35 Conn. App. 317 | Conn. App. Ct. | 1994
The defendant
The trial court found the following facts. On January 3, 1990, Boyce filed an application with the zoning commission for review of a coastal site plan for the building of a single-family house on a coastal lot. On May 15,1990, acting pursuant to the Coastal Management Act,
Boyce first argues that because the Coastal Management Act contains no specific appeal provisions for site plan review, and no direct reference to the appeal provisions of the zoning statutes,
Although the Coastal Management Act does not contain any explicit provisions for appealing the decisions of a municipal zoning commission, the act does contemplate that such decisions will be appealed. Section
“We presume that the legislature had a purpose for each sentence, clause, or phrase in a legislative enactment, and that it did not intend to enact meaningless provisions.” Turner v. Turner, 219 Conn. 703, 713, 595 A.2d 297 (1991). In order for the reference in § 22a-110 to an appeal of a decision under the act to have purpose, we must turn to General Statutes § 8-8 (b), which provides in relevant part that “any person aggrieved by any decision of a board may take an appeal to the superior court for the judicial district in which the municipality is located.” A “board” is defined as “a municipal zoning commission, planning commission, or combined planning and zoning commission.” General Statutes § 8-8 (a) (2). Clearly, the planning and zoning commission of the town of Stonington fits this definition.
Section 8-8 (b) is not limited to decisions made pursuant to local zoning regulations. Section 8-8 (b) expressly provides that “any person aggrieved by any decision of a board may take an appeal . . . .” (Emphasis added.) It is irrelevant to an aggrieved party’s right of appeal under § 8-8 (b) that the zoning commission was implementing the Coastal Management Act. The implementation of the act is in addition to the zoning commission’s authority under the town’s planning and zoning regulations, not to the exclusion of that authority.
Boyce next claims that the trial court improperly found that the zoning commission had no jurisdiction to take action on his site plan application without first receiving a final report from the inland wetlands commission. This claim requires us to analyze the relationship between General Statutes §§ 22a-109 and 8-3 (g). The trial court specifically found that even though Boyce’s site plan was submitted pursuant to § 22a-109, the zoning commission’s decision was illegal because the defendant failed to comply with § 8-3 (g).
Section 22a-109 (a) of the Coastal Management Act, pursuant to which the defendant submitted his coastal site plan, expressly excludes coastal site plans from the requirements of § 8-3 (g).
During oral argument the plaintiffs posited that the decision of our Supreme Court in Vartuli v. Sotire, 192 Conn. 353, 472 A.2d 336 (1984), held that despite the plain language of § 22a-109 (a), § 8-3 (g) applied to cases under the Coastal Management Act. Our review of Vartuli reveals that the Supreme Court did not hold that § 8-3 (g) applied to review of coastal site plans. In Vartuli, the Supreme Court held that the provision in § 8-3 (g) that “[ajpproval of a site plan shall be presumed unless a decision to deny or modify it is rendered within the period specified in section 8-7d” operated to make approval of a coastal site plan mandatory if a municipal board failed to act on the plan within the sixty-five day period delineated in § 8-7d (b). Vartuli v. Sotire, supra, 358-59.
Our examination of the Coastal Management Act clarifies the basis of the Vartuli holding. Section 22a-109 (g) provides that “[t]he coastal site plan review required under this section shall be subject to the same statutory requirements as subsections (a) and (b) of section 8-7d for the purposes of determining the time limitations on the zoning commission in reaching a final decision.” Section 8-7d (b) is in turn implemented through the mandatory approval provision of § 8-3 (g). In Vartuli the Supreme Court stated: “By virtue of
Additionally, in construing statutes we presume that “the legislature acted with knowledge and understanding of existing relevant statutes, and with the intent to achieve a harmonious and consistent body of law.” Vartuli v. Sotire, supra, 192 Conn. 362; see also Leo Fedus & Sons Construction Co. v. Zoning Board of Appeals, 225 Conn. 432, 442, 632 A.2d 1014 (1993). In 1987, the legislature amended § 8-3 (g) to require simultaneous submission of site plans to the zoning commission and to the inland wetlands agency, as part of an act that substantially strengthened the Inland Wetlands and Watercourses Act. This was several years after the enactment of the Coastal Management Act, which had expressly excepted coastal site plans from the requirements of § 8-3 (g). If the legislature had intended coastal site plans submitted pursuant to § 22a-109 to be submitted simultaneously to the local wetlands agency, the legislature could easily have modified § 22a-109 (a) accordingly in 1987. Union Trust Co. v. Heggelund, 219 Conn. 620, 627, 594 A.2d 464 (1991).
