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BERMUDA
1974 : 51
DEVELOPMENT AND
PLANNING ACT 1974
ARRANGEMENT OF
SECTIONS
PART I
INTERPRETATION AND APPLI CATION
1 Interpretation
2 Application
of the Act
PART II
ADMINISTRATION
3 Development
Applications Board
4 Advisory
Architectural Panel
5 Delegation
to municipal authorities
PART III
DEVELOPMENT PLAN
6 Survey
and development plan
7 Local
plans
8 Designation
of land for acquisition
9 Review
and amendment of development plan
10 Draft
development plan or local plan to operate as development plan or local plan
pending approval of Legislature
11 Approval
of development plans
12 Deposit
of development plan
13 Alteration
of designation, or de-designation, of land in local plan area
PART IV
CONTROL OF DEVELOPMENT OF LAND
14 Development
requiring planning permission
15 Development
orders
16 Form
and content of applica tions
17 Determination
of applications
18 Conditional
grant of planning permission
19 Decision
of Board to be final
20 Permission
to retain buildings or works or continue use of land
21 Effect
of planning permission
22 Registers
of applications and decisions
23 Duration
of planning permission
24 Termination
of planning permission by reference to time limit
25 Revocation
and modification of planning permission
PART V
SPECIAL PROVISION IN CERTAIN CASES
26 Conditions
requiring preservation or planting of trees
27 Tree
preservation order
28 Designated
areas
29 Hotel
development
30 Listed
buildings
31 Historic
areas
32 Crown
land
33 Community
areas
34 Agreement
regulating develop ment or use of land
PART VI
SUBDIVISIONS
35 [repealed]
35A Meaning
of subdivision
35B Planning
permission required for subdivision
35C Application
for planning permission to subdivide
35D Registration
of planning permission to subdivide
36 [repealed]
37 More
than one building on land prior to 3 August 1965
38 [Repealed]
39 Certain
subdivisions of buildings not to require planning permission
40 Certain
persons not affected by section 35
41 Sale
of pre-1974 lots not to require subdivision approval
42 Retroactive
effect of planning permission in certain cases
PART VII
COMPENSATION FOR REFUSAL OR CONDITIONAL GRANT OF PLANNING PERMISSION
43 Entitlement
to compensation
44 Planning
decisions not ranking for compensation
45 No
compensation if other development permitted
46 Assessment
of compensation
47 Claims
for compensation
48 Review
of planning decisions where compensation claimed
49 Minister
to give notice
50 Effect
on claims of direction under section 42
51 Acquisition
of land in lieu of compensation
52 Subsequent recovery of compensation
PART VIII
PLANNING AND OTHER REGULATIONS
53 [repealed]
54 Planning
regulations
55 Building
phasing regulations
56 Regulations:
general provisions
PART IX
APPEALS AND REVIEWS
57 Appeals to the Minister
58 Appeal
to the Board
59 Appeal
in default of planning decision
60 Power
of Minister to correct decisions which are contrary to law
61 Appeals
to the Supreme Court
PART X
ENFORCEMENT
62 Enforcement
of planning control
63 Special
enforcement no tices
64 Supplementary
provisions as to enforcement
65 Penalties
for failure to comply with enforcement notices
66 Continuing
operation of enforcement notices
67 Maintenance
of waste land
68 Unauthorized
excavation, site preparation and de velopment
69 Site
excavation licences
PART XI
SUPPLEMENTAL
70 Powers
of entry
71 Service
of notice
72 Powers
to require infor mation
73 Application
to land regulated by special enactments
74 Unfinished
buildings
75 Zoning
Orders
76 Municipal
Bye-laws
77 Acquisition
of land
78 Rules
79 Offences
by Corporations
80 Repeals
and savings
81 Commencement
FIRST SCHEDULE
(Section 3)
DEVELOPMENT APPLICATIONS BOARD
SECOND SCHEDULE
(Sections 6 and 7)
MATTERS FOR WHICH PROVI SIONS MAY BE MADE IN DE VELOPMENT PLANS
THIRD SCHEDULE
(Section 6(4)(b))
MATTERS FOR WHICH STUDIES IN SPECIAL STUDY AREAS MAY PROVIDE
FOURTH SCHEDULE
(Section 28)
DESIGNATED AREAS OF SPECIAL ENVIRONMENTAL VALUE
[18 June 1974]
[preamble and
words of enactment omitted]
PART I
INTERPRETATION AND APPLICATION
Interpretation
1 In this Act, unless the context
otherwise requires —
"agriculture"
includes horticulture, fruit growing, seed growing, dairy farming, the breeding
and keeping of livestock,
the use of land as grazing land, meadow land, market
gardens and nursery grounds;
"the Board"
means the Development Applications Board estab lished under section 3 and, in
relation to any function law
fully delegated by them to any other person or
body, includ ing a committee of the Board, means the person or body to whom
such
function has been delegated;
"building"
includes any structure or erection of a permanent or semi-permanent nature and
any part of a building as so
de fined, but does not include plant or machinery
comprised in a building;
"building
operations" includes rebuilding operations, structural alterations of or
additions to buildings, and other operations
normally undertaken by a person
carrying on business as a builder;
"building or
work" includes waste materials, refuse and other matters deposited on
land, and references to the erection
or construction of buildings or works
shall be construed ac cordingly;
"designated
area" has the meaning given in section 28;
"development"
has the meaning given in section 14 and "develop" has a corresponding
meaning;
"development
order" has the meaning given in section 15;
"development
plan" shall be construed in accordance with sec tion 6 and includes —
(i) a local plan prepared under section 7;
(ii) any draft development plan or draft local
plan hav ing effect under section 10;
(iii) any amendment or addition to a development
plan, including such a plan as is mentioned in para graphs (i) and (ii) of this
definition;
"Director"
means the Director of Planning;
"dwelling"
includes any part of a building where that part is sep arately occupied as a
dwelling;
"enforcement
notice" has the meaning given in section 62(3);
"engineering
operations" includes the formation or laying out of means of access to
highways;
"erection"
in relation to buildings includes extension, alteration and re-erection;
"highway
authority" means an authority responsible for the maintenance of a road;
"historic
area" has the meaning given in section 31;
"land" means
any corporeal hereditaments, including a building, and includes land covered by
water;
"listed
building" means a building which is for the time being in cluded in a list
compiled or approved by the Minister
under section 30 and includes any object
or structure fixed to such a building, or forming part of the land comprised
within the
curtilage of such a building;
"local plan"
includes a draft local plan having effect under sec tion 10;
"Minister"
means the Minister responsible for planning;
"owner", in
relation to land, means a person other than the mortgagee not in possession
who, whether in his own right
or as trustee or agent for any other person, is
entitled to receive the rack rent of the land or, where the land is not let at
a rack rent, would be so entitled if it were so let;
"planning
permission" means permission to develop land or to subdivide land, as the
case may be, and, in construing refer
ences to planning permission to develop
land or to applica tions for such permission, regard shall be had to section 20(2);
"planning
permission granted for a limited period" has the meaning given in section
18;
"registered plan
of subdivision" means a plan of subdivision reg istered by the Minister
under section 35D(1);
"road" means
any road whether public or private and includes any street, square, court,
alley, lane, bridge, footway,
track, path, passage, or other highway, whether a
thoroughfare or not;
"rules"
means rules prescribed under section 78;
"statutory
undertakers" means persons authorized by any Act to carry on any dock,
harbour or pier undertakings, or any
un dertaking for the supply of
electricity, water, oil, telephonic, telegraphic or sewerage services, and
"statutory undertaking"
has a corresponding meaning;
"subdivision"
has the meaning given by section 35A;
"tree
preservation order" has the meaning given in section 27;
"use" in
relation to land, does not include the use of land by the carrying out of any
building or other operations thereon;
"zoning
order" means a zoning order having effect under section 75.
[Section 1
amended by 1997 : 3 effective 1 April 1997]
Application of
the Act
2 (1) This
Act shall not apply to land comprised within any leased area (within the
meaning of "leased area" under the United
States Bases (Agreement)
Act 1952).
(2) Subject to subsection (1), this Act shall
bind the Crown.
[Section 2(1) substituted by 1996 : 11 effective 20 June
1996]
PART II
ADMINISTRATION
Development
Applications Board
3 (1) There
shall continue to be established a body of persons to be called the Development
Applications Board who shall have such func
tions as may be imposed upon them
by or under this Act or any other statutory provision.
(2) The Board shall be appointed by the Minister
and shall con sist of —
(a) a Chairman and Deputy Chairman;
(b) not less than seven and not more than ten other
mem bers.
(3) At least one of the persons appointed to the
Board shall be so appointed after consultation as to his appointment with the
Corpora
tion of Hamilton and at least one of the remaining persons so appointed
shall be appointed after consultation as to his appointment
with the
Corporation of St. George's.
(4) The First Schedule shall have effect with
respect to the Board.
Advisory
Architectural Panel
4 (1) There
shall be established an Advisory Architectural Panel consisting of a Chairman
and not less than two or more than eight other
members appointed by the
Minister, any two of whom together with the chairman shall constitute a quorum.
(2) The Advisory Architectural Panel shall, with
a view to the proper carrying out of the provisions and objects of this Act,
advise
the Board on any matter within their knowledge or on which the Board
(either of their own volition or at the instance of an aggrieved
party) may
seek their advice.
Delegation to municipal authorities
5 (1) The
Board may by instrument in writing published in the Gazette and subject to such
conditions, directions, reservations and re
strictions as they think fit,
delegate to a Municipality their power to grant or refuse planning permission.
(2) The Board may give directions to any
Municipality to whom functions have been delegated under subsection (1)
requiring that any
application made to that Municipality for planning
permission, or all such applications of any class specified in the directions,
shall be re ferred to the Board instead of being dealt with by the
Municipality, and any such application shall be so referred
accordingly.
(3) Where an application for planning permission
is referred to the Board under subsection (2) the Board shall have the same
powers
in respect of such application as they would have had in the absence of
an instrument of delegation under subsection (1).
(4) Where a Municipality grants, modifies or
revokes any plan ning permission they shall notify the Minister within fourteen
days thereof
and such notification shall contain such particulars of the deci sion
to which it relates as the Minister may require.
PART III
DEVELOPMENT PLANS
Survey and
development plan
6 (1) It
shall be the duty of the Minister to carry out a survey of Bermuda, in so far
as he has not already done so, examining the matters
which may be expected to
affect the development of Bermuda or the planning of its development.
(2) The Minister shall at the same time as, or
subsequently to, carrying out a survey under subsection (1) prepare a
development plan
for Bermuda on the basis of surveys and studies of land use,
population growth, the economic base of the planning area, its transportation
and communication needs, public services, social services and such other
factors as are relevant to the preparation of a development
plan.
(3) A development plan shall consist of —
(a) a written statement —
(i) formulating policy and proposals in
respect of development and other use of land in Bermuda (including measures for
the improvement
of the physical environment and the management of traffic);
(ii) making provision for any of the matters
specified in the Second Schedule;
(iii) containing such other matters ancillary
thereto as the Minister may direct;
(b) such maps, diagrams, illustrations and
descriptive mat ter as may be necessary to illustrate the proposals afore said
with such
degree of particularity as may be appro priate to different parts of
Bermuda.
(4) A development plan may designate any part of
Bermuda which has been selected by the Minister for treatment in accordance
with a
local plan prepared for that part of Bermuda—
(a) as an environmental conservation area, being an
area in which the preservation of the natural environment shall take precedence
over other planning considerations;
(b) as a special study area, being an area where
the local circumstances are in the opinion of the Minister such as to require
further
study being made of the planning re quirements for the area, with a
view to all or any of the matters specified in the Third Schedule
being
provided for in a local plan.
(5) A report of the survey under subsection (1)
shall accompany the development plan when this is submitted to the Legislature
for ap
proval under section 11.
Local plans
7 (1) The
Minister may prepare, in amplification of a development plan, a local plan for
any part of Bermuda.
(2) A local plan shall consist of a map and a
written statement and shall —
(a) formulate in such detail as the Minister thinks
appropri ate the Minister's proposals for the development and other use of land
in that part of Bermuda or for any de scription of development or other use of
such land;
(b) contain such other matters as the Minister may
think fit.
(3) Different local plans may be prepared for
different purposes for the same part of Bermuda.
(4) A local plan for any part of Bermuda shall
contain, or be ac companied by, such diagrams, illustrations and descriptive
matter as
the Minister thinks appropriate for the purpose of illustrating the
proposals in the plan; and any such diagrams, illustrations
and descriptive
matter shall be part of the plan.
(5) A local plan shall conform generally to the
development plan as it stands for the time being and shall have regard to any
other
consid erations which appear to the Minister to be relevant.
(6) A local plan may, subject to this section,
make provision for any of the matters mentioned in the Second Schedule.
Designation of
land for acquisition
8 (1) A
development plan may designate, as land subject to ac quisition by the
Government —
(a) any land allocated by the plan for Government
purposes or for the purposes of a Municipality or of a statutory undertaker or
of
a highway authority;
(b) any land comprised in an area designated in the
plan as an environmental conservation area or a special study area;
(c) any other land that, in the opinion of the
Minister, ought to be subject to acquisition by the Government for the purpose
of securing
its use in the manner proposed by the plan.
(2) A development plan shall not designate any
land as land subject to acquisition by the Government if it appears to the
Minister that
the acquisition is not likely to take place within five years
from the date on which the plan is approved by the Legislature under
section
11.
(3) Where any land is designated by a
development plan as subject to acquisition by the Government, then if at the
expiration of six
years from the date on which the plan, or the amendment of
the plan, by virtue of which the land was first so designated came into
operation in accordance with section 11(10) any of that land has not been
acquired by the Government, any owner of an interest
in the land may serve on
the Minister a notice requiring the interest of the owner in the land to be so
acquired and if, within
six months after the service of that notice, the
interest of the owner in the land has not been so acquired, the develop ment
plan
shall have effect, after the expiration of the said six months, as if the
land in which the said interest subsists was not designated
as subject to
acquisition by the Government, but subject to
such alternate restrictions as to user as shall be specified in the development
plan.
Review and
amendment of development plan
9 (1) At
least once in every five years after the date upon which a development plan for
any area is approved by the Legislature, the
Minis ter shall review the plan
and submit a report on such review to the Leg islature.
(2) The Minister may at any time submit to the
Legislature pro posals for such alterations or additions to any development
plan or local
plan as appear to him to be expedient.
