(A) Recommendations; hearing. The Board of Trustees may, by ordinance, amend, change or repeal this chapter or any part thereof; provided, however, that, before the Board of Trustees shall amend, change or repeal this chapter or any part thereof, it shall request the Planning Commission to submit its recommendation on such proposed amendment, change or repeal. Such recommendation on such proposed amendment, change or repeal, whichever the case may be, shall be made after not less than one public hearing thereon, which hearing may be adjourned from time to time. After considering the Commission’s recommendation at public hearing for which public notice shall be given, the Board of Trustees may approve the recommendation in whole or in part, or return the recommendation to the Planning Commission for further consideration.
(1) The Planning Commission may, upon its own initiative, hold at least one public hearing on a proposed amendment, change or repeal of this chapter or any part thereof and any recommendations therefrom shall be transmitted to the Board of Trustees. The Board of Trustees shall consider and act upon such recommendation in the same manner as herein set forth for recommendations requested by the Board of Trustees.
(2) Notice of the dates, time and place of a public hearing considering amendments or changes to district regulations, restrictions or district boundaries shall include at least one publication notice in a newspaper of general circulation in the town not less than 15 days, but not more than 30 days, prior to such public hearing. If a proposed amendment is for any proposed zoning change, except when proposed by the town, public notice shall also include the posting of at feast one sign on such lot, parcel or tract of land and such sign shall there remain for a period of 20 successive days prior to the public hearing, including the day immediately preceding the day for which such noticed hearing is scheduled. The sign and lettering thereon shall be of sufficient size so as to be clearly visible and legible from the public street or streets toward which it faces. Public notice shall also include notice mailed by the Secretary of the Planning Commission to all owners of property within a 300-foot radius of the exterior boundary of the subject property. The notice shall contain the legal description and the street address or approximate location of the property, the present and sought zoning classification of the property and the date, time and place of the public hearing. It shall be the duty of the owner or authorized representative to provide a list of the owners within the 300-foot radius certified to be accurate by a bonded abstracter, attorney or such other entity as may be acceptable to the Secretary. The petition shall be deemed to be not filed until said list is provided. The publication and mailed notice, as herein referred, shall be on the forms provided by the Secretary of the Planning Commission, shall provide all information required by said form, and shall include a map of the area to be affected which indicates street names or numbers, streams or other significant landmarks in said area.
(B) Petitions. Petition for amendment to this chapter and zoning map shall henceforth be filed with the Planning Commission by the owner of the property concerned, or duly authorized representative thereof, on a standard form furnished by the Commission. All petitions for amendment proposing a change in zoning district classification shall be accompanied by a sketch plan of the area proposed to be rezoned, drawn to approximate scale and showing the boundaries and dimensions of the tract, the outline of existing and proposed buildings and structures, the size and location of off-street parking lots, the type of surfacing proposed for said lots and the plan of structures and the drives proposed for ingress and egress. An area map showing land of all abutting property owners shall also be submitted unless such is shown on the tract sketch.
(C) Protest. If a protest against a proposed amendment or change to the regulations, restrictions, or district boundaries is filed, at least three days before the public hearing, by the owners of 20% or more of the area of the lots included in the proposed change or the owners of 50% or more of the area of lots within a 300-foot radius of the exterior boundary of the property included in the proposed change, then such amendment or change shall not become effective, except by a favorable vote of three-fourths of all members of the Board of Trustees.
(D) Filing fee. Upon filing of a petition of amendment to these regulations, the property owner or his or her duly authorized representative shall pay a filing fee of $300 to the Secretary of the Planning Commission. All fees collected by the Planning Commission shall be deposited with the town’s Clerk- Treasurer and credited to the General Fund of the town.
(1) The fees or expenses for all public notices herein required pursuant to petition for amendment shall be paid by the owner of the property or his or her duly authorized representative. The form for such notice shall be established by the Board of Trustees. The Board of Trustees or the Planning Commission, as it concerns their respective hearings, shall designate the agency or agencies which shall affect the public notices and the number of notices to be used pursuant to this chapter.
(2) If, pursuant to a petition for amendment, the Board of Trustees votes to rezone a lot, parcel or tract of land, the owner of such land shall pay the cost of the ordinance publication. Such payment shall be submitted to the town’s Clerk-Treasurer, and the town’s Clerk-Treasurer shall not cause the ordinance to be published prior to such payment.
(E) Final determination or failure to recommend; appeal. In the event the Planning Commission fails to set up a petition for amendment for public hearing within 20 days after its proper filing with the Planning Commission at a regular scheduled meeting; or, if after public hearing, the Planning Commission fails to recommend that this chapter be amended in accordance with such petition for amendment, such failure shall be deemed the final determination and decision of the Planning Commission. The final determination of the Planning Commission may be appealed to the Board of Trustees, provided a written request for a hearing before the Board of Trustees is served on the Chairperson of the Planning Commission within 15 days after the final determination of the Planning Commission.
(F) Zoning map changes. The Planning Commission shall supervise the official zoning map and shall keep same up to date with all changes and amendments.
(Prior Code, § 10-10-3) (Ord. 2009-3, passed 5-15-2009)