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