In enforcing the provisions of this chapter,
they shall be held to the minimum requirements for the promotion of
the public safety, convenience, prosperity and general welfare of
the Village.
[Amended 2-23-1998 by L.L. No. 1-1998]
The regulations, restrictions and boundaries
established by this chapter may from time to time be amended, supplemented,
changed or modified or repealed by law in accordance with the procedures
provided by §§ 7-706 and 7-708 of the Village Law.
However, all amendments to this chapter which would change the district
classification or the regulations applying to real property lying
within a distance of 500 feet from the boundary of the Village of
Millerton or the boundary of any existing or proposed county or state
park or other recreational area or from the right-of-way of any existing
or proposed county or state parkway, thruway, expressway, road or
highway or from the right-of-way of any existing or proposed stream
or drainage channel owned by the county for which the county has established
channel lines or from the existing or proposed boundary of any county-
or state-owned land on which a public building or institution is situated
shall be referred to the Dutchess County Planning Department as required
by § 239-m of the General Municipal Law. The term "proposed"
shall be deemed to include only those recreational areas, parkways,
thruways, expressways, roads or highways which are shown on a County
Plan of Dutchess County adopted pursuant to § 239-d(2) of
the General Municipal Law or adopted as an Official Map of Dutchess
County pursuant to § 239-g of the General Municipal Law.
If the Dutchess County Planning Department fails to report within
30 days after receipt of a full statement of such referred matter,
the Village of Millerton may act without such report. If the Dutchess
County Planning Department disapproves of the proposed amendment,
supplement, change or modification or recommends modification of the
proposal of the Village of Millerton, the Village Board shall not
act contrary to such disapproval or recommendation except by vote
of a majority plus one of all the members thereof and after the adoption
of a resolution fully setting forth the reasons for such contrary
act.
[Added 1-24-2011 by L.L. No. 1-2011]
A. Escrow of funds.
(1)
In connection with any application for a special permit, site
plan or subdivision approval, zoning amendment, variance, or other
appeal, the reviewing board may require an applicant to deposit an
initial sum of money into an escrow account in advance of the review
of the application. Such a deposit in escrow may be required at any
stage in the application process, including for pre-application sketch
plan discussions. Said sum shall be based on the estimated cost to
the Village of reviewing the particular type of submission before
it. In determining the initial amount to be deposited, the reviewing
board may consider the professional review fees and expenses incurred
by it and neighboring municipalities in reviewing similar submissions.
(2)
Use of funds.
(a)
The funds deposited shall be used to cover the reasonable and
necessary costs of reviewing an application, including costs of inspection
of construction and completed improvements. Costs may include consultant
fees and expenses for planning, engineering, legal, and other professional
and technical services required for the proper and thorough review
of an application and project inspections. The reviews governed by
this section shall include but not be limited to all environmental
reviews, including review of a proposed action under the State Environmental
Quality Review Act (SEQR).
(b)
The review fees and expenses provided for herein are in addition
to application fees or administrative fees required pursuant to other
sections of the Village of Millerton Village Code.
(c)
Funds deposited by an applicant pursuant to this section shall
not be used to offset the Village's expenses for the general
professional services that a reviewing board may receive from its
consultants unrelated to the applicant's project. Funds deposited
by an applicant pursuant to this section shall also not be used to
offset the Village's general administrative expenses.
B. Deposit of funds. Upon receipt of funds requested for an escrow account,
the Mayor shall cause such funds to be placed in a separate non-interest-bearing
account in the name of the Village, and shall keep a separate record
of all such monies deposited and the name of the applicant and project
for which such sums were deposited.
C. Submission of vouchers.
(1)
Village consultants seeking reimbursement of their fees and
expenses from an applicant-funded escrow account shall submit written
vouchers to the reviewing board. These written vouchers shall provide
detail sufficient to facilitate the review and audit of these vouchers
for purposes of determining whether the fees and expenses are reasonable
and necessary.
(2)
Promptly upon receipt of a voucher from a consultant who is seeking reimbursement of its fees and expenses from an applicant-funded escrow account, the reviewing board shall mail a copy of that voucher to the applicant. An applicant who objects to a voucher shall follow the appeal procedures described in Subsection
G of this section.
D. Audit and review of vouchers.
(1)
The reviewing board shall preliminarily review submitted vouchers
to assess whether the identified fees and expenses are reasonable
and necessary. The reviewing board shall provide the Village Board
with a recommendation as to whether a voucher should be approved for
payment, rejected, or returned to the consultant with a request for
additional information.
