NY Town L § 64-F (2021)
2021 New York Laws TWN - Town Article 4 - Town Boards 64-F - Town of Brookhaven Community Preservation Fund.

§  64-f. Town of Brookhaven community preservation fund. 1. As used in this section, the following words and terms  shall  have  the  following meanings:  (a) "Town" means the town of Brookhaven in the county of Suffolk.  (b)  "Community  preservation"  shall  mean  and  include  any  of the purposes outlined in subdivision four of this section.  (c) "Board" means the advisory board required pursuant to  subdivision five of this section.  (d)  "Fund"  means the community preservation fund created pursuant to subdivision two of this section.   2. The town board of the town is authorized to establish by local  law a  community  preservation  fund  pursuant  to  the  provisions  of this section.  Deposits into the fund may include revenues of the  town  from whatever source and shall include, at a minimum, all revenues from a tax imposed  upon  the  transfer  of  real  property  interests in such town pursuant to article thirty-one-B of the tax law. The fund shall also  be authorized  to  accept  gifts of any such interests in land or of funds. Interest accrued by monies deposited into the fund shall be credited  to the fund.  In no event shall monies deposited in the fund be transferred to  any  other  account.  Nothing  contained  in  this  section shall be construed to prevent the financing in whole or in part, pursuant to  the local  finance  law,  of  any  acquisition  authorized  pursuant to this section. Monies from the fund may be utilized to repay any  indebtedness or  obligations  incurred  pursuant  to the local finance law consistent with effectuating the purposes of this  section.  The  town  shall  only adopt the local law authorized by this subdivision if it has incurred or authorized  bonded  indebtedness  since nineteen hundred eighty for open space purposes equal to or greater than two  hundred  dollars  per  town resident,  and shall also include in such calculation of its incurred or authorized  bonded  indebtedness,  the  incurred  or  authorized  bonded indebtedness  dedicated for open space purposes of the county of Suffolk within the town. The number of residents shall be determined by the 1990 U.S. Census. Said local law shall make  a  finding  that  the  town  has complied  with the per resident financial commitment requirement of this subdivision.   3. The purposes of the fund shall be exclusively, (a) to  implement  a plan  for  the  preservation  of community character as required by this section, (b) to acquire interests or rights in  real  property  for  the preservation  of  community character within the town including villages therein in accordance with such plan and  in  cooperation  with  willing sellers,  (c)  to establish a bank pursuant to a transfer of development rights program consistent with section two hundred sixty-one-a  of  this chapter,  (d)  to  provide a management and stewardship program for such interests and rights consistent with subdivision nine  of  this  section and  in  accordance  with  such  plan  designed  to  preserve  community character; provided that not more than ten percent of the fund shall  be utilized  for  the  management  and stewardship program, and (e) to make payments to school, fire, fire protection  and  ambulance  districts  in connection  with  lands  owned by the state or any municipal corporation within the central pine barrens area as defined in  subdivision  ten  of section 57-0107 of the environmental conservation law. Such payments may only  be  made  to  districts where more than twenty-five percent of the assessed value of such district is  wholly  exempt  from  real  property taxation  pursuant  to  the real property tax law because it is owned by the state or a municipal corporation. Not more than ten percent  of  the fund  may  be  used for said purpose in any calendar year. Such payments from the fund shall not exceed the actual tax liability that would  have been  due  if  such lands of the state or of a municipal corporation had  been subject to real property taxation. Where more than one district  is eligible  for such a payment under this subdivision, and such payment is less than the actual tax liability that would  have  been  due  if  such lands  of  the state or a municipal corporation had been subject to real property taxation, the town shall apportion such annual payment  on  the basis  of  the total tax levied by each district within the town for the year such payment is made. Such payment made by the town shall  be  used solely  to  reduce the property tax liability of the remaining taxpayers of the district within said town. If the implementation of the community preservation project plan, adopted by the town  board,  as  provided  in subdivision  six  of  this section, has been completed, and funds are no longer needed for the purposes outlined in this  subdivision,  then  any remaining  monies  in  the  fund  shall  be applied to reduce any bonded indebtedness or obligations incurred to effectuate the purposes of  this section.   4.  Preservation  of  community character shall involve one or more of the  following:  (a)  establishment  of  parks,  nature   preserves   or recreation areas; (b) preservation of open space, including agricultural lands;  (c)  preservation  of  lands  of  exceptional  scenic value; (d) preservation of fresh and  saltwater  marshes  or  other  wetlands;  (e) preservation  of aquifer recharge areas; (f) preservation of undeveloped beachlands or shoreline; (g) establishment of wildlife refuges  for  the purpose  of  maintaining  native animal species diversity, including the protection of habitat essential to the recovery of rare,  threatened  or endangered  species; (h) preservation of pine barrens consisting of such biota as pitch pine, and  scrub  oak;  (i)  preservation  of  unique  or threatened  ecological areas; (j) preservation of rivers and river areas in a natural, free-flowing condition; (k) preservation of forested land; (l) preservation of public access to  lands  for  public  use  including stream  rights  and  waterways;  (m) preservation of historic places and properties listed on the New York  state  register  of  historic  places and/or  protected  under  a municipal historic preservation ordinance or law; and (n) undertaking any of the aforementioned in furtherance of the establishment of a greenbelt.   