(2)
For
buildings sought to be demolished for reasons other than safety:
(a)
The
property is incapable of earning a reasonable return on investment,
regardless of whether that return represents the most profitable return
possible.
(b)
The
property cannot be adapted for any other use, whether by the current
owner or by a purchaser, that would result in a reasonable return.
(c)
Good
faith efforts to find a purchaser interested in acquiring the property
and preserving it have failed.
(3)
Notwithstanding Subsection D(1) and (2), where the demolition is of a substantial portion of the building (see definition of “substantial portion” in the Zoning Code at § 224-197), rather than of the entire building, the applicant must demonstrate that the demolition and its proposed replacement, if any, will not be incompatible with the historic character of the building nor of the historic district.
[Added 3-6-2017 by L.L.
No. 2-2017[2]]
[2]
Editor's Note: This local law also renumbered former Subsection
D(3) and (4) as Subsection D(4) and (5), respectively.
(4)
In deciding
the application for demolition, the ARB may consider whether the owner
has created his/her own hardship through waste and neglect, thereby
permitting the property to fall into a serious state of disrepair.
(5)
In determining
whether to approve or disapprove an application for a demolition permit,
the ARB shall consider only the exterior features of the building
and shall have no jurisdiction to consider changes to interior walls
or spaces that do not affect the exterior appearance of the building.
E.
Replacement
plan. The Building Inspector may not issue a permit for demolition
until a proposal to replace the building or portion of the building
to be demolished receives all required approvals from the Planning
Board and ARB. In the event that the applicant intends to maintain
the site of the demolished building as open space, the ARB must approve
a landscape plan.
[Amended 3-6-2017 by L.L.
No. 2-2017]
F.
Decision.
The ARB may approve or disapprove the application for demolition.
Its decision must be in writing and must state the reasons for approval
or disapproval. The written decision must be provided promptly to
the applicant and to the Building Inspector.
G.
Appeals.
Any person aggrieved by the ARB's disapproval of an application for
demolition, within 30 days of delivery of the decision to the applicant,
may appeal the decision to the Board of Trustees by serving a written
notice on the Village Clerk. The Board of Trustees shall review the
record made before the Board of Architectural Review and may reverse
or affirm its decision or remand it to the ARB for further findings.
[Added 2-6-2017 by L.L.
No. 1-2017]
A.
For any
application for a building permit for solar energy equipment, written
notice of the application and the date, time and place of the meeting
at which it will be considered must be given to all adjacent property
owners not less than 10 days prior to the meeting date. (NOTE: “Adjacent
property” refers to any neighbor that shares a property line
with the subject property as well as neighbors across any street from
the subject property.) Notice shall be by a method of mail or a delivery
service company providing proof of mailing or delivery or by personal
service of such notice on the property owners, evidenced by their
signature as acknowledgment of receipt of such notice on a form supplied
or similar to one supplied by the Village Clerk. Proof of service
of the notice shall be filed prior to or at the meeting at which the
application is considered.
C.
The homeowner
must demonstrate to the Board of Architectural Review that all reasonable
options have been considered to achieve compliance with the Solar
Energy Equipment Guidelines.
[Added 2-5-2018 by L.L.
No. 3-2018]
The Board of Architectural Review shall have the power to approve or disapprove the demolition, removal, relocation, exterior reconstruction, exterior alteration or exterior restoration of any local landmark designated pursuant to Chapter 144.
