The procedures and regulations relating to site plans are deemed necessary to achieve the following objectives:

1. To provide a review and coordination procedure which clearly defines the role of public and private interest, as well as standards to be enforced.

2. To enhance and improve the man-made and natural environment through the retention of open spaces, woodlands, waterways, wetlands, scenic vistas, natural topographical features, trees and other natural vegetative cover, and to prevent erosion, flooding, silting and removal or displacement of land.

4. To encourage innovative and attractive techniques in design, technology and administration.

1. Except as provided herein, no building permit shall be issued for a building or structure, or any enlargement, alteration, construction or renovation of a building or structure, unless a site plan is first submitted and approved by the approving Board.

2. No certificate of occupancy shall be given unless all construction and conditions conform to a minor or final site plan approved by the approving Board.

3. A new site plan shall be submitted for every change of occupancy, use, tenancy or ownership, except where site plan approval has been previously obtained and improvements have been installed and maintained according to the approved plan, as certified by the Construction Official pursuant to Section 13-2.601, or the Township Planner and Zoning Officer certify that site plan review is not required pursuant to Section 13-3.101.

1. Site plan review shall ,not be required for single-family and two-family detached dwellings when used solely for residential purposes or for such accessory uses as are permitted in the applicable residential district.

2. Site plan review shall not be required where minor repairs to the interior of a building do not involve structural change of the building, as determined by the Construction Official or Zoning Officer.

3. The construction Official or Zoning Officer, at their discretion, may refer any application for a building permit, zoning permit, or certificate of occupancy to an approving Board for site plan review, where, in their judgment and that of the Township Planner, the construction, reconstruction, alteration or change of use, occupancy, tenancy, or ownership will affect existing traffic volume or circulation, drainage, landscaping, lighting, off-street parking or the lack of any or all of these factors or other considerations as specified in this Section.

The Applicant shall submit twenty (20) copies of the application together with twenty (20) legible prints containing all information required in the appropriate checklist together with all appropriate fees at least three (3) weeks prior to the date of the regular meeting of the approving Board at which the application is to be considered.

The Secretary of the approving Board shall forward copies of the application, or relevant portions thereof, to the following officials for review and comment where appropriate: a) Township Engineer b) Township Planner c) Morris County Planning Board d) Zoning Officer e) Tax Assessor f) Approving Board Consultants g) Approving Board Attorney h) Environmental Commission i) County Soil Conservation District j) Historic Advisory Committee

In appropriate cases, the approving Board shall have the authority to approve a minor site plan without the necessity of any specific referrals. The approving Board shall also have the authority to refer any map to other agencies or individuals for comment or recommendations.

An application for development in the form that the applicant intends to be a complete application, together with all required fees and deposit for escrow, shall be provided to the Secretary of the Approving Board by the applicant in a single submission. All items on the checklist of requirements shall be submitted with the application unless the applicant submits a written request seeking waiver of the omitted checklist requirements with reasons supporting the proposed completeness waiver. Upon submission of the application for development, the application shall be administratively reviewed and recommendations provided to the approving board by the Municipal Planner or his designee describing the status of completeness of the application. If the Municipal Planner deems the submission to be insufficient to perform his/her administrative review, he/she may require that the applicant resubmit or supplement its application documents. Upon submission of an application deemed by the Municipal Planner to be administratively sufficient, the application shall be filed and assigned a docket number by the Secretary and scheduled for a public hearing to determine completeness within forty-five (45) days of filing. Requests for completeness waivers shall be considered at the time of the completeness hearing.

At the completeness hearing, the approving board shall determine whether the application is complete or incomplete in accordance with the requirements of the checklist and after consideration of any written requests that any one or more of the checklist requirements be waived. If the approving board shall determine that the application is incomplete, the Secretary shall advise the applicant or its attorney, in writing, of the reasons why the application is incomplete within forty-five (45) days of the filing of the application for development. In the event that the approving board does not certify the application to be incomplete or complete within forty-five (45) days of the date of filing of an application for development, the application shall be deemed complete upon the expiration of the forty-five (45) day period for purposes of commencing the applicable time period for approval or denial of the application pursuant to this Ordinance.

