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TOWN RESIDENTS CANNOT COMPEL TOWN TO ISSUE A FORMAL DETERMINATION OF THEIR ZONING COMPLAINT AND CANNOT COMPEL THE ZONING BOARD OF APPEALS TO REVIEW THE FAILURE TO ISSUE SUCH A DETERMINATION (SECOND DEPT).

The Second Department determined petitioners’ Article 78 proceeding seeking to compel the town to issue a formal determination of their complaint about an alleged zoning violation, and further seeking to compel the zoning board of appeals (ZBA) rule on the building inspector’s failure to formally address petitioners’ complaint, was properly dismissed:

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… [T]he first cause of action alleged that the Town Code required the Town and the Building Inspector to issue a formal determination of the allegations contained in the letter they sent to the Building Inspector. Contrary to the allegations in the petition, there is nothing in the plain language of the Town Code which imposes a duty on the Building Inspector or the Town to issue a formal determination in response to every allegation or complaint received by his office … . Even assuming the Town Code imposes a non-discretionary duty on the Building Inspector to “review and investigate complaints” … , the petitioners have failed to cite any provision of law that would require the Building Inspector to issue a formal determination of the merits of every allegation that he received. Rather, the decision of how to respond to alleged violations of the Town’s building code is effectively left to the discretion of the Building Inspector … . * * *

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The portion of the second cause of action which is at issue on this appeal sought to compel the ZBA to “hear and determine” the petitioners’ application for review of the Building Inspector’s failure to issue a formal determination of their allegations. In this regard, the petitioners have failed to adequately allege that the ZBA had a non-discretionary duty to determine the merits of their application to review the failure of the Building Inspector to issue a formal determination in response to their allegations. To the contrary, the ZBA’s appellate jurisdiction is limited to reviewing an “order, requirement, decision, interpretation, or determination” … . Matter of Willows Condominium Assn. v Town of Greenburgh, 2017 NY Slip Op 05961, Second Dept 8-2-17

 

ZONING (TOWN RESIDENTS CANNOT COMPEL TOWN TO ISSUE A FORMAL DETERMINATION OF THEIR ZONING COMPLAINT AND CANNOT COMPEL THE ZONING BOARD OF APPEALS TO REVIEW THE FAILURE TO ISSUE SUCH A DETERMINATION (SECOND DEPT))

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