NY Transp L § 400 (2021)
2021 New York Laws TRA - Transportation Article 15 - Air Transportation Facilities and Services at Stewart and Republic Airports 400 - Air Transportation Facilities and Services at Stewart and Republic Airports.

* §  400.  Air  transportation  facilities and services at Stewart and Republic airports. 1. In order to meet present and  future  state  needs with  respect  to  the  provision  of  adequate,  safe and efficient air transportation facilities and services to the public, and to promote the economic  development  and  well-being  of  the  state,  the   planning, development,  maintenance  and operation of such facilities and services at Stewart and Republic airports may be carried out  by  the  department and the commissioner in accordance with the provisions of this article.   2. The following terms, as used in this article shall mean:  (a)   "Air   transportation   facilities"   shall  mean  aircraft  and developments such as airports, air terminals, runways, hangars,  control towers,   ramps,   taxiways,   aprons,  wharves,  bulkheads,  buildings, structures, equipment, parking areas, improvements, facilities  and  any real  property necessary, convenient or desirable for or relating to the landing, taking off, accommodation and servicing of aircraft, or for the loading, unloading, interchange or transfer of  passengers,  baggage  or cargo,  or  otherwise  for  the  accommodation,  use  or  convenience of passengers, carriers, crews and employees. It shall also mean facilities providing access to  airports  or  air  terminals,  including  highways, access  roads,  driveways  and  appurtenances,  devices  and  structures incidental thereto.  (b)  "Air  transportation  purposes"  shall  mean  the   effectuation, establishment,  acquisition,  construction, rehabilitation, improvement, maintenance, extension, or operation of air transportation facilities or services owned, leased, operated or provided by the  department,  or  by others  pursuant  to  agreement  with  the department, at Stewart and/or Republic airports.  (c) "Department" shall mean the department of  transportation  of  the state of New York.  (d)  "Commissioner"  shall  mean the commissioner of transportation of the state of New York.  (e) "Stewart and Republic airports" shall  mean  those  airports,  and facilities   and   surrounding  areas  under  the  jurisdiction  of  the metropolitan transportation authority or any subsidiary  public  benefit corporation,  located  at (in the case of Stewart airport) the county of Orange, towns of Newburgh and New Windsor; and (in the case of  Republic airport) in the county of Suffolk, town of Babylon.  (f)  "Real  property"  shall  mean  lands,  structures, franchises and interests in land, including air space, air rights, waters, lands  under water  and  riparian  rights, and any and all things and rights included within said term, and includes not only fee simple absolute but also any and all lesser interests, including but not limited to easements, rights of way, uses, leases, licenses and all other  incorporeal  hereditaments and every estate, interest or right, legal or equitable, including terms for years and liens thereon by way of judgments, mortgages or otherwise.  (g)  "Aircraft"  shall  mean  aircraft of all types, including but not limited  to  airplanes,  airships,  dirigibles,  helicopters,   gliders, seaplanes,  or  any  other  contrivance  now  or  hereafter used for the navigation of or flight in air or space.  (h) "Stewart airport commission" shall mean the commission established by section four hundred one of this article.  (i)  "Republic  airport  commission"   shall   mean   the   commission established by section four hundred two of this article.   3. In order to effectuate the purposes of this article:  (a)  The commissioner, for and on behalf of the people of the state of New  York,  may  acquire  any  and  all  air  transportation  facilities necessary  for  air  transportation  purposes,  pursuant  to the eminent  domain procedure law, or by purchase, gift, grant, transfer, assignment, contract, lease or other arrangement.  (b)   The  department  may,  on  such  terms  and  conditions  as  the commissioner determines necessary, convenient or  desirable,  establish, construct,  effectuate,  operate, maintain, renovate, improve, extend or repair air transportation facilities at Stewart and  Republic  airports, or  may  provide  therefor  by  contract,  lease  or otherwise, with any person, firm, corporation, municipality, or governmental unit, agency or instrumentality. In connection  with  the  operation  of  any  such  air terminal,  the department may establish, construct, effectuate, operate, renovate, maintain, improve, extend or repair, or may  provide  therefor by  contract, lease or otherwise, any related services or activities the commissioner deems necessary, convenient or desirable.  (c) The department may establish, levy and  collect  or  cause  to  be established,   levied   and  collected,  or  join  with  others  in  the establishment, levying and collection, of such  fares,  tolls,  rentals, rates,  charges  and  other  fees  as  the commissioner deems necessary, convenient  or  desirable  for  the  use  or  operation   of   any   air transportation  facilities,  services,  equipment or activities operated at, serving or incidental to Stewart or Republic airports.  (d)  The  commissioner  may  establish  such  rules,  regulations  and procedures   governing   the   use,   operation  and  occupancy  of  air transportation facilities and related  facilities,  equipment,  services and  activities  at,  serving  or  incidental  to  Stewart  and Republic airports  as  he  may   deem   necessary,   convenient   or   desirable. Non-compliance  with  such  airport  rules  and  regulations  shall be a violation of law punishable by a fine not to exceed  two  hundred  fifty dollars unless a different fine is expressly provided in another section of law.  (e)  The  department may apply for, accept, receive and utilize grants of property, money and services and other  assistance  offered  or  made available  to  it by any person, government or agency or instrumentality thereof for any use within the scope of its functions, powers, duties or responsibilities under this article.  (f) The department may do all things it deems necessary, convenient or desirable to manage, control and direct the maintenance and operation of air  transportation  facilities  and  related   facilities,   equipment, activities  and services, at Stewart and/or Republic airports; provided, however, that the  department  shall  take  no  action  which  would  be inconsistent  with  or  supersede the provisions of subdivision three of section four hundred two of this article.  (g)  The  department  may  conduct  or  participate  in  demonstration projects  relating  to  air  transportation  facilities and services at, serving or incidental to Stewart or Republic airports.  (h) Upon the effective date of this  article  all  rights,  title  and interest  in  all  assets,  equipment  and  property,  both tangible and intangible,  used  in   connection   with   the   ownership,   planning, development,  maintenance and operation of Stewart and Republic airports of the  metropolitan  transportation  authority  and/or  any  subsidiary corporation  of  such authority are hereby transferred to the department of transportation. Any and all appropriations or  reappropriations  made in   any  capital  projects  fund  or  state  purposes  account  to  the metropolitan transportation authority in connection with either  Stewart and/or Republic airports which remain unencumbered on the effective date of   this   article   are   hereby  transferred  to  the  department  of transportation.  The  commissioner,  subject  to  the  approval  of  the division of the budget, shall enter into an agreement or agreements with the   metropolitan   transportation   authority  and/or  any  subsidiary  corporation of such authority and authorization is hereby granted to the metropolitan transportation authority and/or any subsidiary  corporation of such authority to enter into such agreement or agreements to transfer and  assign  to  the  department  of transportation any other rights and obligations and  contract  rights  and  obligations  resulting  from  or arising  out of the ownership, planning, development, maintenance and/or operation of Stewart and/or Republic airports, and  notwithstanding  the provisions  of  chapter four hundred seventy-two of the laws of nineteen hundred seventy-one, the metropolitan  transportation  authority  and/or any  subsidiary  corporation of such authority is authorized to contract with the commissioner to provide service  as  an  airport  operator  for Stewart  and/or  Republic  airports.  In  lieu  of  contracting with the metropolitan transportation authority and/or any subsidiary  corporation of  such  authority for such services, the commissioner may contract for the operation of Stewart and/or Republic  airports  with  any  qualified operator. Any service contract shall contain the clause that the term of such contract with respect to either Stewart airport or Republic airport or  both  shall  be subject to cancellation upon six months' notice from the  commissioner.  Such  notice  shall  be   given   only   after   the consultation, guidance, advice and assistance relative to such action by either the Stewart airport commission or the Republic airport commission or  both  with  respect  to  such  service contract as it affects either Stewart airport or Republic airport  or  both  respectively.  