§ 261-A — Transfer of development rights; definitions; conditions; procedures

§ 261-a. Transfer of development rights; definitions; conditions;\nprocedures. 1. As used in this section:\n a. "Development rights" shall mean the rights permitted to a lot,\nparcel, or area of land under a zoning ordinance or local law respecting\npermissible use, area, density, bulk or height of improvements executed\nthereon. Development rights may be calculated and allocated in\naccordance with such factors as area, floor area, floor area ratios,\ndensity, height limitations, or any other criteria that will effectively\nquantify a value for the development right in a reasonable and uniform\nmanner that will carry out the objectives of this section.\n b. "Receiving district" shall mean one or more designated districts or\nareas of land to which development rights generated from one or more\nsending districts may be transferred and in which increased development\nis permitted to occur by reason of such transfer.\n c. "Sending district" shall mean one or more designated districts or\nareas of land in which development rights are designated for use in one\nor more receiving districts.\n d. "Transfer of development rights" shall mean the process by which\ndevelopment rights are transferred from one lot, parcel, or area of land\nin any sending district to another lot, parcel, or area of land in one\nor more receiving districts.\n 2. In addition to existing powers and authorities to regulate by\nplanning or zoning, including authorization to provide for transfer of\ndevelopment rights pursuant to other enabling law, a town board is\nhereby empowered to provide for transfer of development rights subject\nto the conditions hereinafter set forth and such other conditions as the\ntown board deems necessary and appropriate that are consistent with the\npurposes of this section. The purpose of providing for transfer of\ndevelopment rights shall be to protect the natural, scenic or\nagricultural qualities of open lands, to enhance sites and areas of\nspecial character or special historical, cultural, aesthetic or economic\ninterest or value, to protect lands at risk from sea level rise, storm\nsurge or flooding and to enable and encourage flexibility of design and\ncareful management of land in recognition of land as a basic and\nvaluable natural resource. The conditions hereinabove referred to are as\nfollows:\n a. That transfer of development rights, and the sending and receiving\ndistricts, shall be established in accordance with a comprehensive plan\nwithin the meaning of section two hundred sixty-three of this article.\nThe sending district from which transfer of development rights may be\nauthorized shall consist of natural, scenic, recreational, agricultural,\nforest, or open land or sites of special historical, cultural, aesthetic\nor economic values sought to be protected or lands at risk from sea\nlevel rise, storm surge or flooding. Every receiving district to which\ntransfer of development rights may be authorized, shall have been found\nby the town board, after evaluating the effects of potential increased\ndevelopment which is possible under the transfer of development rights\nprovisions, to contain adequate resources, environmental quality and\npublic facilities, including adequate transportation, water supply,\nwaste disposal and fire protection, and that there will be no\nsignificant environmentally damaging consequences and such increased\ndevelopment is compatible with the development otherwise permitted by\nthe town and by the federal, state, and county agencies having\njurisdiction to approve permissible development within the district. A\ngeneric environmental impact statement pursuant to the provisions of\narticle eight of the environmental conservation law shall be prepared by\nthe town board for the receiving district before any such district, or\nany sending district, is designated, and such statement shall be amended\nfrom time to time by the town board if there are material changes in\ncircumstances. Where a transfer of development rights affects districts\nin two or more school, special assessment or tax districts, it may not\nunreasonably transfer the tax burden between the taxpayers of such\ndistricts. The receiving and sending districts need not be coterminous\nwith zoning districts.\n b. That sending and receiving districts be designated and mapped with\nspecificity and the procedure for transfer of development rights be\nspecified. Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary,\nenvironmental quality review pursuant to article eight of the\nenvironmental conservation law for any action in a receiving district\nthat utilizes development rights shall only require information specific\nto the project and site where the action will occur and shall be limited\nto review of the environmental impacts of the action, if any, not\nadequately reviewed in the generic environmental impact statement.\n c. That the burden upon land within a sending district from which\ndevelopment rights have been transferred shall be documented by an\ninstrument duly executed by the grantor in the form of a conservation\neasement, as defined in title three of article forty-nine of the\nenvironmental conservation law, which burden upon such land shall be\nenforceable by the appropriate town in addition to any other person or\nentity granted enforcement rights by the terms of the instrument. All\nprovisions of law applicable to such conservation easements pursuant to\nsuch title shall apply with respect to conservation easements hereunder,\nexcept that the town board may adopt standards pertaining to the\nduration of such easements that are more stringent than such standards\npromulgated by the department of environmental conservation pursuant to\nsuch title. Upon the designation of any sending district, the town board\nshall adopt regulations establishing uniform minimum standards for\ninstruments creating such easements within the district. No such\nmodification or extinguishment of an easement shall diminish or impair\ndevelopment rights within any receiving district. Any development right\nwhich has been transferred by conservation easement shall be evidenced\nby a certificate of development right which shall be issued by the town\nto the transferee in a form suitable for recording in the registry of\ndeeds for the county where the receiving district is situated in the\nmanner of other conveyances of interests in land affecting its title.\n d. That within one year after a development right is transferred, the\nassessed valuation placed on the affected properties for real property\ntax purposes shall be adjusted to reflect the transfer. A development\nright which is transferred shall be deemed to be an interest in real\nproperty and the rights evidenced thereby shall inure to the benefit of\nthe transferee, and his heirs, successors and assigns.\n e. That development rights shall be transferred reflecting the normal\nmarket in land, including sales between owners of property in sending\nand receiving districts, a town may establish a development rights bank\nor such other account in which development rights may be retained and\nsold in the best interest of the town. Towns shall be authorized to\naccept for deposit within the bank gifts, donations, bequests or other\ndevelopment rights. All receipts and proceeds from sales of development\nrights sold by the town shall be deposited in a special municipal\naccount to be applied against expenditures necessitated by the municipal\ndevelopment rights program.\n f. That prior to designation of sending or receiving districts, the\nlegislative body of the town shall evaluate the impact of transfer of\ndevelopment rights upon the potential development of low or moderate\nincome housing lost in sending districts and gained in receiving\ndistricts and shall find either there is approximate equivalence between\npotential low and moderate housing units lost in the sending district\nand gained in the receiving districts or that the town has or will take\nreasonable action to compensate for any negative impact upon the\navailability or potential development of low or moderate income housing\ncaused by the transfer of development rights.\n 3. The town board adopting or amending procedures for transfer of\ndevelopment rights pursuant to this section shall follow the procedure\nfor adopting and amending its zoning ordinance or local law, as the case\nmay be, including all provisions for notice applicable for changes or\namendments to a zoning ordinance or local law.\n Nothing in this section shall be construed to invalidate any provision\nfor transfer of development rights heretofore or hereafter adopted by\nany local legislative body.\n