§ 502 — Definitions

§ 502. Definitions. As used in this article and article fifteen-A of\nthis chapter, the following terms shall mean:\n 1. "Governing body." (a) In a city, the board of aldermen, common\ncouncil, commission or other body vested by its charter or other law\nwith jurisdiction to enact ordinances or local laws, except that in a\ncity having a population of one million or more the term "governing\nbody" shall, as to such city, mean the council or mayor, as appropriate,\nwho shall act pursuant to this article in accordance with the powers\nvested in them by the charter of such city, or by other law; (b) in a\ntown, the town board; (c) in a village, the board of trustees.\n 2. "Municipality." A city, town or village.\n 3. "Urban renewal." A program established, conducted and planned by a\nmunicipality for the redevelopment, through clearance, replanning,\nreconstruction, rehabilitation, and concentrated code enforcement, or a\ncombination of these and other methods, of substandard and insanitary\nareas of such municipalities, and for recreational and other facilities\nincidental or appurtenant thereto, pursuant to and in accordance with\narticle eighteen of the constitution and this article, including those\nprograms authorized by and to effectuate the purposes of title one of\nthe housing act of nineteen hundred forty-nine and section three hundred\nfourteen of title three of the housing act of nineteen hundred\nfifty-four, whether such programs and contracts pursuant thereto were in\nprocess on or before June sixteenth, nineteen hundred sixty-eight and\nall federal laws amendatory and supplementary thereto. The terms\n"clearance, replanning, reconstruction and rehabilitation" shall include\nrenewal, redevelopment, conservation, restoration or improvement or any\ncombination thereof as well as relocation activities and the testing and\nreporting of methods and techniques for the arrest, prevention and\nelimination of slums and blight; the term "program" may mean or include\nand be interchangeable with the term "project."\n 4. "Substandard or insanitary area." The term "substandard or\ninsanitary area" shall mean and be interchangeable with a slum,\nblighted, deteriorated or deteriorating area, or an area which has a\nblighting influence on the surrounding area, whether residential,\nnon-residential, commercial, industrial, vacant, or land in highways,\nrailway and subway tracks, bridge and tunnel approaches and entrances,\nor other similar facilities, over which air rights and easements or\nother rights of user necessary for the use and development of such air\nrights, to be developed as air rights sites for the elimination of the\nblighting influence, or any combination thereof and may include land,\nbuildings or improvements, or air rights and concomitant easements or\nother rights of user necessary for the use and development of such air\nrights, not in themselves substandard or insanitary, the inclusion of\nwhich is deemed necessary for the effective undertaking of one or more\nurban renewal programs.\n 5. "Agency." The officer, board, commission, department, or other\nagency of the municipality designated by the governing body, or as\notherwise provided by law, to carry out the functions vested in the\nagency under this article or delegated to the agency by the governing\nbody in order to carry out the purpose and provisions of this article.\nThe term "agency" shall include a corporate governmental agency\nestablished pursuant to article fifteen-A of this chapter.\n 6. "Comprehensive community plan." The term "comprehensive community\nplan" shall mean and be interchangeable with "master plan" or "general\nplan."\n 7. "Urban renewal plan." A plan for an urban renewal project, which\nshall conform to the comprehensive community plan for the development of\nthe municipality as a whole and which shall be consistent with local\nobjectives. Such urban renewal plan shall include but shall not be\nlimited to: a statement of proposed land uses; proposed land\nacquisition, demolition and removal of structures; proposed acquisition\nof air rights and concomitant easements or other rights of user\nnecessary for the use and development of such air rights; proposed\nmethods or techniques of urban renewal; proposed public, semi-public,\nprivate or community facilities or utilities; a statement as to proposed\nnew codes and ordinances and amendments to existing codes and ordinances\nas are required or necessary to effectuate the plan; proposed program of\ncode enforcement; a proposed time schedule for the effectuation of such\nplan, and such additional statements or documentation as the agency may\ndeem appropriate.\n 8. "Commission." The planning commission or other analogous body or,\nif there be none, the board of estimate or other governing body of the\nmunicipality.\n 9. "Urban renewal area." An area designated by the governing body, or\nby the commission where so authorized to act by the governing body,\npursuant to section five hundred four of this article as appropriate for\nurban renewal, except that in municipalities having a population of one\nmillion or more, such designation shall be made only after a public\nhearing held by the governing body or the commission, as the case may\nbe.\n 10. "State capital grant." A capital grant or subsidy paid to a\nmunicipality or an agency established pursuant to the provisions of\narticle fifteen-A of this chapter with monies appropriated therefor from\nthe general fund of the state and not to be applied to the payment of\nprincipal and interest on any state loan made or contracted to be made\npursuant to this article.\n 11. "Commissioner." The commissioner of housing and community renewal\nof the state of New York.\n