Draft development
plan or local plan to operate as development plan or local plan pending
approval of Legislature
10 (1) The
Minister may, by notice in the Gazette, at any time prior to the approval of a
development plan or local plan by the Legisla
ture under section 11, declare
that a draft development plan or a draft local plan shall be operative as a
development plan or
local plan, as the case may be, from such date as may be
specified in the notice and until such approval is obtained:
Provided that if such approval
is not obtained within eighteen months of the publication of such notice such
draft development plan
or draft local plan shall cease to be operative as a
development plan or a lo cal plan.
(2) Nothing in this section shall apply in the
case of any alter ations or additions to a development plan or local plan.
(3) During the period during which a draft
development plan is operative in any part of Bermuda, any other development
plan in force
in respect to that area prior thereto shall cease to have effect,
save to the extent that the draft development plan provides to
the contrary.
Approval of
development plans
11 (1) The
Minister shall in the course of preparing a development plan relating to any
land, or proposals for alterations or additions
to any such plan, consult with
the Municipality in whose area any of the land is situated and any other public
authority concerned
with the development contemplated in the area concerned,
and may consult with such other persons or bodies as he thinks fit, and
the
Minister shall —
(a) before declaring that a draft plan shall be
operative in accordance with the powers vested in him by section 10; and
(b) before submitting any development plan or
proposals for alterations or additions to such plan for approval by the
Legislature,
give to the
Municipality and public authority as aforesaid and to any such persons or
bodies as aforesaid an opportunity to make
objections or representations with
respect thereto.
(2) Notice shall be published in the Gazette and
in at least one daily newspaper that the Minister has prepared in draft any
such plan
or proposals for the amendment of any such plan, and of the place or places where copies of
such plan or proposals may be inspected by the public.
(3) If any objection or representation with
respect to any such plan or proposals is made in writing to the Minister within
two months
after the publication of the notice referred to in subsection (2) or
within such greater period after the publication of such notice
as the Minister
may by notice in the Gazette specify, the Minister shall appoint one or more
tribunals each of three persons to
hold a public inquiry into such objections
or representations.
(4) The Minister shall, before submitting any
such plan or pro posals for the approval of the Legislature, take into
consideration the
objections or representations together with the reports
thereon of the tri bunals, and shall include such reports with the plan
or
proposals sub mitted to the Legislature.
(5) Where a Municipality objects to any such
draft plan or pro posals in so far as they relate to land within the municipal
limits of
that Municipality, that Municipality may include in its
representations to the persons holding such inquiry alternative draft plans
or
proposals in rela tion to such land and, in that event, such alternative draft
plans or pro posals shall be included in the
report of the Minister submitted
to the Legislature unless modifications in the development plan submitted by
the Minister to the
Legislature take account of such alternative draft plans or
proposals to the satisfaction of that Municipality.
(6) Where any such plan proposes any variation
to a zoning or der, the owners of all land comprised in such zoning order shall
be noti
fied of the proposed variation by the Minister by notice in the Gazette
within one week after the publication of the plan pursuant
to subsection (2);
and such notification shall set out the right of the owner to object or make
representations.
(7) If as the result of any objection or representation
consid ered, or public inquiry held, in connection with a development plan or
proposals for amendment of such a plan the Minister is of the opinion
that a Municipality or any other authority or person ought to be con sulted
before he decides to make the plan either with or without
modifi cations, or to
amend the plan, as the case may be, the Minister shall consult that authority
or person, but he shall not
be obliged to consult any other authority or
person, or to afford any opportunity for further objections or representations
or
to cause any further public inquiry to be held.
(8) The Legislature may, by resolution of each
House, approve a development plan, or proposals for the amendment of such plan
either
as originally prepared or as modified so as to take account of any
objections or representations made under this section and the
report of the
Minister thereon.
(9) The approval of a development plan, or of
proposals for amendment of such a plan, by the Legislature shall be published
in the Gazette
by the Minister and in at least one daily newspaper and copies
of any such plan or proposals as approved by the Legislature shall
be avail able
for inspection by the public at the offices of the Minister and at such other
places as the Minister may determine.
(10) Subject to section 10, a development plan, or
an amend ment of a development plan, shall become operative on the date on
which it
is approved by the Legislature or on such subsequent date as may be
specified in such plan or amendment.
Deposit of
development plan
12 (1) A
development plan and any amendment thereof, as ap proved by the Legislature,
shall be deposited with the Minister.
(2) A copy of —
(a) each development plan and each amendment
thereof deposited with the Minister under subsection (1);
(b) any draft development plan or draft local plan
which is operative as a development plan or local plan in accor dance with
section
10,
certified by or on
behalf of the Minister to be a true copy of the original shall be available for
inspection by the public at all
reasonable hours on payment of such fee as may
be prescribed under the Government Fees Act 1965 [title 15 item 18].
Alteration of
designation, or de-designation, of land in local plan area
13 Where in any development plan any part
of Bermuda is desig nated as an environmental conservation area or a special
study area within
the meaning of section 6(4) and the Minister considers that
any land within such an area ought not to continue to be so designated,
the
Minister may either —
(a) by an independent order published in the
Gazette ei ther—
(i) alter the designation of the land to
the designa tion appertaining to adjacent land that is not so designated; or
(ii) direct that the development plan shall
have ef fect as if the land had not been so designated in the first place; or
(b) in a local plan prepared in respect of the area
under section 7 include provision of a kind described in para graph (a)(i) or
(ii),
and where
provision is made as aforesaid by an independent order or in a local plan the
development plan shall, with effect from
the date of the coming into force of
the order or the local plan, as the case may be, have effect in relation to the
area in question
subject to that provision.
PART IV
CONTROL OF
DEVELOPMENT OF LAND
Development
requiring planning permission
14 (1) Subject
to this Act, planning permission is required for any development of land that
is carried out on or after 3 August 1965.
(2) In this Act, except where the context
otherwise requires, "development" means the carrying out of building,
engineering
or other operations in, on, over or under any land, the making of
any material change in the use of any building or other land or
the demolition
or the making of a material alteration to the external appearance of a listed
building, except that the following
operations or uses of land shall not be
deemed for the purposes of this Act to involve development of the land—
(a) the carrying out of works for the maintenance,
improve ment or other alteration of any building, if the works af fect only the
interior
of the building or do not materially affect the external appearance of
the building unless
such
works are carried out for the purpose of increasing the number of dwellings
within a building;
(b) the carrying out by a highway authority of any
works re quired for the maintenance or improvement or widening of a road;
(c) the carrying out by any Municipality or
statutory un dertaker of any works for the purpose of inspecting, re pairing or
renewing
any sewers, mains, pipes, cables or other apparatus, including the
breaking open of any street or other land for that purpose;
(d) the use of any buildings or other land within
the cur tilage of a dwelling-house for any purpose incidental to the enjoyment
of
the dwelling-house as such;
(e) the use of any land for the purposes of
agriculture (except dairy farming or the breeding or keeping of live stock) or
afforestation;
(f) in the case of buildings or other land which
are used for a purpose of any class specified in an order made by the Minister
under
this section, the use thereof for any other purpose of the same class.
(g) the carrying out of any works required in
relation to the laying of roads and installation of services in accordance with
a final
plan of subdivision registered under section 35D.
(3) For the purposes of this section —
(a) the increase in the number of dwellings within
a build ing involves a material change in the use of the building and of each
part
whereof which is so used;
(b) the deposit of refuse or waste materials on
land involves a material change in the use thereof, notwithstanding that the
land is
comprised in a site already used for that purpose, if either the
superficial area of the deposit is thereby extended, or the height
of the
deposit is thereby extended, and exceeds the level of the land adjoining the
site;
(c) the following are acts of development within
subsection (2)—
(i) any act in a designated area, being an
act regu lated by section 28 and the Fourth Schedule;
(ii) any act in a historic area, being an act
for the doing of which section 31(2) provides that plan ning permission is
required.
(4) Without prejudice to the Advertisements
Regulation Act 1911 [title 20 item 9],
the use for the display of advertisements of any external part of a building
that is not normally used for that purpose shall
be treated for the purposes of
this section as involving a material change in the use of that part of the
building.
(5) Where planning permission to develop land
has been granted for a limited period, planning permission is not required for
the resumption,
at the end of that period, of the use of the land for the pur pose
for which it was normally used before the permission was granted
unless such
use constituted a contravention of this Act or other provi sion of law in force
at the time when such grant for a limited
period was made.
[Section 14
amended by 1997 : 3 effective 1 April 1997]
Development
orders
15 (1) The
Minister may by order (in this Act referred to as a "development
order") provide for the granting of planning permission.
(2) A development order may either —
(a) itself grant planning permission for
development speci fied in the order, or for development of any class so
specified; or
(b) in respect of development for which planning permis sion is not granted by
the order itself, provide for the granting of planning permission by the Board
on an
ap plication in that behalf made to the Board in accordance with the
order.
(3) A development order may be made either as a
general order applicable (subject to such exceptions as may be specified
therein) to
all land, or as a special order applicable only to such land as may
be so specified.
(4) Planning
permission granted by a development order may be granted either unconditionally
or subject to such conditions or limita
tions as may be specified in the order.
(5) Without prejudice to the generality of
subsection (4) where planning permission is granted by a development order for
the erection,
extension or alteration of any buildings, the order may require
the ap proval of the Board to be obtained with respect to the design
or
external appearance of the buildings.
(6) Any provision of a development order whereby
planning permission is granted for the use of land for any purpose on a limited
number
of days in a period specified in
that provision shall (without prejudice to the generality of references in this
Act to limitations)
be taken to be a provision granting planning permission for
the use of land for any purpose subject to the limitation that the land
shall
not be used for any one purpose in pursuance of that provision on more than
that number of days in that period.
Form and
content of applications
16 (1) Any
application to the Board for planning permission shall be made in such manner
as may be prescribed in the rules and shall in
clude such particulars, and be
verified by such evidence, as may be re quired by the rules or by directions
given thereunder.
(2) The Board may, if they think fit, refuse to
entertain an ap plication for planning permission unless it is accompanied by
one or
other of the following certificates in the form prescribed by the rules
signed by or on behalf of the applicant—
(a) a certificate stating that, in respect of every
part of the land to which the application relates, the applicant is either the
estate
owner in respect of the fee simple or is entitled to a tenancy thereof;
(b) a certificate stating that the applicant has
given notice of the application to all the persons (other than the appli cant)
who,
at the beginning of the period of twenty-one days ending with the date of
the application, were own ers of any of the land to which
the application
relates, and setting out the names of those persons, the ad dresses at which
notice of the application was given
to them respectively, and the date of
service of each such notice;
(c) a certificate stating that the applicant is
unable to issue a certificate in accordance with paragraph (a) or (b), that he
has given
notice of the application to such one or more of the persons mentioned
in paragraph (b) as are specified in the certificate (setting
out their names,
the addresses at which notice of the application was given to them
respectively, and the date of the service of
each such notice), that he has
taken such steps as are rea sonably open to him (specifying them) to ascertain
the names and addresses
of the remainder of those persons and that he has been
unable to do so;
(d) a certificate stating that the applicant is
unable to issue a certificate in accordance with paragraph (a), that he has
taken such
steps as are reasonably open to him (specifying them) to ascertain
the names and addresses of the persons mentioned in paragraph
(b) and that he
has been unable to do so.
(3) Any person who issues any certificate which
purports to comply with the requirements of this section and which contains a
statement
which he knows to be false or misleading in a material partic ular,
or recklessly issues a certificate which purports to comply
with those
requirements and which contains a statement which is false or misleading in a
material particular, commits an offence:
Punishment on
summary conviction: a fine of $500.
(4) In this section "owner", in
relation to land, means a person who is for the time being the estate owner in
respect of
the fee simple thereof or is entitled to a tenancy thereof granted
or extended for a term of years certain of which not less than
ten years remain
unexpired, and includes a life tenant.
Determination
of applications
17 (1) Subject
to this Act, where application is made to the Board for planning permission,
the Board may grant permission either uncon
ditionally or subject to such
conditions as they think fit or may refuse permission and, in the exercise of
their discretion under
this section the Board
(a) shall not grant planning permission which would
result in development at variance with this Act, a development plan, the
regulations,
a zoning order, a municipal bye-law or other statutory provision,
to the extent that the same may be relevant to the application;
(b) shall have regard to any other relevant
consideration.
(2) In determining any application for planning
permission the Board shall take into account any representations relating to
the appli-
cation which are received by them during such period as may be deter mined in
accordance with the regulations.
Conditional
grant of planning permission
18 (1) Without
restricting the generality of section 17, conditions may be imposed on the
grant of planning permission thereunder —
(a) for regulating the development or use of any
land under the control of the applicant (being land contiguous to the land that
is
the subject of the application) or requiring the carrying out of works on
any such land, so far as appears to the Board to be expedient
for the purposes
of or in connection with the development authorized by the permission;
(b) for requiring the removal of any buildings or
work autho rized by the permission, or the discontinuance of any use of land so
authorized,
at the expiration of a specified period, and the carrying out of
any works required for the reinstatement of land at the expiration
of that pe riod.
(2) Any permission granted subject to any such
condition as is mentioned in subsection (1)(b) is in this Act referred to as
permission
granted for a limited period only.
(3) Planning permission shall be deemed to be
granted subject to a condition suspending the effect of such permission during
—
(a) the period limited by the rules for the service
of notice of appeal under section 57(2) and, thereafter, in the event of such
service,
until the final determination or aban donment of the appeal;
(b) in the case of planning permission granted by a
Munici pality, during the period during which appeal may be made to the Board
under
section 58(1) and, thereafter, in the event of the making of an appeal,
until the final determination or abandonment of the appeal.
Decision of
Board to be final
19 Subject to Parts VII and IX, the
decision of the Board on any ap plication for the grant of planning permission
shall be final.
Permission to retain buildings or works or continue use of
land
20 (1) An
application for planning permission may relate to build ings or works
constructed or carried out, or a use of land instituted,
be fore the date of
the application, whether—
(a) the buildings or works were constructed or
carried out, or the use instituted, without planning permission or in
accordance with
planning permission granted for a lim ited period; or
(b) the application is for permission to retain the
buildings or works, or continue the use of the land, without com plying with
some
condition subject to which a previous planning permission was granted.
(2) Any power to grant planning permission to
develop land under this Act shall include power to grant planning permission
for the retention
on land of buildings or works constructed or carried out, or
for the continuance of a use of land instituted, as mentioned in subsection
(1); and references in this Act to planning permission to develop land or to
carry out any development of land, and to applications
for such per mission,
shall be construed accordingly.
