§ 334-A — Filing of subdivision maps in Nassau county; penalty for non-filing

§ 334-a. Filing of subdivision maps in Nassau county; penalty for\nnon-filing. 1. It shall be the duty of every person or corporation,\nexcepting church cemetery corporations attached to a religious parish\nwithin the county of Nassau, who, as owner or agent of real property\nsituated in the county of Nassau, subdivides the same into lots, plots,\nblocks, sites, or units with or without streets, for the purpose of\noffering such lots, plots, blocks, sites, or units for sale to the\npublic, regardless of whether they are offered or conveyed by lot, plot\nor block designations, units (including shares in a cooperative\ncorporation), or by metes and bounds, prior to the offering of such\nlots, plots, blocks, sites or units for sale, to file or cause to be\nfiled in the office of the clerk of Nassau county a map or maps of such\nreal property, subject to the following exceptions:\n (a) where real property is subdivided into not more than four lots,\nplots, blocks, sites or units that conform to the applicable planning\nand zoning regulations or ordinances of the city, town or village, as\nthe case may be, and such subdivision does not involve the laying out of\na street or the extension of a previously laid out street, the owner or\nagent may make written application to the planning commission or\nplanning authorities having jurisdiction for a waiver of the filing\nrequirements hereunder upon forms supplied by the appropriate planning\ncommission. Such a waiver may be granted by such planning commission or\nplanning authorities after determining that such subdivision plat is in\ncompliance with this section and with the zoning and planning\nregulations of the city, town or village, as the case may be, in which\nthe property is located. The request for a waiver shall be acted upon\nwithout a public hearing within fifteen days after the filing of the\napplication unless such period shall have been extended by consent of\nthe applicant. Where real property is capable of being subdivided into\nmore than four lots, plots, blocks, sites or units that conform to the\napplicable planning and zoning regulations or ordinances of the city,\ntown or village, as the case may be, and such subdivision does not\ninvolve the laying out of a street or the extension of a previously laid\nout street, the planning commission or planning authorities having\njurisdiction may, in the sole discretion of such planning commission or\nplanning authorities deny such waiver application and require the filing\nin the office of the clerk of Nassau county a map or maps of such real\nproperty, subject to appropriate conditions as in the judgment of such\nplanning commission or planning authorities as are requisite in the\ninterest of the public health, safety and general welfare; or\n (b) where a subdivision map has been filed prior to January twelfth,\nnineteen hundred forty-five, and alterations made thereon do not involve\nany change, or extensions of previously laid out streets and where the\nonly alterations are changes in lot boundaries which are made solely for\nthe purpose of adhering to applicable zoning regulations, it shall not\nbe necessary to file such altered map or obtain a waiver therefor; or\n (c) where there is a conversion of an existing structure into units,\nwhich structure: (1) was in existence and legally occupied prior to\nAugust fifth, nineteen hundred eighty-seven; and (2) where title to said\nunits is to be held in a condominium, cooperative or mixed form of\nownership; and (3) the use thereof is in compliance with the zoning and\nplanning regulations of the city, town or village, as the case may be,\nin which the structure is located.\n As used in this section, the term "units" shall include space used or\nto be used for either residential, commercial, mixed or other use\nwhether title is held in fee simple, a condominium, cooperative, or\nmixed form of ownership. It shall be unlawful, after a map or maps of\nsuch property has been filed, to subdivide said property in a manner\nother than as shown on said map unless said map has been amended and\napproved in accordance with the provisions of subdivision six of this\nsection.\n 2. Such map or maps must be thirty-six inches by forty-eight inches or\nless in size, drawn with pen and ink upon tracing cloth or printed on\nmylar upon a scale of not more than one hundred feet to the inch and\noriented with the north point at the top of the map. At no time shall\nthe north point vary more than twenty degrees east or west of the\nperpendicular border.\n 3. In case the lands sought to be shown upon the map are too extensive\nto be shown upon a map thirty-six inches by forty-eight inches in size,\nthen a key map thirty-six inches by forty-eight inches in size, drawn\nupon a reduced scale, but without detail, showing the entire quantity of\nland, subdivided into units embracing the entire map, shall be made and\nfiled, and each subdivision or unit shall be shown upon a separate map.\n 4. Said map shall set forth the courses, measurements and adjoining\nproperty owners with sufficient definiteness to determine the location\nof said property, and upon each map shall appear the name of the record\nowner and the name of the subdivision as stated by the owner and said\nname shall be approved by the county clerk as a name not so similar to\nthe name appearing upon any filed subdivision map as to deceive or\nmislead the public as to the identity of such subdivision.