(1) The Planning Board shall have the powers and duties to approve site plans for all applications where Planning Board review is required under the applicable provisions of this chapter consistent with the provisions of § 274-a of the Town Law of the State of New York. (See for example § 295-17: Landscaped malls, § 295-19: Yard requirements and site plan approval, § 295-24: Yard requirements, § 295-29: Statement of intent; objectives, § 295-31: Application and approval procedure for development and § 295-32: Site plan approval and all such other sections requiring Planning Board review as they now exist or from time to time are amended.)

(2) Before issuing a building permit for the construction of a building on a lot in any district, except for one-family dwellings or two-family dwellings in approved subdivisions, or issuing a certificate of occupancy for a change in use of an existing premises, the Building Inspector or Assistant Building Inspector shall refer the site plans for construction on such lot to the Planning Board for its review and approval. Except for one-family dwellings or two-family dwellings in approved subdivisions or lots, no building permit or certificate of occupancy for a change in use of existing premises shall be issued except in accordance with the standards and procedures set forth in this section.

(3) An applicant may, if the applicant so desires, apply for a sketch plan or concept plan meeting with the Planning Board. Upon payment of the appropriate fees, the concept plan or sketch plan will be submitted to the Planning Board for discussion at a regular meeting of the Planning Board. The purpose of the sketch plan or concept review is merely for guidance to the applicant, and there shall be no written decision or determination by the Board, and the submittal of the sketch plan or concept plan to the Planning Board shall not constitute a formal application to the Planning Board. If the applicant desires to proceed with the matter, it shall make new application to the Planning Board for site plan approval in accordance with the procedure as outlined in the subsections that follow.

(4) Prior to submitting the matter to the Planning Board for site plan approval the applicant shall complete the site plan checklist adopted by the Board as on file with the Department of Building and Fire Prevention. Such site plan checklist shall be deemed a necessary requirement for site plan approval consideration.

(5) Validity and expiration. After a site plan has been approved, said site plan shall expire and become null and void and of no effect one year after it is granted, unless, within such year:
 

(a) A certificate of occupancy/compliance relating to a principal building or structure pursuant to such site plan (i.e., not an accessory building/structure, unless only an accessory building/structure is authorized via the site plan) is duly issued, or

(b) A building permit required for a principal building or structure authorized pursuant to such site plan (i.e., not for an accessory building/structure, unless only an accessory building/structure is authorized) is duly applied for, in which case the site plan shall continue to be valid during the term of any active building permit for a principal building or structure authorized pursuant to such site plan (should one be issued), and such site plan shall expire and become null and void and of no effect at such time as there is no such currently active and valid building permit for a principal building or structure (e.g., all such building permits are expired, have been revoked, etc.), unless:
 

[1] Work authorized via any such building permit has been actually, materially and legally commenced, or,
[2] A certificate of occupancy relating to such valid building permit is duly issued.

(c) If other government permitting is required for construction (including, e.g., from the DOT, etc.) and a permit is duly issued by such other governmental agency and provided to the Town within such year, the site plan shall be valid for six additional months beyond the original expiration date (18 total months), and shall thereafter expire and become null and void and of no effect, unless, within such 18 months a requirement as per Subsection C(1) or C(2) above is satisfied.

 

(6) Extension. The Planning Board, for good cause shown, may grant a longer period of time for the commencement of use, issuance of a certificate of occupancy/compliance, issuance of a building permit, and/or commencement of construction, provided, however, said application for extension shall be made before expiration of time. Such extensions shall be issued for periods of up to six months each. In determining whether good cause exists for such extension, the Board shall consider, among other things, the nature and extent of the construction and complexity thereof, practical difficulty tending to delay construction, availability of utilities, strikes, scarcity of labor or materials, war or acts of God.

Cluster development. The Planning Board may approve cluster development simultaneously with approval of a subdivision all in accordance with Town Law § 278.

Minimum transitional buffers.

(1) As an additional requirement of site plan review, the following minimum transitional buffers shall be provided, as per the table below. Said buffer may appropriately be included as a part of and within the minimum setback. The buffer shall be measured from the lot line to the closest building or paved area.

(2) During site plan review, the Planning Board may decrease the minimum transitional buffer upon a finding that visual compatibly and/or consistency of character between the proposed and existing uses are sufficient such that a lesser buffer is merited. However, in no case may the Planning Board reduce the buffer beyond the minimum setback required. Any further reduction requires a ZBA variance.

(3) A minimum buffer may be comprised of open space, landscaping, vegetation and ponds, but not pavement or buildings.

(4) The intent of the minimum transitional buffer is to provide for a visual and, where appropriate, sound buffer between properties. While in some cases simple lawn or open spaces may be appropriate, as part of its site plan review the Planning Board may require the applicant to landscape such area and/or plant trees, construct berms, fences or other appropriate barriers to provide for more effective sound and visual buffering.

(5) Where significant landscaping and other features requiring maintenance are present, the Planning Board may require the property owner to post with the Town of Henrietta a letter of credit or other security in a form acceptable to the Town in an amount sufficient to insure the maintenance of such features.

(6) The maintenance of the minimum transitional buffer shall be the responsibility of the owner of the property, and failure to maintain the buffer zone shall be a violation of this chapter.

(7) For agricultural uses, the following shall additionally apply:

(a) Where a new or expanded agricultural use is proposed outside of a county agricultural district, a 100-foot setback to adjacent properties shall be provided for any part of such agricultural use which is materially odorous.
(b) Where a use is proposed adjacent to an existing agricultural use, it shall be the responsibility of the proposed use to provide a sufficient setback against any materially odorous condition that may be a part of the agricultural use.
 

(8) For Mixed-Use Redevelopment Corridor ("MURC"), buffers shall be half of the listed amount.

(9) For all mixed uses, buffers shall apply to the mixed use as a whole, and shall not apply to each component use individually.

(10) "N/A" reference in the table mentioned below indicates that no buffers are required and instead the use is subject only to the required setbacks, if any.

See § 295-60E(10) for the Table of Minimum Buffering Between Different Land Uses.

(11) *Historic shall refer to properties which are historically designated locally, by the state and/or federally.