When is Change of Use Class Official?

[ChrisB]

I received planning board approval to use a building as all commercial/office. It had an existing mixed use of commercial/residential (commercial below and single unit apartment above)

My question is when does a "change of use" become official? When the Planning board approves or when C/O is issued?

 

[TheCommish]

For zoning when the conditions of the PB approval are met, for the Building Code when the needed work, if any by the IEBC are met

 

[cda]

I received planning board approval to use a building as all commercial/office. It had an existing mixed use of commercial/residential (commercial below and single unit apartment above)

My question is when does a "change of use" become official? When the Planning board approves or when C/O is issued?

Welcome

Why the concern? What do you want to do?

DO you want to keep the apartment?

 

[ChrisB]

Welcome

Why the concern? What do you want to do?

DO you want to keep the apartment?

Yes I want to keep the apartment. I went to the planning bd initially to see if I can move my business to this property before I purchased it.

After PD approval, I purchased it and before any renovation or occupying, I went back to the board of adjustments to ask permission to keep the existing apartment in place. Approved no problem

I was issued engineering, zoning and building permits which allows the existing apartment to remain and did not require sprinklers. I am 80% through construction with all necessary inspection approvals and the town changed their mind.

Because I went to the PD first, the town is claiming I changed the use to all commercial and now I am changing it back to mixed use and a change of use was triggered causing me to conform to different codes such as installing sprinklers.

So if the building was never changed there should be no change of use. In the BD of Adj resolution it states approval for an existing condtion.

 

[cda]

Yes I want to keep the apartment. I went to the planning bd initially to see if I can move my business to this property before I purchased it.

After PD approval, I purchased it and before any renovation or occupying, I went back to the board of adjustments to ask permission to keep the existing apartment in place. Approved no problem

I was issued engineering, zoning and building permits which allows the existing apartment to remain and did not require sprinklers. I am 80% through construction with all necessary inspection approvals and the town changed their mind.

Because I went to the PD first, the town is claiming I changed the use to all commercial and now I am changing it back to mixed use and a change of use was triggered causing me to conform to different codes such as installing sprinklers.

So if the building was never changed there should be no change of use. In the BD of Adj resolution it states approval for an existing condtion.

Hummmm

Not all my area

Sounds like the town is paperwork messing with you.

On the initial request, was the apartment included??

Does commercial include apartment use??

 

[ChrisB]

Hummmm

Not all my area

Sounds like the town is paperwork messing with you.

On the initial request, was the apartment included??

Does commercial include apartment use??

On the initial PB approval the apartment was not discussed at all. the commercial use does not include residential. But the entire street is mixed use commercial/residential.

The issue is what is the property considered? would it be considered the existing non conforming use as I have physically acted on or is it considered the prior approval use which I did not act on?

 

[Bryant]

I received planning board approval to use a building as all commercial/office. It had an existing mixed use of commercial/residential (commercial below and single unit apartment above)

My question is when does a "change of use" become official? When the Planning board approves or when C/O is issued?

I would look at the definition in the IEBC for change of occupancy chapter 2, then head over to chapter 10 1001.2.1 change of use & 1001.2.2.1 partial change and compare from the building departments preview. Not sure how its done in NJ but in VA each jurisdiction has a planning department responsible for identifying all the commercial and residential zones of which has nothing to do with the building department other than when we have TRC's where all disciplines chime in, think transportation, sheriff, schools, E & S site development and on and on.
with apartments comes people, comes more restrictive parameters
For us in VA VEBC 103.2 will require the owner or applicant to to make written application to the local building department for new certificate of occupancy and a caveat, modification considered when impractical to achieve compliance, that could be a slippery slope if egressing elements become less than in my mind, especially with apartments.