\n 5. Upon each and every of said maps shall appear the name or names of\nthe town or towns, city or cities, incorporated village or incorporated\nvillages in which said lands are located wholly or in part, and endorsed\nthereon shall be a certificate of the licensed land surveyor who made or\ncaused the said map to be made, certifying that the map or maps were\nmade from an actual survey of the property that was performed by or\nunder the direction of said licensed land surveyor and the date of the\ncompletion of the survey. Said certificate shall state that stone or\nconcrete monuments have been set at not less than two corners of every\nstreet intersection as indicated on such map or maps and that the lands\nshown thereon have been monumented in a manner to indicate the distance\nfrom the nearest established street, avenue, road or highway, provided,\nhowever, that where the planning board or other governmental agency\nhaving jurisdiction over the approval of said maps has required the\nsubdivider to deposit with the town or local governing body a\nperformance bond or bonds to secure the installation and completion of\nall site improvements, including setting stone or concrete monuments in\nthe streets as aforesaid, and simultaneously with the filing of said map\nthe subdivider files with the county clerk a written certification from\nthe town or local governing body that such bond or bonds have been duly\ndeposited and accepted by the town or local governing body and that said\nbond or bonds expressly include the setting of stone or concrete\nmonuments as aforesaid, the said surveyor's certificate may state that\nstone or concrete monuments will be set at not less than two corners of\nevery street intersection as indicated on such map upon completion of\nthe installation of said streets and that the surveyor shall execute and\ndeliver a further written certification of the completion of such\nmonumentation to both the county clerk and the town or local governing\nbody prior to and as a condition for the release of said performance\nbond or bonds.\n 6. Before such filing each and every of said maps shall be approved by\nthe planning commission or planning commissions having jurisdiction in\nthe area embraced within said maps in accordance with the regulations of\nsuch planning commission or planning commissions and the approval of\nsuch planning commission or planning commissions shall be endorsed\nthereon.\n 6-a. Before such filing each and every of said maps shall have\nendorsed thereon the consent to such filing of the mortgagees of such\nreal property.\n 7. The planning commission or planning authorities having jurisdiction\nshall not approve any such map until the commissioner of public works of\nNassau county has endorsed thereon a statement that he has approved\nplans for grades of the streets, avenues, roads or highways shown on\nsuch map, and the drainage thereof. The commissioner of public works may\nrequire that separate and distinct plans for the grading and drainage be\nprepared. Such plans shall show sufficient data to enable the\ncommissioner of public works to determine the adequacy thereof. He may\nrequire any changes in grades or plans which he deems necessary to make\nsuch grades or plans conform with any general or comprehensive plan\nadopted for the county, or to serve the best interests of the county as\na whole. Upon his approval of plans for the grades and drainage for the\nstreets, avenues, roads or highways shown on said map he shall endorse\nsuch approval on the plans submitted to him, or as they shall have been\nrevised, and shall file same in his office, and shall file a print\nthereof in the office of each planning authority having jurisdiction. He\nshall further endorse on the map submitted to the planning authority for\napproval a statement that he has approved grades and drainage for the\nstreets, avenues, roads or highways shown thereon, in accordance with\ndetailed plans on file in his office.\n 8. At the time of filing such map with the county clerk an abstract of\ntitle and tax search of all of the property shown on said map together\nwith a certificate of title, certifying to the county of Nassau the name\nor names of the owner or owners of said property together with all liens\nthereon, shall be delivered to the county clerk and filed in his office.\nSuch abstract and search shall cover a period of not less than the\ntwenty years immediately preceding the date of the certificate and such\ncertificate shall be made by a title company duly incorporated and\nauthorized to transact business in the state of New York or a person\nduly authorized to certify titles under the laws of the state of New\nYork. In the event the title to said property has been duly registered\npursuant to the provisions of the real property law for the registration\nof titles to real property, that fact shall be set forth upon the\noriginal map together with the number of the certificate of the title so\nregistered and an index of such abstracts and registrations made to\nclearly indicate the maps to which they refer and the abstract of title\nand certificate of title above referred to shall not be required. In the\ncase of a tax title, the fee title for a period of at least twenty years\nprior to the date of the tax sale under which tax title is claimed must\nbe submitted as a part of the abstract.\n 9. Every such map, whether intended as an original subdivision or as\nan alteration of a prior subdivision in such county, shall have endorsed\nthereon at the time such map is offered to be filed the certificates of\nthe county treasurer and the receiver of taxes of each town and city and\nthe tax collecting officer of each incorporated village within which any\npart of the tract of land shown on said map or maps is located, or of a\ntitle company authorized to transact business in the state of New York\nstating that all taxes and assessments which are liens prior to the time\nsuch original or subsequent map is offered to be filed, whether assessed\nagainst the entire tract of land or against any lot or other part of\nsaid land, shown on the tax search required to be filed with the county\nclerk, have been paid.\n 10. At the time of the filing of such map there shall also be\nfurnished to the county clerk a copy of such map, prepared upon tracing\ncloth by such process as he shall prescribe, which shall be duly\ncertified by him to be a true copy of the original and which shall be\nforwarded by him to the board of assessors of the county.