Open space set aside in a flexible lot subdivision shall be
permanently preserved as required by this section. Developed lands
shall not impact the conservation value of the permanent open space.
A. Conservation value of open space. The open space protected pursuant to this section must have conservation value as determined by the conservation findings pursuant to §
232-17C(4).
B. Open space standards.
(1)
The required open space land consists of a combination of primary
conservation areas and secondary conservation areas. The proposed
subdivision design shall strictly minimize disturbance of these environmentally
sensitive areas. The lot layout shall show how those sensitive areas
will be protected by the proposed subdivision plan. Secondary conservation
areas shall be included in the required open space area to the greatest
extent practicable such that protecting these resources will, in the
judgment of the Planning Board, achieve the purposes of this section.
(2)
Open space lands shall be laid out to better enable an interconnected
network of open space and wildlife corridors. Open space lands shall
also be laid out in such a manner that preserves ecological systems
that may be present on the site including, but not limited to, preserving
wetlands, vernal pools, and their associated upland habitats.
(3)
Active agricultural land with farm buildings may be used to
meet the minimum required open space land. Access to open space land
used for agriculture may be appropriately restricted for public safety
and to prevent interference with agricultural operations. Land used
for agricultural purposes shall be buffered from residential uses,
either bordering or within the parcel.
(4)
Open space land shall, to the maximum extent practicable, be
contiguous to avoid fragmentation and to create a critical mass of
land either available for agriculture or left in a natural state.
(5)
Open space lands shall be designated as one or more individual
conservation lots owned in common, or designated and included as part
of one or more house lots. A portion of any house lot five acres or
more in size may be used for meeting the minimum required open space
land provided that there is a permanent restriction enforceable by
the Town that states the future use shall be restricted to open space
such as undisturbed wildlife habitat, managed agricultural field,
or managed forest, and that prevents development of, or use as, a
mowed lawn on that portion of the parcel, and that is contiguous to
other lands to form unfragmented open spaces. Any house lot less than
five acres does not qualify as contributing to open space.
(6)
Walkways, trails, play areas, drainageways leading directly
to streams, historic sites or unique natural features requiring common
ownership protection may be included in the preserved open space lands.
(7)
The required open space may be used for community septic systems,
provided that such system is otherwise in compliance with this chapter
and other applicable laws and regulations.
(8)
Stormwater management ponds or basins and lands within the rights-of-way
for underground utilities may be included as part of the minimum required
open space.
(9)
Recreation lands such as ball fields, golf courses, and parks
shall not be considered part of the required open space unless such
land is open to the public. Such recreational lands with access only
to residents shall not be counted towards the open space requirements,
but shall be counted towards any recreation land requirement as per
the Town of Copake Subdivision Regulations.
C. Permanent preservation by conservation easement.
(1)
A perpetual conservation easement restricting development of
the open space land and allowing use only for agriculture, forestry,
passive recreation, protection of natural resources, or similar conservation
purposes, pursuant to § 247 of the General Municipal Law
and/or §§ 49-0301 through 49-0311 of the Environmental
Conservation Law, shall be granted to the Town, with the approval
of the Town Board, and/or to a qualified not-for-profit conservation
organization acceptable to the Planning Board. Such conservation easement
shall be approved by the Planning Board and shall be required as a
condition of final plat approval. The Planning Board shall require
that the conservation easement be enforceable by the Town if the Town
is not the holder of the conservation easement. The conservation easement
shall be recorded in the County Clerk's Office prior to or simultaneously
with the filing of the final plat in the County Clerk's Office.
(2)
The conservation easement shall prohibit residential, industrial,
or commercial use of open space land (except in connection with agriculture,
forestry, and passive recreation) and shall not be amendable to permit
such use. Access roads, driveways, wells, underground sewage disposal
facilities, local utility distribution lines, stormwater management
facilities, trails, temporary structures for passive outdoor recreation,
and agricultural structures shall be permitted on preserved open space
land with Planning Board approval, provided that they do not impair
the conservation value of the land. Forestry shall be conducted in
conformity with applicable best management practices.
(3)
Permanent open space may be preserved under a conservation easement
as a portion of one or more large lots or may be contained in a separate
open space lot. The conservation easement may allow dwellings to be
constructed on portions of lots that include preserved open space
land, provided that the total number of dwellings permitted by the
conservation easement in the entire subdivision is consistent with
applicable density limitations of this section.
D. Notations on final plat. Preserved open space land shall be clearly
delineated and labeled on the subdivision final plat as to its use,
ownership, management, method of preservation, and the rights, if
any, of the owners of lots in the subdivision and the public to the
open space land. The final plat shall clearly show that the open space
land is permanently preserved for conservation purposes by a conservation
easement required by this section, and shall include deed recording
information in the County Clerk's office for the conservation easement.
E. Ownership of open space land.
(1)
Open space land shall under all circumstances be protected by
a perpetual conservation easement, but may be owned in common by a
homeowners' association (HOA), offered for dedication to Town, county,
or state governments, transferred to a nonprofit organization acceptable
to the Planning Board, held in private ownership, or held in such
other form of ownership as the Planning Board finds appropriate to
properly manage the open space land and to protect its conservation
value.
(2)
If the land is owned, or is to be owned, in common by an HOA,
the applicant shall make an irrevocable, conditional offer of dedication
to the Town, binding upon the HOA, for all open space conveyed or
to be conveyed to the HOA. Such offer may only be accepted upon any
one of the following circumstances:
(a)
Upon the failure of the HOA to take title to the open space
from the applicant or other current owner; or
(b)
Upon dissolution of the association at any future time; or
(c)
Upon failure of the HOA to fulfill its maintenance obligations
hereunder; or
(d)
Upon failure to pay its real property taxes.
