Site plan submission and review

Within six months after the presubmission conference, the applicant shall submit ten copies of the site plan and related information, together with requires fees, to the planning division. The planning board shall adopt rules establishing the schedule of fees to help defray the administrative costs of site plan review. Such fee schedule shall be on file in the offices of the planning division and the town clerk. The planning division may transmit copies of the site plan and EAF for review and comment to the following town departments, officers, and commissions, as applicable: The building inspection and engineering divisions, the director of the department of public works, the police and fire chiefs, the director of the department of parks and recreation, the town solicitor, the Narragansett housing authority, the conservation commission, and the historic district commission. The planning division also may transmit copies of the site plan and EAF to relevant state and federal agencies, including but not limited to: The Rhode Island Department of the Environment, Coastal Resources Management Council, and Department of Transportation, and the United States Army Corps of Engineers, Soil Conservation Service, and Fish and Wildlife Service.

The reviewing departments, officers, commissions, and agencies shall consider whether the proposed project complies with applicable performance and development standards in their particular areas of concern. They shall submit written comments and recommendations, if any, to the planning division within 30 days after receiving the site plan application from the planning division.

The planning division also shall review the site plan and EAF to evaluate the potential environmental impact of the proposed project. If it decides that the environmental impact will be minimal, it shall submit the site plan and EAF, together with the written comments and recommendations of all the reviewing entities, directly to the planning board.

If, however, the planning division decides that the proposed project may have a significant adverse environmental impact, it shall advise the applicant that an environmental impact statement (EIS) is necessary. The site plan review and approval process will be suspended while the applicant prepares the EIS. When the planning division determines that the EIS complies with the requirements set forth below, it then shall submit the site plan application, EIS, and the written comments and recommendations of the reviewing entities to the planning board.

The planning board will not consider any application for site plan review unless it is channeled through the planning division.

Upon receipt of the site plan, EAF or EIS and town agency and staff comments the planning board shall certify whether of [or] not the application is complete for the purposes of issuing comments to the zoning board of review and the vesting of development rights under section 14 of this ordinance.

In the event that the planning or zoning board determines that factors specific to the case make it necessary to engage the services of a qualified specialist in any technical field including, but not limited to, engineering, planning, design, wetlands biology, real estate, or architecture, in order to advise the town of what, if any, impact may result from a specific application, the planning board or zoning board may require funds be escrowed by the applicant and used by the town, without interference by the applicant, for this purpose. The board shall be authorized to require said applicant to pay the reasonable costs of such consultants in an amount not to exceed the actual costs incurred by the town in order to effectuate the evaluation of impact deemed necessary to come to a final decision on the application. A written report of said consultant shall be provided to the town and applicant within an accepted period of time.

Where it is determined that environmental monitoring is necessary, the town shall approve the monitoring firm and such monitoring shall be supervised by the appropriate town department at the expense of the applicant for an accepted period of time.

(Ch. 894, § 7, 11-5-2007; Ch. 990, § 3, 10-21-2013; Ch. 1055, § 2, 9-4-2018)