5. The town board of  the  town  upon  establishment  of  a  community preservation  fund  shall  create  an  advisory board to review and make recommendations on proposed acquisitions of interests in  real  property using  monies  from  the fund. Such board shall consist of five or seven legal residents of the town who shall  serve  without  compensation.  No member  of  the  town  board shall serve on the board. A majority of the members  of  the  board  shall   have   demonstrated   experience   with conservation  or land preservation activities. The board shall act in an advisory capacity to the town board. At least one member  of  the  board shall be an active farmer.   6.  The  town  board  of  the  town  upon establishment of a community preservation fund shall, by local law, adopt  a  community  preservation project plan. This plan shall list every project which the town plans to undertake  pursuant to the community preservation fund. It shall include every parcel which is necessary to be acquired in the town in  order  to protect  community  character.  Such  plan  shall provide for a detailed evaluation of all available land use alternatives to  protect  community character, including but not limited to: (a) fee simple acquisition, (b) zoning  regulations,  including density reductions, cluster development, and site plan and  design  requirements,  (c)  transfer  of  development rights,  (d)  the  purchase  of  development  rights, and (e) scenic and conservation  easements.  Said  evaluation  shall  be  as  specific   as practicable  as  to  each parcel selected for inclusion in the plan. The plan shall establish the priorities for preservation, and shall  include  the  preservation  of  farmland  as its highest priority. Funds from the community preservation fund shall only be expended  for  projects  which have  been  included  in  said plan. Said plan shall be updated not less than  once  every five years. A copy of the plan shall be filed with the commissioner  of  environmental  conservation,   the   commissioner   of agriculture  and  markets  and the commissioner of parks, recreation and historic preservation. Said plan shall be completed at least sixty  days before  the  submission  of the mandatory referendum required by section one thousand four hundred forty-one of the tax law.   7. The town board of  the  town  upon  establishment  of  a  community preservation  fund  pursuant  to  this  section shall study and consider establishing  a  transfer  of  development  rights  program  to  protect community  character  as provided for by section two hundred sixty-one-a of this chapter. All provisions of such section two hundred  sixty-one-a shall  be complied with. If at any time during the life of the community preservation  fund  a  transfer  of  development   rights   program   is established, the town may utilize monies from the community preservation fund  in  order  to  create  and  fund a central bank of the transfer of development rights program. If at  any  time  during  the  life  of  the community preservation fund, a transfer of development rights program is repealed by the town, all monies from the central bank shall be returned to the community preservation fund.   8.  No interests or rights in real property shall be acquired pursuant to this section until a public hearing is held as  required  by  section two hundred forty-seven of the general municipal law; provided, however, that  nothing  in  this  subdivision  shall  prevent the town board from entering into a conditional purchase agreement before a  public  hearing is  held.  Any  resolution of the town board approving an acquisition of land pursuant to this section, shall find that acquisition was the  best alternative  for  the  protection  of  community  character  of  all the reasonable alternatives available to the town.   9. Lands acquired pursuant to this section shall be  administered  and managed  in  a  manner  which  (a)  allows public use and enjoyment in a manner compatible with the natural,  scenic,  historic  and  open  space character  of  such lands; (b) preserves the native biological diversity of such lands; (c) with regard to open spaces,  limits  improvements  to enhancing  access  for  passive use of such lands such as nature trails, boardwalks, bicycle paths, and peripheral parking  areas  provided  that such  improvements  do  not  degrade the ecological value of the land or threaten essential wildlife habitat; and (d) preserves cultural property consistent  with  accepted  standards  for  historic  preservation.   In furthering  the  purposes  of  this  section,  the  town  may enter into agreements  with  corporations  organized   under   the   not-for-profit corporation  law  and  engage  in  land trust activities to manage lands including less than fee interests acquired pursuant to the provisions of this section, provided that any such agreement shall contain a provision that such corporation shall keep the  lands  accessible  to  the  public unless  such  corporation  shall  demonstrate to the satisfaction of the town that public accessibility would be detrimental to the lands or  any natural resources associated therewith.   10.  Rights  or  interests  in real property acquired with monies from such fund shall not be sold, leased, exchanged,  donated,  or  otherwise disposed  of  or  used  for  other  than  the purposes permitted by this section without the express authority of  an  act  of  the  legislature, which  shall  provide  for  the  substitution  of  other  lands of equal environmental value and fair  market  value  and  reasonably  equivalent usefulness  and  location  to those to be discontinued, sold or disposed of, and such other requirements as shall be approved by the legislature.  Nothing in this section shall preclude the  town,  by  local  law,  from establishing additional restrictions to the alienation of lands acquired pursuant  to  this section. This subdivision shall not apply to the sale of  development  rights  by  the town acquired pursuant to this section, where said sale is made by a central bank created by the town,  pursuant to  a  transfer  of  development  rights program established by the town pursuant to section two hundred sixty-one-a of this  chapter,  provided, however  (a)  that  the  lands  from  which said development rights were acquired  shall  remain  preserved  in   perpetuity   by   a   permanent conservation  easement  or other instrument that similarly preserves the community character referenced in subdivision four of this section,  and (b)  the  proceeds  from  such  sale shall be deposited in the community preservation fund.