[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Trustees of the Village
of Dobbs Ferry 6-23-2009 by L.L. No. 7-2009. Amendments noted where
applicable.]
A.
In connection
with any application for a special permit, site plan or subdivision
approval, zoning amendment, variance or any other appeal to the Zoning
Board of Appeals, Design and Historic Review Board approval, excavation
permit or any other permit required by the Dobbs Ferry Village Code,
the Village may require an applicant to deposit an initial sum of
money into an escrow account in advance of the review of the application.
Said sum shall be based on the estimated cost to the Village of reviewing
the particular type of application before it. The reviewing board
or person may consider the professional review expenses incurred by
neighboring municipalities in reviewing similar applications. The
reviewing board may also consider the Village's survey of professional
review expenses incurred by neighboring municipalities in reviewing
similar applications. The reviewing board or person may also consider
the Village's survey of professional review expenses in determining
the initial sum of money to be deposited in an escrow account by an
applicant.
B.
Use of funds.
(1)
Said sum of money shall be used to cover the reasonable and necessary
costs of reviewing an application. Costs may include staff costs or
consultant fees for planning, engineering, legal and other professional
and technical services required for the proper and thorough review
of an application. The reviews governed by this section shall include
all environmental review pursuant to law including review of the proposed
action under the State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQR).
(2)
The review expenses provided for herein are in addition to application
or administrative fees required pursuant to other sections of the
Dobbs Ferry Village Code. Monies deposited by an applicant pursuant
to this section shall not be used to offset the Village's general
expenses of professional services for the several boards of the Village
or its general administrative expenses.
(3)
Fees charged strictly as a result of SEQR review shall in no event
exceed the maximum amounts that can be charged pursuant to the SEQR
regulations by the lead agency.
Upon receipt of monies requested for an escrow account, the
Village Administrator shall cause such monies to be placed in a separate
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.
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 Village Administrator shall cause such
vouchers to be paid out of the monies so deposited and shall debit
the separate record of such account accordingly. The consultant shall
make copies of such vouchers available to the applicant at the same
time the vouchers are submitted to the Village.
The Village Board shall review and audit all such vouchers 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. A charge or part thereof
is reasonable in amount if it bears a reasonable relationship to the
average charge by consultants to the Village for services performed
in connection with the review of a similar application. In auditing
the vouchers, the Village Board 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. A charge or part thereof 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 and protect public or private property
from damage.
If at any time during the processing of an application there
shall be insufficient monies on hand to the credit of an applicant
to pay the approved vouchers in full, or if it shall reasonably appear
to the reviewing board that such monies 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.
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.
Upon completion of the review of an application or upon the
withdrawal of an application, and after all fees already incurred
by the Village have been paid and deducted from the escrow account,
any balance remaining in the escrow account shall be refunded within
60 days after the applicant's request.