(3) Any planning permission granted in
accordance with sub section (2) may be granted so as to take effect from the
date on which the
buildings or works were constructed or carried out, or the
use was in stituted, or (in the case of buildings or works constructed
or a use
insti tuted in accordance with planning permission granted for a limited pe riod)
so as to take effect from the end of
that period, as the case may be.
Effect of
planning permission
21 (1) Without
prejudice to the provisions of this Act as to the du ration, revocation or
modification of planning permission, any grant
of planning permission to
develop land shall (except in so far as the per mission otherwise provides)
enure for the benefit of
the land of all per sons for the time being interested
therein.
(2) Where planning permission is granted for the
erection of a building, the grant of permission may specify the purposes for
which
the building may be used; and if no purpose is so specified, the
permission includes permission to use the building for the purpose
for which it
is designed.
Registers of
applications and decisions
22 (1) The
Minister shall keep, in such manner as he may deter-
mine, a register
containing such information as he may determine with respect to—
(a) applications —
(i) for planning permission made to the
Board, in cluding applications to subdivide any land;
(ii) for compensation payable under Part VII;
in cluding information as to the manner in which such applications have been
dealt with;
(b) the revocation or modification of planning
permission under section 25;
(c) notices served;
(d) agreements made under section 34.
(2) Every register kept under this section shall
be available for inspection by the public at all reasonable hours on payment of
such
fee as may be prescribed under the Government Fees Act 1965 [title 15 item 18].
[Section 22
amended by 1997 : 3 effective 1 April 1997]
Duration of
planning permission
23 (1) Subject
to section 38 every planning permission granted before 27 June 1974 shall, if
the development to which it relates has not
been begun by 27 June 1974, be
deemed to have lapsed on 27 June 1974 if it had not, before 27 June 1974,
ceased to have had effect.
(2) Subject to this Act every planning
permission other than a planning permission in principle granted after 26 June
1974 shall be
granted subject to the condition that the development to which it
relates must be begun not later than the expiration of —
(a) two years beginning with the date on which the
permis sion is granted; or
(b) such other period (whether longer or shorter)
beginning with the said date as the Board may direct.
(3) If after 26 June 1974 planning permission
other than plan ning permission in principle is granted without the condition
required
by subsection (2), it shall be deemed to have been granted subject to
the condition that the development to which it relates must
be begun not later
than the expiration of two years beginning with the date of the grant.
(4) Subject to this Act every planning
permission in principle granted after 26 June 1974 shall be granted subject to
conditions to
the following effect—
(a) that, in the case of any reserved matter,
application for approval must be made not later than the expiration of two
years beginning
with the date of the grant of plan ning permission in
principle; and
(b) that the development to which the permission
relates must be begun not later than which ever is the later of the following
dates
—
(i) the expiration of two years from the
date of the grant of planning permission in principle; or
(ii) the expiration of two years from the
final ap proval of the reserved matters or, in the case of approval on
different dates, the
final approval of the last such matter to be approved.
(5) If after 26 June 1974 planning permission in
principle is granted without the conditions required by subsection (4), it
shall be
deemed to have been granted subject to those conditions.
(6) The Board may, in applying subsection (4),
substitute for the periods of two years referred to in that subsection such
other periods
(whether shorter or longer) as they may consider appropriate.
(7) In the exercise of their powers under this
section the Board shall have regard to the provisions of the development plan
and to
any other material considerations.
(8) In this section "planning permission in
principle" means planning permission granted with the reservation for
subsequent
ap proval by the Board of matters (referred to in this section
"reserved mat ters") not particularized in the application
or which
are specified by the Board when granting such permission.
(9) For the purposes of this section development
shall be taken to have begun on the earliest date on which any operation
comprised
in the development begins to be carried out with the exception of
works of excavation or site clearance preparatory to the building,
erection or
con struction of any building or structure.
Termination of
planning permission by reference to time limit
24 (1) Where
by virtue of section 23 a planning permission is subject to a condition that
the development to which the permission re lates
must be begun before the
expiration of a particular period and that
development has
been begun within the period but the period has elapsed without the development
having been completed the Minister
may, if he is of the opinion that the
development will not be completed within a reasonable period, serve a notice
(hereinafter
in this section re ferred to as a "completion notice")
stating that the planning permission will cease to have effect
at the
expiration of a further period specified in the notice, being a period of not
less than twelve months after the notice takes
effect.
(2) A completion notice shall be served on the
owner and occu pier of the land and on any other person whom in the opinion of
the Minister
will be affected by the notice.
(3) If, within such period as may be specified
in a completion notice (not being less than twenty-eight days from the service
thereof)
any person on whom the notice is served so requires the Minister shall
afford to that person an opportunity of appearing before,
and being heard by, a
person appointed by the Minister for the purpose and the Minister may then,
after receiving the report of
the person so appointed, if he thinks fit,
confirm, vary or revoke the completion notice.
(4) The planning permission referred to in a
completion notice shall at the expiration of the period specified in the
notice, whether
the original period specified in subsection (1) or a longer
period substituted by the Minister under subsection (3), lapse.
(5) Where by reason of subsection (4) any
planning permission lapses, the Minister may, upon giving not less than
fourteen days' notice
to the persons upon whom the completion notice was
served, enter upon the land and take such steps as may to him seem necessary,
whether by the removal of any building or structure or by the execution of any
works, to restore the land to its state previous
to the grant of such plan ning
permission or to render any building or structure erected or works undertaken
in accordance therewith
safe or sightly, and the Minister may further recover
as a debt owing to the Crown in any court of com petent jurisdiction from
the
person who is then the owner of the land any expenses reasonably incurred by
him in taking such steps.
Revocation and
modification of planning permission
25 (1) Subject
to this section, if it appears to the Minister that it is expedient, having
regard to the development plan and to any other
mate rial considerations, that
any planning permission should be revoked or modified, he may by order revoke
or modify the permission
to such ex tent as appears to him to be expedient as
aforesaid.
(2) The power conferred by this section to
revoke or modify planning permission may be exercised —
(a) where the permission relates to the carrying
out of building or other operations, at any time before those operations have
been
completed;
(b) where the permission relates to a change of the
use of any land, at any time before the change has taken place:
Provided that the
revocation or modification of planning permis sion for the carrying out of
building or other operations shall
not affect so much of those operations as
has been previously carried out.
(3) Where planning permission to develop land is
revoked or modified by an order made under this section (otherwise than with
the consent
of the owner and occupier of such land) then if, on a claim made to
the Minister within six months of the making of the order, it
is shown that any
person interested in the land has incurred expenditure in car rying out work
that is rendered abortive by the
revocation or modifica tion, or has otherwise
sustained loss or damage that is directly at tributable to the revocation or
modification,
the Minister shall pay to that person compensation in respect of
that expenditure, loss or damage.
(4) No compensation shall be payable under
subsection (3) in respect of loss or damage consisting of the depreciation
in value of any interest in the land by
virtue of the revocation or modification.
(5) For the purposes of this section, any
expenditure incurred in the preparation of plans for the purposes of any work
or upon other
matters preparatory thereto shall be deemed to be included in the
ex penditure incurred in carrying out that work, but except as
aforesaid no
compensation shall be paid under this section in respect of any work carried
out before the grant of the planning
permission that is revoked or modified, or
in respect of any other loss or damage (not being loss or damage consisting of
the depreciation
in value of an interest in land) arising out of anything done
or omitted to be done before the grant of that planning permission.
(6) Where
the planning permission that is revoked or modified by an order under this
section is planning permission for which compen
sation would be payable under
Part VII in the circumstances therein mentioned, Part VII shall apply as if for
references in section
43 to the refusal of the planning permission or the
imposition of conditions on the grant thereof there were substituted references
to the revocation of per mission or the modification thereof by the imposition
of conditions.
(7) Where, by virtue of this section, compensation
is payable in respect of expenditure incurred in carrying out any work on land,
then
if the Minister purchases any interest in that land, or a claim for compen sation
is made in respect of any such interest under
section 43, any compensation payable
in respect of the acquisition of that interest or, as the case may be, any
compensation payable
in respect of the interest under section 43, shall be
reduced by an amount equal to the value of the works in respect of which
compensation is payable under this sec tion.
PART V
SPECIAL PROVISION
IN CERTAIN CASES
Conditions
requiring preservation or planting of trees
26 The Board shall ensure whenever it is appropriate, that in granting
planning permission for any development adequate provision is made, by the
imposition
of conditions, for the preservation or planting of trees or shrubs.
Tree
preservation order
27 (1) If
it appears to the Minister that it is expedient in the inter ests of amenity to
make provision for the preservation of any tree,
trees, groups of trees or
woodlands in any area, he may for that purpose make an order (in this Act
referred to as "tree preservation
order") with respect to any such
tree, trees, groups of trees or woodlands as may be specified in the order;
and, in particular,
provision may be made by any such or der —
(a) for prohibiting (subject to any exemptions for
which pro vision may be made by the order) the cutting down, top ping, lopping
or
wilful destruction of trees except with the consent of the Minister, which
may be given subject to conditions;
(b) for securing the replanting, in such manner as
may be prescribed by or under the order, of any part of a wood land area that
is
felled in the course of forestry opera tions permitted by or under the
order;
(c) for applying, in relation to any consent under
the order, and to applications therefor, any of the provisions of this Act
relating
to planning permission, and to applications for any such permission,
subject to such adaptations and modifications as may be specified
in the order;
(d) for the payment by the Minister, subject to
such excep tions and conditions as may be specified in the order, of
compensation in
respect of damage or expenditure caused or incurred in
consequence of the refusal of any consent required under the order. or of
the
grant of any such consent subject to conditions.
(2) Provision may be made by regulations under
this section with respect to the form of tree preservation orders, and the
procedure
to be followed in connection with the making and approval of such
orders, and such regulations shall make provision for securing
—
(a) that notice shall be given to the owners and
occupiers of land affected by any such order;
(b) that objections and representations with
respect to the proposed order duly made in accordance With the regu lations
shall be considered
before the order is made by the Minister; and
(c) that copies of the order when it comes into
operation shall be served on the owners and occupiers of the land to which it
relates.
(3) Notwithstanding subsection (2), where it
appears to the Minister that any tree preservation order should take effect
immediately,
he may make the order provisionally without complying with the re quirements
of any regulations with respect to the consideration
of objec tions and
representations, but any order so made shall cease to have ef fect upon the
expiration of two months from the
date on which it is so made unless within
that period it has again been made, with or without modifications, after
compliance with
those requirements.
(4) Without limiting the other exemptions for
which provision may be made by a tree preservation order, no such order shall
apply to
the cutting down, topping or lopping of trees that are dying or dead
or have become dangerous or the cutting down, topping or lopping
of any trees
in compliance with any obligation imposed by any statutory provi sion or so far
as may be necessary for the prevention
or abatement of a nuisance.
(5) Any person who contravenes a tree
preservation order commits an offence:
Punishment on
summary conviction: a fine of $500 and, in case of a continuing offence, a
further fine $25 for every day after the
first day
during which the
contravention is so continued.
Designated
areas
28 (1) A
development plan may designate by reference to this sec tion areas of Bermuda
(being areas considered to possess natural fea tures
of special environmental
value) as areas (to be called "designated areas") to which one or
more of the following heads
of protection shall extend by virtue of this
section—
(a) woodlands protection;
(b) agricultural land protection;
(c) beach protection;
(d) cave protection;
(e) habitat protection;
(f) other natural features protection.
(2) Where it is desired in a development plan to
obtain the ben efit of this section for an area, the plan shall designate that
area
for the purpose and declare that one or more of the heads of protection
listed in subsection (1) (specifying the head or heads)
shall have effect in
that designated area, and thereupon the provisions set forth in the Fourth
Schedule in respect of that head
or those heads shall have effect within that
designated area.
[section 28(1)(b)
amended by 1998 : 18 effective 18 June 1998]
Hotel
development
29 (1) Where
an application for planning permission is made to the Board in pursuance of
section 16 and the proposed development re lates
to the erection of a hotel
within the meaning of the Hotels (Licensing and Control) Act 1969 [title 17 item 2] or the extension or al teration
of an existing hotel involving any increase in the provision of sleeping
accommodation for guests
at that hotel, the Board shall, with out prejudice to
the generality of its discretion to refuse planning per mission under section
17(1), refuse planning permission unless the ap plication is accompanied by a
certificate of approval granted under this section.
(2) An application for a certificate of approval
shall be made to the Minister of Tourism in such form and in such manner as may
be
specified by the Minister of Tourism.
(3) The Minister of Tourism may, in his
discretion, grant a cer tificate of approval in respect of which application
has been made under
subsection (2) either unconditionally or subject to such
conditions as he thinks fit, but if, in relation to any application, the
Minister of Tourism is of the opinion, having regard to economic factors
affecting the phased development of hotel accommodation,
that it would be
undesirable in the public interest that a certificate of approval should be
granted, he may refuse to grant a
certificate and need not give any reason for
so refusing.
(4) Any person aggrieved by the refusal of the
Minister of Tourism to grant a certificate of approval or by the imposition of
any condition
on the grant of such certificate may, within thirty days after re ceipt
of notification of the decision of the Minister of Tourism
or such longer
period as the Cabinet may for good cause allow, appeal against that decision to
the Cabinet and the decision of
the Cabinet on the ap peal shall be final and
the Minister of Tourism shall act upon such deci sion accordingly.
(5) In the event that planning permission is
granted, any con dition in a certificate of approval shall, without prejudice
to any other
condition that the Board may impose, be deemed to be for all the
pur poses of this Act a condition subject to which the planning
permission was
granted.
Listed
buildings
30 (1) The
Minister shall compile lists of buildings of special ar chitectural or
historical interest or approve, with or without modifica
tions, such lists
compiled by other persons or bodies of persons, and may amend any list so
compiled or approved.
(2) In considering whether to include a building
in a list com piled or approved under this section, the Minister may take into
account
not only the building itself but also —
(a) any respect in which its exterior contributes
to the ar chitectural or historic interest of any group of buildings of which
it forms
part; and
(b) the desirability of preserving, on the ground
of its archi tectural or historic interest, any feature of the building
consisting
of a man-made object or structure fixed to the building or forming
part of the land comprised within the curtilage of the building.
(3) Before including a building in a list
compiled or approved under this section the Minister shall —
(a) give notice to the owners and occupiers of the
building
of
his intention to include such building in such list;
(b) give such owners and occupiers an opportunity
of mak ing such representations or objections as they think fit within such
period,
not being less than thirty days, of the service of notice under
paragraph (a) as the Minister may determine,
and the Minister
shall, upon including a building in such a list, give no tice to the owners and
occupiers of such building of such
inclusion.
