Section 72-J. Parking garages and parking spaces; public off-street loading facilities

1. The governing board or other appropriate authority  of  a  municipal  corporation  may  acquire  by  purchase, gift, devise, lease,
  condemnation or otherwise, in accordance  with  the  provisions  of  any
  appropriate general, special, or local law applicable to the acquisition
  of  real  property  by  a  municipal  corporation,  real property or any
  interest therein necessary for or  incidental  to  the  construction  or
  operation  of  parking  garages  or  parking spaces or public off-street
  loading facilities for  the  relief  of  traffic  congestion  either  as
  provided  in  subdivision two hereof or as provided in subdivision three
  hereof.
    2. a. A municipal corporation or an urban renewal agency may construct
  and  operate  such  garages  or  spaces  or  public  off-street  loading
  facilities  including  the use of such portion of the property for other
  commercial uses as may be  necessary  to  provide  revenue  adequate  to
  permit  the  operation of the principal portion of the property for such
  garages or spaces or public off-street loading  facilities,  may  charge
  such  rentals  or  fees for their use and make such other provisions for
  their operation and management as it may deem necessary, and  may  enter
  into  contracts  for  their  construction  or  operation subject to such
  conditions as it may impose for  the  service  of  the  public  and  the
  protection  of  the  public  interest.  When  in furtherance of an urban
  renewal program such parking  garage  or  spaces  or  public  off-street
  loading  facilities  are  constructed  and  operated  pursuant to a duly
  approved urban renewal plan, the same or a portion thereof may be  sold,
  leased for a term not exceeding ninety-nine years, or otherwise disposed
  of, to any person, firm or corporation, without public auction or sealed
  bids, subject to such conditions as it may impose for the service of the
  public  and  the  protection of the public interest, provided such sale,
  lease or disposal is  made  in  accordance  with  and  pursuant  to  the
  provisions of section five hundred seven of this chapter.
    b. In addition to such powers as may be granted by any other law or by
  any  other  subdivision  of  this section, a municipal corporation or an
  urban renewal agency may lease, for a  term  not  exceeding  ninety-nine
  years,  such  air rights over or the subsurface areas under any property
  acquired or to be acquired for  garages,  spaces  or  public  off-street
  loading  facilities,  together  with  easements  or other rights of user
  necessary for the use and development of such air rights  or  subsurface
  areas,  as  are  not  needed for public purposes, to any person, firm or
  corporation for commercial or private use. Any such  lease  may  contain
  provisions  requiring  the  lessee  to  construct facilities adequate to
  support and  maintain,  without  interference,  the  public  parking  or
  off-street  loading  facilities  being  conducted by the municipality or
  urban renewal  agency  and  may  also  contain  such  other  provisions,
  conditions  and restrictions as the municipality or urban renewal agency
  may   prescribe.   Any   buildings,   structures,    substructures    or
  superstructures,  the  title  to  which  remains in the lessee, shall be
  deemed to be real property  for  purposes  of  taxation  as  defined  in
  subdivision  twelve  of section one hundred two of the real property tax
  law.
    3. Any municipal corporation, acting through its board of estimate  or
  other  governing body, may, in addition to exercising the powers granted
  to it by subdivision two hereof, sell, lease for a  term  not  exceeding
  ninety-nine  years,  or  otherwise  dispose  of any real property or any
  interest therein owned by it or acquired by it pursuant to this section,
  to any person, firm, or corporation at the highest marketable  price  or
  rental at public auction or by sealed bids pursuant to the provisions of
  any  general,  special  or  local  law applicable to the sale, lease, or

  disposition of real property by  such  municipal  corporation,  for  the
  purpose  of  the  construction or establishment on such real property of
  public parking garages or public parking  spaces  or  public  off-street
  loading  facilities  for  the  relief  of traffic congestion and for the
  maintenance and operation thereof. Any deed,  lease,  or  instrument  by
  which  real  property or any interest therein is conveyed or disposed of
  shall contain provisions requiring the purchaser, grantee, or lessee  to
  construct  or establish on such real property one or more public parking
  garages or public parking spaces or public off-street loading facilities
  and to maintain  and  operate  the  same  for  such  period  as  may  be
  prescribed  by the board of estimate or other governing body, provisions
  fixing or providing for the approval by the board of estimate  or  other
  analogous  body of rates to be charged for the use of such facilities by
  the operators thereof, and may also contain provisions  authorizing  the
  use of such portion of the property for other commercial purposes as may
  be  necessary to provide revenue adequate to permit the operation of the
  principal portion of the property for public parking garages and  public
  parking  space  or  public  off-street  loading facilities. Such deed or
  instrument  may  contain   such   other   provisions,   conditions   and
  restrictions, including specifications relating to construction, and the
  rentals at which such property may be leased or subleased by the grantee
  or  lessee  as  the  board  of  estimate  or  other  governing  body may
  prescribe. The prior consent of the city planning  commission  or  other
  analogous  body  of such municipal corporation shall be required for the
  acquisition by such municipal corporation of property for  the  purposes
  of  this  subdivision, which prior consent shall be based upon a finding
  by such  city  planning  commission  or  other  analogous  body  of  the
  desirability thereof and after a public hearing thereon.
    4. As used in this section:
    a.  The term "public garage" shall mean any building or facility where
  motor vehicles are parked, stored, serviced or repaired, and whose space
  and facilities are available to the  public,  with  or  without  fee  or
  charge,  without  regard to the residence, business or employment of the
  motor vehicle owner or operator seeking such space or facilities.
    b. The term  "public  off-street  loading  facility"  shall  mean  any
  building  or  area  for  the loading or unloading of trucks, trailers or
  other similar vehicles and the temporary  storage  of  goods  incidental
  thereto, which space and facilities shall be made available hereunder to
  the  public with or without fee or charge upon such terms and conditions
  as may be prescribed by the board of estimate or other governing body.
    5. A town, or a town parking district, and  a  village  wholly  within
  such  town  may,  as  herein  provided,  jointly  acquire  lands for and
  maintain and operate  parking  garages  and  parking  spaces  or  public
  off-street  loading facilities in the manner and for the purposes herein
  specified. Taxes levied for  the  town's  share  of  the  cost  of  such
  acquisition,  maintenance  and  operation  shall  be  a  charge upon the
  taxable property of that part of the town outside of such  village,  and
  shall  be  assessed,  levied and collected therefrom. Taxes levied for a
  parking district's share of the cost of  such  acquisition,  maintenance
  and  operation  shall be a charge upon the taxable property of that part
  of the parking district outside of such village and shall  be  assessed,
  levied and collected therefrom.
    6. The governing body of any municipal corporation may direct that the
  whole   of  the  expense  of  the  acquisition  of  lands  for  and  the
  construction of parking garages and parking spaces or public  off-street
  loading  facilities  be assessed upon property deemed benefited, or that
  the whole or part thereof be charged to  the  municipal  corporation  at
  large  and  the  remainder  if  any,  assessed  upon the property deemed

  benefited.  Proceedings for the assessment of the cost of acquisition of
  land for and construction of  parking  garages  and  parking  spaces  or
  public  off-street  loading  facilities shall be the same as for a local
  improvement assessment of other public work.