N.Y. HAY Law § 205-C — New York Code / Act HAY / Article 8 / Section 205-C
Minimum maintenance roads
Status: in_force

* § 205-c. Minimum maintenance roads. 1. a. The town board of any\ndesignated town may, after a public hearing, adopt a local law\ndesignating any low-volume road or portion thereof providing\nagricultural or recreational land access, except for farm access roads\nor roads that provide access to an individual year-round residence at\nthe time of designation, as a minimum maintenance road. No such law\nshall restrict farm operations in an agricultural district. Such local\nlaw shall not prevent the state from maintaining such road if the road\npasses over, or provides access to, state land. No such law designating\na minimum maintenance road shall be effective until signs are posted\nadvising the public that such road is a minimum maintenance road. No\nroad, once designated a minimum maintenance road, shall be determined to\nhave been abandoned pursuant to the provisions of subdivision one of\nsection two hundred five of this article solely because it has been\ndesignated a minimum maintenance road.\n  b. At least forty-five days prior to the public hearing on such local\nlaw the town board having jurisdiction over such road shall issue\nfindings that such road or portion thereof should be designated a\nminimum maintenance road. Such findings shall include, but not be\nlimited to:\n  (i) the volume and type of motor vehicle traffic on such road;\n  (ii) a determination that the property owners of land abutting the\nroad shall continue to have access to their property;\n  (iii) a determination that the users of the road traveling at a\nreasonable and prudent speed, under the circumstances, shall not be\nplaced in a hazardous situation;\n  (iv) a determination that such road, or portion thereof, does not\nconstitute a farm access road as defined in this section; and\n  (v) the effect of such designation on any farm operations dependent\nupon the road, and that such designation does not restrict farm\noperations in agricultural districts.\n  A copy of the town board's findings shall be made available for public\ninspection in the town clerk's office and posted to the town website if\navailable.\n  A copy of the findings shall be sent to the school board of the school\ndistrict in which each road is located and to the town planning board.\nSuch school board and planning board may review the findings of the town\nboard and within forty-five days file with the town clerk their\nrecommendation and findings. In the event the school or planning board\ntakes no action within the forty-five day review period the town board\nmay proceed without said board's recommendation and findings. School or\nplanning board review may be waived, shortened or extended upon mutual\nconsent of said board and the town board. The town board of the town\nmay, by resolution, accept, accept in part, or reject the\nrecommendations of either the school or planning board prior to any vote\nupon the proposed local law.\n  A copy of the findings shall also be sent to the department of\nenvironmental conservation or any other relevant state agency that has\njurisdiction over the land that the road proposed to be designated as\nminimum maintenance passes over or provides access to.\n  c. At least thirty days prior to the public hearing on such local law,\nwritten notice of such hearing, including a summary of the findings,\nshall be served by certified mail upon every owner of real property, as\ndetermined by the latest completed assessment roll, abutting such road\nor portion thereof.\n  d. The town clerk shall give notice of such hearing by the publication\nof a notice in at least one newspaper of general circulation in the\ntown, and post such notice on the town website if available, specifying\nthe time when and the place where such hearing will be held, and in\ngeneral terms describing the proposed resolution. Such notice shall be\npublished once at least five days prior to the day specified for such\nhearing.\n  2. A road or road segment located within a designated town, which has\nbeen designated minimum maintenance, shall be maintained at the same\nlevel as other roads within the town but shall not require snow and ice\nremoval and maintenance. Such level of maintenance shall not restrict\naccess to farmland by a farm operation eligible for agricultural\nassessment pursuant to article twenty-five-AA of the agriculture and\nmarkets law. Minimum maintenance roads shall continue to be part of the\ntown highway system.\n  3. a. Any person or persons owning or occupying real property abutting\na road or portion thereof which has been designated a minimum\nmaintenance road may petition the town having jurisdiction over such\nroad or portion thereof to discontinue the designation of such road as a\nminimum maintenance road. Such petition shall be filed with the clerk of\nthe town having jurisdiction over such road. Such petition shall\nidentify the road or portion thereof to be discontinued as a minimum\nmaintenance road and set forth the reasons for such discontinuance or\nmodification.  The town board having jurisdiction over such road shall\nhold a public hearing upon such petition within thirty days after its\nreceipt. The town clerk shall give notice of such hearing by the\npublication of a notice in at least one newspaper of general circulation\nin the town, and post such notice on the town website if available,\nspecifying the time when and the place where such hearing will be held,\nand in general terms describing the proposed resolution. Such notice\nshall be published once at least five days prior to the day specified\nfor such hearing.\n  b. In the event the town board, after such public hearing, determines\nthat such designation shall continue unchanged, no additional petition\nmay be submitted by a person or persons pursuant to this section until\nthe lapse of at least twenty-four months from the date of the filing of\nthe previous petition filed by such person or persons.\n  c. The town board having jurisdiction over a minimum maintenance road\nmay adopt a local law discontinuing such minimum maintenance road\ndesignation in the event it determines such discontinuance to be in the\npublic interest.\n  4. When used in this section, unless otherwise expressly stated, or\nunless the context or subject matter otherwise requires, the following\nterms shall have the following meanings:\n  a. "Low-volume road" shall mean a town highway or portion thereof\nlocated in a designated town, when such highway has an average daily\ntraffic count of less than four hundred motor vehicles per day. Such\nterm shall not apply to any highway or road or portion thereof which has\npreviously been abandoned pursuant to subdivision one of section two\nhundred five of this article because it shall not have been used or\ntraveled as a highway for six years.\n  b. "Agricultural land access road" shall mean a low-volume road that\nprovides access to farm land. Traffic volumes are low and vary\nseasonally.\n  c. "Farm access road" shall mean a low-volume road that provides\nprincipal motor vehicle access for the transport of goods and services\nnecessary for effective support of a farm's daily operations to and from\nthe primary location or center of such operations. Traffic volume is\ngenerally low, significantly less than four hundred motor vehicles per\nday, and may include occasional heavy vehicles and farm equipment as\nwell as other motor vehicles.\n  d. "Recreation land access road" shall mean a low-volume road that\nprovides access to recreational land including seasonal dwellings, parks\nand recreational lands. Volumes can vary with the type of recreation\nfacility, activity and season of the year.\n  e. "Minimum maintenance road" shall mean a low-volume agricultural or\nrecreational access road or portion thereof with an average daily\ntraffic count of less than fifty motor vehicles per day designated by\nthe designated town as minimum maintenance pursuant to this section,\nexcept for a farm access road or a road which provides access to an\nindividual year-round residence at the time it is proposed to be\ndesignated minimum maintenance.\n  f. "Motor vehicle" shall mean a motor vehicle as defined by section\none hundred twenty-five of the vehicle and traffic law.\n  g. "Designated town" shall mean the town of Lorraine, Jefferson\ncounty.\n  5. Nothing in this section shall be construed as limiting, diminishing\nor otherwise affecting the powers of any municipality other than the\ndesignated town.\n  * NB Repealed December 8, 2031\n