§ 64-G — Town of Warwick preservation funds

§ 64-g. Town of Warwick preservation funds. 1. As used in this\nsection, the following words and terms shall have the following\nmeanings:\n (a) "Town" means the town of Warwick.\n (b) "Community preservation" shall mean and include any of the\npurposes outlined in subdivision four of this section.\n (c) "Board" means the advisory board required pursuant to subdivision\nfive of this section.\n (d) "Fund" means the community preservation fund created pursuant to\nsubdivision two of this section.\n 2. The town board of the town of Warwick is authorized to establish by\nlocal law a community preservation fund pursuant to the provisions of\nthis section. Deposits into the fund may include revenues of the local\ngovernment from whatever source and shall include, at a minimum, all\nrevenues from a tax imposed upon the transfer of real property interests\nin such town pursuant to article thirty-one-F of the tax law. The fund\nshall also be authorized to accept gifts of any such interests in land\nor of funds. Interest accrued by monies deposited into the fund shall be\ncredited to the fund. In no event shall monies deposited in the fund be\ntransferred to any other account. Nothing contained in this section\nshall be construed to prevent the financing in whole or in part,\npursuant to the local finance law, of any acquisition authorized\npursuant to this section. Monies from the fund may be utilized to repay\nany indebtedness or obligations incurred pursuant to the local finance\nlaw consistent with effectuating the purposes of this section. The town\nof Warwick may only adopt the local law authorized by this subdivision\nif it has incurred or authorized bonded indebtedness since nineteen\nhundred eighty for open space purposes equal to or greater than two\nhundred dollars per town resident. The number of residents shall be\ndetermined by the 2000 U.S. Census. Said local law shall make a finding\nthat the town has complied with the per resident financial commitment\nrequirement of this subdivision.\n 3. The purposes of the fund shall be exclusively, (a) to implement a\nplan for the preservation of community character as required by this\nsection, (b) to acquire interests or rights in real property for the\npreservation of community character within the town including villages\ntherein in accordance with such plan and in cooperation with willing\nsellers, (c) to establish a bank pursuant to a transfer of development\nrights program consistent with section two hundred sixty-one-a of this\nchapter, and (d) to provide a management and stewardship program for\nsuch interests and rights consistent with subdivision nine of this\nsection and in accordance with such plan designed to preserve community\ncharacter. Not more than ten percent of the fund shall be utilized for\nthe management and stewardship program. If the implementation of the\ncommunity preservation project plan, adopted by the town board, as\nprovided in subdivision six of this section, has been completed, and\nfunds are no longer needed for the purposes outlined in this\nsubdivision, then any remaining monies in the fund shall be applied to\nreduce any bonded indebtedness or obligations incurred to effectuate the\npurposes of this section.\n 4. Preservation of community character shall involve one or more of\nthe following: (a) establishment of parks, nature preserves, or\nrecreation areas; (b) preservation of open space, including agricultural\nlands; (c) preservation of lands of exceptional scenic value; (d)\npreservation of aquifer recharge areas; (e) preservation of undeveloped\nbeachlands or shoreline; (f) establishment of wildlife refuges for the\npurpose of maintaining native animal species diversity, including the\nprotection of habitat essential to the recovery of rare, threatened or\nendangered species; (g) preservation of unique or threatened ecological\nareas; (h) preservation of rivers and river areas in a natural,\nfree-flowing condition; (i) preservation of forested land; (j)\npreservation of public access to lands for public use including stream\nrights and waterways; (k) preservation of historic places and properties\nlisted on the New York state register of historic places and/or\nprotected under a municipal historic preservation ordinance or law; and\n(l) undertaking any of the aforementioned in furtherance of the\nestablishment of a greenbelt.\n 5. The town board which has established a community preservation fund\nshall create an advisory board to review and make recommendations on\nproposed acquisitions of interests in real property using monies from\nthe fund. Such board shall consist of five or seven legal residents of\nthe municipality who shall serve without compensation. No member of the\nlocal legislative body shall serve on the board. A majority of the\nmembers of the board shall have demonstrated experience with\nconservation or land preservation activities. The board shall act in an\nadvisory capacity to the town board. At least one member of the board\nshall be an active farmer.