(A) Eligibility.
(1) Any person aggrieved by the decision of the Planning Commission or the Township Board in granting or denial of preliminary site plan approval or the Zoning Administrator in granting or denial of final site plan approval, shall have the right to appeal the decision to the Zoning Board of Appeals.
(2) An aggrieved party must allege and prove to the satisfaction of the Zoning Board of Appeals that he or she suffered some special damages not common to other property owners similarly situated. The mere increase in traffic in the area, proof of general economic and aesthetic losses or the mere fact that the appellant owns adjacent property are not sufficient to show special damages.
(B) Appeals process.
(1) The appeal shall state the aggrieved parties’ grounds for appeal and shall be filed with the Township Clerk within seven days of the decision of the Planning Commission, Township Board or Zoning Administrator.
(2) The Zoning Administrator shall transmit to the Board of Appeals copies of all documents constituting the record of the site plan review.
(3) The Zoning Board of Appeals shall review the appellant’s documents and determine if he, she or they are an aggrieved party.
(a) If the Board determines that the appellant(s) is not an aggrieved party, the Board shall note its findings in resolution form, state its reasons and inform the appellant(s) in writing.
(b) If the Board determines that the appellant(s) is an aggrieved party, the Board should note their findings in resolution form, state its reasons and schedule a meeting date to consider whether to confirm or overturn the original decision.
(4) The Zoning Board of Appeals shall review the public record and determine whether or not there was support on the record for the original decision. The appellant shall not have the right to present new evidence, but shall be bound by the record. The appellant and the appellee may present oral arguments pertaining to the record. The extent of the oral arguments shall be at the discretion of the Chairperson. The Board of Appeals shall decide upon all site plan appeals within a reasonable time, not to exceed 45 days from the date on which the appeal was filed.
(5) The Zoning Board of Appeals shall approve the site plan if requirements of this chapter and other applicable township ordinances are met.
(C) Stay. The filing of a site plan appeal shall act to stay the issuance of a final site plan approval, issuances of any certificates of zoning compliance or the issuance of any building permit authorizing improvements on the property which is the subject of appeal.
(Prior Code, Ch. XV, § 12D.17) (Ord. 2001-1, passed 7-17-2001)