§ 7-701 — Transfer of development rights; definitions; conditions; procedures

§ 7-701 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 law respecting permissible use,\narea, density, bulk or height of improvements executed thereon.\nDevelopment rights may be calculated and allocated in accordance with\nsuch factors as area, floor area, floor area ratios, density, height\nlimitations, or any other criteria that will effectively quantify a\nvalue for the development right in a reasonable and uniform manner that\nwill 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 board of trustees\nis hereby empowered to provide for transfer of development rights\nsubject to the conditions hereinafter set forth and such other\nconditions as a village board of trustees deems necessary and\nappropriate that are consistent with the purposes of this section. The\npurpose of providing for transfer of development rights shall be to\nprotect the natural, scenic or agricultural qualities of open lands, to\nenhance sites and areas of special character or special historical,\ncultural, aesthetic or economic interest or value, to protect lands at\nrisk from sea level rise, storm surge or flooding, and to enable and\nencourage flexibility of design and careful management of land in\nrecognition of land as a basic and valuable natural resource. The\nconditions hereinabove referred to are as follows:\n a. That the transfer of development rights, and the sending and\nreceiving districts, shall be established in accordance with a\ncomprehensive master plan within the meaning of section 7-722 of this\narticle. The sending district from which transfer of development rights\nmay be authorized shall consist of natural, scenic, recreational,\nagricultural or open land or sites of special historical, cultural,\naesthetic or economic values sought to be protected or lands at risk\nfrom sea level rise, storm surge or flooding. Every receiving district,\nto which transfer of development rights may be authorized shall have\nbeen found by the board of trustees, after evaluating the effects of\npotential increased development which is possible under the transfer of\ndevelopment rights provisions to contain adequate resources,\nenvironmental quality and public facilities, including adequate\ntransportation, water supply, waste disposal and fire protection, and\nthat there will be no significant environmentally damaging consequences\nand such increased development is compatible with the development\notherwise permitted by the village and by the federal, state, and county\nagencies having jurisdiction to approve permissible development within\nthe district. A generic environmental impact statement pursuant to the\nprovisions of article eight of the environmental conservation law shall\nbe prepared by the village for the receiving district before any such\ndistrict, or any sending district, is designated, and such statement\nshall be amended from time to time by the village, if there are material\nchanges in circumstances. Where a transfer of development rights affects\ndistricts in two or more school, special assessment or tax districts, it\nmay not unreasonably transfer the tax burden between the taxpayers of\nsuch districts. The receiving and sending districts need not be\ncoterminous with 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 village in addition to any other person\nor entity 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 board of trustees 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 board of\ntrustees shall adopt regulations establishing uniform minimum standards\nfor instruments creating such easements within the district. Any\ndevelopment right which has been transferred by conservation easement\nshall be evidenced by a certificate of development right which shall be\nissued by the village to the transferee in a form suitable for recording\nin the registry of deeds for the county where the receiving district is\nsituated in the manner of other conveyances of interests in land\naffecting 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, incuding sales between owners of property in sending and\nreceiving districts, a village 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 village. Villages shall be authorized\nto accept for deposit within the bank gifts, donations, bequests or\nother development rights. All receipts and proceeds from sales of\ndevelopment rights sold by the village shall be deposited in a special\nmunicipal account to be applied against expenditures necessitated by the\nmunicipal development rights program.\n f. That prior to designation of sending or receiving disticts, the\nlegislative body of the village 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 village has or will\ntake reasonable 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 board of trustees adopting or amending procedures for transfer\nof development rights pursuant to this section shall follow the\nprocedure for adopting and amending a local law including all provisions\nfor notice applicable for changes or amendments to a zoning ordinance or\nlocal law.\n 4. Nothing in this section shall be construed to invalidate any\nprovision for transfer of development rights heretofore or hereafter\nadopted by any local legislative body.\n