N.J. Admin. Code § 5:21-3.5

Current through Register Vol. 56, No. 24, December 18, 2024

Section 5:21-3.5 - Special area standards

(a) The Commissioner and the Site Improvement Advisory Board as a matter of policy recognize the need for preservation and/or enhancement of community character in New Jersey municipalities. This section is intended to provide a procedure whereby a municipal approving authority may develop and recommend to the Board supplementary and/or alternative standards in the form of municipal ordinances for review and amendment to this chapter. The Site Improvement Advisory Board shall solicit the input of the Department of Environmental Protection, the Office of Smart Growth, and the Department of Transportation, and may solicit input from public or private organizations and individuals as it deems appropriate during the process of review of special area standards.

(b) A special area designation may be applied by ordinance by a municipality or group of municipalities to an area or areas of a municipality or municipalities exhibiting or planned to exhibit a distinctive character or environmental feature that the municipality or municipalities by ordinance have identified and expressed a desire to preserve and enhance. Examples of a special area may include:

1. Designated redevelopment areas pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40A:12A-1 et seq.;

2. Designated special improvement districts pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:56-65 et seq.;

3. Designated historic districts pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-65.1;

4. Municipalities in the Metropolitan Planning Area (Planning Area 1), and Regional Centers, villages, hamlets, or other Centers identified by the State Development and Redevelopment Plan or designated by the State Planning Commission;

5. Infill areas in urban settings;

6. Planned unit and planned unit residential developments, and residential clusters pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-39;

7. Areas where environmental systems such as watersheds may require special environmental controls;

8. Designated scenic corridors, pursuant to the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act or other similar State or local initiatives; and

9. Rural preservation areas including, but not limited to, designated Agricultural Development Areas, pursuant to N.J.S.A. 4:1C, and in support of the rural preservation policies of the State Development and Redevelopment Plan.

(c) The Site Improvement Advisory Board shall consider at its regular or specially-scheduled public meetings special area standards submitted for approval by or on behalf of a municipality or municipalities. The following procedures shall govern the review of special area standards submitted for approval:

1. Upon receipt of an application for approval of special area standards conforming to (e) below, the Department of Community Affairs, on behalf of the Board, shall prepare and file with the Office of Administrative Law, for publication in the New Jersey Register, a notice of receipt of the application, including a summary of its contents. Any such notice shall conform to the requirements applicable to petitions for rules set forth at N.J.A.C. 5:2-2. The notice shall indicate the time and place of any meeting that is to be held to consider the application and shall also indicate the address and telephone number at which persons may contact the Department in order to be placed on lists that the Department shall use to keep interested persons informed as to the status of any specific application or of special area standards applications generally.

i. The application shall be accompanied by proof of publication by the municipality, in its official newspaper, of either a copy of the application or a summary of its contents. If the municipality does not publish the full text of the application, it shall include in the published notice a statement that interested persons may review a copy of the application that is on file in the office of the municipal clerk, and may purchase copies of the application in accordance with the New Jersey Right-to-Know law, N.J.S.A. 47:1A-1.1 et seq., and that information concerning the date of any meeting at which the application will be considered will be available in the office of the municipal clerk once that determination has been made.

2. Upon receipt of an application for approval of special area standards, the Department, with the concurrence of the chairperson of the Board, shall refer the application to the appropriate Board committee. The committee shall consider the application at a meeting held at least 15 days following publication of notice of the application in the New Jersey Register. Notice of such meeting shall be sent to the municipal clerk and to all known parties in interest. The committee shall recommend such action to the Board as it may deem appropriate.

3. A notice of the action recommended by the committee, including the text of any recommended special area standards, shall be forwarded by the Department to the Office of Administrative Law for publication in the New Jersey Register as a public notice. The notice, copies of which shall be sent to the municipal clerk and to all known parties in interest, shall include the time and place of the meeting of the Board at which the application and the committee's recommendations thereon shall be considered.

i. Upon receipt of the notice, the municipality shall publish a copy of the notice in its official newspaper.

