A.
Nonrefundable application fees for the administration of this chapter
in consideration of an application for a wind energy facility shall
be as established by resolution of the Town Board.
B.
Building permits. The Town of Colton believes the review of building
and electrical permits for wind energy facilities requires specific
expertise for those facilities. Accordingly, for such facilities an
administrative fee of $25 per permit request shall be charged for
administrative costs, plus the amount charged to the Town by an outside
consultant hired by the Town to review the plans and inspect the work.
In the alternative, the Town and the applicant may enter into an agreement
for an inspection and/or certification procedure for these unique
facilities. In such a case, the Town and the applicant will agree
to a fee arrangement and escrow agreement to pay for the costs of
the review of the plans, certifications or conduct inspections as
agreed by the parties, document handling and storage.
C.
The applicant for either state or local siting approval shall deliver
to the Town Board, along with its application if local approval is
sought, and concurrent with the filing of an application with any
state authority, if applicable, an amount equal to 1% of the estimated
cost of the project (the "initial deposit"), to a maximum initial
deposit of $30,000. This sum shall be held by the Town in a non-interest-bearing
account, and these funds shall be available to the Town to pay consultants
and attorneys engaged by the Town to assist in application review
if a local permit is sought, and to pay consultants and attorneys
engaged by the Town to assist in review. Following the grant or denial
of the state or local application, the Town shall return to the applicant
any excess remaining in escrow. If the escrow account has been depleted
prior to grant or denial of the application, the applicant shall deposit
such funds necessary for the Town to pay any outstanding fees to said
consultants.
D.
Nothing in this chapter shall be read as limiting the ability of
the Town to enter into host community agreements with any applicant
to compensate the Town for expenses or impacts on the community. The
Town shall require any applicant to enter into an escrow agreement
to pay the engineering and legal costs of any application review,
including the review required by SEQRA.
E.
The Town Board may amend these fees, by resolution, after a properly
noticed public hearing.
The Town of Colton hereby exercises its right to opt out of
the tax exemption provisions of Real Property Tax Law § 487
for all but small WECS, pursuant to the authority granted by Subdivision
8 of that law.
A.
The Town Board shall appoint such Town staff or outside consultants
as it sees fit to enforce this chapter.
C.
In case of any violation or threatened violation of any of the provisions
of this chapter, including the terms and conditions imposed by any
permit issued pursuant to this chapter, in addition to other remedies
and penalties herein provided, the Town may institute any appropriate
action or proceeding to prevent such unlawful erection, structural
alteration, reconstruction, moving and/or use, and to restrain, correct
or abate such violation, to prevent the illegal act.
Unless otherwise specifically provided herein, any notice, letter
or otherwise written communication furnished to an applicant under
any provision of this chapter shall be deemed furnished on the date
that it is actually received by the person or entity specified in
such provision.
The underlined heading of any section or provision of this chapter
is for the convenience of the reader and shall not be construed as
part of the respective section or provision in the interpretation
of same.