(4) Notwithstanding subsection (3), where it
appears to the Minister that a building should be listed immediately, he may
direct that
such building shall be included provisionally in a list compiled or
ap proved under this section without complying with the requirements
of
subsection (3), but such listing shall cease to have effect upon the expi ration
of 90 days from the date of such direction
unless within that pe riod such
building has been included in such list after compliance with those
requirement.
(5) A copy of every list compiled or approved by
the Minister under this section, or any amendments to such list, certified by
or on
behalf of the Minister to be a true copy thereof, shall be kept with the
register required to be kept under section 22.
Historic areas
31 (1) A
development plan may appoint by reference to this section areas of Bermuda (to
be called "historic areas") to which
this section shall extend for
the purpose of protecting the historic, architectural or cultural character or
importance of those
areas.
(2) No person shall in a historic area do any
development con sisting of —
(a) altering a building; or
(b) commencing or continuing a building operation,
unless planning
permission therefor has been granted under this sec tion, and for the purposes
of this section section 4 and section
18(1)(a) of the Town of St. George
(Protection of Buildings of Special Interest) Act 1950 [title 20 item 11] (and section 2 of that Act so far as necessary
for the interpretation of those provisions) shall have effect for the purpose
of
defining the meaning of "altering a building" or "commencing
or contin uing a building operation".
(3) The Board may refuse the grant of planning
permission for the doing of any development regulated by subsection (2) on any
of the
following grounds—
(a) that the development would cause detriment to
the es tablished historic, architectural or cultural character of the area;
(b) that the development would cause detriment to
the as pect, appearance or view of the area;
(c) that the development would cause detriment to a
prospect or view, being an environmentally important prospect or view, from one
or more parts of the area.
(4) Where an application is made to the Board to
alter an ex isting building within a historic area, the Board may determine,
after
consulting any body of persons appearing to the Board to have a special
interest in preserving the heritage of Bermuda, or of the
part of Bermuda
affected by the application, that that building is of such historic, archi tectural
or cultural importance to that
heritage that no future alteration ought to be
made to that building; and where such a determination has been made in relation
to a building, the building shall be deemed by virtue of the determination to be
a listed building unless upon an appeal made to
him under section 57 against
the determination the Minister himself determines otherwise.
(5) In dealing with an appeal from a
determination of the Board under subsection (4) the Minister shall comply with
section 30(2), (3)
and (5) so far as applicable.
Crown land
32 (1) Where
application for planning permission to develop or subdivide land is made by the
Government or any agency of the Crown and
the Board refuses planning permission
or grants such permission subject to any conditions or limitations which, in
the opinion
of the Minister, are inappropriate in all the circumstances of the
case, the Minister may give a direction substituting his own
decision for that
of the Board.
(2) Before
giving a direction under subsection (1) the Minister shall give notice in
writing of his proposed direction to any person
who appeared as an objector
before the Board when the application for plan ning permission was determined
and, if so required by
such person, shall afford him an opportunity to appear
before, and be heard by, a per son appointed by the Minister for the purpose.
Community areas
33 (1) Where
a development plan specifies in relation to any area of land —
(a) a housing density above which such land may not
ordi narily be developed; and
(b) makes provision for the development of such
land to a higher density than such density where the developer enters into an
agreement
with the Minister under this section,
the Board may
grant planning permission for development to such higher density, but no such
permission shall be of any effect until
and unless such an agreement is entered
into and, where any moneys are re quired to be paid under such agreement into a
trust fund
constituted under subsection (4), such moneys have been so paid, or
the payment thereof has been secured to the satisfaction of
the Minister.
(2) An agreement entered into under this section
may provide for —
(a) the creation on the land of the developer of a
community area for the use of persons residing in the neighbour hood in such
manner
as may be agreed; or
(b) where the Minister is of the opinion that a
community area ought not to be created on such land, the payment by the
developer into
the trust fund constituted under subsection (4) of such sum as
the Minister may deter mine as being the value of the land which
would other wise
have been set aside as a community area.
(3) Where land is to be set aside as a community
area by virtue of an agreement under this section such agreement shall provide for
the vesting of such area in the Government subject to such trusts as may be
agreed and where such agreement so provides no person
shall undertake any
development on the land to which the agreement relates until and unless such
land has been conveyed to the
Government or unless the Minister otherwise
permits.
(4) There shall be a fund into which moneys paid
by a devel oper by virtue of an agreement under this section shall be paid and
such
fund shall be managed by such trustees as the Minister may from time to
time appoint, and such fund may be expended by such trustees
on —
(a) the provision of community areas in Bermuda;
(b) the maintenance of community areas and the
provision of facilities thereon;
(c) such other purposes as may be prescribed by the
Min ister by regulations under this subsection.
(5) Where any land has been set aside as a
community area by virtue of an agreement under this section and the Minister is
of the opinion
that such land ought no longer to be so set aside he may autho rize
on such terms and conditions as he may determine —
(a) the setting aside of any other land as a
community area in exchange for the land so set aside; or
(b) the sale, lease or other disposition of the
land so set aside, conditional upon the payment of the proceeds thereof into
the fund
established under subsection (4).
(6) For the purposes of section 68(2) any
development of land in contravention of subsection (3) shall be deemed to be
development undertaken
without planning permission.
(7) Trustees appointed under subsection (4)
shall hold office at the pleasure of the Minister.
Agreement
regulating development or use of land
34 (1) The
Minister may enter into an agreement with any person interested in land for the
purpose of restricting or regulating the devel
opment or use of the land,
either permanently or during such period as may be specified in the agreement;
and any such agreement
may contain such incidental and consequential provisions
(including provisions of a financial character) as appear to the Minister
to be
necessary or expedi ent for the purposes of the agreement.
(2) An agreement made under this section with
any person in terested in land may be enforced by the Minister against persons
deriv ing
title under that person in respect of the land as if the Minister
were possessed of adjacent land and the agreement had been expressed
to be made
for the benefit of such land.
(3) Nothing in this section or in any agreement
made under this section shall—
(a) restrict the exercise, in relation to land
which is the subject of such an agreement, of any powers exercisable by the
Board or
the Minister or any other public author-
ity
under this Act so long as those powers are exercised in accordance with the
provisions of this Act or any de velopment plan;
or
(b) require the exercise of any such powers
otherwise than as mentioned in paragraph (a).
PART VI
SUBDIVISIONS
Meaning of
subdivision
35A
In this Act, "subdivision" means
(a) any conveyance of land by way of a deed or
transfer,
(b) the granting, assigning or exercising of a
power of appointment with respect to land,
(c) the mortgaging or charging of land,
(d) the entering into of an agreement of sale and
purchase of land, or
(e) the entering into any agreement which has the
effect of granting the use of or right in land directly or by entitlement to
renewal
for a period of twenty-one years or more;
and "person
subdividing" shall be construed accordingly.
Planning
permission required for subdivision
35B (1) Subject
to this section, planning permission is required for any subdivision of land.
(2) Planning
permission for subdivision of land is not required
(a) where the person subdividing does not retain
the fee or the equity of redemption in, or a power or right to grant, assign or
exercise
a power of appointment with respect to, any land abutting the land
that is being subdivided;
(b) where the land or any use of or right therein
is being acquired or disposed of by the Government; or
(c) where the land or any use of or right therein
is being acquired solely for the purpose of providing a right of way to a
statutory
undertaker for a transmission line, pipe, or a pipeline and
associated works;
but in the case
mentioned in paragraph (b), a final plan of subdivision shall, on completion of
the transaction, be submitted to
the Minister by the Minister responsible for
the land in question.
(3) Subdivision
in contravention of subsection (1) shall not create or convey any interest in
land; but this subsection shall not affect
an agreement entered into subject to
the express condition contained therein that such agreement is to be effective
only if planning
permission is obtained.
Application for
planning permission to subdivide
35C (1) Application
may be made in such manner as may be prescribed by the rules for planning
permission to subdivide land.
(2) In
considering an application for planning permission under this section, the
Board shall have regard to such of the following as
may be relevant—
(a) whether the plan conforms to the development
plan for the area;
(b) whether the proposed subdivision is premature
or necessary in the public interest;
(c) the suitability of the land for the purposes
for which it is to be subdivided;
(d) the number, width, location and proposed grades
and elevations of roads, and the adequacy thereof, and the roads linking the
roads
in the proposed subdivision with the established road system in the
vicinity, and the adequacy thereof;
(e) the dimensions and shape of any lots of land;
(f) the restrictions or proposed restrictions, if
any, on the land, buildings and structures proposed to be erected thereon and
the
restrictions, if any, on adjoining lands;
(g) the conservation of the visual amenities of the
area;
(h) the adequacy of utilities and services;
(i) the area of land, if any, within the
subdivision that, exclusive of highways, is to be conveyed or dedicated for
public or community
purposes.
(3) The
Board may impose such conditions on the grant of planning permission as in its
opinion are advisable.
(4) Without
restricting in any way whatsoever the generality of
subsection (3), the Board may, in particular, impose as a condition when the
subdivision abuts on an existing road that sufficient
land, other than land
occupied by buildings or structures, shall be dedicated to provide for the
widening of the road to such width
as the Board, after consulting with the
Minister responsible for public roads, considers necessary.
(5) Planning
permission for the draft plan of subdivision shall expire at the end of the
period of three years beginning with the date
of its grant; accordingly, an
application for planning permission based on a final plan of subdivision must
be submitted within
that period.
(6) Part
X of this Act shall apply with the necessary modifications in relation to
failure to comply with a condition imposed by the
Board under subsection (3) or
(4) as it applies to failure to comply with any condition subject to which
planning permission to
develop land was granted.
Registration of
planning permission to subdivide
35D (1) When
the Board has granted planning permission based on a final plan of subdivision
under section 35C, the Minister shall register
that plan on the register kept
under section 22.
(2) Planning
permission by reference to a registered plan of subdivision shall continue to
have effect until superseded by the registration
under subsection (1) of any
subsequent plan relating to the same land.
(3) But
a registered plan of subdivision which indicates details of any planning
permission
(a) previously registered under subsection (1), or
(b) deemed by section 5(2) of the Development and
Planning Amendment Act 1997 to have been so registered,
shall not have the
effect of superseding any such permission.
[Sections 35 and
36 substituted by 1997 : 3 effective 1 April 1997]
More than one
building on land prior to 3 August 1965
37 Notwithstanding any development plan,
development order or any zoning order, permission under this Part may be
granted to subdi
vide land where it is established to the satisfaction of the
Board —
(a) that more than one building (not being a
building ancil lary to another) existed on such land before 3 August 1965;
(b) [Repealed by 1997 : 3]
[Section 37
amended by 1997 : 3 effective 1 April 1997]
Subdivisions
approved before 27 June 1974
38 [Repealed by 1997 : 3]
[Section 38
repealed by 1997 : 3 effective 1 April 1997]
Certain
subdivisions of buildings not to require planning permission
39 Where permission to subdivide land
would otherwise be required under this Part but the land to be subdivided
consists only of part
of a building (and no other land) nothing in this Part
shall operate so as to require planning per mission to be obtained before
such
subdivision may be effected.
[Section 39
amended by 1997 : 3 effective 1 April 1997]
Certain persons
not affected by section 35
40 (1) Nothing
in section 35B shall prevent the sale of any land ("the land") by a
person retaining abutting land where either
—
(a) that person —
(i) is a trustee, estate representative or
mortgagee selling the land within his powers as trustee, estate representative
or mortgagee
in relation to that land; and
(ii) retains the abutting land otherwise than
in the character of trustee, estate representative or mortgagee, as the case
may be, in
relation to the land sold; or
(b) that person's interest in the land is different
from his interest in the abutting land; or
(c) that person's interest in the land is the same
as his in terest in the abutting land, but another person has an interest in
either
the land or the abutting land but not both.
(2) In this Part —
"interest",
in relation to abutting land, means an interest of a kind described in section
35B(1)(a);
"retain abutting
land" means to retain an interest in abutting land; and
"sell", in
relation to land, means to convey it or deal with it in any of the other ways
mentioned in section 35A, and
grammatical variations of "sell", and
cognate expressions, shall have corresponding meanings.
[Section 40
amended by 1997 : 3 effective 1 April 1997]
Sale of
pre-1974 lots not to require subdivision approval
41 (1) Nothing
in section 35B shall prevent the sale of the whole of an existing lot, and the
whole of such a lot shall be capable of being
sold by any person (whether or not
retaining abutting land) at any time, notwithstanding that section.
(2) Notwithstanding subsection (1), development
of an existing lot shall not be made save pursuant to and in accordance with
planning
permission granted in respect of that development
(3) In this section "existing lot"
means any parcel of land which on 26 June 1974 was held by a single title.
[Section 41
amended by 1997 : 3 effective 1 April 1997]
Retroactive
effect of planning permission in certain cases
42 (1) Notwithstanding section 35B(3),
where—
(a) any person agrees to sell, or purports in good
faith to sell, land in relation to whose sale planning permission for
subdivision
is required; and
(b) the agreement or purported sale would be lawful
and effective if such planning permission had been granted; and
(c) such planning permission is granted after the
agreement has been made or the purported sale has taken place,
the grant of
planning permission shall operate to make the agreement or purported sale valid
and effectual for all purposes.
(2) Where planning permission affects land by
virtue of subsection (1), it shall have effect as provided in that subsection
in relation
to any transaction made in relation to the land, whether so made
before or after the grant of planning permission and by whomever
so made.
[Section 42
substituted by 1997 : 3 effective 1 April 1997]
PART VII
COMPENSATION FOR
REFUSAL OR CONDITIONAL GRANT OF PLAN NING PERMISSION
Entitlement to
compensation
43 Subject to this Part, a person shall be
entitled to compensation under this Part in respect of a decision of the Board
whereby planning
permission for the carrying out of development of land is
refused, or is granted subject to conditions, if —
(a) the value of his interest in that land is
depreciated by the decision; and
(b) he or his predecessors in title have not
previously re ceived compensation under this Act or under Part IV of the
Development and
Planning Act 1965 in respect of that land,
and the amount of
the compensation shall be the amount by which the value of that interest is
depreciated by that decision.
