Village of Ridgewood, NJ Chapter 55 Open Space, Recreation, Farmland and Historic Preservation Committee

[HISTORY: Adopted by the Village Council of the Village of Ridgewood 1-9-2002 by Ord. No. 2773. Amendments noted where applicable.]

GENERAL REFERENCES

Historic Preservation Commission — See Ch. 29.

Land use and development — See Ch. 190.

Parks and recreation areas — See Ch. 212.

§ 55-1 Establishment.

A. There is hereby established an Open Space, Recreation, Farmland and Historic Preservation Committee (hereinafter referred to as the "Committee"). The Committee shall be comprised of nine members appointed by the Village Council. The term of each member appointed shall be from July 1 through June 30. The terms of the Class IV member of the Planning Board, the member of the Village Council, the member of the Parks, Recreation, and Conservation Board, and the member of the Fields Committee/Sports Council shall be for one year. The terms of the residents of the Village shall be two-year staggered terms; however, for the first appointment, two residents shall be appointed for one year and two residents shall be appointed for two years. In constituting the Committee, the Village Council shall select:

[Amended 3-10-2021 by Ord. No. 3848]

(1) One Class IV member of the Planning Board;

(2) One member of the Village Council;

(3) One member of the Parks, Recreation and Conservation Board;

(4) One member of the Fields Committee/Sports Council;

(5) The Director of Village Parks and Recreation; and

(6) Four residents of the Village.

B. In the event of a vacancy during the term of any member of the Committee, the vacancy shall be filled for the member's unexpired term.

§ 55-2 Officers; meetings.

A. The Village Council shall initially designate one of the members as Chairperson and the Committee shall select a Secretary. Thereafter, in subsequent years, the Committee shall annually select a Chairperson and Secretary.

B. The Chairperson shall, upon his or her appointment, call an initial meeting of the Committee within 20 days thereafter. The Committee shall be authorized to establish its own rules and regulations and meetings schedule in cooperation with and coordinated by the Village Manager.

§ 55-3 Powers and duties.

The Committee shall:

A. Meet on a schedule to be set by it and preferably monthly to formulate the Open Space and Recreation Plan, which shall become part of the Village Master Plan;

B. Assist and advise the Planning Board in the preparation and amendment of the Village of Ridgewood Open Space and Recreation Plan, as well as the relationship of the Open Space and Recreation Plan with other Master Plan Elements;

C. Encourage maximum public participation in its work. It is charged to:

(1) Develop and present to the Planning Board and to the Village Council a clear understanding of the importance of maintaining open space resources in order to define a vision for the role of open space in the Village of Ridgewood;

(2) Identify specific types of open space to be included in the Village's open space program;

(3) Develop criteria for identifying and prioritizing open spaces to be acquired or maintained;

(4) Identify options for the acquisition and conservation of open spaces.

D. Be authorized to propose alternate funding mechanisms for acquiring appropriate public interest in open space resources and shall develop a detailed checklist for reviewing possible acquisitions of open space or conservation easements;

E. Prepare an ongoing system for monitoring properties, particularly threatened parcels, within the Village to insure their eventual incorporation into the reserved open space inventory;

F. Develop an annual budget based upon the goals and objectives of the Open Space Preservation Plan and advise the Village Council in seeking the necessary funding resources for the implementation of the Open Space Preservation Plan;

G. Advise the Village Council of the amount of resources required to support the program on an annual basis;

H. Review probable acquisitions and work with the Village Council and the Village Finance Department to seek outside funds and prepare grant applications;

I. Coordinate activities with similar committees in neighboring communities;

J. Build support with community organizations for an open space preservation program, maintain an educational program to inform landowners, young adults and children of the merits and importance of stewardship, the economic benefits of open space planning and the various tools that are available to implement the plan;

K. Make recommendations to the Planning Board and to the Village Council for the implementation of the Committee's actions;

L. Be authorized to do and perform such acts and make such recommendations to the Planning Board and the Village Council consistent with the Municipal Open Space, Recreation, Farmland and Historic Preservation Act and the purposes of this chapter.

§ 55-4 Dedicated tax.

There is hereby established for the year 2002 and subsequent years a $0.005 per $100 valuation tax, which shall be dedicated specifically for the acquisition, development and maintenance of property and lands for recreation and conservation purposes; acquisition and preservation of farmland and historic properties; and payment of debt services for purposes allowed in accordance with law. (N.J.S.A. 40:12-15.1 et seq.)

§ 55-5 Use of funds.

The funds derived from this dedicated tax shall be maintained in a separate fund account and should be utilized only for the purposes authorized pursuant to this chapter and the Act referred to in § 55-4 hereof.

§ 55-6 Tax to be shown as separate line item.

The dedicated tax established by § 55-4 herein shall be shown as a separate line item on each property owner's tax bill and not as a part of the municipal tax rate, in that it is to be a dedicated tax for the purpose set forth above.