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It`s true? If so, what does that mean? Can local authorities even regulate the use of stocks? Or is it time to raise your hands and leave? In this article, we will try to give an explanation of what acquired right really is and dispel some of the most common myths about how it works. Admittedly, many aspects of this issue are complex and have no easy solutions. There are many more questions than answers. However, a good understanding of the fundamental importance of acquired rights is a good place to start. Third, the owner can always build if the plot is part of an acquired subdivision, which gives us . Entry Regulations: Even an inventory owner is not allowed to maintain an access road that poses a potential threat to the integrity of a highway or to public safety. RSA 236:13, VI gives planning committees “ongoing responsibility for the adequacy and security of all existing entrances, entrances, exits and access to a [municipal] road,” whether or not the driveway has received planning approval. Property owners remain responsible for access links to urban roads, including slopes, culverts and other related structures, whether or not they are within the road right-of-way. Landowners may be surprised to learn that the planning authority has the authority to order the owner to make repairs or otherwise alter an entrance if it “poses or becomes a potential threat to the integrity of the road or its surface, ditches, embankments, bridges or other structures, or a threat to the safety of travellers.” In other words, zoning ordinances and land use regulations should not apply retroactively; They normally apply only to new or modified land uses. However, this protection is not absolute. “The use of land that was constructed (or `acquired`) at the time of the coming into force of a restriction on that use and that has not been suspended or abandoned may continue indefinitely, except in the case of activities that are harmful or harmful to public health and welfare; However, the use cannot be modified or significantly extended without being made compliant.

Cohen v. Henniker, 134 N.H. 425, 427 (1991). Myth #5: Grandfathering is immune to all other local regulations. This is a common misconception. While a landowner can generally pursue improper land use, there are several exceptions. The term “grandfathering” is regularly heard in local governments. Planning boards, zoning committees, building inspectors, selection officers, enforcement officers may all be called in from time to time to determine if, and in what form certain land uses are permitted. Often, these officials are confronted with the assertion that a building, business or activity is “acquired” and must be authorized. Second, the idea of grandfathering is to allow owners to keep what they have where they have it, but the extension or extension of that use is strictly controlled. RSA 674:19 states that a zoning order “applies to any alteration to a building for a use for a purpose or in a manner materially different from the use for which it was used before the change.” For example, the footprint of a building that already violates the setback requirements is generally not allowed to be expanded unless the owner receives a deviation. See, for example, Shopland v.

Enfield, 151 N.H. 219 (2004). Similarly, the construction of additional floors above a non-compliant building may constitute a prohibited extension, even if there is no extension of the floor area of the building. Granite State Minerals, Inc. v. Portsmouth, 134 N.H. 408 (1991). A local dump license consists of two parts: the initial permit for the site and the permit in the process of operation. If a shipyard existed before 1965, it is generally grandfathered in its location. RSA 236:125. However, regardless of when a shipyard was established, it must continue to meet all other operational requirements under these regulations, including but not limited to the scrapyard best management practices (BMPs) established by the Department of Environmental Services.

RSA 236:115, :121. Owners must obtain a licence from the governing body and renew it annually to certify compliance with the latest BMPs and all operating conditions. In other words, a scrapyard owner may have a vested right to sue the farm where it is located, but not a vested right in a particular type of shipyard operation. Myth #3: The owner of a lower property (smaller than current zoning allows) is grand-paternal for any use permitted in that district. That`s not true. Remember myth #1, grandfathering legitimately protects pre-existing non-compliant uses. An undeveloped parcel may have existed before zoning inferior it, but it is not yet “used”. This means that ordinary grandfathering does not protect the owner of that property. There are three ways for an owner to build on substandard land. The first and easiest is whether there is a “a lot of registration” economy clause in the zoning ordinance. These clauses exempt existing lots from subsequent façade and/or lot size requirements or, in some cases, allow construction on these plots with special exceptions. If there is a safeguard clause, the owner can exercise all the rights that this clause gives to owners of poor quality lots.

(Again, the terms of the regulations are really important.) Myth #1: There`s a law somewhere that says, “You won`t touch the use of grandfather land.” Actually, no. It may come as a surprise, but the term “grandfathering” does not appear in any of New Hampshire`s land use laws. Over time, it has become a convenient way to refer to the legal concept of protecting pre-existing non-compliant land uses by law from subsequent prohibitions. In addition, scrap yards are also subject to local zoning regulations. Municipalities may prohibit scrap yards through local zoning, but legally pre-existing scrap yards become grandfathered rights along with other pre-existing land uses, and expansion and modification of these scrapyards is also limited. Difficult issues may arise when a landfill owner needs to modify its operations to comply with local conditions of licence and ongoing BMPs (e.g., construction of a structure for the safe storage of certain hazardous liquids), but notes that local zoning prohibits such a structure at this location. As with all grandfathering questions, there are often more questions than answers in these situations. In addition, some local ordinances provide for a specific period within which a use must be restored to avoid abandonment (a “use-it-or-lose-it” provision). The New Hampshire Supreme Court recently upheld a zoning order that states that a non-compliant structure is considered abandoned if it is not replaced within a year of its destruction.