Planning
decisions not ranking for compensation
44 (1) Subject
to any regulations under section 54 compensation under this Part shall not be
payable in respect of the refusal of planning
permission —
(a) for any development that consists of or
includes the making of any material change in the use of any building or other
land;
(b) to develop land if the refusal or one of the
reasons stated for the refusal is that development of the kind proposed would
be premature
by reference to either or both of the following matters—
(i) the order of priority, if any,
indicated in the de velopment plan for the area in which the land is situated
for development in
that area;
(ii) any existing deficiency in the provision
of roads, water supplies or sewerage services, and the pe riod within which any
such deficiency
may rea sonably be expected to be made good;
(c) to develop land if the reason or one of the
reasons stated for the refusal is that the land is unsuitable for the pro posed
development
on account of its liability to flooding or to subsidence;
(d) subject to subsection (2), to develop land
where the grant of planning permission would be contrary to any development
plan;
(e) to develop land where the grant of planning
permission would be contrary to this Act, or any regulation, munici pal
bye-law, zoning
order or other provision of law;
(f) subject to subsection (2), to develop land in
a manner which is not ordinarily permitted by a development plan in the area
where
the land is situated notwithstanding that there is a discretion vested in
the Board by such plan to permit such development;
(g) to develop land situated within an area
designated in a development plan as an environmental conservation area or as a
special study
area pending the coming into force of a local plan relating to
such area if the refusal of planning permission takes place within
a period of
two years from the date upon which the land was first so designated, and if the
refusal or one of the reasons stated
for the refusal is that the development of
the kind proposed might prejudice the operation of a future local plan;
(h) subject
to subsection (2), to develop land in an area designated in a development plan
as one reserved prin cipally for the accommodation
of tourist facilities if the
refusal or one of the reasons given for the refusal is that it is desirable
that the land be reserved
for the future accommodation of tourist facilities;
[This page
intentionally left blank]
(i) authorizing the demolition or the making of
material al terations to a listed building;
(j) subject to subsection (2), to develop land in
an area designated in a development plan as a ridge line preser vation area.
(2) Nothing in subsection (1)(d), (f), (h) or
(j) shall have effect with reference to any land which—
(a) not being land comprised in a plan of
subdivision regis tered under Part VI, may lawfully be alienated without
planning permission
being, or having been granted therefor, and without the
registration of a plan of subdi vision in respect thereof; or
(b) being land comprised in a plan of subdivision
registered under Part VI would be, if it were not so comprised, land which
might lawfully
be alienated without planning per mission being, or having been,
granted therefor, and without the registration of a further plan
of subdivision
in respect thereof,
where no planning
permission for any development of a character speci fied in section 45(4) is
available in respect of such land
or any part thereof.
(3) Compensation under this Part shall not be
payable in re spect of the imposition, on the granting of planning permission
to de velop
land, of any condition relating to —
(a) the number or disposition of buildings on any
land;
(b) the dimensions, design, structure or external
appear ance of any building, or the materials to be used in its construction;
(c) the manner in which any land is to be laid out
for the purposes of the development, including the provision of facilities for
the
parking, loading, unloading or fuelling of vehicles on the land;
(d) the use of any buildings or other land;
(e) the location or design of any means of access
to a high way, or the materials to be used in the construction thereof;
(f) the landscaping of any land, or the planting
of trees or shrubs thereon, or the construction of any works to re store the
land to
its former condition or to a condition which is not unsightly;
(g) the manner in which sewage or noxious
substances are to be disposed of or treated prior to such disposal, and the
nature of any
works required for the purpose of such disposal or treatment,
or, where planning
permission is granted by or under a development or der in respect of any
condition imposed by such order on such
planning permission.
(4) Subsection (1)(a) applies only to a building
or other land which has a predominant existing use at the time when, or within
two
years before, a development plan takes effect, including use as agricul tural
land, or to any land which has not been developed
after a develop ment plan takes
effect, but does not apply to land which has not been developed in any way.
No compensation
if other development permitted
45 (1) Subject
to any regulations under section 54, compensation under this Part shall not be
payable in respect of a planning decision
whereby planning permission is
refused for the development of land if, notwithstanding that refusal, there is
available with respect
to that land planning permission for development to
which this section applies.
(2) Where planning permission for development to
which this section applies is available with respect to part only of the land,
this
sec tion shall have effect only in so far as the interest subsists in that
part.
(3) Where a claim for compensation under this
Part is made in respect of an interest in any land, planning permission for
development
to which this section applies shall be taken for the purposes of
this sec tion to be available with respect to that land or a part
thereof if,
immedi ately before the Minister gives notice of his findings in respect of
that claim, there is in force with respect
to that land or part a grant of, or
an undertaking by the Board to grant, planning permission for some such
development, subject
to no conditions other than such as are mentioned in
section 44(3).
(4) This section applies to any development of a
residential, commercial or industrial character, if the development consists
wholly
or mainly of the construction of houses, flats, shops or office
premises, ho tels, garages and petrol filling stations, cinemas
or industrial
buildings (including warehouses), or any combination thereof.
Assessment of
compensation
46 (1) For
the purposes of this Part, the value of an interest in land, shall be taken to
be depreciated by a planning decision (in this
section referred to as "the
relevant decision") if, and to the extent to which, that value, calculated
in accordance
with the following provisions of this section, falls short of
what that value, so calculated, would have been if the relevant decision
had
been a decision to the contrary effect.
(2) Subject to the following provisions of this
section, any such value shall for the purposes of this section be calculated—
(a) at the time of the relevant decision; but
(b) as affected by that decision, by any grant of
planning permission made after that decision and in force imme diately before
the
Minister gives notice of his findings on the claim for compensation in
respect of that decision, and by any undertaking to grant
planning permission
so in force; and
(c) on the assumption that, after the relevant
decision, planning permission would not be granted for any devel opment of the
land in
question other than in respect of works of repair or renovation or
other works of a minor or ancillary character.
(3) In this section "decision to the
contrary effect"—
(a) in relation to a decision refusing permission,
means a decision granting the permission subject to such condi tions (if any)
of
a description falling within section 44(3) as the Board might reasonably
have been expected to impose if the permission had not
been refused; and
(b) in relation to a decision granting the
permission subject to conditions, means a decision granting the permission
applied for subject
only to such of those conditions (if any) as fall within section
44(3).
Claims for
compensation
47 (1) Compensation
under this Act shall not be payable unless a claim for it is duly made to the
Minister in accordance with this section.
(2) A claim for compensation under this Act
shall not have ef fect unless it is made before the end of the period of six
months begin
ning with the date of the planning decision to which it relates,
but the Minister may in any particular case (either before, on
or after the
date on which the time for claiming would otherwise have expired) allow an ex tended,
or further extended, period
for making such a claim.
(3) Compensation payable under this Act shall,
in default of determination by agreement, be referred by the Minister for
determina tion
by arbitration in accordance with the procedure under the
Acquisi tion of Land Act 1970 [title 19
item 2] with such modifications as circum stances may require.
(4) Compensation payable under this Act shall be
charged upon the Consolidated Fund,
Review of
planning decisions where compensation claimed
48 (1) This
section and section 49 shall have effect where, in ac cordance with this Part,
one or more claims for compensation in respect
of a planning decision have been
made to the Minister and the claim, or (if there is more than one) one or more of
the claims,
has not been with drawn.
(2) If it appears to the Minister that, if the
application for per mission to develop the land in question has been referred
to him
for de termination, he would have made a decision more favourable to the
ap plicant, the Minister may give a direction substituting
that decision for
the decision of the Board.
(3) If it appears to the Minister that planning
permission could properly be granted (either unconditionally or subject to
certain condi
tions) for some development of the land in question other than
the devel opment to which the application for planning permission
related, the
Minister may give a direction that this Act shall have effect in relation to
that application and to the planning
decision as if the application had
included an application for permission for that other development, and the
decision had included
the grant of planning permission (unconditionally or
subject to the said conditions, as the case may be) for that development; as
may be specified in the direction.
(4) The reference in subsection (2) to a
decision more favourable to the applicant shall be construed—
(a) in relation to a refusal of permission, as a
reference to a decision granting the permission, either unconditionally or
subject
to conditions, and either in respect of the whole of the land to which
the application for permission related or in respect of part
of that land; and
(b) in relation to a grant of permission subject to
conditions,
as a reference to a decision granting the permission ap plied for
unconditionally or subject to less stringent conditions.
Minister to
give notice
49 (1) Before
giving a direction under section 48 the Minister shall give notice in writing
of his proposed direction to any person who
made, and has not since withdrawn,
a claim for compensation in respect of that decision; and, if so required by
any such person,
shall afford to him an opportunity to appear before, and be
heard by, a person appointed by the Minister for the purpose.
(2) In giving any direction under section 48,
the Minister shall have regard to the provisions of the development plan for
the area
in which the land in question is situated, in so far as those
provisions are material to the development of that land, and shall
also have
regard to the local circumstances affecting the proposed development, including
the use which prevails generally in the
case of contiguous or adjacent land,
and to any other material considerations.
Effect on
claims of direction under section 42
50 (1) Where,
in accordance with section 49 the Minister gives no tice of a direction under
section 48 to a person who has made a claim
for compensation in respect of the
planning decision to which that direction relates, that person, if he does not
withdraw the
claim, may, at any time within thirty days after the service on
him of the Minister's notice, give notice to the Minister modifying
the claim.
(2) Subject to any modification by virtue of a
notice given by a claimant under subsection (1) where the Minister gives a direction
under section 48 in respect of a decision of the Board, any claim made in re spect
of that decision shall have effect as if it had
been made in respect of the
decision which, by virtue of the direction, is substituted for the de cision of
the Board, or, as the
case may be, as if it had been made in re spect of the
decision of the Board as modified by the direction.
Acquisition of
land in lieu of compensation
51 (1) Where
a claim for compensation under this Part in respect of any interest in land has
been determined in accordance with section
47 the Minister may within one month
after the date of the determination of such compensation and in lieu of paying
the same, make
an offer in writing to purchase the interest in land to which
the claim for compen sation relates and if the person entitled to
that interest
is willing to sell the same the Government may forthwith acquire the interest
in accor dance with section 77.
(2) If the offer of the Minister under
subsection (1) is not ac cepted within such time as may be specified therein,
being a time rea
sonable in the circumstances, the Government may, unless the
claim for compensation is sooner abandoned, acquire such interest in
accordance
with section 77.
Subsequent
recovery of compensation
52 (1) Where
compensation has been paid under this Part or un der Part IV of the Development
and Planning Act 1965 in respect of a de cision
of the Board and the Board
subsequently makes a decision to the contrary effect within the meaning of
section 46(3) in relation
to the land for which compensation has been so paid
or any part of it the Board may, and shall if the Minister so requires, impose
upon the planning permission granted by such decision to the contrary effect a
condition requiring the repayment to the Consolidated
Fund of the amount of the
compensation or of such part of the compensation as, in the opinion of the
Board, is attributable to
the part of the land in respect of which such
planning permission is granted.
(2) Where a condition is imposed upon any planning
permis sion under subsection (1), such planning permission shall not take
effect
until and unless the amount required to be repaid to the Consolidated
Fund has been paid or secured to the satisfaction of the Minister.
PART VIII
BUILDING CONTROL AND OTHER REGULATIONS
[heading amended by 1988:18 effective 14 June 1991]
Building
regulations etc
53 [repealed by 1988:18]
Planning
regulations
54 The Minister may make regulations for
(a) regulating and controlling the design of
buildings in cluding—
(i) roads;
(ii) projections;
(iii) heights, site coverage, plot ratio and
open spaces including service lanes;
(iv) sanitation;
(v) buildings for special uses including
industrial buildings, places of public entertainment and schools;
(vi) any sea wall, breakwater, jetty, mole,
quay, wharf or pier;
(b) regulating the minimum size of any habitable
room;
(c) regulating the minimum size of dwelling
units;
(d) regulating and controlling the planning and
design of any area designated in accordance with the regulations as a marina;
(e) amending, varying, modifying, suspending or
revoking any zoning order;
(f) requiring building materials, boats,
vehicles, garden tools and other materials or implements which are upon any
premises to be
screened from roads (including estate roads) and from other
premises;
(g) preventing, remedying or removing injury to
amenities arising from the ruinous or neglected condition of any building or
fence,
boundary wall, sea wall, or by the ob jectionable or neglected condition
of any land attached to a building or fence or abutting
on a road or situate in
a residential area;
(h) preserving of buildings, caves, sites and
objects of artis tic, architectural, archaeological or historic interest;
(i) preserving or protecting woods, trees,
shrubs, plants and flowers;
(j) regulating the standards to which any works
for the dis posal of sewage or for the supply or removal of water are to
conform and
the method of the installation thereof;
(k) the guarding or rendering safe of water
tanks, excava tions and other places of danger;
(l) for the grant of relief in cases where the
application of the provisions of this Act relating to compensation oper ate
inequitably;
(m) regulating and controlling the placement,
height and maintenance of fences, walks, hedges, shrubs and trees and other
objects where
their regulation is necessary to maintain good visibility for the
safe movement of persons and traffic;
(n) regulating the excavation or filling in of
land or the re moval of topsoil from land or the prohibition thereof;
(o) regulating and controlling the materials and
colour of buildings, fences and boundary walls;
(p) regulating and controlling the emission of
noxious fumes or gas, or other airborne pollutants and of odours which are, or may
be,
detrimental to the environment or to the amenities of any area;
(q) making provision supplementary to section
67.
Building
phasing regulations
55 (1) The
Minister may by regulations made under this section establish and maintain a
system of licensing by which building work, being
building work of a kind
specified in the regulations, shall not be commenced or carried out unless a
licence for the purpose (hereafter
in this section referred to as a
"phasing licence") has first been obtained from the Minister, on the
basis of such priorities,
and subject to such terms and conditions, as may be
provided for in the regulations.
(2) Regulations made under this section —
(a) may have effect so as to prohibit or restrict,
either in definitely or for such a period as may be specified in the
regulations,
building work of a kind so specified;
(b) may contain provision that any permit or other
right to carry out building work shall not be granted, by any per son otherwise
having
power to grant such a permit or right, under any regulations made under
or continued in force by the Building Act 1988 [title 20 item 15] un less a phasing licence has first been
obtained; and
(c) may, in addition to making provision as allowed
in sec tion 56(3), provided for a fine not exceeding one thou sand dollars a
day
for any continuing offence.
(3) Where building work is subject to a phasing
licence, plan -
ning
permission (other than planning permission in principle) under this Act shall
not be granted in respect of any development
involved in such work unless a
phasing licence sanctioning that work has first been ob tained; and in this
subsection "planning
permission in principle" has the same meaning as
it has in section 23.
(4) Any person aggrieved by the refusal of the
Minister to grant him a phasing licence may, within fourteen days beginning on
the day
on which he received notice of the refusal, appeal by instrument in
writing setting out the grounds of his appeal to the Governor;
and on any such
appeal the Governor, acting on the advice of the Cabinet, may exercise any
power that the Minister could have exercised
in relation to the grant or
refusal of a phasing licence.
