Borough of Mendham, NJ Article VII Final Approval of Major Subdivisions

§ 195-22 Submission of application.

[Amended 6-7-1999 by Ord. No. 15-99]

An application shall be submitted to the administrative officer, in writing and with 22 copies, on forms supplied by the approving authority. Receipt of an application for final subdivision approval shall be filed no less than 35 days prior to the regular meeting date of the approving authority. Required fees, as provided in Article III, shall be submitted with the application form.

§ 195-23 Final plat requirements.

[Amended 6-15-1998 by Ord. No. 15-98; 3-21-2005 by Ord. No. 2-05]

A. The application shall be accompanied by an original cloth tracing and 20 copies, plus any prints and reproducibles required by the County Planning Board, of the proposed final subdivision. The final plat shall have incorporated therein all changes or modifications required by the approving authority in respect to the preliminary plat.

B. The final plat shall be drawn in ink on tracing cloth and in compliance with all of the provisions of the Map Filing Act, P.L. 1960, c. 141 (N.J.S.A. 46:23-9.9 et seq.). The size of the map preferably shall be 24 inches by 36 inches. The final plat shall contain or be accompanied by the information required by the Application Checklist, Appendix A, Chapter 124.

§ 195-24 Procedural requirements for final approval.

A. Final subdivision plat review.

(1) The applicant shall submit the completed application and maps and the payment of all required fees to the administrative officer, who shall submit copies of the same to the following:

(a) Construction Official.

(b) Borough Engineer.

(c) Board of Health.

(d) Planning consultant.

(e) Borough Sewer Department.

(f) Approving authority attorney.

(g) County Planning Board.

(h) Environmental Commission.

(2) Said persons and boards shall make recommendations, in writing, to the approving authority within 35 days of the application submission.

B. Determination as to compliance. The Borough Engineer and Planning Consultant and the approving authority attorney, where appropriate, shall advise the approving authority of the following:

(1) A statement from the Borough Engineer that all improvements required under preliminary approval have been installed in compliance with all applicable laws and from the Borough Clerk that a satisfactory maintenance bond has been filed.

(2) In the event that Subsection B(1) is not applicable, the following shall be indicated:

(a) The nature of the improvements to be required as a condition of final approval.

(b) The estimated value of the improvements installed or to be installed.

(c) The nature and amount of performance guaranties, if any, to be required as a condition of final approval.

(d) The provisions of open space reservation or dedication and the standards for open space organizations.

(e) The effects, if any, of valuation, assessment and taxation of the Farmlands Assessment Act.[1]

[1] Editor's Note: See N.J.S.A. 54:4-23.1 et seq.

(f) The findings and compliance of all provisions under planned development status.

(3) The amounts to be deposited to reimburse the approving authority and Borough for costs incurred or to be incurred for legal, engineering, planning and other professional reviews and work, for recording fees and for any other costs anticipated by the approving authority, where applicable.

(4) Any other conditions upon which final approval will be granted or conditioned.

C. Applicant's responsibilities. The applicant shall be required to submit to the approving authority for its approval the following items. For good cause shown, the approving authority may allow the applicant to omit one or more of the same.

(1) A developer's agreement, prepared by the approving authority attorney setting forth the obligations of the applicant in connection with the final approval.

(2) A performance guaranty, in a form satisfactory to the approving authority and the Borough, complying with Articles XII and XIII of this chapter and guaranteeing performance of the developer's agreement.

(3) Maintenance guaranties, if any, for work completed prior to final approval.

(4) Deeds for any easements, rights-of-way or public lands in a form satisfactory to the approving authority and Borough attorneys.

(5) Evidence of compliance with other conditions imposed by the approving authority.

(6) Proof of payment of taxes and assessments as provided in § 195-20D.

(7) Funds to be deposited to reimburse the approving authority and Borough for costs incurred or to be incurred for legal, engineering, planning and other consultant reports, for recording fees and for any other costs anticipated by the approving authority.

D. County Planning Board and other governmental agency approvals. Any final approval required for county subdivision approval or by other governmental agencies shall be submitted by the applicant to the Morris County Planning Board or other governmental agencies for review and approval. The approving authority may condition any approval that it may grant upon the timely receipt of a favorable report on the application by the County Planning Board or other governmental agency or by the County Planning Board or other governmental agency by its failure to report thereon within the required time period.

E. Approving authority action.

(1) Final approval shall be granted or denied within 45 days after submission of a complete application to the administrative officer or within such further time as may be consented to by the applicant. Failure of the approving authority to act within the period prescribed shall entitle an applicant to claim approval of his or her application for development by compliance with the terms of N.J.S.A. 40:55D-10.4, and a certificate of the administrative officer as to the failure of the approving authority to act shall be issued on request of the applicant, and it shall be sufficient in lieu of the written endorsement or other evidence of approval and shall be so accepted by the county recording officer for purposes of filing subdivision plats.

