Introduced By: Senators McCaffrey, Walaska and Montalbano
Date Introduced : February 3, 1999
It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:
SECTION 1. Sections 45-24-61 and 45-24-69 of the General Laws in Chapter 45-24 entitled "Zoning Ordinances" are hereby amended to read as follows:
45-24-61. Administration -- Decisions and records of zoning
board of review. -- (A) Following a public hearing, the
zoning board of review shall render a decision within a reasonable
period of time. The zoning board of review shall include in its
decision all findings of fact and conditions, showing the vote
of each member participating thereon, and the absence of a member
or his or her failure to vote. Decisions shall be recorded and
filed in the office of the {ADD city or town clerk, ADD} {DEL zoning
board of review DEL} within thirty (30) working days from
the date when the decision was rendered, and shall be a public
record. The zoning board of review shall keep written minutes
of its proceedings, showing the vote of each member upon each
question, or, if absent or failing to vote, indicating that fact,
and shall keep records of its examinations, findings of fact,
and other official actions, all of which shall be recorded and
filed in the office of the zoning board of review in an expeditious
manner upon completion of the proceeding. For any proceeding in
which the right of appeal lies to the superior or supreme court,
the zoning board of review shall have the minutes taken either
by a competent stenographer or recorded by a sound-recording device.
(B) Any decision by the zoning board of review, including any special conditions attached thereto, shall be mailed to the applicant, to the zoning enforcement officer of the city or town, and to the associate director of the division of planning of the Rhode Island department of administration. Any decision evidencing the granting of a variance, modification, or special use shall also be recorded in the land evidence records of the city or town.
45-24-69. Appeals -- Appeals to superior court. -- (A) An aggrieved party may appeal a decision of the zoning board of review to the superior court for the county in which the city or town is situated by filing a complaint setting forth the reasons of appeal within twenty (20) days after the decision has been recorded and posted in the office of the city or town clerk. The decision shall be posted in a location visible to the public in the city or town hall for a period of twenty (20) days following the recording of the decision {ADD in the office of the city or town clerk ADD}. The zoning board of review shall file the original documents acted upon by it and constituting the record of the case appealed from, or certified copies thereof, together with such other facts as may be pertinent, with the clerk of the court within thirty (30) days after being served with a copy of the complaint. When the complaint is filed by someone other than the original applicant or appellant, the original applicant or appellant and the members of the zoning board shall be made parties to the proceedings. The appeal shall not stay proceedings upon the decision appealed from, but the court may, in its discretion, grant a stay on appropriate terms and make such other orders as it deems necessary for an equitable disposition of the appeal.
(B) If, before the date set for the hearing in the superior court, an application is made to the court for leave to present additional evidence before the zoning board of review and it is shown to the satisfaction of the court that the additional evidence is material and that there were good reasons for the failure to present it at the hearing before the zoning board of review, the court may order that the additional evidence be taken before the zoning board of review upon conditions determined by the court. The zoning board of review may modify its findings and decision by reason of the additional evidence and shall file that evidence and any new findings or decisions with the superior court.
(C) The review shall be conducted by the superior court without a jury. The court shall consider the record of the hearing before the zoning board of review and, if it shall appear to the court that additional evidence is necessary for the proper disposition of the matter, it may allow any party to the appeal to present that evidence in open court, which evidence, along with the report, shall constitute the record upon which the determination of the court shall be made.
(D) The court shall not substitute its judgment for that of the zoning board of review as to the weight of the evidence on questions of fact. The court may affirm the decision of the zoning board of review or remand the case for further proceedings, or may reverse or modify the decision if substantial rights of the appellant have been prejudiced because of findings, inferences, conclusions, or decisions which are:
(1) In violation of constitutional, statutory, or ordinance provisions;
(2) In excess of the authority granted to the zoning board of review by statute or ordinance;
(3) Made upon unlawful procedure;
(4) Affected by other error of law;
(5) Clearly erroneous in view of the reliable, probative, and substantial evidence of the whole record; or
(6) Arbitrary or capricious or characterized by abuse of discretion or clearly unwarranted exercise of discretion.
SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.