[section 55 amended by 1988:18 effective 14 June 1991]
Regulations:
general provisions
56 (1) Regulations
made under this Part may be made so as to ap ply generally or in relation to
any particular area specified in the regula
tion.
(2) The affirmative resolution procedure shall
apply to regula tions made under this Part.
(3) Regulations made under this Part may provide
for the impo sition of a fine not exceeding one thousand dollars or a term of
impris
onment not exceeding six months, or both, for any contravention of, or
failure to comply with, such regulations.
(4) Regulations made under this Part may make
provision—
(a) empowering such authorities or persons as may
be specified in the regulations to administer or execute the regulations and to
make
orders, impose requirements or give directions for the purposes of the
regulations;
(b) empowering such authorities or persons as may
be specified in the regulations to take measures, including the entry and
inspection
of any land or building and the carrying out of works, to secure
compliance with the regulations or any order, requirement or direction
made,
imposed or given thereunder; and for enabling such authorities or persons to
recover expenses incurred by them in the exercise
of any such power.
PART IX
APPEALS AND
REVIEWS
Appeals to the
Minister
57 (1) The
Director or any person aggrieved by a decision of the Board may by notice under
this section appeal to the Minister.
(2) Any notice under this section shall be
served within such time and in such manner as may be prescribed by the rules.
(3) The Minister, subject to this section, may
allow or dismiss the appeal, or may reverse or vary any part of the decision of
the Board,
whether the appeal relates to that part or not, and may deal with
the ap plication as if it had been made to him in the first instance.
(4) Before determining an appeal under this
section, the Min ister shall, if the applicant so desires, afford him an
opportunity of
ap pearing before, and being heard by, a person appointed by the
Minister for the purpose.
(5) Subject to section 61 the decision of the
Minister on any appeal under this section shall be final.
(6) If before or during the determination of an
appeal under this section in respect of an application for planning permission,
the
Minister forms the opinion that, having regard to this Act a development
plan, zoning order or other provision of law, planning
permission—
(a) could not have been granted by the Board; or
(b) could not have been granted by them otherwise
than subject to the conditions imposed by them,
he may decline to
determine the appeal or to proceed with the determi nation.
(7) In the exercise of his functions under this
section the Min ister shall have regard to the provisions of the development
plan for
the area where the land in question is situated, in so far as those
provisions are material to the development of that land, and
to any material
consid eration.
Appeal to the
Board
58 (1) Where
application for planning permission is made to a Municipality to whom functions
have been delegated under section 5 for planning
permission, and planning
permission is refused by that Mu nicipality, or is granted by them subject to
conditions, then the Director
or any person
aggrieved by their decision may by notice served within the time, not being
less than twenty-eight days from receipt
of notification of their decision, as
may be specified in the notification, appeal to the Board.
(2) Notwithstanding subsection (1), the Board
shall not be re quired to entertain an appeal under that subsection in respect
of the
determination of an application for planning permission if it appears to
them that planning permission for that development could
not have been granted
by the Municipality, or could not have been so granted otherwise than subject
to the conditions imposed by
them,
(3) Where an appeal is brought under this
section from a deci sion of a Municipality the Board may allow or dismiss the
appeal or may
reverse or vary any part of the decision of the Municipality,
whether or not the appeal relates to that part, and deal with the
application
as if it had been made to them in the first instance.
(4) Unless within a period of twenty-eight days,
or within such extended period as may at any time be agreed upon in writing
between
the applicant and the Municipality, the Municipality either —
(a) give notice to the applicant of their decision
on any ap plication for planning permission; or
(b) give notice to him that the application has
been referred to the Board in accordance with directions given by them under
section
5,
subsection (1)
shall apply in relation to the application as if the planning permission or
approval to which it relates has been
refused by the Mu nicipality and as if
notification of their decision had been received by the applicant at the
expiration of the
period of twenty-eight days or the ex tended period agreed
upon as aforesaid, as the case may be.
Appeal in
default of planning decision
59 Where an application is made to the
Board for planning permis sion, or for any approval of that authority required
under a development
order, then unless within six months or in the case of an
approval re quired under a development order such period as may be prescribed
by the development order, or within such extended period as may at any time be
agreed upon in writing between the applicant and
the Board, the Board gives
notice to the applicant of their decision on the application, section 57 shall
apply in relation to
the application as if the permission or approval to which
it relates had been refused by the Board, and as if notification of their
decision had been received by the applicant at the end of the six months or, as
the case may be the period prescribed by the development
order, or at the end
of the said extended period, as the case may be.
Power of
Minister to correct decisions which are contrary to law
60 (1) Where
it appears to the Minister that any decision by the Board on an application for
planning permission is contrary to this Act,
a development plan, zoning order
or other statutory provision he may give a direction substituting his own
decision for that of
the Board.
(2) The powers conferred upon the Minister by
this section may be exercised either of his own volition or upon the
application of any
per son having an interest in the property to which the
decision relates,
(3) Before giving a direction under subsection
(1) the Minister shall give notice in writing of his proposed direction to the
applicant
for planning permission and to any person who appeared as an objector
be fore the Board when the application for planning permission
was deter mined
and shall give such persons an opportunity of making such repre sentations in
the matter as they may think fit.
(4) The powers conferred upon the Minister by
this section shall not be exercised after —
(a) the expiration of a period of six months after
the deci sion of the Board; or
(b) in the case of planning permission authorizing
the con struction of any building (otherwise than on an applica tion under
section
20), after the commencement of any building operations consequent upon
the decision of the Board,
whichever event
takes place the sooner.
Appeals to the
Supreme Court
61 (1) The
Director or any party to proceedings before the Board—
(a) which have been the subject of an appeal under
section 57;
(b) where
the decision of the Board in the matter has been varied by direction of the
Minister in accordance with the powers vested
in him by section 30, 48 or 60,
who is aggrieved
by the decision or direction of the Minister in the matter may appeal to the
Supreme Court on a point of law within
twenty-one days or such longer period as
the Supreme Court may allow after receipt of notification of such decision or
direction.
(2) On any appeal under this section the Supreme
Court may make such order, including an order for costs, as it thinks fit.
(3) Section 62 of the Supreme Court Act 1905 [title 8 item 1] shall be deemed to
extend to the making of rules under that section to regulate the practice and
procedure on an appeal under
this section.
PART X
ENFORCEMENT
Enforcement of
planning control
62 (1) If
it appears to the Minister that any development of land has been carried out —
(a) on or after 3 August 1965 without the grant of
planning permission, or that any conditions subject to which such permission
was
granted in respect of any development have not been complied with; or
(b) in contravention of any regulation under Part
VIII or under the Building Act 1988 [title 20 item 15];
then the Minister
may within six years of such development being carried out, or, in case of
non-compliance with a condition, within
six years after the date of the alleged
failure to comply with it, if he considers it expedi ent so to do having regard
to the
provisions of the development plan and to any other material considerations, serve on the owner of the
land or the person in occupation of the land a notice under this section.
(2) Where a prospective purchaser of any land
serve notice on the Minister that —
(a) he intends purchasing land described in the
notice; and
(b) he is unaware of any development having been
carried out on that land without the grant of planning permis sion in that
behalf,
then, unless the
Minister, within twenty-eight days of the receipt of such notice, notifies such
prospective purchaser of any development
which has been carried out on that
land without planning permission granted in that behalf, then all development
thereon at the
time of the receipt of such notice by the Minister shall, for
the purposes of any enforcement notice thereafter issued, be deemed
to have
received planning permis sion.
(3) Any notice served under this section (in
this Act called an "enforcement notice") shall specify the
development that is
alleged to have been carried out without the grant of such
planning permission as aforesaid or, as the case may be, the matters
in respect
of which it is al leged that any such regulations or conditions as aforesaid
have not been complied with, and may require
such steps as may be specified in
the notice to be taken within such period as may be so specified for restoring
the land to its
condition before the development took place, or for secur ing
compliance with the regulations or conditions, as the case may be,
and in
particular any such notice may, for the purposes aforesaid, re quire the
demolition or alteration of any building or work,
the discontin uance of any use
of land, or the carrying out on land of any building or other operations.
(4) Except as otherwise provided in this
section, an enforce ment notice shall take effect at the expiration of such
period, not being
less than twenty-eight days after the service thereof, as may
be specified therein.
(5) When, within the period mentioned in
subsection (4), an application is made to the Minister for permission—
(a) for the retention on the land of any building
or work to which the enforcement notice relates; or
(b) for the continuance of any use of the land to
which the enforcement notice relates,
the operation of
the enforcement notice shall be suspended pending the final determination of
the application and if the permission
applied for is granted on that application,
the enforcement notice shall not take effect.
(6) When, within the period mentioned in
subsection (4), an appeal is made to the court under this section by a person
on whom the enforcement
notice was served, the operation of the enforcement
notice shall be suspended pending the final determination or withdrawal of the
appeal.
(7) If
any person on whom an enforcement notice is served un der this section is
aggrieved by the enforcement notice, he may, at any
time within the period
mentioned in subsection (4), appeal against the enforcement notice to a court
of summary jurisdiction; and
on any such appeal the court —
(a) if satisfied that planning permission was
granted for the development to which the enforcement notice relates, or that no
such planning
permission was required in re spect thereof, or, as the case may
be, that the regula tions or conditions aforesaid have been complied
with,
shall quash the enforcement notice to which the appeal relates;
(b) if satisfied that a variation of the enforcement
notice would be appropriate, may vary the enforcement notice accordingly;
(c) in any other case shall dismiss the appeal,
and may make such
order as to costs as the court thinks just.
(8) Where the enforcement notice is varied or
the appeal is dismissed, then, subject to subsection (1)(a), the court may, if
it thinks
fit, direct that the enforcement notice shall not come into force
until such date, not being later than twenty-eight days from the
determination
of the appeal, as the court thinks fit.
(9) An appeal under subsection (7) is a civil
cause or matter for the purposes of the Civil Appeals Act 1971 [title 8 item 85].
(10) For the purposes of this section
"development" includes the building or erection of any structure in
contravention of
the provisions of any regulation or building Codes made under
Part VIII of this Act or of the building Regulations or building Codes
made
under the Building Act 1988 or of the Building Code 1972, as continued in force
by the Building Act 1988, notwithstanding
that no planning permission is
required therefor.
[section 62
amended by 1988:18 effective 14 June 1991; and by 1998 : 33 effective by notice
in Official Gazette]
Special enforcement notices
63 (1) Without
prejudice to section 62 and notwithstanding that an enforcement notice has been
served under that section, in any case where
it appears to the Minister to be
necessary in the public interest to require the immediate cessation of any
development of land,
he may, subject to subsection (2), serve a special enforcement
notice on the owner of the land or the person in occupation of the
land under
this sec tion.
(2) A special enforcement notice may be served
where the de velopment of land consists of any of the following activities—
(a) the erection or construction of new buildings
on the land;
(b) the excavation or quarrying of the land; or
(c) the dumping of materials or refuse on the land.
(3) A special enforcement notice served under
this section shall specify the development that is alleged to have been carried
out without
the grant of planning permission or, as the case may be, the
matters in respect of which it is alleged that any conditions subject
to which
such permission was granted have not been complied with, and shall require any
activity mentioned in subsection (2) in
respect of which the special
enforcement notice is served to be discontinued.
(4) A special enforcement notice shall take
effect immediately or on the expiration of such period as may be specified
therein and,
notwithstanding any provision of this section relating to appeals,
shall continue in operation until the court hearing the appeal
relating thereto
otherwise orders.
(5) If any person on whom a special enforcement
notice is served under this section is aggrieved by the special enforcement
notice,
he may, within twenty-eight days after the service thereof, appeal
against the special enforcement notice to a court of summary
jurisdiction and
on any such appeal the court—
(a) if satisfied that planning permission was
granted for the development to which the special enforcement notice relates, or
that no
such permission was required in re spect thereof, or, as the case may
be, that the conditions subject to which such permission was
granted have been
complied with, shall quash the special enforcement no tice to which the appeal
relates;
(b) if satisfied that a variation of the special
enforcement notice would be appropriate, may, with the consent of the parties,
vary
the special enforcement notice accord ingly;
(c) in any other case shall dismiss the appeal,
and make such
order as to costs as the court thinks just.
(6) Where, under subsection (5)(a), the court
orders that a spe cial enforcement notice be quashed, damages shall, in default
of deter
mination by agreement, be recoverable in civil proceedings brought
against the Minister in respect of any loss sustained by an aggrieved
party by
virtue of the special enforcement notice having been in force:
Provided that where
appeal proceedings against a special en -
forcement
notice are adjourned at the request of an aggrieved party, no account shall be
taken, in assessing the damages which may
be recov ered under this subsection,
of any such period of adjournment.
(7) An appeal under subsection (5) is a civil
cause or matter for the purposes of the Civil Appeals Act 1971 [title 8 item 85].
Supplementary
provisions as to enforcement
64 (1) If
within the period specified in an enforcement notice, or within such extended
period as the Minister may allow, any steps re
quired by the enforcement notice
to be taken (other than the discontinu ance of any use of land) have not been
taken, the Minister
may enter on the land and take those steps, and may recover
as a debt owing to the Crown in any court of competent jurisdiction
from the
person who is then the owner of the land any expenses reasonably incurred by
the Minister in that behalf; and if that
person, having been entitled to appeal
to the court under section 62 or 63 failed to make such an appeal, he shall not
be entitled
in proceedings under this subsection to dispute the validity of the
action taken by the Minister upon any ground that could have
been raised by
such an appeal.
(2) Any expenses incurred by the owner or
occupier of any land for the purpose of complying with an enforcement notice
served under
section 62 in respect of any development, and any sums paid by the
owner of any land under subsection (1) in respect of the expenses
of the
Minister in taking steps required to be taken by such an enforcement notice,
shall be deemed to be incurred or paid for
the use and at the re quest of the
person by whom the development was carried out.
(3) Where by virtue of an enforcement notice
(which in this subsection includes a special enforcement notice) any use of
land is re
quired to be discontinued or any conditions are required to be
complied with in respect of any use of land or in respect of the
carrying out
of any operations thereon, any person who, without the grant of planning per mission,
uses the land or cause or permits
the land to be used, or carries out or causes
or permits to be carried out those operations, in contra vention of the
enforcement
notice, commits an offence:
Punishment on
summary conviction : imprisonment for 6 months or a fine of $1,000 or both such
imprisonment and fine and, in the case
of continuing offence, a further fine of $200 for every day after the first day
during which the contravention
of the enforcement notice is so contin ued.