[Amended 6-7-1999 by Ord. No. 15-99]

(2) Unless the preliminary plat has been approved without changes, the final plat shall incorporate all changes or modifications required by the approving authority. The final plat shall be accompanied by a certificate of the Borough Engineer that he is in receipt of a map which shows all utilities in exact location and elevation and which identifies the utilities already installed and those to be installed. The certificate shall also state:

(a) That the applicant has installed all required improvements; or

(b) That the applicant has posted a performance guaranty with the Borough Clerk in sufficient amount and proper form to assure the completion of all required improvements.

(3) Upon final approval by the approving authority and the signature of the Chairperson and Secretary of the approving authority having been placed on the original tracing, the administrative officer shall request the applicant to have one translucent tracing cloth copy and nine prints of each final plat, filing a copy thereof with each of the following:

(a) Approving authority administrative officer.

(b) Borough Engineer.

(c) Construction Official.

(d) Tax Assessor.

(e) Borough Sewer Department.

(f) Board of Health.

(g) County Planning Board.

(h) Other governmental units or municipal officials where required.

(i) Environmental Commission.

F. Final subdivision approval plats; filing.

(1) Final subdivision approval shall expire 95 days from the date of the signing of the plat, unless within such period the plat shall have been duly filed by the applicant with the county recording officer.

(2) The approving authority may for good and sufficient cause shown extend the period of recording for an additional period not to exceed 190 days from the date of signing the plat.

(3) No subdivision plat shall be accepted for filing by the county recording officer until it has been approved by the approving authority as indicated on the instrument by the signature of the Chairperson and Secretary of the approving authority or a certificate has been issued pursuant to Chapter 291 of the Laws of 1975.[2] The signature of the Chairperson and Secretary of the approving authority shall not be affixed until the developer has posted the guaranties required pursuant to Articles XII and XIII of this chapter, where appropriate. If the county recording officer records any plat without such approval, such recording shall be deemed null and void, and, upon request of Mendham Borough, the plat shall be expunged from the official records.

[2] Editor's Note: See N.J.S.A. 40:55D-1 et seq.

(4) It shall be the duty of the county recording officer to notify the approving authority, in writing, within seven days of the filing of any plat, identifying such instrument by its title, date of filing and official number.

G. Notice of farm use.

[Added 2-22-2000 by Ord. No. 2-00]

(1) For the purpose of giving due notice of the farm rights contained in § 215-12.1 to new residents of the municipality, the Planning Board shall require an applicant for every major or minor subdivision, as a condition of approval of such application, to provide every purchaser with a copy of the Borough's Right to Farm Ordinance; and

(2) Whenever a new major or minor subdivision abuts a farm as defined in § 215-12.1 or a new major or minor subdivision contains space which was not owned by individual homeowners or a homeowners' association, and said space is at least five acres in size, then the following language shall be inserted in the deed of all lots in the subdivision:

"Grantee is hereby noticed there is, or may in the future be, farm use near the described premises from which may emanate noise, odors, dust and fumes associated with agricultural practices permitted under Agricultural uses, § 215-12.1, of the Borough of Mendham Zoning Ordinance."

§ 195-25 Effect of final approval.

A. The zoning requirements applicable to the preliminary subdivision approval first granted and all other rights conferred upon the applicant pursuant to § 195-21 of this chapter, whether conditionally or otherwise, shall not be changed for a period of two years after the date of final approval, provided that the rights conferred by this section shall expire if the plat has not been duly recorded within the required time period. If the applicant has followed the standards prescribed for final approval and has duly recorded the plat as required, the approving authority may extend such period of protection for extensions of one year, but not to exceed three extensions. Notwithstanding any other provisions of this chapter, the granting of final approval terminates the time period of preliminary approval pursuant to § 195-21 for the section granted final approval.

B. In the case of a subdivision or site plan for a planned development of 50 acres or more or a conventional subdivision for 150 acres or more, the approving authority may grant the rights referred to in Subsection A for such period of time longer than two years as shall be determined by the approving agency to be reasonable, taking into consideration the number of dwelling units and nonresidential floor area permissible under final approval, economic conditions and the comprehensiveness of the development. The applicant may apply thereafter and the approving authority may thereafter grant an extension of final approval for such additional period of time as shall be determined by the approving authority to be reasonable, taking into consideration the number of dwelling units and nonresidential floor area permissible under final approval, the number of dwelling units and nonresidential floor area remaining to be developed, economic conditions and the comprehensiveness of the development.