§ 6-s. Community preservation funds. 1. As used in this section, the
following words and terms shall have the following meanings:

(a) "Community preservation" shall mean and include any of the
purposes outlined in subdivision four of this section.

(b) "Board" means the advisory board required pursuant to subdivision
five of this section.

(c) "Fund" means the community preservation fund created pursuant to
subdivision two of this section.

(d) "Designated community" means any town or city within the Hudson
Valley counties of Putnam, Ulster, or Westchester.

(e) "Tax" means the real estate transfer tax payable on a real
property conveyance pursuant to section fifteen hundred sixty-one of the
tax law, but shall have a different meaning if the context clearly
indicates such as the real estate transfer tax imposed pursuant to
article thirty-one of the tax law.

2. The governing body of any designated community 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 local government from whatever source and shall include, at a
minimum, all revenues from a tax imposed upon the transfer of real
property interests in such designated community pursuant to article
thirty-three-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.

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 designated community
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 the town law and section twenty-f of the general
city law, (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 such management and stewardship program, and (e) to make
payments to school, fire, fire protection and ambulance districts in
connection with lands within the designated community that are owned by
the state or any municipal corporation. 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 such 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 paragraph, 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 designated community shall apportion such annual payment on the
basis of the total tax levied by each district within the designated
community for the year such payment is made. Such payment made by the
designated community shall be used solely to reduce the property tax
liability of the remaining taxpayers of the district within such
designated community. If the implementation of the community
preservation project plan, adopted by a governing body, 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; (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 unique or threatened ecological areas; (i) preservation
of rivers and river areas in a natural, free-flowing condition; (j)
preservation of forested land; (k) preservation of public access to
lands for public use including stream rights and waterways; (l)
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; (m) undertaking any of the
paragraphs of this subdivision in furtherance of the establishment of a
greenbelt; and (n) preservation of land which is predominantly viable
agricultural land, as defined in subdivision seven of section three
hundred one of the agriculture and markets law, or unique and
irreplaceable agricultural land, as defined in subdivision six of
section three hundred one of the agriculture and markets law.

5. The governing body of any designated community which has
established 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 municipality who shall serve
without compensation. No member of the local legislative body shall
serve on the board. A majority of the members of the board shall have
demonstrated experience with conservation or land preservation
activities. The municipal legislative body shall make a reasonable
effort to appoint at least one active farmer to the board. In any county
that has a county agricultural and farmland protection board established
pursuant to section three hundred two of the agriculture and markets
law, the municipal legislative body shall make a reasonable effort to
appoint at least one member of the county agricultural and farmland
protection board to the advisory board. The terms of members of the
board first appointed shall be so fixed that the term of one member
shall expire at the end of the municipal official year in which such
members were initially appointed. The terms of the remaining members
first appointed shall be so fixed that the term shall expire at the end
of each official year thereafter. At the expiration of the term of each
member first appointed, his or her successor shall be appointed for a
term which shall be equal in years to the number of members of the
advisory board. The board shall act in an advisory capacity to the
governing body.

6. The governing body of any designated community which has
established a community preservation fund shall, by local law, adopt a
community preservation project plan. This plan shall list every project
which the designated community plans to undertake pursuant to the
community preservation fund. It shall include every parcel which is
necessary to be acquired in the designated community 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. Such 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. Funds from the community preservation
fund may only be expended for projects which have been included in said
plan. Such 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 the office of parks, recreation and historic
preservation. Such plan shall be completed at least sixty days before
the submission of the mandatory referendum required by section fifteen
hundred sixty-one of the tax law and shall be made available for public
review at the designated community clerk's office, at any public
libraries within the designated community, and where practical posted on
the municipality's website.

7. The governing body of any designated community which has
established 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 the town law. 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 designated community 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 designated community, 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 this chapter; provided, however, that nothing
in this section shall prevent the governing body from entering into a
conditional purchase agreement before a public hearing is held. Any
resolution of a governing body approving an acquisition of interests or
rights in real property 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 designated
community.

9. Rights or interests 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, hiking trails, snowshoe
trails, cross country ski trails, 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 designated community 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 designated community 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 state
legislature. Any conservation easements created under title three of
article forty-nine of the environmental conservation law, which are
acquired with monies from such fund, may only be modified or
extinguished as provided by section 49-0307 of the environmental
conservation law. Nothing in this section shall preclude a designated
community, 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 a
designated community acquired pursuant to this section, where such sale
is made by a development rights bank created by a designated community,
pursuant to a transfer of development rights program established by a
designated community pursuant to section two hundred sixty-one-a of the
town law, 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. Notwithstanding any other provision of this
subdivision, there shall be no right to public use and enjoyment of land
used in conjunction with a farm operation as defined by subdivision
eleven of section three hundred one of the agriculture and markets law.
In furthering the purposes of this section, the municipality may enter
into agreements with corporations organized under the not-for-profit
corporation law that 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 and manage the lands consistent with
this section.