A. Town Law

• Jurisdiction: New York

A. Town Law

A zoning ordinance may be adopted by an affirmative vote of a majority of the entire town board. Town Law § 264(1) sets forth the minimum procedural requirements with which a town board must comply when adopting and amending zoning ordinances. First, this section prohibits enactment of any zoning ordinance until after a public hearing in relation thereto. Second, the town board must publish notice of the time and place of such hearing in a paper of general circulation in the town at least ten days in advance. In addition, written notice of any proposed ordinance affecting property within 500 feet of the boundary of a town, city, village, county, state park or parkway, or housing authority property must be served ten days before the public hearing upon the clerk of such town, city, village, county, the relevant park commission, or the executive director of such housing authority and the chief executive officer of the municipality providing financial assistance to the housing authority.¹⁴⁷

Third, every zoning ordinance must be entered in the minutes of the town board and a copy, summary or abstract of such minutes must be published in a newspaper of general circulation in the town.¹⁴⁸ If a map is adopted in connection with the ordinance, it too must be entered into the minutes but it need not be published in the newspaper. The ordinance shall be effective ten days after the publication of the minutes in the newspaper. If a person is personally served with a copy of the ordinance certified by the town clerk under the town's corporate seal, it shall take effect on the date of such service. Finally, affidavits of newspaper publication of the town board minutes must be filed with the town clerk.¹⁴⁹

In addition, the town board must comply with the procedural requirements set forth in General Municipal Law §§ 239-l and 239-m, the provisions of SEQRA and any other rules, regulations and general laws relating to land use.¹⁵⁰ A town's local law also may provide additional procedural requirements for the adoption of zoning ordinances. A failure to comply with any such additional procedural requirements will also render the town board's action invalid.

The above notice and hearing requirements are reiterated in Town Law § 265, which deals particularly with the amendment of zoning ordinances.¹⁵¹ An amendment will be effected by a simple majority vote of the town board unless the amendment is the subject of written protest and signed by the owners of 20...