[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town Board of the
Town of Babylon as indicated in article histories. Amendments noted
where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Building construction — See Ch. 89.
Unsafe buildings — See Ch. 92.
Electrical standards — See Ch. 112.
Environmental quality review — See Ch. 114.
Fire prevention — See Ch. 123.
Flood damage control — See Ch. 125.
Multiple dwellings — See Ch. 153.
Plumbing — See Ch. 170.
Sewers — See Ch. 181.
Site plan review — See Ch. 186.
Streets and sidewalks — See Ch. 191.
Zoning — See Ch. 213.
[Adopted 4-7-1976 by L.L. No. 15-1976]
A.
Whenever used in this article, words used in the singular
include the plural and vice versa.
B.
COMMISSIONER
DEPARTMENT
DEPUTY COMMISSIONER
The following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
The Commissioner of Planning and Development and chief executive
officer of the Department.
The Town of Babylon Department of Planning and Development,
which performs a major function of Town government.
A Deputy Commissioner of the Department, who shall act generally
for and in the place of the Commissioner.
There shall be in the Town of Babylon a Department
of Planning and Development. The principal executive officer and administrative
head of such Department shall be the Commissioner of Planning and
Development, who shall be appointed by the Town Board for the term
fixed by law at such salary as may from time to time be fixed by the
said Town Board. The Commissioner shall be appointed on the basis
of his administrative experience and qualifications for the duties
of such office and such additional standards as may be required by
the Town Board, and he shall be the executive secretary of any advisory
board or commission assigned to his jurisdiction by the Town Board.
The Commissioner shall be the head of the Department, with power and
authority to appoint and remove officers and employees under his jurisdiction
in accordance with Civil Service Law and other applicable laws.
The Commissioner is empowered herein to appoint
an Executive Assistant and to appoint two Deputy Commissioners, who
shall generally act for and in the place of the Commissioner and who
shall perform such duties as are vested in and imposed upon that office
by the provisions of this article, by statute or by other lawful authority.
The Commissioner shall have such powers as shall
be necessary for the proper administration of the Department consistent
with applicable provisions of law.
Until such time as the same may be either amended
or modified, the Department shall be divided into the following Divisions:
The powers and duties of such Divisions therein
shall be under the administration, direction and control of the Commissioner,
and each of the said Divisions shall be supervised by a division head
who shall be designated a Division Supervisor.
The Commissioner may, with the approval of the
Town Board, establish, consolidate or abolish any divisions now existing
or hereafter created in the Department and establish, consolidate
or abolish any subdivision of any such division now existing or hereafter
created.
The Division of Administration of Board of Appeals
shall administer, supervise, manage, implement, initiate and direct
all matters related with the Office of the Board of Appeals as delegated
to it under the law and especially by § 267 of the Town
Law of the State of New York.
[Amended 12-16-1986 by L.L. No. 2-1987; 11-19-1996 by L.L. No. 21-1996]
A.
The Division of Building shall administer, supervise,
manage, coordinate and enforce the zoning laws and applicable local
laws, ordinances, rules and regulations of the Town of Babylon and
the applicable building codes, state and/or local, and applicable
laws of the State of New York as legally required throughout the properties
of the Town of Babylon in order to review, evaluate, judge and advise
on applications related thereto.
B.
Zoning inspectors. The zoning inspectors shall be
responsible for administering, supervising, managing and enforcing
the zoning laws and all applicable local laws, ordinances, rules and
regulations of the Town of Babylon relating to land use and land and
building development or modifications. The zoning inspectors shall
be under the administration, direction and control of the Commissioner.
The Division of Industrial Development shall
administer, develop, manage, implement and promote industrial and
business programs serving the interests and welfare of the people
of the Town of Babylon and develop, coordinate and maintain statistics
and information related to employment and trends thereon.
[Amended 8-16-1994 by L.L. No. 14-1994]
The Division of Planning shall prepare and update
the Town of Babylon Comprehensive Plan and carry out any plans and
programs, including capital programming, and initiate developmental
policy recommendations for the Town Board. In addition, the Division
will perform all the duties, studies and supervision as delegated
by the Town Board in order to provide for the orderly growth of the
Town and to achieve the highest and most efficient available levels
of services for its residents.
[Amended 5-7-1985 by L.L. No. 1-1985; 4-18-2000 by L.L. No. 8-2000]
A.
The Commissioner, acting by and through any of the
said existing or hereafter named Divisions, shall be empowered to
perform such other duties and functions that are prescribed to be
performed by him in any law, ordinance or resolution of the Town Board
or lawful directive of the Town Supervisor; however, the Commissioner
may delegate any of his powers to or direct any of his duties to be
performed to a division director or the Administrative Assistant.
B.
The Commissioner shall have the power to administratively close all applications for building permits, all applications to the Board of Appeals, all applications to the Town Board under Chapter 213 of this Code, all applications to the Planning Board, all applications to the Accessory Apartment Review Board, all applications for rental permits and all applications to the Board of Review, where such application is incomplete and has had no activity by or on behalf of the applicant for more than one year. Any applicant who wants to reopen such application shall pay a fee equal to 50% of the application fee in effect at the time of the application to reopen.