In the event that the approving board determines that the application is incomplete, the applicant shall not have to pay a new application fee as long as the incomplete items are submitted within sixty (60) days of the determination of incompleteness. Otherwise, the application process shall begin as in a new filing. Where the board has determined the application is incomplete, an applicant wishing to make supplemental submissions to the original application within the sixty (60) day time period allowed shall make such supplemental submission at one time with all intended supplemental material filed simultaneously. The resubmission shall retain the original application docket number and shall be reviewed administratively and placed on the agenda before the board for a determination of completeness as in the case of a new application, and all procedures for determination of completeness shall be followed as in the case of a new application.

Nothing herein shall be construed as diminishing the applicant's obligation to prove in the application process that he or she is entitled to approval of the application. The approving board may subsequently request the submission of checklist items waived for purposes of application completeness and/or the correction of any material found to be in error. The approving board may require submission of additional information not specified in the ordinance and/or such revisions in the accompanying documents as are reasonably necessary to make an informed decision as to whether the requirements necessary for approval of an application for development have been satisfied. The board shall also have the authority to refer any application plans or documents to other agencies or individuals for comment or recommendations.

The Municipal Planner may, under appropriate circumstances, make a preliminary determination of completeness for the purpose of expediting the designation of a hearing date for the application, provided that any such determination shall be provisional in nature and shall be subject to confirmation by the Board at the public hearing of the applicant.

The officials and agencies to whom application plans or documents have been forwarded pursuant to this section shall forward their comments and recommendations in writing to the approving Board prior to the first public hearing of the application.

At the time when the approving board determines that the application is complete and ready for public hearing, the approving board shall either proceed forthwith with the public hearing of the application, provided that all applicable notice requirements have been satisfied, or set a date for the public hearing and notify the applicant of said date. After such notification by the approving board, the applicant shall follow the procedures established by this Ordinance and the Municipal Land Use Law with respect to the notice of hearing. If no further public notice is required, the approving board may directly proceed with the public hearing of the application after determining completeness.

Where, after an application is complete, the applicant proposes changes in the application, or accepts changes suggested by the approving board, the approving board may require the submission of an amended application which shall proceed as in the case of the original application for development, except that additional application/escrow fees and/or completeness review may be waived at the discretion of the approving board. The time within which the approving board shall review the amended application and make its determination shall commence as of the date of the filing of the amended application, or the date the amended application is determined to be complete, if additional completeness review is not waived. If the applicant fails to submit an amended application within the original time for review authorized by this ordinance, the approving board shall be obligated to act on the original application. !f, at the discretion of the approving board, the change or changes are considered minor in nature, the applicant may be given approval subject to the submission-of an amended plan indicating the changes

Whenever review or approval of the application by the County Planning Board is required by N.J.S.A. 40:27-6.3, the approving Board shall condition any approval that it grants upon timely receipt of a favorable report on the application by the County Planning Board or approval by the County Planning Board by its failure to report thereon within the required time period.

The approving Board shall approve, conditionally approve, or deny a minor site plan within forty-five (45) days of the determination of the approving Board, that the application is complete, unless the applicant shall extend the period of time within which the Board may act. Failure of the approving Board to act within the period of time prescribed shall constitute minor site plan approval.

A.minor site plan approval shall be deemed to be a final approval of the site plan by the approving Board provided that the Board may condition such approval on terms insuring the provision of improvements as may be required pursuant to the Municipal Land Use Law (N.J.S.A. 40:55D-30, 38, 39, 40 and 53). The zoning requirements and general terms under which the minor site plan approval was granted, shall not be changed for a period of two (2) years after the date in which the resolution of memorialization was adopted. The approving board shall grant an extension of this period for a period determined by the approving board but not exceeding one year from what would otherwise be the expiration date, if the developer proves to the reasonable satisfaction of the approving board that the developer was barred or prevented, directly or indirectly, from proceeding with the development because of delays in obtaining legally required approvals from other governmental entities and that the developer applied promptly for and diligently pursued the approvals. The developer shall apply for this extension before (1) what would otherwise be the expiration date, or (2) the 91st day after the date on which the developer received the last of the legally required approvals from the other governmental entities, whichever occurs later.

