ABCs OF THE Z-WORD:

Zoning Basics
New York State Department of State
Office of Coastal, Local Government, and Community Sustainability
Tioga County Department
of Economic Development
& Planning
Outline
Zoning
Contents of zoning regulations
ZBA
Zoning in accordance with the
Comprehensive Plan
Zoning Flexibility
Adopting zoning for the
first time
What it is & how it works
Zoning:
What is zoning?
**Regulates land use
Divides municipality into districts
Regulates building placement,
spacing, and size
Has overall goal to avoid
incompatible land uses
Fun Facts:
1916 NYC adopted its first
comprehensive zoning law
1922 US Commerce
Secretary Herbert Hoover
published model zoning act
Traditional zoning has
not always fit well in
rural areas
How does zoning work?
Zoning regulations consist
of two parts:
Map
Text
Regulates:
Use
Density
Structure location on parcel
Villages with Zoning Districts
Example: schedule of district uses
In addition, zoning ordinance/law has dimensional standards and impact
standards as part of schedule of uses
Ag R-1 R-2 C-1 I-1 I-2
1 Family
Farm
Mobile
Home
SUP: Home
Occupation
1 Family 1 Family
2 Family
SUP: Home
Occupation
Apartments
Light Retail
Professional
Office
SUP: Gas
Station
Light
Industry
General
Retail
Auto-related
services
SUP: Adult
Use
Heavy
Industry
Light
Industry
SUP: Mining
Power to zone: local level
State authority is delegated to
local elected body
Zoning Enabling Laws
Municipal Home Rule Law
Police Power protect the
general health, safety and
welfare of the public
Local elected body may adopt
laws/ordinances to regulate land
use and development
Villages may only adopt local
laws
Municipality chooses whether or not to adopt zoning
General City Law 20 (24)
Town Law Article 16
Village Law Article 7
What can we do without zoning?
Use site plan review to regulate design
for single parcel of land
Use business licensing to set certain
standards for businesses (i.e., number
of allowed parked cars at auto repair
shop)
Adopt subdivision regulations to allow
review of land divisions
Adopt local laws protecting certain
sensitive features such as well head
regulations to protect municipal drinking
water sources
Zoning needed
to prohibit certain
uses
What good is zoning?
Helps implement Comprehensive Plans goals
Helps maintain community character
Protects historic sites and structures
Protects farmland and sensitive environments
Preserves scenic resources and open spaces
Improves aesthetics of buildings, signs, etc.
Encourages quality construction of affordable housing
Encourages appropriate economic development
Zoning Regulations Contents
Suggested content
General Provisions
Definitions
Zoning map
Zoning districts & boundaries
Permitted Uses
Special Permit Uses
Home occupations, gasoline stations,
drive-thru restaurants, gravel mines
Bulk schedule requirements
Lot sizes, setbacks
Overlay Districts
Floodplains, historic preservation,
mixed uses, agricultural preservation
Non-conformances
Site Plan Review
Supplemental Regulations
Parking, Signs, Fences, lighting,
signage, junkyards, trailers and
mobile home parks, public utilities,
adult uses
Administrative Procedures and
Enforcement
ZBA, Zoning Officer, Amendments,
Penalties
Typical Zoning Regulations include these Chapters:
General provisions
Features necessary to ensure effective zoning regulations:
Statutory source of power
Uses not listed are prohibited
Reference to official zoning map
Relationship to other regulations
(building codes, floodplain regulations)
Establishment of boundary lines
Illustrations or diagrams
Severability clause
Definitions & zoning map
Good definitions reduce
repetitive phrases
Are they overly restrictive?
Vary from common use?
Require frequent interpretation
by ZBA?
Scattered throughout
regulations?
Conflicts between definitions?
When to amend
Zoning Map
Multiple revisions to
conform with
comprehensive plan?
Clarify zoning district
boundaries?
Make zoning map widely available
Zoning districts
Check relationship of districts to extent and type of
development proposed by the comprehensive plan
Adequate number and extent of districts?
Minor distinctions between zones call for consolidation?
Broad classifications of permitted uses?
Relation to current transportation, public facilities, modern design?
Adequate transition zones?
Effect of strip zoning?
Cumulative vs. exclusive zoning
Most restrictive to least
restrictive
Least restrictive allows all
uses; most restrictive is
typically single-family
residential
Controls uses in each
district
Protects desirable
specialized concentrations
of uses from undesirable
unnecessary intrusions
For example, excludes
housing from area suited
for industrial uses
Cumulative Exclusive
Tip: Check phone book to see if you have considered all uses
Lot sizes, setbacks
Minimum lot sizes appropriate for
size of newly constructed homes
Adequate space for wells &
septic (if applicable)
Maximum coverage
Lot depth to width ratio (flag lot)
Corner lots
Relation to height
Application to accessory uses
Residential parking
Things to Consider:
Minimum or maximum
distances
Method of measurement
Setback consistency with
pattern of development
Supplemental regulations/special sections
Manufactured homes & parks
Public utilities
Walls & fences
Airports
Previously approved permits
Adult Uses
Sign control
Off-street parking & loading
areas
Educational uses in
residential areas
Site plan review
Historic districts
Wind turbines
Telecommunications
Site Plan Review
Adjacent uses
Location &
dimension of
buildings
Screening &
landscaping
Architectural
features
Proposed grades
& contours
Utilities
Sewage & storm
drainage
Parking, access,
traffic
Lighting, signage
A Site Plan is a rendering, drawing, or sketch prepared to specifications and
containing necessary elements, as set forth in the applicable zoning
ordinance or local law, which shows the arrangement, layout and design of
the proposed use of a single parcel of land as shown on said plan.