(2)
Upon receipt of the reviewing board's recommendation with
respect to a particular voucher, the Village Board shall review and
audit such voucher and shall approve payment of only such consultant
charges as are reasonable in amount and necessarily incurred by the
Village in connection with the review and consideration of applications
and project inspections.
(3)
The amount charged by a consultant in a voucher is reasonable
in amount if it bears a reasonable relationship to the average charge
by consultants to the Village of services performed in connection
with the review of a similar application.
(4)
The Village Board's audit and review of a consultant voucher
may take into consideration the size, type and number of buildings
to be constructed, the topography of the site at issue, environmental
conditions at such site, the infrastructure proposed in the application,
and any special conditions the Village Board may deem relevant.
(5)
The amount charged by a consultant in a voucher is necessarily
incurred if it was charged by the consultant for a service which was
rendered in order to protect or promote the health, safety or other
vital interests of the residents of the Village, including without
limitation services provided in connection with consultant review
of applications for special permit, site plan or subdivision approval,
zoning amendment, variances, or other appeals to the Zoning Board
of Appeals.
(6)
In no event shall an applicant make direct payment to any Village
consultant.
E. Payment of vouchers. Upon receipt and approval by the Village Board
of itemized vouchers from consultants for services rendered on behalf
of the Village regarding a particular application, the Mayor shall
cause such vouchers to be paid out of the monies so deposited, and
shall debit the separate record of such account accordingly.
F. Insufficient funds. If, at any time during the review of an application
or the inspection of an approved project under construction, there
shall be insufficient escrowed funds to pay the approved vouchers
in full, or if it shall reasonably appear to the reviewing board or
inspecting official that such funds will be insufficient to meet vouchers
yet to be submitted, the reviewing board shall cause the applicant
to deposit additional sums as the board deems necessary or advisable
in order to meet such expenses or anticipated expenses.
G. Right of appeal.
(1)
An applicant shall have the right to appeal to the Village Board
the amount of any required escrow deposit or the amount charged to
an escrow account by a consultant under this section.
(2)
The applicant shall automatically waive its right to appeal
any amount charged in a consultant voucher if the applicant fails
to file a written notice of that appeal with the Village Board within
35 days of the date that the reviewing agency mailed such voucher.
(3)
An applicant's failure to timely file such an appeal shall
be deemed a failure to exhaust administrative remedies precluding
judicial review of the consultant voucher or required escrow deposit.
H. Suspension and revocation. In the event the applicant fails to deposit
the requested review fees into an escrow account, any application
review, approval, permit or certificates of occupancy may be withheld
or suspended by the reviewing board, officer or employee of the Village
until such monies are deposited.
I. Refund of unexpended balance. The applicant shall be entitled to
obtain a refund of any unexpended portion of the escrowed funds that
remain following completion of the application review process (including
any post-approval inspections), or following the applicant's
withdrawal of an application. This refund shall be made after all
reasonable and necessary consultant fees and expenses incurred prior
to such completion or withdrawal have been paid by the Village and
deducted from the escrow account. Any balance remaining in the escrow
account shall be refunded within 60 days after the applicant's
request.
J. Joint and several liability. The owner of the subject real property,
if different from the applicant, shall be jointly and severally responsible
to reimburse the Village of Millerton for funds expended to compensate
for services rendered to the Village under this section by private
engineers, attorneys or other consultants. In order for a land use
application to be deemed complete, the applicant shall provide the
written consent of all owners of the subject real property acknowledging
potential landowner responsibility, under this section, for engineering,
legal and other consulting fees incurred by the Village. In the event
that insufficient funds have been deposited in escrow and the applicant
or owners fail to reimburse the Village for such fees, the following
shall apply:
(1)
The Village may seek recovery of unreimbursed engineering, legal
and consulting fees by action in a court of appropriate jurisdiction,
and the defendant shall be responsible for the reasonable and necessary
attorney's fees expended by the Village in prosecuting such action.
(2)
Alternatively, and at the sole discretion of the Village, a
default in reimbursement of such engineering, legal and consulting
fees expended by the Village shall be remedied by charging such sums
against the real property which is the subject of the land development
application, by adding that charge to, and making it a part of, the
next annual real property tax assessment roll. Prior to charging such
assessments, the owners of the real property shall be provided written
notice to their last known address of record, by certified mail, return
receipt requested, of an opportunity to be heard and object before
the Village Board to the proposed real property assessment, at a date
to be designated in the notice, which shall be no less than 30 days
after its mailing.