After the approval of a minor site plan, copies of the signed map shall be distributed to the following, where appropriate: a) Township Clerk b) Township Engineer c) Zoning Officer d) Construction Official e) Tax Assessor f) Secretary of Approving Board g) Morris County Planning Board h) County Soil Conservation District

The Applicant shall submit twenty (20) copies of the application together with twenty (20) legible prints containing all information required in the appropriate checklist together with all appropriate fees at least three (3) weeks prior to the date of the regular meeting of the approving Board at which the application is to be considered.

The Secretary of the approving Board shall forward copies of the plat to the following officials for review and comment where appropriate:

a. Township Engineer

b. Township Planner

c. Morris County Planning Board

d. Zoning Officer

e. Tax Assessor

f. Approving Board Consultants

g. Approving Board Attorney

h. Environmental Commission

1. County Soil Conservation District

j. Historic Advisory Committee

In appropriate cases, the approving Board shall have the authority to approve the preliminary major site plan without the necessity of any specific referrals. The approving Board shall also have the authority to refer any plat to other agencies or individuals for comment or recommendations.

The following additional documents shall be provided during the hearing process in a written statement from the applicant's engineer: a) Type of structure to be erected, gross floor area and number of stories. b) Nature of business, if commercial or industrial, method of operation, hours of operation, number of employees, frequency and type of deliveries, parking generation, etc. c) Approximate date of start of construction. d) Sequencing of construction.

An application for development in the form that the applicant intends to be a complete application, together with all required fees and deposit for escrow, shall be provided to the Secretary of the Approving Board by the applicant in a single submission. All items on the checklist of requirements shall be submitted with the application unless the applicant submits a written request seeking waiver of the omitted checklist requirements with reasons supporting the proposed completeness waiver. Upon submission of the application for development, the application shall be -_administratively -reviewed the approving board by the Municipal Planner or his designee describing the status of completeness of the application. If the Municipal Planner deems the submission to be insufficient to perform his/her administrative review, he/she may require that the applicant resubmit or supplement its application documents. Upon submission of an application deemed by the Municipal Planner to be administratively sufficient, the application shall be filed and assigned a docket number by the Secretary and scheduled for a public hearing to determine completeness within forty-five (45) days of filing.

Requests for completeness waivers shall be considered at the time of the completeness hearing.

At the completeness hearing, the approving board shall determine whether the application is complete or incomplete in accordance with the requirements of the checklist and after consideration of any written requests that any one or more of the checklist requirements be waived. If the approving board shall determine that the application is incomplete, the Secretary shall advise the applicant or its attorney, in writing, of the reasons why the application is incomplete within forty-five (45) days of the filing of the application for development. In the event that the approving board does not certify the application to be incomplete or complete within forty-five (45) days of the date of filing of an application for development, the application shall be deemed complete upon the expiration of the forty-five (45) day period for purposes of commencing the applicable time period for approval or denial of the application pursuant to this Ordinance. In the event that the approving board determines that the application is incomplete, the applicant shall not have to pay a new application fee as long as the incomplete items are submitted within sixty (60) days of the determination of incompleteness. Otherwise, the application process shall begin as in a new filing. Where the board has determined the application is incomplete, an applicant wishing to make supplemental submissions to the original application within the sixty (60) day time period allowed shall make such supplemental submission at one time with all intended supplemental material filed simultaneously. The resubmission shall retain the original application docket number and shall be reviewed administratively and placed on the agenda before the board for a determination of completeness as in the case of a new application, and all procedures for determination of completeness shall be followed as in the case of a new application.

Nothing herein shall be construed as diminishing the applicant's obligation to prove in the application process that he or she is entitled to approval of the application. The approving board may subsequently request the submission of checklist items waived for purposes of application completeness and/or the correction of any material found to be in error. The approving board may require submission of additional information not specified in the ordinance and/or such revisions in the accompanying documents as are reasonably necessary to make an informed decision as to whether the requirements necessary for approval of an application for development have been satisfied. The board shall also have the authority to refer any application plans or documents to other agencies or individuals for comment or recommendations.

