ARTICLE I
LEGAL FRAMEWORK
SECTION 101 TITLE
These regulations shall be known and may be cited as the ZONING ORDINANCE OF THE TOWN OF EASTON. The Ordinance includes both the text of the regulations and the Official Zoning Map which is located in the Office of the Town Planner, Town Office, Easton, Maryland.
SECTION 102 LEGISLATIVE AUTHORITY
These regulations are established in accordance with the provisions of Article 66B of the Annotated Code of Maryland.
SECTION 103 STATEMENT OF LEGISLATIVE INTENT
A. These regulations are adopted with the intent that they will implement the policies of the Comprehensive Plan; will control congestion in the streets; will secure the public safety; will promote health and the general welfare; will provide adequate light and air; will promote the conservation of natural resources; will prevent undue concentration of population; and will facilitate the adequate provision of transportation, water, sewerage, schools, recreation, soil conservation, landscaping, parks, and other public facilities and services. In addition, this Ordinance is intended to:
1. help accomplish the coordinated, adjusted, and harmonious development of the Town and its environs in accordance with present and future needs;
2. promote health, safety, morals, order, convenience, prosperity, and general welfare; including among other things, adequate provisions for traffic, the promotion of public safety, adequate provision for light and air, conservation of natural resources, the prevention of environmental pollution, and the promotion of the healthful and convenient distribution of population;
3. encourage and, where necessary, require land use development and uses which exemplify good civic design and arrangement and the stewardship of the Chesapeake Bay and the land as a universal ethic;
4. encourage the conservation of resources, including a reduction in resource consumption;
5. locate development in locations suitable for it given existing and reasonably foreseeable development; and
6. encourage appropriate and sustainable economic growth.
B. These regulations are made with reasonable consideration of, among other things, the character of the Town; the suitability of its various areas for particular uses; the desire to enhance the value of buildings and encourage the orderly development; and the most appropriate use of land throughout the jurisdiction.
SECTION 104 JURISDICTION
These regulations shall apply to all properties within the corporate limits of the Town of Easton, Maryland.
Other than as noted in this section, if any section or provision of this Ordinance is declared by the courts to be unconstitutional or invalid, such decision shall not affect the validity of the Ordinance as a whole, or any part thereof other than the part so declared to be unconstitutional or invalid. However, if any court declares any portion of any provision of this Ordinance relating to any planned redevelopment and/or floating zone district (§ 510.3, § 510.4, § 510.5 and § 510.6) unconstitutional or invalid, such decision shall render the entire section invalid and the uses permitted hereunder as floating zone uses shall not be permitted in the Town unless and until such unconstitutionality or invalidity has been corrected by legislative action by the Town Council.
SECTION 106 EFFECTIVE DATE AND DISPOSITION OF PENDING MATTERS
A. The provisions of this Ordinance were adopted on 08\16\99 and became effective on 09\07\99. Ordinance Number 225 (Zoning Ordinance) and all amendments thereto shall as of the effective date of this Ordinance be of no further effect or validity, except as to the extent that specific continuing rights are granted by the terms of this Zoning Ordinance. Except as expressly provided in the remaining provisions of this Section, this Ordinance shall take effect and be enforced immediately upon its passage.
B. Construction may be begun and/or completed under the terms of a building permit issued prior to the effective date of this Section, if such permit was in force and fully valid on that date. Such construction is subject to (1) all terms of the permit, (2) the Ordinance under which it was issued and (3) if applicable, the provisions of Subsection D below.
C. Any of the following matters filed prior to the effective date of this Section shall be processed and/or decided in accordance with the Ordinance in effect on the date on which the particular matter was filed:
(1) Applications for a building permit for the construction and/or modification of a single family home;
(2) Applications for subdivision approval, if such application received preliminary approval by the Planning Commission prior to the effective date of this Ordinance;
(3) Applications for site plan approval, if such application received preliminary approval prior to the effective date of this Ordinance;
(4) Any planned redevelopment or floating zone map amendment application which has received approval from the Town Council but has not received final site plan and/or subdivision approval from the Planning and Zoning Commission.
D. A project may be begun and/or completed in accordance with preliminary site plan approval given prior to the effective date of this Ordinance or in accordance with Subsection 106 C (3), under the terms of the Ordinance governing such approval. However, any such approval shall expire at the later of (a) two years from the effective date of this Section or (b) two years from the date of such final approval. On written application of the owner prior to the time of such expiration, the Planing Commission may grant an extension for a specified period of not more than two years from the expiration date provided in this Subsection. The Planning Commission shall not grant an extension unless it finds that the owner has not effectively abandoned the project, such as, for example, where construction has not been completed for reasons beyond the control of the owner and his contractors and agents.