(4) Nothing in this Act shall require planning
permission to be obtained for the use of any land for the purpose for which it
could
law fully have been used under this Act if the development in respect of
which an enforcement notice is served under section 62
or 63 had not been
carried out.
Penalties for
failure to comply with enforcement notices
65 (1) Where
any steps (other than the discontinuance of any use of land) required by an
enforcement notice that has been served pur suant
to section 62 or 63 have not
been taken within the period specified in the notice for compliance with the
notice or within any
lawful exten sion of that period, the following provisions
of this section shall have ef fect for the purpose of enforcing the notice.
(2) Where the notice was served on the owner of
the land —
(a) the owner ("the original defendant")
may be prosecuted summarily under this paragraph for the failure to take the
steps
referred to in subsection (1) and, if it is proved to the court that
those steps have not been taken, he shall, subject to paragraphs
(b) and (c),
be liable to a fine not exceeding one thousand dollars for the failure and, in
the case of a continuing failure, to
a further fine not exceeding two hundred
and fifty dollars for every day after the first day during which the
requirements of the
enforcement notice (other than the discontinuance of any
use of the land) remain unfulfilled;
(b) if the original defendant ceased to be the
owner of the land at any time before the expiry of the period referred to in
subsection
(1), he shall, if he gives the court not less than three clear days
notice in writing of his inten tion to act under this paragraph,
be entitled to
have the person who then became the owner of the land ("the sec ond
defendant") summoned and brought before
the court to be tried for the
failure; and
(c) if the original defendant proves to the court
that he took all reasonable steps available to him to secure compli ance with
the
notice he shall be acquitted; and if the court determines that the failure
to comply with the no tice was due to the default of
the second defendant, it
shall find him guilty of the failure and shall thereupon have the same power to
punish the second defendant
as it would have had to punish the first defendant
if it had
found the first defendant guilty under paragraph (a).
(3) Where the notice was served on a person who
was in occu pation of land without being the owner of the land, subsection
(2)(a) ex
cluding the references in subsection (2)(a) to paragraphs (b) and (c)
shall apply in relation to him as if he were the owner unless
he satisfies the
court that in his circumstances (including in particular the nature and quality
of his occupation of the land)
his failure or refusal himself to comply with
the requirements of the notice was justified.
Continuing
operation of enforcement notices
66 (1) Compliance
with an enforcement notice, whether as re spects —
(a) the demolition or alteration of any building or
work; or
(b) the discontinuance of any use of land; or
(c) any other requirements in the enforcement
notice,
shall not
discharge the enforcement notice.
(2) Without restricting the generality of
subsection (1), where any development is carried out on land by way of
reinstating or restoring
buildings or works that have been demolished or
altered in compliance with an enforcement notice, the enforcement notice shall,
notwithstand ing that its terms are not apt for the purpose, be deemed to apply
in re lation to the buildings or works as reinstated
or restored as it applied
in relation to the building or works before they were demolished or altered and
section 64(1) and (2)
apply accordingly.
(3) Without affecting the operation of section
65, a person who carries out any development on land by way of reinstating or
restoring
buildings or works that have been demolished or altered in compliance
with an enforcement notice commits an offence:
Penalty on summary
conviction: a fine of $1,000.
Maintenance of
waste land
67 (1) If
it appears to the Minister that the amenity of any area is injured by the
condition of any building or land in the area, the
Minister may serve on the
owner of the land or the person in occupation of the land a notice requiring
such steps for abating the
injury as may be so specified.
(2) In relation to any notice served under this
section, section 62(4) to (9), inclusive, and sections 64, 65 and 66 shall,
subject
to such exceptions and modifications as may be prescribed by
regulations under section 54 apply as those provisions apply in relation
to an
enforcement notice served under section 62.
Unauthorized
excavation, site preparation and development
68 (1) No
person shall —
(a) undertake any
quarrying operations;
(b) make any excavation upon any land preparatory
to the commencement of any building or engineering opera tions; or
(c) prepare any land for building or engineering
operations,
unless planning
permission for such operations has been granted under this Act.
(2) No person shall undertake any development on
any land unless planning permission for such development has been granted un der
this
Act.
(3) Nothing in subsections (1) or (2) shall
apply to any works carried out for the purposes specified in section 14(2)(a),
(b) or (c)
or in accordance with such use of land as is specified in section
14(2)(e) or (f).
(4) Any person who —
(a) contravenes subsection (1); or
(b) being the owner or person in occupation of any
land, authorizes or acquiesces in the doing by any person of an act which such
person
is prohibited from doing upon such land under subsection (1)
commits an
offence:
Punishment on
summary conviction: a fine of $25,000.
(5) Any person who —
(a) contravenes subsection (2);
(b) being the owner or person in occupation of any
land authorizes or acquiesces in the doing by any person of an act which such
person
is prohibited from doing upon such land under subsection (2),
commits an offence:
Punishment on summary conviction: a fine of
$25,000.
(6) Where in any prosecution of an owner or
person in occupa tion of land for an offence under subsections (4) or (5) it is
established
that any person has done an act upon such land which such person is
prohibited from doing under subsections (1) or (2), whether
or not such person
has been convicted for any offence in respect thereof, the owner or person in
occupation as the case may be,
shall be deemed to have authorized or acquiesced
in the doing of such act unless it is established by such owner or person in
occupation
that the act took place —
(a) without his knowledge; or
(b) without his authority or connivance and that he
took such steps as were reasonable in the circumstances to prevent it.
(7) Conviction for an offence under this section
shall not relieve the person convicted of the necessity for complying with an
enforcement
notice served under section 62 or 63.
Site excavation
licences
69 (1) No
person shall commence any work of a kind described in section 68(1) (in this
section called "site excavation work")
unless either a planning
permission has been issued expressly authorizing the com mencement of that work
or there is a licence
in force under this section authorizing the commencement
of that work.
(2) This section shall have effect in addition
to section 68(1) or any other law requiring a permit or other permission of any
kind
for, or otherwise restricting, site excavation work, and shall not
derogate from that subsection or any such law.
(3) A person who contravenes subsection (1)
commits an of fence:
Punishment on
summary conviction: a fine of $25,000.
(4) A person desiring to commence site
excavation work where the planning permission does not include express
authority for the com
mencement of site excavation work shall, before he
commences that work, apply for a licence under this section to the Director by
a letter which —
(a) describes the work; and
(b) establishes that planning permission in
relation to the work was granted either to him or to some other person who has
authorized
him to carry out the work, in the latter case enclosing evidence of
that authority.
(5) Where application for a licence is properly
made to the Di rector under subsection (4), he shall issue the licence in
accordance
with subsection (6) within fourteen days of the date on which he
received the application.
(6) A licence under this section —
(a) shall specify the name of the person or persons
who will do the work;
(b) shall describe the work that is to be done, but
so that the description shall accord with the terms of the plan ning
permission;
and
(c) may contain such terms and conditions as the
Director considers to be needed for ensuring that the work will be done
lawfully and
properly.
(7) If the Director either —
(a) fails or refuses to issue a licence under this
section; or
(b) issues a licence which includes a term or
condition to which the applicant for the licence objects,
the applicant for
the licence may appeal to a court of summary jurisdic tion —
(aa) in the case of a failure to issue a
licence, within twenty-one days of the time fixed by subsection (5) for the
issue of the licence;
or
(bb) otherwise within twenty-one days of —
(i) the
date on which the applicant received notification of the Director's refusal to
issue the licence; or
(ii) the
date on which the applicant received the licence,
whichever earlier
occurs; and upon such an appeal the court shall have all the powers conferred
upon the Director by this section
and may, in addition, make such order as to
the costs of the appeal as the court thinks fit.
(8) The
decision of the court on an appeal under subsection (7) shall be final.
PART XI
SUPPLEMENTAL
Powers of entry
70 (1) Any
person duly authorized in writing by or on behalf of the Minister may, at any
reasonable time, enter upon any building or other
land for the purpose of
inspecting it, examining it, surveying it or esti mating its value, in
connection with —
(a) the preparation, approval, making or amendment
of a development plan relating to the land under Part Ill, in cluding the
carrying
out of any survey under that part;
(b) any application under this Act or any rule,
order or reg ulations thereunder, for any permission, consent or de termination
to be
given or effected in relation to that or any other land under this Act or
under any such rule, order or regulations;
(c) any proposal by the Minister to serve or make
any notice or order under Part X or under any such rule, order or regulations
as aforesaid;
(d) any claim for compensation payable by the
Minister un der this Act,
or where there are
reasonable grounds for believing that any contraven tion of this Act, or of the
regulations under Part VIII,
has taken place.
(2) A person authorized under this section to
enter upon any land shall, if so required, produce evidence of his authority
before so
entering.
(3) Any person who wilfully obstructs a person
acting in the ex ercise of his powers under this section commits an offence:
Penalty on summary
conviction: a fine of $500.
Service of
notice
71 (1) Subject
to this section, any notice or other document re quired or authorized to be
served or given under this Act, or under any
rule, regulation, order,
direction, or instrument in writing made under this Act, may be served or given
either —
(a) by delivering it to the person on whom it is to
be served or to whom it is to be given; or
(b) by leaving it at the usual or last known place
of abode of that person, or, in a case in which an address for service has been
furnished
by that person, at that address; or
(c) by sending it in a prepaid registered letter
addressed to that person at his usual or last known place o abode, or, in a
case in
which an address for service has been fur nished by that person, at
that address; or
(d) in the case of a body corporate by delivering
it to the secretary or clerk of the body corporate at their regis tered or
principal
office, or sending it in a prepaid regis tered letter addressed to
the secretary or clerk of the body corporate at that office.
(2) Where the notice or document is required or
authorized to be served on any person as having an interest in premises, and
the name
of that person cannot be ascertained after reasonable inquiry, or
where the notice or document is required or authorized to be served
on any
person as the owner or occupier of premises, the notice shall be deemed to be
duly served if —
(a) being addressed to him either by name or by the
de scription of "the owner" or "the occupier", as the case
may
be, of the premises (describing them) it is delivered or sent in the manner
prescribed by subsection (1)(a), (b) or (c); or
(b) being addressed as aforesaid and marked in such
man ner that it is plainly identifiable as a communication of importance, it is
sent in a prepaid registered letter to the premises and is not returned to
the authority sending it, or is
delivered to some person on those premises or is affixed conspicuously to some
object on that land.
(3) Where
the notice or other document is required to be served on or given to a person
having an interest in or being the owner or
occu pier of any land that notice
shall be deemed to be duly served on all per sons having interests in, and on
any owner or occupier
of, the land (other than a person who has furnished an
address for the service of the notice on him) if it is addressed to him by
the
description of "the owner" or "the occupier", as the case
may be, of the land (describing it) and is affixed
conspicuously to some object
on that land.
Powers to require information
72 The Minister may, for the purpose of
enabling him to make any order or serve any notice or other document that he is
by this Act
authorized or required to make or serve, require the occupier of
any premises and any person who, either directly or indirectly,
receives rent
in respect of any premises, to state in writing the nature of his interest
therein and the name and address of any
other person known to him as having an
interest therein, whether as the holder of a freehold estate, mortgagee, lessee
or otherwise,
and any person who, having been re quired in pursuance of this
section to give any information, fails to give that information,
or knowingly
makes any mis-statement in respect thereof, commits an offence:
Penalty on summary
conviction: a fine of $200.
Application to
land regulated by special enactments
73 The provisions of this Act, and any
restrictions or powers thereby imposed or conferred in relation to land, apply
and may be exercised
in relation to any land notwithstanding that provision is
made by any Act or statutory instrument in force on 18 June 1974, or
authorizing or regu lating any development of the land.
Unfinished
buildings
74 (1) Subject
to this section, where any works for the erection or alteration of a building
have been begun but not completed before 3
Au gust 1965, then if any permission
required under the Building and Land Development (Control) Rules 1948, for the
carrying out
of these works has been granted, planning permission shall, by
virtue of this section, be deemed to have been granted under this
Act in
respect of the completion of those works.
(2) The permission deemed to have been granted
by virtue of this section shall be deemed to have been so granted subject to
any con
ditions imposed by the permission granted under the Building and Land
Development (Control) Rules 1948, and shall include permission
to use the
building when erected or altered for the purpose for which the building, or the
building as altered, is designed.
(3) Works shall not be deemed to have begun for
the purposes of subsection (1) if the only works commenced before 3 August 1965
were
works of excavation or of site clearance.
Zoning Orders
75 Any zoning order made under the
Building and Land Develop ment (Control) Rules 1948, and in force on 3 August
1965 shall continue
to have effect subject to the provisions of this Act, any
regulations there under, and to any development plan.
[see for example Hamilton Building Ordinance 1954 article 11 [title 4
item 1(d)]
Municipal
Bye-laws
76 (1) In
the event of any conflict between a development plan or a regulation made under
this Act, and any ordinance made under the Mu
nicipalities Act 1923 [title 4 item 1], the plan or regulation,
as the case may be, shall prevail.
(2) Planning permission granted under this Act
for any devel opment of land shall dispense with the necessity of obtaining
approval
for such development under any such ordinance as is mentioned in sub section
(1); but subject to that subsection, any such development
shall conform to the
other requirements of any such ordinance.
(3) Notwithstanding subsection (2), where any
approval, con sent or authorization (including approval, consent or
authorization of or
to the waiver of any such ordinance as is mentioned in
subsection (1) in accordance with the terms thereof) may be given by a
Municipality
or any person acting for such authority under any such ordinance,
and such approval, consent or authorization is necessary in order
to render
effec tive planning permission granted under this Act, then the Board may give
such approval, consent or authorization;
and any reference in any such
ordinance to a Municipality or any person acting for such authority shall, in
relation to such approval,
consent or authorization, include a reference to the
Board.
(4) The Board or a Municipality acting under
this Act may refuse permission for any development of land on the grounds that
such development
would be in contravention of any such ordinance as is
mentioned in subsection (1).
Acquisition of
land
77 (1) Where
any land is designated in a development plan as subject to acquisition by the
Government or may otherwise be acquired by the
Government under this Act, such
land may be acquired by the Government under the Acquisition of Land Act 1970 [title 19 item 20] and the acquisition of
such land shall, for the purposes of section 2(1) of that Act, be deemed to
have been expressly authorized
by the Legislature.
(2) Nothing
in this section shall be deemed to prevent the ac quisition by agreement of any
land mentioned in subsection (1).