The Municipal Planner may, under appropriate circumstances, make a preliminary determination of completeness for the purpose of expediting the designation of a hearing date for the application, provided that any such determination shall be provisional in nature and shall be subject to confirmation by the Board at the public hearing of the applicant.

The officials and agencies to whom application plans or documents have been forwarded for review pursuant to this section shall forward their comments and recommendations in writing to the approving board prior to the first public hearing of the application.

At the time when the approving Board determines that the application is complete and ready for public hearing, the approving Board shall set a date for the public hearing and notify the applicant of said date. After such notification by the approving Board, the applicant shall follow the procedures established in this ordinance and the Municipal Land Use Law with respect to the notice of hearing.

Where, after an application is complete, the applicant proposes changes in the application, or accepts changes suggested by the approving board, the approving board may require the submission of an amended application which shall proceed as in the case of the original application for development, except that additional application/escrow fees and/or completeness review may be waived at the discretion of the approving board. The time within which the approving board shall review the amended application and make its determination shall commence as of the date of the filing of the amended application, or the date the amended application is determined to be complete, if additional completeness review is not waived. If the applicant fails to submit an amended application within the original time for review authorized by this ordinance, the approving board shall be obligated to act on the original application. If, at the discretion of the approving board, the change or changes are considered minor in nature, the applicant may be given approval subject to the submission of an amended plan indicating the changes.

The approving board shall approve, conditionally approve or deny the preliminary major site plan application of ten (10) acres of land or less and ten (10) dwelling units or less within forty-five (45) days of the determination by the approving board that the application is complete unless the Applicant shall extend the period of time within which the approving board may act. The approving board shall approve, conditionally approve, or deny the preliminary major site plan application of more than ten (10) acres, or more than ten (10) dwelling units within ninety-five (95) days of the determination by the approving board that the application is complete unless the Applicant shall extend the period of time within which the approving board may act. Failure of the approving board to act within the time prescribed shall constitute preliminary major approval. The approving Board shall include findings of faint and conclusions based on the testimony and documentary evidence submitted and shall reduce their determination to writing in accordance with law.

Preliminary approval of a major site plan. shall confer upon the applicant the following rights for a three (3) year period from the date on which the resolution of preliminary was adopted.

1. That the general terms and conditions on which preliminary approval was granted shall not be changed, including but not limited to use requirements; layout and design standards for streets, curbs and sidewalks; lot size; yard dimensions and off-tract improvements; except that such general terms and conditions of preliminary approval shall be deemed modified to the extent required to comply with any subsequently adopted requirements of this Ordinance or other Township ordinances as relate to public health and safety.

2. The applicant may submit for final approval on or before the expiration date of preliminary approval the whole or a section or sections of the preliminary site plan.

3. That the applicant may apply for, and the approving board may grant, extensions on such preliminary approval for additional periods of at least one (1) year but not to exceed a total extension of two (2) years; provided that if any applicable design standards set forth in Article VIII of this Ordinance have been revised since the granting of the preliminary approval, the board may condition its extension of the preliminary approval upon compliance with some or all of such revised design standards; and provided further that the board may deny any extension of a preliminary approval where it finds that such an extension would be inimical to the intent and purpose of the existing zone plan and/or zoning regulations as reflected in this Ordinance and/or the Master Plan.

4. In the case of a major site plan for an area of fifty (50) acres or more, the planning board may grant the rights referred to in subsections 1, 2 and 3 above for such period of time, longer than three (3) years, as shall be determined by the Planning Board to be reasonable, taking into consideration: a) The number of dwelling units and nonresidential floor area permissible under preliminary approval, b) Economic conditions, and c) The comprehensiveness of the development.