Until  the effective   date   of   any   such  contract  between  the  metropolitan transportation authority and/or subsidiary corporation of such authority or another entity and  the  commissioner  to  provide  airport  operator services   at   Stewart   and/or  Republic  airports  respectively,  the metropolitan   transportation   authority   through    its    subsidiary metropolitan airports authority shall continue to provide the service as an  airport  operator  for  both  Stewart and Republic airports with the costs and expenses of such  activities  throughout  the  period  of  the effective  date  of  this  article  through  the  effective date of such contract  being  the  obligation  of  the  metropolitan   transportation authority,  but not longer than one year from the effective date of this article.   Notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained in  this  paragraph on  or  after  the effective date of this article, interests in the real property  and  air  transportation   facilities   at   Stewart   airport hereinafter  set forth shall be leased by the state to the United States government upon terms and consideration and for a term  to  be  mutually agreed  upon  by the commissioner and said United States government with the concurrence of the adjutant general for the purpose of  establishing an air national guard facility:  (i) For such temporary period or periods as the adjutant general deems necessary,  and  for  the  purposes  of  an  interim  air national guard facility, pending construction of a permanent facility--   Such real property and such air transportation facilities as shall  be agreed  upon  by  the commissioner and the United States government with the concurrence of the adjutant  general.  The  federal  government  has appropriated  five  hundred  thousand  dollars for rehabilitation of the said interim air national guard facility. Upon  relocation  of  the  air national guard to said permanent facilities all improvements constructed by  the federal government shall become the property of the state of New York.  (ii) For a term of  fifty  years  with  option  for  renewal  for  the purposes of a permanent air national guard facility--   Building  105  with  adjacent  parking  compound  located  in  rear of building, and the land commonly known as the "pad area" situated between  runways twenty-seven and thirty-four and the  eastern  boundary  of  the airport  property,  this  site being the location upon which a permanent air national guard facility will be constructed.  (i)  In  connection  with any improvements on real property or any new leases or renewal of leases for real property made after the  department assumes  jurisdiction over an air transportation facility, whether owned by the state or others, that are devoted  to  non-aviation  purposes  in whole  or substantial portion thereof, the commissioner shall enter into agreements to pay, or make provisions for the payment of, annual sums in lieu of taxes to any municipality or political subdivision of the  state in which such improvements are located. Such non-aviation purposes shall include  but  not be limited to motel, hotel, restaurant, transportation services other than aircraft, manufacturers whose products are not  used exclusively  at  the  airport,  general  office  space  and  such  other buildings and improvements as determined by the commissioner to  be  not exclusively  for  aviation  purposes. In regard to such non-aviation and substantial portion related determinations and any proration of  use  or purpose   for   determination   of   in   lieu  of  tax  payments,  such determinations shall be in accordance with the recommendations  made  by the  Stewart  airport  commission or Republic airport commission and the affected municipalities or politial subdivisions, respectively.   Notwithstanding the foregoing provisions of  this  subdivision  if  an agreement is made between the Stewart airport commission or the Republic airport commission and all municipalities or political subdivisions with respect  to payments in lieu of taxes or the definition of "non-aviation purposes" such agreements shall be binding upon  the  commissioner  with respect  to  such  subjects, provided, however, that if there is no such agreement among all the aforementioned parties, the  commissioner  shall make  such  determinations  based  upon  the  recommendations of all the parties.   4. Once the Stewart airport commission  and/or  the  Republic  airport commission have been established, the commissioner and/or the department shall  effectuate  the authorizations, powers and/or duties set forth in this article with respect to Stewart  airport  and/or  Republic  airport only following the consultation, guidance, advice, and assistance of the Stewart  airport  commission  and/or  the  Republic  airport commission, respectively.   5. No toxic waste site or center shall be  located  or  maintained  at either  Stewart  airport  including the surrounding area as contained in the  metropolitan  transportation  authority  project  map  number   one thousand filed in the Orange county clerk's office on August thirteenth, nineteen hundred seventy-one or Republic airport.   * NB There are 2 § 400's