2023 New York Laws › NPC - Not-For-Profit Corporation › Article 15 - Public Cemetery Corporations › 1506-E - Lease of Cemetery Lands.

§ 1506-e. Lease of cemetery lands.
(a)  Cemetery  board approval. Except as set forth in paragraph (i) of
this section, no cemetery corporation shall lease  any  portion  of  its
land without notice to and approval of the cemetery board.
(b)  Requirements  for  approval  of  a  lease  of  cemetery land. The
application to the cemetery board for approval to  lease  cemetery  land
shall meet the following requirements:
(1)  The cemetery's lot owners or board of directors have approved the
lease.
(2) If the cemetery has any existing leases of land, it must  disclose
them so the board can consider the impact of existing leases on cemetery
operations.
(3)  In addition to its submission to the cemetery board, the cemetery
corporation shall, no earlier than ten days prior  to  such  submission,
post  notices  in  the  immediate  proximity  of the land proposed to be
leased, the cemetery office and, in a manner so as not to violate  local
zoning  ordinances  or  to  create a traffic hazard, all entrances. Each
such  notice  shall  provide  information  written  in   plain   English
concerning  the  proposed  lease  and,  if  the  proposed lease includes
construction of new structures or buildings, include  a  drawing,  which
shall  be  an  accurate  rendition  of  the  proposed  construction.  In
addition, such notices shall state  the  telephone  number  and  address
where  comments may be received and the last date on which such comments
will be accepted, which shall be no earlier than  sixty  days  following
the date the notices are posted.
(4)  The proposed lease has been negotiated at arm's length for a fair
market rent and contains all of  the  agreements  between  the  parties.
Where the proposed lease would be a related party transaction under this
chapter,   the   cemetery  shall  disclose  this  fact  and  demonstrate
compliance with restrictions related to such transactions, as set  forth
in section seven hundred fifteen of this chapter, and the cemetery board
may  require that the lease contain a clause by which the cemetery board
may set  reasonable  reporting  requirements  that  would  disclose  any
financial  relationship  between  the  lessor  and lessee related to the
leased property.
(5) The initial lease term is not greater than forty-nine  years,  and
the  cemetery demonstrates that such a term will not interfere with land
needed for burial  purposes.  Notwithstanding  the  provisions  of  this
subparagraph,  the cemetery board may approve a lease with extensions of
the initial term not to exceed ninety-nine years from the  date  of  the
initial  lease,  provided  that  the  security  shall be updated at year
forty-nine and every twenty years afterward during the term of the lease
and all extensions thereof, if  applicable,  and  approved  pursuant  to
paragraph (h) of this section.
(6)   If  the  proposed  lease  involves  land  adjacent  to  cemetery
operations, the proposed lease requires  the  tenant  to  construct  and
maintain  a  physical  or  visual buffer approved by the cemetery board,
which may be vegetative, and that protects visitors to the cemetery, and
that otherwise complies with the requirements of this section.
(7) The proposed lease requires the tenant to be responsible  for  any
and all taxes, assessments, and charges related to its occupancy and use
of  the  land,  whether  imposed  against  the  tenant  or  the cemetery
corporation.
(8) If  the  proposed  lease  includes  permission  to  construct  any
infrastructure,  buildings  or  other structures, the application to the
cemetery board shall provide for the  removal  of  such  infrastructure,
buildings  or  other structures after the cemetery retakes possession of
the land, unless the infrastructure, buildings or other  structures  are

