A.
Meetings of the Planning/Zoning Board shall be scheduled
no less often than once a month, and any meeting so scheduled shall
be held as scheduled unless canceled for lack of development applications
to process.
B.
Special meetings may be provided at the call of the
Chair or 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.
No action shall be taken at any meeting without a
quorum.
D.
All actions shall be taken by a majority vote, a quorum
present at the meeting except as otherwise required by any provision
of the Municipal Land Use Law or Open Public Meetings Law, P.L. 1975,
c.231 (N.J.S.A. 10:4-6 et seq.).
E.
The provisions of the Open Public Meetings Law, where
applicable, shall be observed.
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 use as provided
in the rules of the Board.
A.
Whenever a hearing is required on an application for
development pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-1 et seq., or pursuant to
the determination of the municipal agency in question, the applicant
shall give notice thereof as follows:
(1)
Public notice shall be given by publication in the
official newspaper of the municipality at least 10 days prior to the
date of the hearing.
(2)
Notice shall be given to the owners of all real property
as shown on the current tax duplicate located in the state, 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 applicant's land is located. Such notice shall be given by:
(a)
Serving a copy thereof on the owner shown on
the said current tax duplicates or his/her agent in charge of the
property; or
(b)
Mailing a copy thereof by certified mail to
the property owner at his/her address as shown on the current tax
duplicate. A return receipt is not required. Notice to a partnership
owner may be made by service upon any partner. Notice to a corporate
owner may be made by service upon its president, a vice president,
secretary, or other person authorized by appointment or by law to
accept service on behalf of the corporation.
(3)
Notice of hearings on applications for development involving property located within 200 feet of an adjoining municipality shall be given by personal service or certified mail to the Clerk of such municipality, which notice shall be in addition to the notice required to be given pursuant to Subsection B of this section, to the owners of lands in such adjoining municipality which are located within 200 feet of the subject premises.
(4)
Notice shall be given by personal service or certified
mail 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 situated within 200 feet of a municipal
boundary.
(5)
Notice shall be given by personal service or certified
mail to the Commissioner of Transportation of a hearing on an application
for development of property adjacent to a state highway.
(6)
Notice shall be given by personal service or certified
mail 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 N.J.S.A. 40:55D-10.
B.
All notices herein above specified in this section
shall be given at least 10 days prior to the date fixed for the hearing
and the applicant shall file an affidavit of proof of service with
the Board holding the hearing for the development application. Any
notice made by certified mail as herein above required shall be deemed
to be complete upon mailing in accordance with N.J.S.A. 40:55D-14.
C.
Form of notice. All notices required to be given pursuant
to the terms of this chapter shall state the date, time, and place
of the hearing, the nature of the matters to be considered, and 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 and the location and
times at which any maps and documents for which approval is sought
are available as required by law.
D.
List of property owners furnished. Pursuant to the
provisions of N.J.S.A. 40:55D-12c the Township Tax Assessor shall,
within seven days after receipt of a request therefor and upon receipt
of payment of a fee of $10, 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 pursuant to this Section.
A.
Rules. The Planning/Zoning Board shall make rules
governing the conduct of hearings before such bodies which rules shall
not be inconsistent with the provisions of N.J.S.A. 40:55D-1 et seq.,
or of this chapter.
B.
Oaths. 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, c. 38, P.L. 1953 (N.J.S.A. 2A:67A-1 et seq.) shall
apply.
C.
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.
D.
Evidence. Technical rules of evidence shall not be
applicable to the hearing, but the Board may exclude irrelevant, immaterial
or unduly repetitious evidence.
E.
Records. The 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 to any interested party at his/her
expense.
A.
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.
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. A copy of the decision
shall also be mailed to all persons who have requested it and who
have paid the fee prescribed by the Board for such service. A copy
of the decision shall also be filed in the office of the Township
Clerk, who shall make a copy of such filed decision available to any
interested party upon payment of a fee calculated in the same manner
as those established for copies of other public documents in the municipality.
C.
Publications of decision. A brief notice of every
final decision shall be published in the official newspaper of the
municipality. Such publication shall be arranged by the Secretary
of the Planning/Zoning Board, without separate charge to the applicant.
Said notice shall be sent to the official newspaper for publication
within 10 days of the date of any such decision.
No member of the Planning/Zoning Board 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 further discussion or decision relating thereto.
Pursuant to the provisions of N.J.S.A. 40:55D-39
and N.J.S.A. 40:55D-65, every application for development submitted
to the Planning/Zoning Board shall be accompanied by proof that no
taxes or assessments for local improvements are due or delinquent
on the property which is the subject of such application; or, if it
is shown that taxes or assessments are delinquent on said property,
any approvals or other relief granted by the Board shall be conditioned
upon provision for the payment thereof in such manner that the municipality
will be adequately protected.