Site Plan Review Focuses on a Single Piece of Property.
Examples of the types of elements that the board can be authorized to
review:
Special sections for rural areas
Agricultural districts & compatible uses
Requirements for cluster subdivisions
Preservation overlay zones
Districts to protect environmentally sensitive areas
Hamlet zoning to allow mixed uses at higher densities
Design standards
Planning for pedestrians
Nonconformance provisions
Control expansion or reconstruction of non-conforming
structures
Elimination of uses with small capital investment through
amortization (billboards, car lots)
Elimination of non-conforming open land uses (parking lots)
Abandonment of non-conforming use
Treatment of existing
substandard lots
Jones
Patnode
Kelly
Legal Lot
at One Time
Legal Structure
at One Time
Legal Use at
One Time
Enforcement & fines
Authorize administrative professional to enforce
Zoning enforcement officer
Code enforcement office
Other
Enforcement procedures
Letters of violation
Serving notice or issuing appearance tickets
Adequate fines and penalties
Is your municipality successfully enforcing its laws?
User-friendly formats
Loose leaf form
Numbering system allows
for additions or deletions
Page numbers unnecessary
Headings & subheadings
Table of contents and index
Note dates of revisions
Show scale
(1"= 400' or 1"= 200')
Line weight
Letter-number symbols
Schedule format
Headings & subheadings
Cross-references
Text Format Map Format
Posting online increases public access to information
Zoning Board of Appeals
ZBA Structure & Duties
3 or 5 member board
Staggered terms equal to the # of
members
Quasi-judicial (hear & decide cases)
Appellate Jurisdiction (State statute
powers)
Cases heard only upon appeal of
zoning enforcement officer decision
Interpretations, use variances, area
variances
Original Jurisdiction (local governing
board-enabled power)
Special permits
Municipalities with
zoning must
have a Zoning
Board of
Appeals!
Interpretations
Appealing (aggrieved) party believes
Zoning Enforcement Officer wrongly applied
the law.
Common Areas of Interpretation:
Definitions
Method of taking measurements
Ordinary meaning of terms, if undefined
Past decisions on same regulations or similar facts
Definitions are
important.
Without them,
board must
come to
consensus on
what they think
a term or
regulation
means.
Variances
Use Variance: to use land for a purpose not allowed in the
zoning regulations 4 pronged test ALL must be satisfied
1. No reasonable rate of return
2. Unique circumstances
3. No self-created hardship
4. No alteration to the essential character of neighborhood
Area Variance: to use land in a way that varies from the
dimensional requirements of the zoning regulations more of a
balancing test applicant benefit vs. community benefit
1. Change to neighborhood character
2. Alternatives not requiring a variance
3. Substantiality of request
4. Effect on physical or environmental conditions
5. Self-created situation
Special Use Permits
Allows a particular problematic land use, which is permitted, but subject to additional criteria
or standards imposed to ensure the proposal is in accordance with the zoning regulations, in
harmony with the rest of the district and will not adversely affect the neighborhood character.
Additional criteria or standards must be stated in regulations
Board must use these criteria and no others in their review
If criteria are met, board must issue the permit
Board may impose conditions such as duration for permit and renewal, fencing and other
buffers, and parking specifics BUT conditions must be traceable to criteria
Special Use permit is not transferable
Typical special permitted uses include gasoline stations, home occupations, drive-thru retail
establishments
Common Criteria include:
SUP must comply with the regulations of the district in which it is to be located and may be located only
in the districts in which it is permitted for special use
Each SUP shall be of such character, intensity, size and location that it will be in harmony with orderly
development of district it is located within
The location, nature and height of buildings, walls and fences will not discourage the appropriate
development and use of adjacent land and buildings or impair their value
Zoning in Accordance with
Comprehensive Plan
The comprehensive plan
Future Land Use Map
Zoning
Map
272-a Town Law: materials, written and/or
graphic, including but not limited to maps, charts,
studies, resolutions, reports and other descriptive
material that identify the goals, objectives,
principles, guidelines, policies, standards, devices
and instruments for the immediate and long-range
protection, enhancement, growth and development
of the town.
