New Jersey Administrative Code › Title 7 - ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION › Chapter 36 - GREEN ACRES PROGRAM › Subchapter 25 - REQUIREMENTS FOR MAINTENANCE OF PARKLAND; WHAT CONSTITUTES A DISPOSAL OR DIVERSION OF PARKLAND; AMENDMENT OF RECREATION AND OPEN SPACE INVENTORIES; ADMINISTRATIVE TRANSFER OF PARKLAND; CHANGES IN USE OF PARKLAND; CONSTRUCTION OF BUILDINGS ON PARKLAND; FEES; PUBLIC ACCESS TO AND USE OF PARKLAND; LEASES, USE AGREEMENTS AND CONCESSION AGREEMENTS; DESIGNATED COMMUTER PARKING LOTS; ADJUDICATORY HEARING REQUESTS › Section 7:36-25.13 - Leases, use agreements, or concession agreements for recreation and conservation purposes on funded or unfunded parkland

Current through Register Vol. 56, No. 14, July 15, 2024
(a) If a local government unit or nonprofit seeks to enter into or to renew a lease or use agreement which would support or promote the use of funded parkland or a recreation and conservation facility on the funded parkland for recreation and conservation purposes, the local government unit or nonprofit shall submit the proposed lease or agreement to the Department for approval at least 45 days before it intends to execute the lease or agreement. Any such lease or use agreement that is executed without the Department's approval is void and of no legal effect.
(b) The lease or agreement shall:
1. Be awarded in compliance with the Local Public Contracts Law, 40A:11-1 -et seq., the Local Land and Buildings Law, 13:12-1 et seq. and 7:36-25.6, as applicable;
2. Describe the specific use to which the parkland or facility will be put during the term of the lease or agreement and explain how this use will promote the use of funded parkland for recreation and conservation purposes;
3. Require that the public shall have reasonable access during the term of the lease or agreement to the parkland or facility which is the subject of the lease or agreement;
4. Establish the initial term of the lease or agreement pursuant to the following:
i. The lease or agreement shall provide for an initial term of no more than five years, or for good cause shown (such as the proposed construction of substantial capital improvements by the lessee or parkland user), provide for a longer initial term of less than 25 years; or
ii. The lease or agreement may provide for an initial term of 25 years or more; however, a term of 25 years or more shall be deemed to constitute a conveyance of parkland and requires the approval of the Commissioner and the State House Commission under N.J.A.C. 7:36-26.
5. Establish that the local government unit or nonprofit may, subject the approval of the Department at the end of the initial term and each additional term, renew the lease or agreement at the end of the initial term and thereafter for additional terms. Any renewal term shall be for no more than five years, or for good cause shown less than 25 years, unless a longer renewal term is approved by the Commissioner and the State House Commission in accordance with N.J.A.C. 7:36-26. The Department shall evaluate a request for renewal of a lease or agreement under the substantive standards for lease approval at (d) below;
6. Specify the payment, rental, or other consideration to be paid by the lessee or parkland user to the local government unit or nonprofit for the lease or use of the parkland;
7. Require that the lessee or parkland user comply with the lease, the applicable requirements of this subchapter, and any deed restrictions pertaining to the parkland;
8. Specify that any activities conducted on parkland under the lease or agreement are governed by the requirements of this chapter, the lease and any deed restrictions pertaining to the parkland;
9. Require the lessee or parkland user to name the Department as an additional insured under any insurance policy required by the lease or agreement, such that the Department shall have in all respects at least the same protections as the policy provides to the lessee, parkland user, local government unit or nonprofit; and
10. If the parkland is to be leased or used for agriculture, require that:
i. The parkland shall be farmed using management practices that conserve soil and water, such as those agricultural management practices approved by the State Agriculture Development Committee under the Right to Farm Act, 4:1C-1 et seq., and that minimize the use of herbicides, pesticides, and fertilizers in accordance with the Pesticide Control Code at N.J.A.C. 7:30;
ii. Any forests on the parkland to be leased or used shall be managed in accordance with the New Jersey Forestry and Wetlands Best Practices Manual; and
iii. The agricultural use of the parkland shall not adversely impact any documented occurrence of a threatened, endangered, or rare species or the habitat of such species.