to  be  retained  by  the  cemetery  pursuant  to  paragraph (f) of this
section.
(9)  The  proposed  lease  shall  include  an agreement to pay for the
removal of any proposed infrastructure, buildings and structures, except
any that are approved to be retained as set forth in  paragraph  (f)  of
this  section,  and return the land to a condition suitable for cemetery
use upon the expiration or termination of the lease and  such  agreement
shall  be  secured  by  a fund, bond, letter of credit or other security
sufficient to pay for such future removal. The application shall include
a  written  description  of  the  proposed  funding  mechanism  for  the
establishment  of  a fund, written evidence of a bond, or other security
to the cemetery board for payment of the cost of  restoring  the  leased
premises  to  a  condition suitable for use for cemetery purposes at the
end or earlier termination of the term of the lease, including  but  not
limited  to  the  cost  of removing any and all buildings and structures
that may then be  located  on  the  leased  premises  and  will  not  be
retained.  Any  such  bond shall be issued by an entity authorized to do
business in the state of New York, and any irrevocable letter of  credit
or  a certificate of deposit shall be from a New York state or federally
chartered  bank,  trust  company,  savings  bank  or  savings  and  loan
association  that  is  qualified to do business in the state of New York
and insured by the federal deposit insurance corporation.
(10) The land proposed to be leased will not be used for any  activity
that  would  be  disruptive  to cemetery operations or that would have a
significant impact on cemetery traffic.
(11) If the proposed use or activity arising therefrom  could  disturb
normal  and  usual  cemetery  activities,  the proposed lease limits the
hours of activity.
(12) The proposed lease will not include the manufacture  or  disposal
of  hazardous  material  or  the use or storage of hazardous material in
violation  of  any  law  or  otherwise  create  a  significant  risk  of
environmental harm to the cemetery property.
(13) The proposed lease may permit assignment or sub-leases, including
sub-leasing  and  assignment  of  space on cell towers to communications
providers, provided the original lease remains in  effect  and  the  use
remains the same.
(c)  The  following uses are deemed to comply with subparagraph ten of
paragraph (b) of this section:
(1) Communications service facilities, also known as cell towers;
(2) Solar panels; and
(3) Energy storage equipment,  as  defined  in  section  four  hundred
ninety-nine-aaaa of the real property tax law.
(d)  For  any  lease  involving related party transactions pursuant to
section seven hundred fifteen of this chapter, the  cemetery  board  may
set  reasonable reporting requirements that would disclose any financial
relationship between  the  lessor  and  lessee  related  to  the  leased
property.
(e) Any material modification, alteration or expansion of the lease or
additions  of  any  infrastructure,  structures or buildings outside the
scope of the prior approval requires cemetery board approval.
(f) If the  cemetery  corporation  intends  that  any  infrastructure,
structures  or  buildings  proposed under the lease be retained and used
for cemetery  purposes  after  the  lease  terminates  or  expires,  the
application  to  approve the lease shall also include an application for
approval of such infrastructure, structures or buildings as intended  to
be  used  by  the  cemetery.  The  board  shall  render  decision on the
application for a major alteration in conjunction with the  decision  on
the application to lease cemetery land. If that application is approved,

such  infrastructure, buildings or structures shall be excluded from the
requirements of subparagraph nine of paragraph (b) of this section.
(g)  The  application  shall include at least two written estimates of
the cost  of  removing  the  infrastructure,  buildings  and  structures
excluding   retained   infrastructure   and  associated  structures  and
returning the land to a condition suitable for burial  purposes  at  the
conclusion of the lease.
(h)  (1)  The  cemetery board shall approve the type and amount of the
security which shall be maintained in  full  force  and  effect,  in  an
amount  not  less  than  that  which was approved by the cemetery board,
until: (i) the leased premises shall have been restored to  a  condition
suitable for use for cemetery purposes at the end or earlier termination
of the term of the lease, (ii) any and all buildings and structures then
located  on  the leased premises shall have been removed, (iii) proof in
form acceptable to the cemetery board demonstrating that  all  costs  of
such  restoration  and  removal  work have been paid in full and that no
person or entity performing labor or furnishing materials for such  work
has  filed a notice of mechanic's lien that shall have been delivered to
the cemetery board, provided however that a cemetery  may  contest  such
lien  as  long  as  such contest prevents the foreclosure of a lien, and
(iv) if applicable, each governmental unit or  agency  that  issued  any
permit  for  such  restoration  and  removal  work  shall  have issued a
certificate of compliance or other similar  instrument  indicating  that
such  work  has  been  completed in a due and proper manner. The parties
directed to perform the restoration and  removal  work  contemplated  by
this  paragraph  and  as  approved  by  the  cemetery board shall not be
limited by the amount of the bond, letter of credit, or  certificate  of
deposit  or  by  any  inability to recover all or any part of such bond,
letter of credit, or certificate of deposit  from  the  issuing  surety,
bank,  trust  company,  savings  bank,  or savings and loan association.
Neither the cemetery board nor the department of state shall  be  liable
to  the tenant, the cemetery, or any other person or entity by reason or
any determination or approval made under this paragraph.
(2) Prior to the commencement  of  construction,  the  cemetery  shall
submit  proof to the cemetery board that such security in such amount is
in place.
(i) Leases for the  following  uses  do  not  require  cemetery  board
approval:
(1) A lease or license to grow and harvest crops with a term less than
five years;
(2)  A  lease  of  a  dwelling  to  the  caretaker or other officer or
employee of the cemetery that is actually  used  and  occupied  as  that
person's residence; and
(3)  A  renewal  or  assignment  of  an  existing  lease  of  existing
structures on land owned by the  cemetery,  not  dedicated  to  cemetery
purposes and that was subject to a lease, provided that such purchase or
acquisition  was  approved  by  a  court  or the cemetery board, if such
renewal does not change the scope of the existing lease.
(j) All  lease  payments  and  other  consideration  received  by  the
cemetery  corporation,  less  the  necessary expenses incurred, shall be
deposited  into  the  permanent  maintenance  fund  established  by  the
cemetery  corporation  pursuant  to  paragraph  (a)  of  section fifteen
hundred seven of this article, except that upon a showing of a  need  to
fund  specific  projects,  maintain  and  preserve,  or  expand  current
cemetery operations, the cemetery board may permit any  portion  of  the
lease payments or other consideration to be used for such purposes, with
the remainder to be deposited to the permanent maintenance fund.