Rules
78 (1) The
Minister may make rules for the better carrying out of this Act and for giving
effect thereto and, in particular, such rules
may—
(a) prescribe the form of any notice, order or
other docu ment authorized or required by this Act to be served, made or
issued;
(b) require claims for compensation under Part VII
to be made in a form prescribed therein;
(c) require a claimant for compensation under Part
VII to provide the Minister with such evidence in support of the claim, and
such
information as to the interest of the claimant in the land to which the
claim relates, and as to the interests of other persons
therein that are known
to the claimant, as may be so prescribed;
(d) prescribe the manner in which any hearing under
this Act is to be conducted; and—
(i) the persons entitled to be given notice
of the hearing;
(ii) the persons entitled to be heard at the
hearing whether orally or by the submission of written representations or
evidence;
(iii) the powers and duties of the person
conducting the hearing;
(e) require the public notification of applications
for plan ning permission, the grant of which may affect neigh bouring
landowners,
the right of objection of such landowners to the decision of the
Board or Municipality, and the right of appeal of objectors;
(f) require the Board, before granting or refusing
planning permission, to consult with such authorities or persons as may be
prescribed
by the rules or by directions given by the Minister thereunder;
(g) require the Board to give to any applicant for
planning permission, within such time as may be prescribed by the rules, such
notice
as may be so prescribed as to the manner in which his application has
been dealt with;
(h) prescribe any matters required or permitted by
the Act to be prescribed by the rules.
(2) The negative resolution procedure shall
apply to rules made under this section.
Offences by
Corporations
79 Where an offence under this Act which
has been committed by a body corporate is proved to have been committed with
the consent or
connivance of, or to be attributable to any default on the part
of, a di rector, manager, secretary or other similar officer of
the body
corporate, or any person who is purporting to act in any such capacity, he, as
well as the body corporate commits that
offence and is liable to be proceeded
against accordingly.
Repeals and
savings
80 [omitted]
Commencement
81 [omitted]
[this Act was
brought into operation on 27 June 1974 by GN 244/74]
[the Development
and Planning Act 1965 (now repealed) was brought into operation on 3 August
1965]
FIRST
SCHEDULE (Section 3)
DEVELOPMENT
APPLICATIONS BOARD
1 Any person appointed to be a member of
the Board shall hold of fice during the Minister's pleasure and unless his
appointment is
earlier terminated it shall be deemed to terminate one year from
the date upon which such appointment took effect.
2 A member of the Board may resign his
office at any time by no tice in writing given to the Minister.
3 The Board shall meet at such times as
may be necessary or ex pedient for the transaction of business, and such
meetings shall be
held at such places and times and on such days as the Board
may determine.
4 The quorum of the Board shall consist
of a majority of the mem-
bers currently present in Bermuda but not, in any event, less than four.
5 There shall preside at any meeting of
the Board—
(a) the Chairman; or
(b) in the absence of the Chairman, the Deputy
Chairman; or
(c) in the absence of the Chairman and Deputy
Chairman, such member as those present may elect for that meet ing.
6 Any question proposed for a decision
by the Board shall be de termined by a majority of the votes of the members
present and voting
at a meeting of the Board at which a quorum is present; each
member pre sent shall have one vote on a question proposed for decision
by the
Board and, in the event of an equality of votes, the person presiding at the
meeting shall have, in addition to a deliberative
vote, a second vote.
7 Minutes in proper form shall be kept
and shall be confirmed by the person presiding as soon as practicable at a
subsequent meeting.
8 A decision or an act of the Board
shall not be rendered invalid by reason only —
(a) that there is a vacancy in the membership of
the Board or a defect in the appointment of a member;
(b) by reason of the presence of the Director or
other public officer during the deliberations of the Board and his
participation in
such deliberations.
9 (1) A
person appointed to fill the place of a member before the end of the member's
term of office shall hold office so long only as
the vacating member would have
held office.
(2) Where the place of a member becomes vacant
before the end of his term of office and the unexpired portion of his term of
office
is less than three months, the vacancy need not be filled.
10 The Board may appoint sub-committees
from among their mem bers and every such sub-committee shall consist of a
Chairman and such
number of sub-committee members as the Board may, in each
case, determine, who shall hold office on the sub-committee for such pe
riod
and on such terms as the Board may determine.
11 Notwithstanding anything contained in
this Act the Board may, with the consent in writing of the Minister, authorize
a sub-committee
of the Board to perform any of their functions under this Act or
other statutory provision; and the act of any sub-committee so
authorized to
perform any function of the Board shall be deemed to be an act of the Board
when such sub-committee are acting within
the scope of their authority.
12 The Minister may appoint any person to
act temporarily in the place of the Chairman or the Deputy Chairman or a member
of the Board
in the case of the absence or inability to act of the Chairman or
Deputy Chairman or of such member as the case may be.
13 (1) If
a member or his spouse or any company of which he is a member or shareholder
has any private interest, direct or indirect, in
any matter which is the
subject of consideration by the Board and whereby his private interest may
conflict with his duties as
a member, he shall disclose the same to the Board.
(2) A member referred to in sub-paragraph (1)
shall not take part in the consideration of, or vote on, any question relating
to a matter
mentioned in that sub-paragraph.
14 The Board shall furnish the Minister
with such returns and other information with respect to the exercise by them of
their functions
as he may from time to time require.
15 Acts of the Board may be signified
under the hand of the Chair man or such other person as the Board may
authorize.
16 Where the hearing of any application to
the Board has com menced and the Chairman of the Board as originally
constituted or any
other member of the Board as originally constituted is
absent at any time prior to the decision of the Board upon such application,
then in any such case as the circumstances may require —
(a) any other member may act as Chairman in the
place of the said absent Chairman;
(b) any other member may act in the place of the
said ab sent member,
and everything may
be done by the newly constituted Board as if the Chairman or member of the
Board as originally constituted had
contin ued to sit.
17 Subject
to the Act and the rules the Board shall have power to regulate their own
proceedings.
18 [omitted]
[spent]
19 For the purposes of this Schedule a
reference to a member of the Board shall, unless the context requires
otherwise, include the
Chairman and Deputy Chairman.
SECOND
SCHEDULE (Sections 6 and 7)
MATTERS FOR WHICH
PROVISION MAY BE MADE IN DEVELOPMENT PLANS
1 the minimum site area and dimensions
of parcels required for particular uses of lands or of buildings;
2 the ground area, floor area, size,
site coverage, height and bulk of buildings;
3 the depth, dimensions and area of
yards, courts and other open spaces to be provided around buildings;
4 the placement and arrangement of
buildings on their sites and their relationship to other buildings and to
streets and property
lines;
5 maximum and minimum permissible
densities or population which may be expressed in the plan as a ratio of
habitable rooms per acre
or as a number of dwelling units per site area or in a
similar man ner;
6 the design, character and appearance
of buildings;
7 the location and amount of the access
to sites from adjoining roadways;
8 the facilities to be provided for
off-street parking or the loading of vehicles for particular uses of land or
buildings which may
be expressed in the plan in terms of the minimum number of
parking or loading stalls or the minimum area for parking or loading
on the
site or on another site;
9 the erection of buildings —
(i) within a specified distance of the sea;
(ii) within a specified distance of the
boundaries of any airfield or airport;
(iii) on land that is subject to flooding or
subsidence or is low-lying, marshy or unstable;
10 the placement of buildings;
11 the protection of ridge lines and other
visual amenities of Bermuda;
12 the sequence in which specified areas
of land may be developed or redeveloped;
13 the location and reservation of land
for roads, schools, parks open spaces and public amenities;
14 the purposes for and the manner in
which buildings may be used or occupied;
15 the prohibition of building or other
operations on any land
16 the allocation of any particular land,
or all land in an particular area, for buildings of a specified class or
classes, or prohibiting
or re stricting, either permanently or temporarily, the
making of any building or any particular class or classes of buildings on
any
specified land;
17 limiting the number of buildings or the
number of buildings of a specified class which may be constructed, erected or
made, on,
in or un der any area;
18 providing for the control of land by
zoning or designating it for specific uses;
19 regulating the layout of housing areas
including density, site coverage, sub-divisions, spacing, grouping and
orientation of houses
in relation to roads, open space and other buildings;
20 determining the siting of community
facilities including shops, schools, churches, meeting halls, play centres and
recreation grounds
whether in relation to the number and siting of houses or
otherwise;
21 allocation of lands as open spaces;
22 the preservation or protection of the
natural environment and of the character of Bermuda;
23 matters ancillary to Part VI;
24 the management of traffic;
25 designating
or reserving land for future acquisition as the site or location of any public
roadway, service or building or for a
school, park or other open space;
26 specifying the manner in which any
particular area of land is to be used, sub-divided, or developed, and
regulating or prohibiting
the construction of buildings that would interfere
with the carrying out of the development scheme;
27 making available any land for
agricultural, residential, commer cial industrial, or other uses of any class
at any particular time;
28 the manner in which the area of land to
be set aside by virtue of an agreement under section 33 is to be calculated.
THIRD
SCHEDULE (Section 6(4)(b) )
MATTERS FOR WHICH
STUDIES IN SPECIAL STUDY AREAS MAY PRO VIDE
1 The general improvement of an area
(whether residential or commercial or industrial) that is derelict or that
contains eyesores
or buildings that are derelict or in danger of becoming so,
or that is other wise of poor quality.
2 The improvement of an area by
requiring provision to be made for—
(a) regulating the location and design including
the height and fenestration of buildings;
(b) preserving or opening up views or vistas;
(c) preserving trees or landscapes.
3 The preservation or reinforcement of
the architectural character of an area.
4 The improvement in an area of
community services, such as shops, and facilities such as roads and other means
of access (including
access to water and public open space).
FOURTH
SCHEDULE (Section 28)
DESIGNATED AREAS
OF SPECIAL ENVIRONMENTAL VALUE
1 Subject to paragraphs 2 and 3 of this
Schedule, the extent of the protection afforded by the several heads of
protection listed
in section 28(1) is respectively as follows—
A: WOODLANDS
PROTECTION
1 Subject to paragraphs 2 and 3, the
following acts, if done wil fully, are forbidden—
(a) cutting down, topping, lopping, destroying,
removing or otherwise altering a tree;
(b) destroying or removing any shrub, ground cover
or other form of vegetation;
(c) disturbing or destroying any soil, rock or
other ground material.
2 Paragraph 1(a) shall not apply so as
to prevent a Government Department or the Bermuda Electric Light Company
Limited or the Bermuda
Telephone Company Limited from dealing with a tree in a
manner which in the absence of planning permission would, apart from this
paragraph, be forbidden by paragraph 1, being a manner of dealing with the
tree—
(a) in the case of a Government Department,
considered by that Department to be necessary for clearing a roadway in the exercise
of
a statutory power conferred upon that Department in that behalf;
(b) in the case of the Bermuda Electric Light
Company Lim ited or the Bermuda Telephone Company Limited, con sidered by that
Company
to be necessary in relation to the construction by that Company of an
electricity or telephone line or the carrying out by it of
maintenance or other
work on such a line.
3 The Board may grant planning
permission for any act forbidden in paragraph 1—
(a) to the extent allowed by the develop-ment plan
in the circumstances specified in that plan; and
(b) if of the opinion that the doing of the act
will not cause material damage to the woodland.
[paragraph 3
amended by 1998 : 18 effective 18 June 1998]
B: AGRICULTURAL
LAND PROTECTION
1 Subject to paragraph 2, the following
acts, if done wilfully, are forbidden—
(a) removing, burying or demolishing topsoil;
(b) altering subsoil or substrata.
2 The Board may grant planning
permission for the doing of any
act forbidden by paragraph 1 to the extent allowed by the development plan in
the circumstances specified in that plan.
[heading B
amended by 1998 : 18 effective 18 June 1998]
C: BEACH
PROTECTION
1 Subject to paragraph 2, wilfully
burying or otherwise altering any sand or gravel on a beach is forbidden.
2 The Board may grant planning
permission for the doing of any act forbidden by paragraph 1—
(a) to the extent allowed in the development plan
in the circumstances specified in that plan; and
(b) if of the opinion that the doing of the act
will not cause material damage to the beach environment.
[paragraph 2
amended by 1998 : 18 effective 18 June 1998]
D: CAVE
PROTECTION
1 Subject to paragraph 2, wilfully
defacing, filling, destroying or otherwise altering a cave is forbidden.
2 The Board may grant planning permission
for the doing of any act forbidden by paragraph 1—
(a) to the extent allowed in the development plan
in the circumstances specified in that plan; and
(b) if of the opinion—
(i) that the doing of the act is necessary
for the preservation of the cave or the maintenance of its flora and fauna; or
(ii) that the cave is of no scientific value.
[paragraph 2
amended by 1998 : 18 effective 18 June 1998]
E: HABITAT
PROTECTION
1 Subject to paragraph 2, wilfully
removing, destroying or other wise altering any substance necessary to the
composition or sustenance
of any flora or fauna is forbidden.
In this paragraph
"substance" means soil, vegetation, rocks, sand, nest ing sites,
burrows, bodies of water and waterways.
2 The Board may grant planning
permission for the doing of any act forbidden by paragraph 1—
(a) to the extent allowed by the develop-ment plan
in the circumstances specified in that plan; and
(b) if of the opinion that the doing of the act is
necessary to the proper management or maintenance of the habitat.
[paragraph 2
amended by 1998 : 18 effective 18 June 1998]
F: OTHER NATURAL
FEATURES PROTECTION
1 Subject to paragraph 2, wilfully
destroying, removing, disturbing or otherwise altering a natural feature is
forbidden.
In this paragraph
"natural features" means a natural feature specified in the
development plan, not being a natural feature
provided for elsewhere in this
Schedule.
2 The Board may grant planning
permission for the doing of any act forbidden by paragraph 1—
(a) to the extent allowed by the develop-ment plan
in the circumstances specified in that plan; and
(b) if of the opinion that the doing of the
act is necessary to the survival and continuation of that natural feature.
3 The Board shall be bound to grant
planning permission for the doing of an act notwithstanding that the doing of
the act is forbidden
by paragraph 1 if either —
(a) some law requires that the act be done; or
(b) the doing of the act is necessary for
preventing or abat ing a nuisance.
4 The word "alter" in
paragraph 1, in relation to a thing, means to change the existing state of the
thing by cutting, burying
or demolishing the thing or changing in any way.
[paragraph 2 amended by 1998 : 18 effective 18
June 1998]
[Amended
by:
1975 :
76
1977 : 35
1978 : 44
1980 : 15
1980 : 60
1982 : 26
1982 : 49
1982 : 57
1983 : 34
1983 : 60
1984 : 56
1985 : 14
1985 : 29
1986 : 19
1988 : 18
1996 : 11
1997 : 3
1998 : 18
1998 : 33]
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