E. With respect to any building permit or pending matters referred to in Subsections B, C, and D above, nothing in this Section shall be construed (a) to affect the status of any use or structure involved in any such permit, application, approval or pending matter as a nonconforming use or structure under this Ordinance; (b) to extend, enlarge or otherwise affect the provisions of any prior Ordinance relating to the duration, expiration or termination of any such permit, application, approval or pending matter; or (c) to revive or give any other effect to any permit, application, approval or pending matter which has been, or is hereafter deemed to be, abandoned or terminated under the provisions of this Ordinance or any prior Ordinance which is applicable.
SECTION 107 Official Zoning Map
A. The incorporated areas of the Town are hereby divided into zones, as shown on the Official Zoning Map which, together with all explanatory matter thereon, is hereby adopted by reference and declared to be a part of this Ordinance.
B. The Official Zoning Map shall be identified by the signature of the Mayor and Council attested by the Town Clerk, and bearing the seal of the Town under the following words: "This is to certify that this is the Official Zoning Map referred to in Section 107 of the Zoning Ordinance of the Town of Easton, Maryland," together with the date of the adoption of this ordinance.
C. If changes are made in zone boundaries or other matter portrayed on the Official Zoning Map, such changes shall be made or noted by ordinance number on the Official Zoning Map promptly after the amendment has been approved by the Mayor and Town Council, together with an entry in the amending ordinance as follows: "On (date), by official action of the Town Council, the following (change or changes) were made in the Official Zoning Map: (brief description of nature of change)," which entry shall be signed by the Mayor and Council and attested by the Town Clerk.
D. No changes of any nature shall be made in the Official Zoning Map or matter shown thereon except in conformity with the procedures set forth in this ordinance. Any unauthorized change of whatever kind by any person or persons shall be considered a violation of this ordinance and punishable as provided under Section 809 of this Ordinance.
E. Regardless of the existence of purported copies of the Official Zoning Map which may from time to time be made or published, the Official Zoning Map, which shall be located in the office of the Town Planner, shall be the final authority as the current zoning status of land and water areas, buildings, and other structures in the Town.
SECTION 108 Replacement of Official Zoning Map
A. In the event that the Official Zoning Map becomes damaged, destroyed, lost or difficult to interpret because of the nature or number of changes and additions, the Town Council may by resolution adopt a new Official Zoning Map which shall supersede the prior Official Zoning Map.
B. The new Official Zoning Map may correct drafting or other errors or omissions in the prior Official Zoning Map, but no such correction shall have the effect of amending the original zoning map or ordinance or any subsequent amendment thereof. The Planning Commission shall certify as to the accuracy of the new Official Zoning Map prior to its adoption by the Mayor and Council. The new Official Zoning Map shall be identified by the signatures of the Mayor and Council attested by the Town Clerk, and bearing the seal of the Town under the following words: "This is to certify that this Official Zoning Map supersedes and replaces the Official Zoning Map adopted (date of adoption of map being replaced) as part of the Zoning Ordinance of the Town of Easton, Maryland."
SECTION 109 Official Critical Area Overlay District Maps
A. Official Critical Area Overlay District Maps shall be prepared and maintained as part of the Official Zoning Map of the Town. They shall delineate the extent of the Critical Area Overlay District ("CAO") that shall correspond to the Chesapeake Bay Critical Area. Within the designated Critical Area District, all land shall be assigned one of the following land use management classifications: Intensely Developed Area (IDA), Limited Development Area (LDA), and Resource Conservation Area (RCA). The Critical Area Overlay District Maps may be amended by the Town in compliance with the amendment provisions in this Ordinance, the Maryland Critical Area Law and Critical Area Criteria, contained in COMAR 14.15 or its successor regulations.
B. The Town may elect to adjust the Critical Area Boundary to delete areas of the Town from the Critical Area Overlay District only at such times as new Official Wetland Maps are adopted by the State of Maryland or an area of the Critical Area has been approved for exclusion by the Critical Area Commission. The Town may also elect to add areas to the Critical Area at any time. Such changes shall be treated as amendments to the Critical Area Overlay District ("CAO") on the Official Critical Area Overlay District Maps for the Town.