The Coastal Management Act was expressly concerned with providing uniform standards for evaluating the impact of coastal development, while allowing municipalities to maintain local control over the process. See 22 H.R. Proc., Pt. 29, 1979 Sess., pp. 10168-69, remarks of Representative John Anderson. As the Supreme Court has previously noted, what is unique about the Coastal Management Act is that it “envisages a single review process, during which proposals for development within the coastal boundary will simultaneously be reviewed for compliance with the local zoning requirements and for consistency with the policies of planned coastal management.” Vartuli v. Sotire, supra, 192 Conn. 358. Comments made during hearings of the joint standing committee on the environment reflect a desire by the proponents of the Coastal Management Act to avoid creating more bureaucracy and procedures and to simplify the process of applying for permits to build in coastal areas. Conn. Joint Standing Committee Hearings, Environment, Pt. 5, 1979 Sess., pp. 1380-85. Procedures under the Coastal Management Act were designed “to make life easier for coastal property owners by providing more specific guidance in how to get permits.” 22 H.R. Proc., Pt. 29, 1979 Sess., p. 10169, remarks of Representative John Anderson. It would be ironic if under legislation designed to simplify and streamline the process of applying for coastal building permits, a property owner was required to submit simultaneous applications to multiple agencies, and if
Finally, it must be emphasized that excepting coastal site plans from the requirement of simultaneous submission to the zoning commission and wetlands agency will not exclude coastal site plans from review pursuant to the Inland Wetlands and Watercourses Act if the contemplated development will impact inland wetlands. As we pointed out in Arway v. Bloom, 29 Conn. App. 469, 481, 615 A.2d 1075 (1992), appeal dismissed, 227 Conn. 799, 633 A.2d 281 (1993), wetlands are not protected solely through the simultaneous review provisions of General Statutes § 8-3 (g). The Inland Wetlands and Watercourses Act, at General Statutes § 22a-42a (c), independently protects wetlands by requiring that “no regulated activity shall be conducted upon any wetland and watercourse without a permit.” In fact, Boyce conceded in oral argument that despite approval of his coastal site plan by the zoning commission, he could not build on the site in question without first obtaining a wetlands permit from the inland wetlands commission.
The language of the Coastal Management Act unambiguously provides that review of coastal site plans pursuant to General Statutes § 22a-109 (a) supersedes review under General Statutes § 8-3 (g). In accordance with the plain meaning of this language, Boyce was not required to submit his coastal site plan to the inland wetlands commission at the same time he submitted it to the zoning commission, nor was the zoning commission precluded from acting on his application without the final decision of the inland wetlands commission.
The judgment is reversed and the case is remanded with direction to render judgment for the defendants.
In this opinion the other judges concurred.
The defendants in this action are the planning and zoning commission of the town of Stonington and William Boyce. This appeal was brought solely by Boyce. The planning and zoning commission adopted the brief of Boyce but did not attend oral argument.
The Coastal Management Act is contained in General Statutes § 22a-90 et seq. General Statutes § 22a-109 (a) provides in pertinent part: “A coastal site plan shall be filed with the municipal zoning commission to aid in determining the conformity of a proposed building, use, structure . . . fully or partially within the coastal boundary, with the specific provisions of the zoning regulations of the municipality and the provisions of sections 22a-105 and 22a-106 . . . .”
General Statutes § 8-3 (g) provides in pertinent part: “The zoning regulations may require that a site plan be filed with the commission or other municipal agency or official to aid in determining the conformity of a proposed building, use or structure with specific provisions of such regulations. If a site plan application involves an activity regulated pursuant to sections 22a-36 to 22a-45, inclusive, the applicant shall submit an application for a permit to the agency responsible for administration of the inland wetlands regulations not later than the day such application is filed with the zoning commission. The decision of the zoning commission shall not be rendered on the site plan application until the inland wetlands agency has submitted a report with its final decision. In making its decision the zoning commission shall give due consideration to the report of the inland wetlands agency. A site plan may be modified or denied only if it fails to comply with requirements already set forth in the zoning or inland wetlands regulations. ...”
The zoning statutes are found within the General Statutes at § 8-1 et seq.
“A coastal site plan required under this section may be modified or denied if it fails to comply with the requirements already set forth in the
See footnote 3.
See footnote 2.
General Statutes § 22a-í 09 (a) provides in relevant part: “Review of a coastal site plan under the requirements of this section shall supersede any review required by the municipality under subsection (g) of section 8-3
See footnote 8.
Boyce obtained such approval on March 6, 1991.