F. Maintenance standards.
(1)
Ongoing maintenance standards shall be established, enforceable
by the Town against an owner of open space land as a condition of
subdivision approval, to ensure that the open space land is not used
for any purpose or structure prohibited by the conservation easement
or for the storage or dumping of any matter, including, but not limited
to, fill, refuse, junk, or other offensive or hazardous materials.
(2)
If the Town Board finds that the provisions of Subsection
F(1) above are being violated, it may, upon 30 days' written notice to the owner, enter the premises for necessary maintenance, and the cost of such maintenance by the Town shall be charged against the landowner or, in the case of an HOA, ratably against the owners of properties within the development and shall, if unpaid, become a tax lien on such property or properties.
The following guidelines should be considered and may be required
as part of subdivision or site plan review in the process of designing
and siting houses in the RU District. When locating new houses on
the land there are many options in the siting, configuration, size
and arrangement of elements in the landscape. These choices define
the character of the developed landscape environment. These guidelines
are examples of the preferred way to design and site uses but they
should not be considered the only acceptable solution.
A. Preservation of scenic features. Relate the location of structures
to existing scenic features such as individual large trees within
open fields, stone walls, hedgerows, historic buildings, and unpaved
country roads if they exist on the site. Avoid locating structures
in areas which disrupt the relationship of the rural features. Locating
structures in the midst of an open field, for example, is discouraged.
B. Placement of structures. Wherever practical, structures shall be
sited to be as visually inconspicuous as possible, when seen from
a distance and from lower elevations, and to minimize impact on open
and agricultural lands. Wherever possible, the reviewing Board may
require that structures be located at the edge of the agricultural
land to minimize the loss of such land, and/or on soils of poor agricultural
quality.
C. Vegetation. Existing vegetation on site shall be preserved to the
maximum extent practical. Every attempt shall be made to limit cutting
necessary for either construction or the opening of views from the
subject site so as to maintain native vegetation as a screen for structures
as seen from public roads or parks or other public views.
D. Building placement. Wherever practical, buildings shall be sited
so that they do not protrude above treetops and ridgelines of hills
as seen from public places and roads. This shall not be interpreted
to mean that a building should not be seen, only that the highest
point of the building shall not extend above the summit of the hill.
E. Utilities. Wherever practical, all electric, telephone, television,
and other communication lines, both main and service connections,
servicing new development, shall be provided by underground wiring
installed in accordance with the prevailing standards and practices
of the utility or other companies providing such services.
F. Development, generally. To the extent feasible, development should
be undertaken in conformity with the following guidelines:
(1) On the least fertile agricultural soils and in a manner which maximizes
the usable area remaining for agricultural use.
(2) Away from the boundaries of any farm preserved with a conservation
easement or other permanent protection, to reduce conflicting uses
in areas where farmers have made long-term commitments to continue
to farm.
(3) So that the boundaries between house lots and active farmland are
well buffered by vegetation, topography, roads or other barriers to
minimize potential conflict between residential and agricultural uses.
(4) To cause the least practicable disturbance to natural infiltration
and percolation of precipitation to the groundwater table by avoiding
placement of impervious surfaces where water is most likely to infiltrate
and recharge the groundwater.
(5) To avoid disturbance to streams and drainage swales, floodplains,
vernal pools, wetlands, and their buffers. Native vegetation shall
be maintained to create a buffer of at least 100 feet and no other
disturbance shall take place within 100 feet of wetlands and surface
waters, including creeks, streams, vernal pools, springs and ponds.
(6) All grading and earthmoving on slopes greater than 15% shall be minimized
and shall only be to create a house site, driveway and area for a
septic system. Such grading shall not result in cut and fills whose
highest vertical dimension exceeds eight feet. Roads and driveways
shall follow the line of existing topography to minimize the required
cut and fill.
(7) To avoid disturbing existing cultural and scenic features, views
of house lots from exterior roads and abutting properties shall be
minimized by the use of changes in topography, existing vegetation,
or additional landscaping. The layout shall leave scenic views and
vistas unblocked or uninterrupted, particularly as seen from public
thoroughfares. Where these scenic views or vistas exist, a deep nonvegetated
buffer is recommended along the road where those views or vistas are
prominent or locally significant.
(8) To be as visually inconspicuous as practicable when seen from state,
county and local roads, and in particular, from designated scenic
routes, the subdivision shall preserve woodlands along roadways, property
lines, and lines occurring within a site such as along streams, swales,
stone fences, and hedgerows to create buffers with adjacent properties.
Preservation shall include ground, shrub, understory and canopy vegetation.
(9) To minimize the perimeter of the built area by encouraging compact
development and discouraging strip development along roads, house
lots shall generally be accessed from interior streets, rather than
from roads bordering the parcel. New intersections with existing public
roads shall be minimized. Although two accessways into and out of
subdivisions containing 20 or more dwellings are generally required
for safety, proposals for more than two entrances onto public roads
shall be discouraged if they would unnecessarily disrupt traffic flow
or unduly impact the environment.
(10)
On suitable soils for subsurface sewage disposal (where applicable).
(11)
Within woodlands, or along the far edges of open agricultural
fields adjacent to any woodland, to enable new residential development
to be visually absorbed by the natural landscape.
(12)
Around and so as to preserve sites of historic, archeological
or cultural value insofar as needed to safeguard the character of
the feature.
(13)
To protect biodiversity and wildlife habitat areas of species
listed as endangered, threatened, or of special concern by either
the United States Department of the Interior or the New York State
Department of Environmental Conservation.