The applicant may apply for thereafter, and the Planning Board may thereafter grant an extension to preliminary approval for such additional period of time as shall be determined by the Planning Board to be reasonable, taking into consideration: a) The number of dwelling units and nonresidential floor area permissible under preliminary approval, b) The potential number of dwelling units and nonresidential floor area of the section or sections awaiting final approval, c) Economic conditions, and d) The comprehensiveness of the development.

Provided that if any applicable design standards set forth in Article VIII of this Ordinance have been revised since the granting of the preliminary approval, the board may condition its extension of the preliminary approval upon compliance with some or all of such revised design standards; and provided further that the board may deny any extension of a preliminary approval where it finds that such an extension would be inimical to the intent and purpose of the existing zone plan and/or zoning regulations as reflected in this Ordinance and/or the Master Plan.

Whenever the approving board grants an extension of preliminary approval pursuant to Section 13-3.808 above and preliminary approval has expired before the date on which the extension was granted, the extension shall begin on what would otherwise be the expiration date. The developer may apply for an extension either before or after what would otherwise be the expiration date. The approving board shall grant an extension of preliminary approval for a period determined by the approving board but not exceeding one year from what would otherwise be the expiration date, if the developer proves to the reasonable satisfaction of the approving board that the developer was barred or prevented, directly or indirectly, from proceeding with the development because of delays in obtaining legally required approvals from other governmental entities and that the developer applied promptly for and diligently pursued the required approvals. The developer shall apply for the extension before (1) what would otherwise be the expiration date of the preliminary approval, or (2) the 91st day after the developer received the last legally required approval from other governmental entities, whichever is later. An extension granted pursuant to this section shall not preclude the approving board from granting an extension pursuant to Section 13-3.808 above.

Where the developer seeks to commence construction of the project prior to final approval, the developer shall submit plans and specifications conforming to the Planning Board or Zoning Board of Adjustment Resolution of Memorialization. The Board's Engineer shall approve or deny them within thirty-five (35) days. In the event of a denial, the specific reasons must be enumerated in a letter to the applicant from the Board's Engineer.

If revised plans are submitted in response to a denial letter, they shall be approved or denied within twenty (20) days and shall specify any reasons for denial in a letter to the applicant. After the plans have been approved by the approving Board's Engineer; the developer shall comply with the requirements of the performance of this ordinance. All of the above shall be verified by the Township Engineer and Township Planner at a pre-construction meeting. Thereafter, the developer may commence construction of the project prior to final approval.

1. All proposed improvements or development indicated on the approved site plan map shall meet the requirements of all applicable codes, ordinances and specifications of the Township, County, State or Federal Governments and other agencies with jurisdiction over matters pertaining to site development.

2. The Construction Official and/or the Township Engineer may authorize minor variations in the site plan caused by field conditions and shall notify the approving Board of such variations.

In the event of a failure to comply with any condition of the preliminary site plan approval, the Township Engineer, Construction Official, or the designee of either, on his or her own initiative may revoke the construction permit and seek to enjoin the violation, or take such other steps as permitted by law.

After approval of the preliminary site plan, copies of the signed plat or resolution of memorialization shall be distributed as follows, where appropriate: a) Township Clerk b) Township Engineer c) Zoning Officer d) Tax Assessor e) Secretary of the Approving Board f) Morris County Planning Board g) Environmental Commission h) Applicant

The Applicant shall submit eighteen (18) copies of the application together with eighteen (18) legible prints containing all information required in the appropriate checklist together with all appropriate fees at least three (3) weeks prior to the date of the regular meeting of the approving Board at which the application is to be considered.

The Secretary of the approving Board shall forward copies of the application, or relevant portions thereof, to the following officials for review and comment where appropriate:

a) Township Engineer

b) Township Planner

c) Morris County Planning Board

d) Zoning Officer

e) Tax Assessor

f) Approving Board Consultants

g) Approving Board Attorney

h) Environmental Commission

i) County Soil Conservation District

j) Historic Advisory Committee

In appropriate cases, the approving Board shall have the authority to approve a final major site plan without the necessity of any specific referrals. The approving Board shall also have the authority to refer any plat to other agencies or individuals for comment or recommendations.