\n 11. The clerk of the county of Nassau upon receiving such maps shall\nfile them by some suitable method in consecutive order and they shall be\nconsecutively numbered in the order of filing and indexed under the\ninitial letters of all substantives in the titles.\n 12. The fee of the county clerk for receiving and filing each of said\nseparate maps or sheets and indexing the same shall be five dollars, and\nan additional fee for every block created, which fee shall be the same\nas the additional fee provided for block indexing by the Nassau county\nadministrative code.\n 13. Failure to file said map or maps as required by the provisions of\nthis section, shall subject the owner of such lands shown upon such\nmaps, or of unsold lots, plots or units thereon, to a penalty to the\npeople of the state of New York of five hundred dollars for each and\nevery lot, plot or unit thereon subdivided, sold or conveyed by or for\nsuch owner prior to the due filing of such map or maps.\n 14. Whenever at least two years have elapsed since the filing of a map\nof the subdivision of any tract of land into lots, plots, blocks or\nsites, with or without opened or proposed roads, the owner of such\ntract, or of any part thereof having an area equivalent to that of any\ntwo or more contiguous lots or an area of not less than one-half acre,\nmay abandon and cancel the subdivision of the property so owned by\nrecording in the office of the county clerk a written certificate of\nabandonment, duly executed and acknowledged, which shall contain a\ndescription of the property to be abandoned, the complete title or name\nof the map, the filing date and file number thereof, except that no\nopened or proposed streets, other than those entirely within the bounds\nof the property to be abandoned, or the area within such bounds of\nstreets which as laid out on said map come to a dead-end within such\nbounds, shall be abandoned unless each owner of a lot or interest in the\nsubdivision consents to the abandonment thereof by instrument in writing\nduly executed, acknowledged and recorded with the certificate of\nabandonment; provided, however, that whenever at least twenty years have\nelapsed since the filing of said map, the owner of the property to be\nabandoned may, without such consent, abandon any streets or portions\nthereof shown on said map and which are within the bounds of the\nproperty to be abandoned if such streets or portions thereof are neither\nopened, nor public highways, nor used by the public, nor necessary for\nthe use of owners, occupants or any other persons having an interest in\nany part of the subdivision; but nothing herein shall prevent an owner\nusing or a seller of land from conveying part of a lot, plot or site\nseparately or together with an adjoining lot, plot or site, subject to\nthe provisions of local zoning ordinances. Whenever there is on file\nmore than one map of the property to be abandoned, such property must be\nabandoned in the manner herein provided as to each of such maps. A copy\nof each certificate of abandonment must be filed with the assessor\nand/or board of assessors of each town and village wherein any portion\nof the property to be abandoned is situated, and the endorsement of\napproval by each such assessor and/or board of assessors must be\nendorsed on the original of each certificate presented to the county\nclerk for recording. An abstract of title to the property to be\nabandoned covering a period of at least twenty years last past, and a\ncertificate of the county treasurer of Nassau county to the effect that\nthere are no unpaid tax liens against such property, must be submitted\nto the county clerk and be approved by him at the time the certificate\nof abandonment and cancellation is offered for recording. Said\ncertificates and abstracts shall be filed in the county clerk's office,\na suitable index shall be kept of the same, and notice thereof shall be\nendorsed by the recording officer upon the map therein referred to at\nthe time of recording the certificate of abandonment. Where the\nendorsement of approval of the town or village assessor above referred\nto includes a recitation to the effect that the municipality has duly\nadopted an urban renewal plan pursuant to article fifteen of the general\nmunicipal law which plan provides for adequate street access to all\nproperties within and adjacent to the planning area, and further that\nthe property to be abandoned is subject to said plan, and its\nabandonment is required thereunder, the clerk shall accept and record\nthe certificate of abandonment tendered therefor regardless of the area\nthereof, and notwithstanding that the property to be abandoned is a\nportion of an opened or proposed street for which the consent to the\nabandonment thereof required in this subdivision has not been obtained.\nUpon the abandonment of subdivided property as herein provided such\nproperty shall, for all purposes, be regarded as a single tract of land.\nNo abandonment of lot divisions shall be made under this section for the\npurpose of reviving or making effective any other subdivision of the\nsame tract of land and no map may be reinstated as it was prior to the\nfiling of any abandonment certificate. The fee of the county clerk for\nsuch filing and indexing each certificate and abstract therewith shall\nbe ten dollars and shall be paid by the party presenting them for\nfiling. Provided, however, that the Nassau county board of supervisors\nshall have full authority to abandon any subdivision of property or any\nportion thereof which the county of Nassau now owns or may hereafter\nacquire through the sale of tax liens, by causing to be filed with the\ncounty clerk of Nassau county, a certificate of abandonment, duly\nexecuted by the said county board, without regard to any of the other\nforegoing requirements of this section. Nothing contained in this\nsection shall be construed to prevent the filing of a new map and\ncertificate of a subdivision of real property in the manner prescribed\nherein, after, and in the area of, a subdivision or portion thereof\nabandoned in accordance with the provisions of this section.\n