4. Prior to making a decision on any application for special area standards, the Board shall hold a public hearing at which all interested persons shall be given an opportunity to testify and to present their views, both orally and in writing. A taped record shall be made of all statements made at the hearing, which record shall be made available by the Department to interested persons upon request. At the conclusion of the hearing, the Board shall either take action on the application or schedule the matter for further consideration at its next meeting. Any Board decision shall be by formal resolution. Notice of any Board decision shall be published in the New Jersey Register.

5. The Board and any of its committees shall meet at least monthly when any application for approval of special area standards is ripe for action before them.

(d) The Site Improvement Advisory Board shall review special area standards submitted for approval if:

1. The special area is delineated on the zoning map, adopted redevelopment plan, special improvement district ordinance, Center designation petition, or other duly authorized ordinance of the municipality or municipalities;

2. The special area is incorporated into the municipality's master plan;

3. Site improvement standards for use in the special area are consistent with the purposes of this chapter, deviations from the standards are identified, and a rationale is provided for each such deviation; and

4. Site improvement standards for use in the special area are set forth in an ordinance or draft ordinance that has been referred to the Board for approval by resolution of the municipal governing body. Municipalities may submit their existing codes and plans to satisfy these requirements; provided, however, that no ordinance setting forth special area standards shall be effective unless and until it is approved by the Board.

(e) The application of the municipality for Site Improvement Advisory Board approval of its special area standards shall consist of:

1. A resolution of the governing body as described in (b) above;

2. The standards;

3. A copy of the ordinance, or of the draft ordinance and supporting resolution, adopting the standards;

4. An identification and narrative rationale for the deviations from the standards of this chapter; and

5. Any maps, exhibits, or supporting documentation.

(f) Developers, nonprofit groups, and other agencies may submit applications for special area status on behalf of the municipalities if duly authorized by the municipal governing body.

(g) The Site Improvement Advisory Board's decision on municipal special area standards shall be rendered in writing.

(h) The Site Improvement Advisory Board shall incorporate into its annual review of this chapter a review of approved municipal special area standards and shall recommend to the Commissioner any appropriate changes in the rules (see N.J.S.A. 40:55D-40.4(d)).

(i) The Site Improvement Advisory Board may approve or deny, in whole or in part, special area standards submitted for consideration by a municipality or municipalities.

(j) The Site Improvement Advisory Board's review is limited in scope to those areas within its purview pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-40.4, that is streets, off-street parking, water supply, sanitary sewers, and stormwater management in the context of residential development.

(k) The Board's review of a municipal special area standards ordinance shall be based on the following criteria. Standards set forth in an ordinance submitted for review by the Board:

1. Shall be consistent with the intent of the Site Improvement Standards Act,

2. Shall be reasonable and not unduly burdensome,

3. Shall meet the needs of public health and safety, and

4. Shall take into account existing infrastructure and surrounding development possibility.

(l) A developer whose application is complete on or before the date of approval of a special area standard shall have the option of complying with that standard or complying with the standard in effect prior to the date of approval of the special area standard.

N.J. Admin. Code § 5:21-3.5

Petition for Rulemaking: Notice of Receipt of a Petition for Rulemaking.
See: 29 N.J.R. 3900(a).
Amended by R.1998 d.400, effective 8/3/1998.
See: 30 N.J.R. 755(a), 30 N.J.R. 2861(b).
In (c), rewrote the introductory paragraph and added new 1 through 5; in (d), rewrote 4; in (e), inserted "or of the draft ordinance and supporting resolution" preceding "adopting the standards:" in 3; and added a new ( l).
Amended by R.1999 d.374, effective 11/1/1999 (operative May 1, 2000).
See: 31 N.J.R. 477(a), 31 N.J.R. 3259(a).
Rewrote (e)1.
Public Notice: Special area standards.
See: 33 N.J.R. 130(a), 897(a).
Public Notice: Special area standards.
See: 34 N.J.R. 4224(a).
Public Notice: Special area standards.
See: 36 N.J.R. 220(a).
Public Notice: Special area standards.
See: 40 N.J.R. 757(a).
Amended by R.2009 d.185, effective 6/15/2009.
See: 41 N.J.R. 913(a), 41 N.J.R. 2463(a).
In (a), substituted "Smart Growth" for "State Planning".
Public Notice: Special area standards.
See 47 N.J.R. 2886(b).