Traps for the Unwary

YOU MAY REMEMBER that planning board decisions carry a 30-day appeal period - but does the period start on the day the board votes, or on the day that the decision form is signed?

Despite the fact that the Town of Hanover Subdivision Regulations state that the period begins on the day the decision is filed, Grafton County Superior Court Judge Steven M. Houran recently ruled that the period is governed by state statute, and begins on the day that the planning board votes.

In Corson v. Town of Hanover and Simpson Development Corp. (Grafton Docket No. 04-E-119), Houran reviewed RSA 677:15, providing that an appeal be filed "within 30 days after the date upon which the board voted," and found the wording ambiguous.

Looking to the general statutory scheme, Houran noted RSA 677:2, relative to zoning board appeals, which more clearly states that the appeal period "shall be counted in calendar days beginning with the date upon which the board voted."

Further, Houran found, the legislative history of the 30-day period in RSA 677:15 indicates that the legislature intended to create one uniform 30-day period for appeals from zoning boards, local legislative bodies, boards of appeals, or planning boards.

The Hanover Planning Board voted on the Simpson case on April 6, 2004, and issued a written notice of decision on April 8, 2004. Houran concluded that the appeal period expired on May 5, 2004; and dismissed the appeal filed by Corson on May 6.

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