Section 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.