Regulations and good planning
Provides legal support for regulatory changes
Prioritizes areas for municipal investments in infrastructure
Identifies areas for potential private investment in infrastructure
Municipalities with Written
Comprehensive Plans
Cities 92%
Towns 71%
Villages 66%
All 69%
Source: Legislative Commission on Rural Resources (2008)
Zoning must be in
accordance with
comprehensive plan
Spot zoning
Does proposed amendment
constitute spot zoning? Is it in
accordance with the Comp
Plan?
the process of singling out a small
parcel of land for a use
classification totally different from
that of the surrounding area, for
the benefit of the owner of such
property and to the detriment of
other owners . . . ;
Rogers v. Tarrytown, 302 NY 115, 96 NE2d
731 (1951)
Zoning changes must be
reasonably related to
legitimate public purposes
Zoning Flexibility
Zonings Flexible Tools
Non-conformances
Variances
Interpretations
Amendments
By property owners
By Governing Board
Owner initiated zoning amendment
Town Law 16-265 and Village Law 7-
708 - Changes
Approval by simple majority vote of the
governing board except in the event of
petitioned protest of at least 20% of
property owners located:
Within land included in proposed change, OR
Immediately adjacent to area of proposed
change, OR
Directly opposite of area of proposed
change; THEN
three-fourths majority required!
No other test required
When & why should zoning be amended?
Symptoms of a Sick Ordinance
(Source: Association of Towns)
Cant find current official zoning map
Development trends seem to be getting worse, not better
Too many variances requested
Definitions are outdated
Unclear whats allowed and prohibited
& Adopting zoning for the first time
Zoning Commission
Zoning Commission
Appointed by Village Board of Trustees or Town Board
Membership:
Planning Board
Fresh group of citizens
Part planning board, part fresh citizens
Number of members is a local option
Town Law 266
Village Law 7-710
Zoning commission duties
Prepare draft map (or description) of
proposed zoning district boundaries
Prepare draft regulations to be
enforced within districts
Hold at least one public hearing on
preliminary zoning map & text
Prepare final report to local
governing board, taking public
comment and subsequent
investigations into account
When local governing
board accepts final
report, zoning
commission ceases to
exist, but many
municipalities use a
zoning commission
for amendments too
Public participation
All meetings of zoning commission are open to public
Obtain formal public input at public hearings held by:
zoning commission
local governing board
Obtain informal public input by:
surveys
public Information sessions or workshops
Zoning commission hearing notice
Notice
Publish in official paper;
No notice period set by law
10 days prior to hearing is recommended
Post on municipal website
Post in conspicuous place
Can list multiple hearing dates
Send copy of notice,
draft text & draft map to
local governing board
Zoning commission and governing board
To dissolve zoning commission,
GB must accept final report
GB need not take any further action
To adopt zoning, GB must
first hold public hearing
on proposed regulations
Procedures for zoning adoption or
amendment
The Governing Board:
Environmental assessment
Zoning Commission could
be directed to:
Prepare EAF as part
of its final report; or
Prepare draft EIS as
part of its final report
Initial zoning local law or
ordinance adoption is Type I
Action (more likely to require EIS)
Zoning amendment affecting
25 or more acres is Type I Action
(more likely to require an EIS)
Governing board makes
determination of significance
GEIS
Potential to reduce SEQRA
review for specific actions
Encourages thorough analysis
of proposed changes
County planning agency referral
General Municipal Law 239-m
No final action on adopting zoning regulations can be taken before it
is referred to the County Planning Agency
Any amendment that changes the
district classification of, or
regulations applying to, real
property lying within 500 feet of
certain areas, must be referred
to the County Planning Agency
Governing board hearing notice
NOTICE
Should give average reader
reasonable warning
that land in which
he or she has an
interest may be
affected by
regulations to be discussed
Notice
Publish in official paper at least 10
days prior
Post on municipal website
Post in conspicuous place
Hold once DEIS is complete or
negative declaration is made
Summary of proposed zoning
regulations need not be published
Must be served to certain parties
Town Law 264 Village Law 7-706
At public hearing
Ensure building is physically accessible to all wishing
to participate
Provide general review of proposed revisions
Determine method by which public comment will
be taken
Keep detailed record of proceeding
Stenographic is best
If taping, take notes to go with tape
Written record does not have to be verbatim
Information
later used by
ZBA for
interpretations
Procedural compliance
Zoning approval:
Requires majority vote of full
board
Must be entered into
legislative boards minutes
Must file zoning map
If FEIS exists, board must make
written findings prior to
adopting zoning regulations
Supermajority vote needed
to act contrary to countys
recommendation
Publication & posting
In towns & villages: copy, summary or abstract must be
published at least once in newspaper
File an affidavit of publication with
municipal clerk
Village Law 7-706(5) requires
text and map be posted conspicuously
Zoning
Law
Official Zoning Map
Effective Date
If adopted by ordinance, generally effective
10 days after publication
Local laws effective upon filing with
Secretary of State
Personal service of law or amendment can
make law effective as to the individual involved
on the date of service
Contacting the Department of State
New York Department of State
(518) 473-3355 Training Unit
(518) 474-6740 Legal Department
(800) 367-8488 Toll Free
Email: localgov@dos.state.ny.us
Website: www.dos.state.ny.us