No person shall undertake the construction or reconstruction
or replacement or repair of any dock within 1,500 feet from the shoreline
of the Village without first obtaining a special use permit from the
Board of Trustees. Upon issuance of the special use permit from the
Board of Trustees, the applicant must apply for a nonrenewable building
permit within 90 days and such nonrenewable building permit shall
expire one year from the date of issuance.
For every special use permit, the Board of Trustees shall find
and determine:
A. Water depth.
(1) Docks, including floats or fixed structures, are only permitted in
waters that maintain a minimum depth of 2.5 feet at mean lower low
water, which is the average of the lower low water height of each
tidal day (MLLW) as determined by a New York State licensed surveyor.
A special use permit shall only be issued if floats or fixed structures
where boats will be located shall maintain a minimum depth of 2.5
feet, at mean lower low water (MLLW) as determined by a New York licensed
surveyor. An applicant must also establish adequate depth of water
to enable vessels to access the dock from the seaward side of the
dock without causing damage to the sea bottom.
(2) A special use permit will not be issued if there is not enough adequate
depth in the surrounding waters of the proposed dock to safely operate
a vessel.
B. Length. Newly constructed docks and piers including floats shall
not exceed a length of 100 feet from MLLW. Reconstructed or replacement
docks shall not exceed the length of the preexisting lawfully constructed
dock.
C. Preexisting docks. No preexisting dock shall be reconstructed or
replaced unless it is functional. A dock shall not be deemed functional
if by reason of any cause its structural integrity is compromised
or if it is missing greater than 50% of its footprint.
D. Width. Docks and piers shall not exceed four feet in width.
E. Height. The vertical distance separating the decking of a fixed elevated
walkway to both the upland grade and the high-water elevation shall
be at least four feet.
F. Projection of posts and pilings.
(1) Low-profile construction will be utilized; post and pilings will
not project above the deck until the end of the dock where the posts
and pilings shall not project any higher than 34 inches above the
deck of any deck or floating platform.
(2) Mooring pilings are to be no more than 10 inches in diameter.
G. Size of floats; dock extensions.
(1) The size and length of any float shall be the minimum necessary to
enable access, in no event larger than six feet by 20 feet.
(2) No dock extensions shall be constructed parallel to the shoreline.
H. Grating. All docks shall utilize open grate decking allowing at least
50% open space, and any such open grate decking shall maintain a minimum
separation of four feet above grade.
I. Piles. Piles shall be between four inches and 10 inches in diameter,
and the use of a hydraulic jet to enable placement is prohibited.
J. Batter boards. Batter boards are prohibited between piles.
K. Treated wood. Treated wood shall not be used in the construction
or reconstruction or replacement or repair of any dock.
L. Public access. No dock, whether new or a replacement or reconstruction,
shall impede public access along the foreshore. Docks bisecting a
beach shall be permitted only if it is not possible to maintain a
distance of at least five feet between the landward most part of the
dock and any bulkhead or bank, it being intended that public access
be accommodated along the foreshore, and, in the event a stairs shall
be approved, appropriate signs shall be maintained thereon announcing
the authority of the public to pass and repass over said stairs and
dock incident to traversing the foreshore.
M. Boat lifts and boat hoists. Boat lifts and boat hoists and other
unnecessary features are prohibited.
N. Preservation of shoreline. No dock, float, or fixed structure shall
be constructed if the Board of Trustees determines either:
(1) Such structure will negatively impact the aesthetic values of the
natural shoreline;
(2) Such structure will harm or lower the value of an adjacent property;
(3) Such structure may negatively impact the environment; or
(4) Such structure may prevent the safe navigation of the surrounding
waters.
O. Structures on decking. No permanent structures shall be constructed
on decking.
For every special use permit, the Board of Trustees shall find
and determine:
A. Location. Docks shall be located as close to the center of the applicant
owner's upland property as is possible and shall be prohibited
if within 40 feet from the adjacent property line extended into the
water on the same axis as the property line runs onshore where it
meets the water, or at a right angle to the mean high-water mark,
whichever results in the greater setback.
B. Lights. Docks shall not be improved with lights except as required
by any regulatory authority exercising jurisdiction over said dock
and in all events except as approved by the Board of Trustees incident
to an evaluation of public safety.
C. Accessory use. Any dock shall be prohibited unless said dock is located
in waters contiguous with an upland parcel owned by the applicant
and improved with a residence, and docks seaward of unimproved parcels
or parcels other than residence parcels are prohibited.
D. Use variance. Any deviation from any of the specific or general standards
herein shall be prohibited, and any variance shall be a use variance
to be heard by the Zoning Board of Appeals.
E. Community and/or commercial docks. Docks accommodating more than
one property owner and docks operated other than as a feature of a
single-family residence are prohibited.
F. Suitable location. No dock shall be located along the shoreline of
the Village unless the Board of Trustees affirmatively finds and determines
that the location is suitable in all relevant respects, sufficient
in offshore and foreshore area, separated adequately from adjacent
and nearby uses, including other docks, fairways, mooring sites, and
channels, and not at risk of present or eventual danger to the person
or property of others, and does not negatively impact the adjacent
properties or hinder the preservation of the aesthetic values of the
natural shoreline.
G. If eelgrass and/or shellfish resources are found and/or if the Village
believes such resources exist in the proximity of any proposed dock
structure, the Village, in the exercise of its discretion, may request
that the applicant conduct an eelgrass and/or shellfish survey. If
such surveys are requested, and it is determined that significant
resources are present, then the proposed location of the dock shall
be repositioned to maintain no less than 10 feet of separation from
the inventoried resource. In the event an eelgrass and/or shellfish
survey is required, it shall be conducted pursuant to guidelines available
from the Village Clerk.
H. In no event shall any single upland parcel maintain more than one
dock.
Where any provision of this chapter provides for continuing
jurisdiction of the Board of Trustees, said Board shall retain the
right to modify, suspend or revoke the approval it has given, or any
term or condition thereof, or to impose thereon one or more new conditions,
all on the following grounds:
A. False statements: false statements, misrepresentation or mistake
of material fact in the application, supporting papers or supporting
testimony.
B. Noncompliance with permit: failure of the applicant permittee to
comply with any conditions or terms of the approval.
C. Noncompliance with time constraints for construction: failure of
the applicant permittee to complete construction within one year of
obtaining a building permit issued in connection with the special
use permit.
D. Activity beyond permit: exceeding the scope of the activity, use
or project as the same was described in the application.
E. Violation of other local rules: willful or continuing noncompliance
by the applicant with any provision of the Village Code, or local
agency regulations adopted thereunder, directly related to the approved
activity, use or project.
F. Construction: Nothing in this section shall be construed as limiting
the authority of the Building Inspector, or other local official with
authority, to enforce any provision of this chapter at any time.
G. Penalties. Any violation of this chapter or any part thereof shall
be punishable by a fine not to exceed $250 for each offense. Each
day that a violation continues shall be deemed to be a separate offense.