[Adopted 8-13-1991 by Ch. No. 983 as §§ 7-231
through 7-237 of the 1991 Code (Ch. No. 1333)]
There is created a Town Licensing Board to consider
and decide all licensing matters which were heretofore considered
and decided by the Westerly Town Council sitting as a Licensing Board.
[Amended 9-28-2009 by Ch. No. 1691]
A.
There shall
be a Licensing Board consisting of five members appointed by the Council
for a term of three years. The initial members shall be appointed
as follows: Two members shall be appointed for a term of three years;
two members shall be appointed for a term of two years; and the fifth
member shall be appointed for a term of one year; thereafter, all
members appointed will serve for a term of three years each. Each
appointed member shall hold office on the Board until his successor
is appointed and qualified. Vacancies on the Board, which may occur
in the appointed membership of the Board, for any reason whatsoever,
shall be filled by the Council for the remainder of the unexpired
term.
B.
There may
be a liaison to the Licensing Board who shall be a member of the Town
Council designated by the Council President to serve as such Council
Liaison. The Council member so designated shall serve in said capacity
during his/her tenure on the Town Council and providing that he/she
retains that designation by the Town Council President.
The Town Licensing Board shall have all the powers which were heretofore vested in the Town Council sitting as a Licensing Board and any powers which are specifically referred to in this chapter or elsewhere in the Code as belonging to the Westerly Town Council as it pertains to the granting, denying or suspending of licenses, permits, applications for Town licenses, permits or other matters dealing with the administration of Town licenses or permits, including but not limited to those licenses and permits listed in Chapter 121 of the Code; the power to hold public hearings for the granting of a license; the power to conduct show-cause hearings to determine if a license shall be suspended or revoked; the power to grant licenses subject to conditions approved by the Board. In addition, the Town Licensing Board shall have all other powers given to it by any ordinance, statute or law that may be passed in the future. Any approvals of applications for licenses or permits which heretofore were required to be made by the Town Council shall be made by the Town Licensing Board in its place.
[Amended 11-10-2003 by Ch. No. 1469; 2-13-2006 by Ch. No. 1562]
A.
Any person who is aggrieved by any decision of the
Town Licensing Board concerning the license, permit or renewal or
revocation thereof, except those concerning liquor licenses, shall
have an automatic appeal to the Westerly Town Council if the appellant
shall file a notice of appeal (form to be provided by the Town Clerk's
office) with the Town Clerk within 10 days of the date of the decision
of the Licensing Board; the appeal shall be heard by the Council within
30 days of the filing of the notice of appeal, and the appeal shall
be heard de novo; the applicant shall be allowed a new hearing on
application before the Council and in rendering its decision the Council
shall not consider any evidence, presentation or material presented
to the Licensing Board on the same application, nor shall the Council
consider the decision made by the Licensing Board. The filing of an
appeal shall not create an automatic stay of the Licensing Board decision;
however, the applicant may seek and the Board shall have the authority
to grant a stay pending the final outcome of the appeal upon such
terms and conditions and for such period as the Board shall deem appropriate.
If the Board denies the applicant's stay request, the applicant may
request a stay directly to the Town Council. The Town Council will
schedule the hearing under the provisions for new business or public
hearings, according to the discretion of the Council and/or the Town
Clerk.
B.
For purposes of this section, an aggrieved party is:
(1)
Any applicant for any license, permit or renewal,
except liquor licenses, that is aggrieved by any decision of the Town
Licensing Board;
(2)
Any person or entity that can demonstrate that their
property or other rights will be or have been injured by a decision
of the Licensing Board or granting any licenses or permits, except
concerning liquor, and who has first raised an objection to the granting
of or renewal of a license or permit at the Licensing Board meeting
where the decision was made; and further that said aggrieved party
shall have given written notice of the objection to the license holder
or applicant or their representative and the Licensing Board Clerk
24 hours prior to the Licensing Board meeting; or
[Amended 9-28-2009 by Ch. No. 1691]
The members of the Town Licensing Board shall
be residents of the Town of Westerly and shall continue as residents
of the Town during their terms in office. Three members shall constitute
a quorum. The Board shall elect a Chairman from among its membership
annually. The Board shall meet at least once monthly and at other
times at the direction of the Chairman in consultation with the Town
Clerk.
The Town Council shall appoint one auxiliary member who shall serve a three-year term. Said member shall have the same qualifications as regular members pursuant to § 5-52. The auxiliary member shall sit on the Licensing Board with full voting rights whenever a regular member is unable or unavailable to sit on an application.
The Town Clerk or his/her designee shall serve
as a Clerk to the Licensing Board and shall be responsible for all
clerical responsibilities relating to Board business, including but
not limited to the taking and maintaining of all meeting minutes,
the posting and relevant advertising of any license applications and/or
Board meetings.
