In perhaps a sign of the linguistic times, Appeals Court Justice James R. Milkey’s opinion in the case of Comstock v. Zoning Board of Appeals of Gloucester received more media coverage for certain racial history commentary...more
BANG! Yaphank, New York. In November 2019, after years of protracted ligation, Hunter Sports Shooting Grounds, Inc., (“HSSG”) the operator of the Suffolk County Skeet, Trap & Sporting Clays Range (“Range”), was dealt another...more
Legal pre-existing nonconforming uses (aka grandfathered uses) have a tenuous existence in New York. Although protected by vested property rights in the Constitution, many local zoning ordinances seek to eliminate these...more
Upgrading a pre-existing nonconforming use in New Jersey involves myriad issues, and resolving them is a bit like navigating between Scylla and Charybdis. Originally published in New Jersey Law Journal....more
Last time, we introduced you to the concept of nonconformity laws in North Carolina. This time, we’ll spend some energy discussing the most common (and legally charged) aspect of nonconformity laws: how local laws restrict...more
Zoning laws, like any other laws, can change from time to time. What happens if your structure, lot, or use is permitted under an existing law, but the law changes in a way that your structure, lot, or use is suddenly no...more
On August 4, 2016, Governor Baker signed into law H3811, “An Act relative to nonconforming structures.” The new law, which became effective on November 4, 2016 and is retroactive, amends the Section 7 of the State Zoning Act...more