Hearings.
The Board shall meet monthly to hear and consider all such matters which shall properly come before it. All such meetings shall be open to the public.

Persons Entitled to Initiate Action Before the Board.
Appeals from the Zoning Officer pursuant to § 1117: Appeals from the Zoning Officer hereof and proceedings to challenge an ordinance under § 1118: Challenge to the Validity of the Ordinance or Map hereof may be filed by any officer or agency of the Borough or by any person aggrieved. Requests for a variance under § 1119: Variances and for a special exception under § 1120: Special Exceptions hereof may be filed by any landowner or tenant with the permission of such landowner.

Manner of Initiating Action Before the Board.
All action before the Board shall be initiated by a written application for hearing which shall be filed with the Zoning Officer at least three weeks prior to the meeting at which the particular matter is to be heard. All applications shall be made on forms specified by the Board, and no application form shall be accepted unless the same shall be fully and legibly completed and unless all exhibits and supplemental material required by the application shall be attached (and until all fees required under § 1008: Fees of this Chapter shall have been paid).

Time Limitations.
All appeals from the Zoning Officer and all requests for variances, as provided in § 1117: Appeals from the Zoning Officer and § 1119: Variances hereof, respectively, shall be filed within 30 days following the refusal of the Zoning Officer to grant a zoning permit.

Notification of Hearings.
All hearings shall be held within 60 days from the date of the applicant's request, unless the applicant has agreed in writing to an extension of time. Notification of the time and place of all hearings shall be given by mail to the applicant and to all persons who own real estate within 200 feet of any property which is the subject of an application. Notification shall be made to the Borough Planning Commission and the Historical and Architectural Review Board when applicable. Notice of the hearings of any particular application shall also be given to any person who shall timely request the same in writing, such request to be accompanied by a fee in the sum of $1. Public notice, as defined in this Chapter, shall be given of all hearings. All notices required by this Section shall be given at least five days prior to the date of the hearing for which notice is given. In addition, written notice of the hearing shall be conspicuously posted on the affected tract of land at least one-week prior to the hearing.

Parties.
Parties to any hearing shall be the municipality, any person entitled to notice under the Notification of Hearings section, above, without special request therefor who has given timely appearance of record before the Board, and any other person permitted to appear by the Board.

Witnesses.
The chairman or acting chairman of the Board shall have the power to administer oaths and issue subpoenas to compel the attendance of witnesses and the production of relevant documents and papers, including witnesses and documents requested by the parties.

Representation.
The parties shall have the right to be represented by counsel and shall be afforded the opportunity to respond and present evidence and cross-examine adverse witnesses on all relevant issues.

Rules of Evidence.
Formal rules of evidence shall not apply, but irrelevant, immaterial or unduly repetitious evidence may be excluded.

Record.
The Board or the Hearing Officer, as the case may be, shall keep a stenographic record of the proceedings. The appearance fee for a stenographer shall be shared equally by the applicant and the Board. The cost of the original transcript shall be paid by the Board if the transcript is ordered by the Board or Hearing Officer or shall be paid by the person appealing from the decision of the Board if such appeal is made, and in either event the cost of additional copies shall be paid by the person requesting such copy or copies. In other cases the party requesting the original transcript shall bear the cost thereof.

Communications.
The Board shall not communicate, directly or indirectly, with any party or his representative in connection with any issue involved except upon notice and opportunity for all parties to participate, shall not take notice of any communication, reports, staff memoranda, or other materials unless the parties are afforded an opportunity to contest the material so noticed, and shall not inspect the site or its surroundings after the commencement of hearings with any party or his representative unless all parties are given an opportunity to be present. "Board" as used herein shall include not only the members but also any secretary, clerk, legal counsel or consultant of the Board.

Decisions.
The Board of Hearing Officer, as the case may be, shall render a written decision or, when no decision is called for, make written findings on the application within 45 days after the last hearing before the Board or Hearing Officer. Where the application is contested or denied, each decision shall be accompanied by findings of fact and conclusions based thereon together with the reasons therefor. Conclusions based on any provisions of this act or of any ordinance, rule or regulation shall contain a reference to the provision relied on and the reasons why the conclusion is deemed appropriate in the light of the facts found. If the hearing is conducted by a Hearing Officer, and there has been no stipulation that his decision or findings are final, the Board shall make his report and recommendations available to the parties within 45 days and the parties shall be entitled to make written representations thereon to the Board prior to final decision or entry of findings, and the Board's decision shall be entered no later than 30 days after the report of the Hearing Officer. Where the Board fails to render the decision within the period required by this Section, or fails to hold the required hearing within 60 days from the date of the applicant's request for a hearing, the decision shall be deemed to have been rendered in favor of the applicant unless the applicant has agreed in writing or on the record to an extension of time. When a decision has been rendered in favor of the applicant because of the failure of the Board to meet or render a decision as hereinabove provided, the Board shall give public notice of said decision within 10 days from the last day it could have met to render a decision in the same manner as provided in this Section. If the Board shall fail to provide such notice, the applicant may do so. Nothing in this Section shall prejudice the right of any party opposing the application to appeal the decision to a court of competent jurisdiction.

Copies of Decisions.
A copy of the final decision or, when no decision is called for, of the findings, shall be delivered to the applicant personally or mailed to him not later than the day following its date. To all other persons who have filed their name and address with the Board not later than the last day of the hearing, the Board shall provide by mail or otherwise, brief notice of the decision or findings and a statement of the place at which the full decision or findings may be examined.