BROOKLINE PLANNING BOARD BY-LAWS
(Revised April 1st, 2004)
The Brookline Planning Board (hereinafter, the Board), duly established by the Brookline Special Meeting on January 8, 1951 in accordance with RSA 673:1, hereby establishes the following rules of procedure for the conduct of its business, pursuant to RSA 676:1.
The Board shall consist of five (5) members, appointed by the Board of Selectmen, and shall include one Selectman to act as an ex-officio member with power to vote. The term of the ex-officio member must coincide with his term as a Selectman. The appointment of members shall conform to terms and requirements of RSA 673:2 II and RSA 673:5. Membership of the Board shall conform to the limitations on multiple memberships set forth in RSA 673:7.
The Board shall encourage the Board of Selectmen to appoint, in addition to regular members, not more than five (5) alternate members who may serve, upon designation by the Chairman, in place of a regular member, in the event of absence or disqualification. The terms and multiple membership requirements for alternates shall be the same as for regular members.
The Board shall elect, by a majority vote at its annual meeting, the following officers from among its membership. The term of each officer shall be limited to one (1) year; however, any officer shall be eligible for re-election.
The Chairman shall preside at all meetings and hearings of the Board and shall have the duties normally conferred on such officers. The Chairman shall appoint such committees as directed by the Board, including one member of the Board who shall act as Chairman of such Committees. As directed by the Board, the Chairman may affix his/her signature in the name of the Board. An ex-officio member of the board cannot serve as Chairman.
The Vice Chairman shall act for the Chairman inches absence and have authority to perform the duties prescribed for that office during the Chairman’s absence.
Each year, upon agreement by all voting Members, the Board should elect to have a Chairman and a Vice Chairman OR two Co-Chairmen.
A Secretary may be hired by the Board who will be responsible for the maintenance of the minutes and records of the Board, with the assistance of staff as may be available. The Secretary shall prepare the agenda for regular and special meetings of the Board, provide notice of meetings to members, arrange proper and legal notice of meetings and hearings, and prepare such correspondence and fulfill such duties as the Chairman may direct.
Regular meetings of the board shall be held twice a month, on the first and third Thursday and shall be open to the public. The time and place of the meetings shall be selected by a majority vote of the Board taking place at the annual meeting. Regular meetings shall not be held on Sundays or legal Holidays. The following general rules of procedure shall govern the conduct of such meetings:
A majority of the membership of the Board shall constitute the quorum necessary in order to transact business at any meeting. In the event of the absence of a regular member, the Chairman shall designate, upon opening the meeting, an alternate to act in the absent member’s place. Only the alternate designated by the Selectmen for the ex-officio member shall serve in place of that member.
Notice of time, date and place of any public meeting of the Board shall be posted in two (2) public places or printed in any paper of general circulation at least twenty-four (24) hours, excluding Sundays and legal holidays, prior to the meeting.
Minutes of the events of the meetings shall be taken and shall include the names of members in attendance, persons appearing before the board, a brief description of the topics discussed, and a record of any actions taken (see Record of Decisions, below). Such minutes shall be available for public inspection within one hundred and forty-hours (144) of the meeting (RSA 91-A:2(II). Minutes of Executive Session shall conform to the requirements of RSA 91-A:3.
The general order of business may be as outlined below:
a. Call to Order
b. Roll Call
c. Reading and Acceptance of minutes of Previous Meeting
d. Communications
e. Committee Reports
f. Unfinished Business
g. Public Hearings
h. Other Business
i. Adjournment
A motion, duly seconded, shall be passed by a majority of members present, once a quorum has been established, voting in the affirmative.
Pursuant to RSA 676:3, whenever the Board issues a decision, record of the decision shall be placed on file in the Board’s Office or with the Town Clerk and be made available for public inspection within seventy-two (72) hours after the decision is made.
Special Meetings may be called by the Chairman or, in his absence, by the Vice Chairman. Notice to members shall be at least forty-eight (48) hours in advance of the meeting. Notice to the public shall be in the same manner as for a regular meeting. No business shall be acted upon at a special meeting unless a quorum of the membership is present. The notice of the meeting shall specify the purpose of the meeting and no other business may be considered except by unanimous consent of the Board members present once a quorum has been established.
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An annual organizational meeting shall be held at the first regular meeting following the close of Town Meeting, but in no event later than thirty (30) days following the close of town Meeting. The purpose of the annual meeting will be to elect officers and to review the by-laws, which shall be made part of the minutes of the meeting. All members must be present before the election of officers can take place.
Public Hearings shall be held, as required by the New Hampshire Revised Statutes Annotated for:
Notice of any hearing shall be given at least ten (10) calendar days prior to the date of hearing by publication in any paper of general circulation or by posting in at least two (2) public places. The ten (10) calendar days shall not include the day of posting or the day of the meeting. For hearings involving an application for subdivision or site plan review, notice to the applicant and abutters shall be given by certified mail at least ten (10) days prior to the meeting. The full text of any notice need not be included in the notice provided an adequate summary is included in the notice and a location is specified where the proposal may be viewed by the public.
The Chairman, or in his/her absence, the Vice Chairman, shall preside at the public hearing, and shall:
D. Record of Meeting
A public record of the proceedings shall be taken in writing and incorporated into the Board’s minutes. The hearing may also be recorded by a sound recording device and such recordings shall be kept on file as part of the public record.
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SECTION VI JOINT MEETINGS AND HEARINGS
A. Request for joint Meetings
The Board, or any applicant, or any applicant, or any other land use board, may request a joint meeting or hearing of the boards on any topic common to their respective jurisdictions. Each Board shall have the discretion as to whether or not to hold a joint meeting with another board.
B. Planning Board Shall Chair
The Planning Board Chairman shall chair ANY JOINT MEETING OR HEARING IN WHICH THE board is involved (RSA 676:2). THE chairman shall follow the general rules of conduct outlined in these By-Laws.
C. Notices and Decisions
Each Board participating in the joint meeting or hearing shall be responsible for providing notice, filing minutes and decisions, and for rendering and issuing decisions, as appropriate, for the subject matter within its jurisdictions, as prescribed for that Board by statute, local ordinance, or other rules of procedure.
The Chairman or a duly appointed Board member or staff personnel shall be authorized by the Board to act as the principal public relations contact for the Board. Duties shall be as prescribed by the Board.
Communications with Town Counsel shall be through the Chairman and shall be confidential to the Board unless otherwise noted.
The Chairman may appoint special committees for the purposes and terms approved by the Board. This may include assignments to subdivision and site plan review projects.
Applications for subdivision or non residential site plan review shall be made on forms provided by the
Board.
No application shall be placed upon any agenda for acceptance at a regular meeting of the board unless the completed application is received by the Secretary no less than thirty (30) days prior to the meeting date at
which it is to be accepted and/or discussed. No application will be received by the Secretary except in proper form, as prescribed in the subdivision or site plan review regulations.
These By-Laws may be amended by a two third (2/3) vote of the entire voting membership of the Board only after the proposed change has been read and discussed at a previous regular meeting, and excepting that the by-Laws may be changed at any regular meeting by the unanimous vote of the entire voting membership of the Board.
These By-Laws and any amendments thereto shall be places on file with the Town Clerk for public inspection. A complete set of By-Laws, as amended, shall also be attached to the minutes of the Board’s annual organizational meeting and kept on file.
These By-Laws, and any subsequent amendments, shall become effective immediately upon passage by the Board as recorded in the minutes of the meeting at which such action occurs.
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