§ 303. Public Hearing

Whenever a public hearing is required for an application submitted to the Planning Board under these Regulations, the following procedures shall be the minimum requirements:

A. Notice Requirements.

1. Newspaper Notice. Public notice of the public hearing shall be given at least fourteen (14) days prior to the date of the hearing in a newspaper of general circulation in the Town. Newspaper advertisements shall be printed in the legal section of the classifieds using a type size at least as large as the normal type size used by the newspaper in its news articles, and shall contain the information specified below.

2. Certified Mail. Written notice of the public hearing shall also be sent by the applicant, upon forms to be provided to the applicant by the Town, to each owner of property within the notice area specified below. The notice shall be sent by certified mail, return receipt requested, not less than fourteen (14) days prior to the date of the hearing. As proof of such mailing, an affidavit of notice together with the white receipts for certified mail (PS Form 3800), with any returned or unclaimed envelopes, shall be provided to the Planning Board by the applicant prior to the time of the public hearing.

3. Contents. All required mail and newspaper notices shall specify, at a minimum, the following:

a. The date, time and place of the public hearing;

b. The Tax Assessor's plat and lot number of the subject property;

c. The street address of the subject property or, if no street address is available, a description of the location of the property;

d. A description of the nature of the application;

e. Notice as to the place and times where a copy of the plans of the proposed project may be examined; and

f. A statement indicating that the proposed project may be revised by the Planning Board as a result of further study or because of the views expressed at the public hearing.

B. Notice Area. The distance for notice of the public hearing shall be five hundred (500) feet from the perimeter of the parcel which is the subject of the application. Notice shall also be sent to the superintendents of the Town's water department and sewer department and to all owners of property with legal rights to the use of any right-of-way or easement which is proposed to service the development. The applicant is responsible for determining the correct names and addresses of all property owners required to be notified, and shall, at a minimum, be as accurate as the most current names and addresses listed in the Tax Assessor's records. The cost of all notices shall be borne by the applicant.