Local Government in Connecticut, Third Edition

15. Land Use: Planning and Zoning, Wetlands and Watercourses

ChApTEr 15 Land Use Planning and Zoning, Wetlands and Watercourses Land use is a critical element in each of Connecticut’s 169 municipalities. Cities and towns have grown as a result of natural resources, location, and land-use public policies. The development of coastal communities, for example , is in stark contrast to the development of inland communities. One only has to look at the marine environment of an Essex, Old Saybrook, or Stonington versus the industrial base of a New Britain, Waterbury, or Torrington . While each has its own natural resources, their development has been influenced by public policies on land development. In Connecticut, the major players in this area are the planning and zoning commissions, inland wetlands and watercourse agencies, historic-district agencies, redevelopment agencies, coastal management agencies, and a few others. This chapter will cover the role of municipal planning and zoning commissions along with wetlands and watercourse agencies A municipality may exercise zoning and planning authority by the adoption of the provisions of the statutes by its local legislative body. Most municipalities have combined planning and zoning commissions, although planning and zoning authority can be vested separately in two independent boards, a planning board and a zoning board. A few municipalities have vested the zoning authority in the local legislative body. Wherever the power is vested, the boards have broad authority over land use. The zoning statutory power is so strong that neither the legislative body nor the town meeting can override the designated zoning commission. The commission is not subject to interference by a municipality’s legislative body, and the local legislative body may not substitute its judgment for that of a commission in a matter involving use of the land in the municipality. Any appeal of the commission has to go directly to court. Planning and zoning commissions have the combined power of planning and zoning. Pursuant to state statutes, Title 8, Chapter 124, zoning commissions have broad zoning authority, including establishing zoning regulations and zoning districts. Under Title 8, Chapter 126, municipal planning commissions control the subdivision of land, site plans, and other land-use 104 Local Government in Connecticut controls. Members of both commissions must be local residents of the municipality, and they are elected or appointed by the local legislative body. Each set of statutes conveys broad authority to the commission, a power the commissions do not take lightly. Frequently, commission meetings extend well into the night, and sometimes after midnight! The zoning authority can regulate several areas, including: • the height, number of stories, and size of buildings and other structures; • the percentage of the area of the lot that may be occupied, and the size of yards, courts, and other open spaces; • the density, location, and use of buildings, structures, and land for trade, industry, residence, or other purposes, including water-dependent uses; • the height, size, and location of advertising signs and billboards; • the division of the municipality into districts of such number, shape, and area as may be best suited to carry out the purposes of zoning; and • the regulation of the erection, construction, reconstruction, alteration, or use of buildings or structures and the use of land. Because these commissions have so much power over land use, state statutes spell out strict procedures that must be followed. Failure to follow these procedures can negate their action on an appeal to court. State statutes spell out specific time frames for posting legal notices of hearings, commission actions, and appeals. For example, if a zoning public hearing has been held and then formally closed, the commission is not allowed to accept any more new testimony or petitions from the public. Oftentimes members of the public will go to a subsequent meeting and are frustrated that they are not allowed to provide input since the hearing was already held and was closed. All decisions of the commission must be published in a legal notice in a newspaper having substantial circulation within the community. This provides notice to the public of the commission’s actions, and it also sets the starting date for any appeal procedure to the courts. This appeal procedure is strict, and an appeal must be filed within fifteen to twenty-one days of the legal notice. A cursory review of local newspapers finds numerous fine-print legal ads adhering to this statutory requirement. Some commissions even list in the legal notice the action they took to adopt their minutes. Municipal planning commissions have the power to control the subdivision of...