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Town of Smithfield
Land Development & Subdivision Regulations
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§ III-F

Major Land Development and Major Subdivision – Master Plan

Land Development and Subdivision Review Regulations Town of Smithfield, RI by the Applicant and the Board, according to the requirements of Sections 45-23-60 and 45-23-63 of the General Laws of the State of Rhode Island (1956 as amended).

  1. Street Construction or Creation Involved. If a street extension or creation is required, the Planning Board shall hold a Public Hearing prior to approval according to the requirements in Section 45-23-42 of the General Laws of the State of Rhode Island (1956 as amended) and Article H of this Section and shall approve, deny, or approve with conditions, the Preliminary Plan within ninety-five (95) days of Certification of Completeness, or within such further time as is agreed to by the Applicant and the Board, according to the requirements of Sections 45-23-60 and 45-23-63 of the General Laws of the State of Rhode Island (1956 as amended).
  2. Failure to Act. Failure of the Planning Board to act within the period prescribed shall constitute approval of the Preliminary Plan and a certificate of the Administrative Officer as to the failure of the Planning Board to act within the required time and the resulting approval shall be issued on request of the Applicant.
  3. Final Plan. The Planning Board may delegate Final Plan review and approval to either the Administrative Officer or the Technical Review Committee. The Officer or Committee shall report its actions to the Planning Board at its next regular meeting, to be made part of the record.
  4. Expiration of Approval – "Vesting". Approval of a Minor Land Development or subdivision shall expire ninety (90) days from the date of approval unless within such period a plat or plan, in conformity with such approval, and as defined in this act, is submitted for signature and recording as specified in Section 45-23-64. Validity may be extended for a longer period, for cause shown, if requested by the Applicant in writing, and approved by the Planning Board.

ARTICLE E. MAJOR LAND DEVELOPMENT AND MAJOR SUBDIVISION REVIEW

STAGES

  1. Major plan review required of all applications for land development and subdivision approval subject to this chapter, unless classified as an Administrative Subdivision or as a Minor Land Development or a minor subdivision.
  2. Major Plan review shall consist of four stages of review: (1) Pre-Application Meeting(s); (2) Master Plan, including a site visit; (3) Preliminary Plan; and (4) Final Plan. Also required is a public informational meeting and a Public Hearing.
  3. The Planning Board may vote to combine review stages and to modify and/or waive requirements as specified in Section 45-23-62. Review stages may be combined only after the Planning Board determines that all necessary requirements of all stages being combined have been met by the Applicant.

ARTICLE F. MAJOR LAND DEVELOPMENT AND MAJOR SUBDIVISION MASTER PLAN

  1. Submission Requirements:
    1. The Applicant shall first submit to the Administrative Officer the items required by these Regulations for Master Plans as provided by Checklist D or G for Conventional Developments in Section IV.
    2. The purpose of the Master Plan Stage of Review is to provide the Applicant with the opportunity to present an overall plan for a proposed project site outlining general rather than detailed, development intentions. The Master Plan describes the basic parameters of a major development proposal, rather than giving full engineering details.
    3. Initial comments shall be solicited from the following agencies, and as provided in Checklist D or G for Conventional Developments:
      1. Local Government Departments and Agencies including, but not limited to, the Planning Department, the Department of Public Works, the Fire and Police Departments, the Conservation Commission, Recreation Department, and appropriate sewer and water authorities;
      2. Adjacent Communities;
      3. State Agencies, as appropriate, including the Departments of Environmental Management and Transportation; and
      4. Federal Agencies, as appropriate.

      The Administrative Officer shall coordinate review and comments by local officials, adjacent communities, and state and federal agencies.

  2. Site Visit. A site visit, as described in Section III, Article D.4, shall be held prior to a decision being made by the Planning Board on the Master Plan application.
  3. Certification. The application shall be certified complete or incomplete by the Administrative Officer in writing within twenty-five (25) days, according to the provisions of Article B of this Section and Section 45-23-36(B) of the General Laws of Rhode Island (1956 as amended). The running of the time period set forth herein will be deemed stopped upon the issuance of a certificate of incompleteness of the application by the administrative officer and will recommence upon the resubmission of a corrected application by the applicant. However, in no event will the administrative officer be required to certify a corrected submission as complete or incomplete less than ten (10) days after its resubmission.
  4. Technical Review Committee. The Technical Review Committee shall review the application and make recommendations to the Planning Board.
  5. Informational Meeting. A public informational meeting shall be held prior to the Planning Board decision on the Master Plan, unless the Master Plan and Preliminary Plan approvals are being combined, in which case the public informational meeting shall be optional, based upon Planning Board determination.
  6. Public Notice Requirements - Informational Meeting. Public notice for the informational meeting is required and shall be given at least seven (7) days prior to the date of the meeting in a newspaper of general circulation within the municipality. Postcard notice shall be mailed to the Applicant and to all property owners within the notice area as also required for a Public Hearing and identified in Section III, Article H-2 of these Regulations.
  7. Informational Meeting - Presentation. At the public informational meeting the Applicant shall present the proposed development Project. The Planning Board shall allow oral and written comments from the general public. All public comments shall be made part of the public record of the Project application.
  8. Decision. The Planning Board shall, within ninety (90) days of Certification of Completeness, or within such further time as may be consented to by the Applicant, approve of the Master Plan as submitted, approve with changes and/or conditions, or deny the application, according to the requirements of Sections 45-23-60 and 45-23-63 of the General Laws of Rhode Island (1956 as amended).
  9. Failure to Act. Failure of the Planning Board to act within period prescribed shall constitute approval of the Master Plan and a certificate of the Administrative Officer as to the failure of the Planning Board to act within the required time and the resulting approval shall be issued on request of the Applicant.
  10. Expiration of Approval – "Vesting". The approved Master Plan shall be vested rights for a period of two (2) years, with the right to extend for two (2), one-year extensions upon written request by the applicant, who must appear before the Planning Board for the annual review. Thereafter, vesting may be extended for a longer period, for good cause shown, if requested by the applicant in writing, and approved by the Planning Board. Master Plan vesting shall include any applicable provisions of the Zoning Ordinance that were in place at the time of approval, conceptual layout and all conditions shown on the approved Master Plan and drawings and supporting materials. The initial 4 year vesting for the approved