\n 6. The town board which has established a community preservation fund\nshall, by local law, adopt a community preservation project plan. Such\nplan shall list every project which the town plans to undertake pursuant\nto the community preservation fund. It shall include every parcel which\nis necessary to be acquired in the town in order to protect community\ncharacter. Such plan shall provide for a detailed evaluation of all\navailable land use alternatives to protect community character,\nincluding but not limited to: (a) fee simple acquisition, (b) zoning\nregulations, including density reductions, cluster development, and site\nplan and design requirements, (c) transfer of development rights, (d)\nthe purchase of development rights, and (e) scenic and conservation\neasements. Said evaluation shall be as specific as practicable as to\neach parcel selected for inclusion in such plan. Such plan shall\nestablish the priorities for preservation, and shall include the\npreservation of farmland as its highest priority. Funds from the\ncommunity preservation fund may only be expended for projects which have\nbeen included in such plan. Such plan shall be updated not less than\nonce every five years, but in no event until at least three years after\nthe adoption of the original plan. A copy of such plan shall be filed\nwith the commissioner of environmental conservation, the commissioner of\nagriculture and markets and the commissioner of the office of parks,\nrecreation and historic preservation. Such plan shall be completed at\nleast sixty days before the submission of the mandatory referendum\nrequired by section fourteen hundred forty-nine-bbbb of the tax law.\n 7. The town board which has established a community preservation fund\npursuant to this section shall study and consider establishing a\ntransfer of development rights program to protect community character as\nprovided for by section two hundred sixty-one-a of this chapter. All\nprovisions of such section two hundred sixty-one-a shall be complied\nwith. If at any time during the life of the community preservation fund\na transfer of development rights program is established, the town may\nutilize monies from the community preservation fund in order to create\nand fund a central bank of the transfer of development rights program.\nIf at any time during the life of the community preservation fund, a\ntransfer of development rights program is repealed by the town, all\nmonies from the central bank shall be returned to the community\npreservation fund.\n 8. No interests or rights in real property shall be acquired pursuant\nto this section until a public hearing is held as required by section\ntwo hundred forty-seven of the general municipal law; provided, however,\nthat nothing herein shall prevent the town board from entering into a\nconditional purchase agreement before a public hearing is held. Any\nresolution of the town board approving an acquisition of land pursuant\nto this section, shall find that acquisition was the best alternative\nfor the protection of community character of all the reasonable\nalternatives available to the town.\n 9. Lands acquired pursuant to this section shall be administered and\nmanaged in a manner which (a) allows public use and enjoyment in a\nmanner compatible with the natural, scenic, historic and open space\ncharacter of such lands; (b) preserves the native biological diversity\nof such lands; (c) with regard to open spaces, limits improvements to\nenhancing access for passive use of such lands such as nature trails,\nboardwalks, bicycle paths, and peripheral parking areas provided that\nsuch improvements do not degrade the ecological value of the land or\nthreaten essential wildlife habitat; and (d) preserves cultural property\nconsistent with accepted standards for historic preservation. In\nfurthering the purposes of this section, the town may enter into\nagreements with corporations organized under the not-for-profit\ncorporation law and engage in land trust activities to manage lands\nincluding less than fee interests acquired pursuant to the provisions of\nthis section, provided that any such agreement shall contain a provision\nthat such corporation shall keep the lands accessible to the public\nunless such corporation shall demonstrate to the satisfaction of the\ntown that public accessibility would be detrimental to the lands or any\nnatural resources associated therewith.\n 10. Rights or interests in real property acquired with monies from\nsuch fund shall not be sold, leased, exchanged, donated, or otherwise\ndisposed of or used for other than the purposes permitted by this\nsection without the express authority of an act of the legislature,\nwhich shall provide for the substitution of other lands of equal\nenvironmental value and fair market value and reasonably equivalent\nusefulness and location to those to be discontinued, sold or disposed\nof, and such other requirements as shall be approved by the legislature.\nNothing in this section shall preclude the town, by local law, from\nestablishing additional restrictions to the alienation of lands acquired\npursuant to this section. This subdivision shall not apply to the sale\nof development rights by the town acquired pursuant to this section,\nwhere said sale is made by a central bank created by the town, pursuant\nto a transfer of development rights program established by the town\npursuant to section two hundred sixty-one-a of this chapter, provided,\nhowever (a) that the lands from which said development rights were\nacquired shall remain preserved in perpetuity by a permanent\nconservation easement or other instrument that similarly preserves the\ncommunity character referenced in subdivision four of this section, and\n(b) the proceeds from such sale shall be deposited in the community\npreservation fund.\n