Furthermore, the Commissioner is hereby authorized
and empowered, subject to the prior approval of the Town Board, except
that such prior approval will not be required in cases of emergency,
to retain and employ private engineers, architects and consultants
or firms practicing such profession for the purposes of:
A.
Preparing designs, plans and estimates of structures
or projects of any type and character.
B.
Rendering assistance and advice in connection with
any project, whether defined or proposed, and under the supervision
of the Department of Planning and Development.
C.
Performing such other and necessary services as the
Commissioner may deem necessary in the administration of the Department.
The Division of Traffic Safety shall provide
the installation, construction and maintenance of all traffic control
signals on Town or county highways in the Town of Babylon or those
erected at the direction of the Town Board and, when authorized, to
let contracts for the same. The Division shall also be responsible
to advise the Town Board regarding traffic surveys submitted by responsible
agencies of government and to conduct such surveys as directed by
the Town Board.
The Division of Engineering shall administer,
coordinate and provide staff assistance and professional service to
consultant engineers from time to time employed by the Town of Babylon
pursuant to the provisions of § 20, Subdivision 2(b), of
the Town Law of the State of New York; or in the alternative, to provide
such services to the Town Engineer duly appointed pursuant to Subdivision
2(a) of such section of such law.
All costs and expenses incurred by the Department
or its officers or employees on behalf of a special improvement district
or special Town project shall be charged against such district or
project and paid from the funds duly appropriated for the purpose
of such district or project.
Nothing herein contained shall be construed
to delegate or transfer any power of the Town Supervisor contained
in §§ 29, 52 and 125 of the Town Law of the State of
New York or any other powers which may be lawfully exercised by said
Supervisor.
The Commissioner may establish a schedule of
fees to be collected by him for:
A.
The filing in his office or Department of any map
or written instrument required to be so filed.
B.
The preparation of any copy of a map or written instrument
filed in his office or Department.
C.
Certifying any such map or written instrument.
D.
Any other service rendered in connection with the
work of his Department and for which he deems it necessary to charge
and to collect a fee.
[Adopted 9-13-2011 by L.L. No. 16-2011]
A.
A schedule of planning, zoning and building application fees shall
be established by resolution of the Town Board from time to time.
All such fees in effect at the time of adoption of this article shall
remain in effect until such time as those application fees are modified
by resolution of the Town Board.
B.
Application fees shall be deemed to be the minimum fee to be charged
and any additional costs and expenses actually incurred by the Town
for professional consultants or inspections (as well as all other
non-ministerial expenses) shall be paid by the applicant in accordance
with this article and other laws, resolutions, provisions, regulations
and codes of the Town.
C.
All reimbursement payments required by this article shall be in addition
to any application, inspection or other fees as may be required by
any other laws, resolutions, provisions, regulations or codes of the
Town and shall not be used to offset the Town's general expenses
of engineering, legal and planning services for the several boards
of the Town nor offset the Town's general expenses.
D.
Any fee established elsewhere in this Code which is not inconsistent
with a fee established pursuant to this article shall remain effective.
E.
This article and the schedule of application and other fees shall
be filed with the Town Clerk. The failure to file any fee schedule
revision with the Town Clerk shall not affect the obligation to pay
such fee.
A.
The applicant for approval of any land use or land development proposal
shall reimburse the Town for the reasonable and necessary engineering,
legal and planning fees and expenses incurred by the Town in connection
with the review and/or approval of the application. Said fees and
expenses are referred to herein as escrow fees or deposits. Reimbursement
of the Town's consultant expenses shall be made in accordance
with this article. For the purposes of this article, the term "land
use or development" shall include, but not be limited to, designation
as an open development area, a subdivision, lot line change, site
plan, special permit, wetlands permit, variance, interpretation, appeal
to the Zoning Board of Appeals, change of zone classification, or
any modification or amendment of any of the foregoing.
B.
Initial planning and zoning review escrow deposits shall be delivered
to the Building Department as part of the original application submission.
C.
No review shall be undertaken by the consultants on any matter scheduled
before the Town Board, Planning Board or Zoning Board of Appeals until
the initial fee and escrow deposit as set forth herein is paid.
D.
If the escrow account falls below 50% of the initial deposit, the
applicant shall pay additional funds into the escrow account to maintain
that account at 50% of the initial deposit. In the event that an applicant
shall withdraw his application at any stage of the proceedings or
when the application review and approval process has been completed,
the balance of funds in the applicant's account shall be either
remitted to the applicant when reimbursement has been completed and
within 60 days of final action by the Planning Board, Town Board,
Zoning Board of Appeals, or, if so directed by the applicant, shall
remain on deposit as the applicant's initial payment toward post
approval inspection requirements, not including the customary and
usual site plan or building permit fees.
E.
The applicant shall remain responsible to reimburse the Town its
costs and expenses in reviewing the applicant's land use application
notwithstanding that the escrow account may be insufficient to cover
such costs and expenses.
F.
In the event that the Town Board, Planning Board or Zoning Board
of Appeals, in the course of reviewing an application, determines
that the proposed action requires a positive declaration under SEQRA,
all costs incurred by the Town for the review of any environmental
impact statements, whether of a professional or clerical nature, shall
be borne by the applicant pursuant to 6 NYCRR 617.8 (a). Such costs
shall be covered by an escrow account to be established pursuant to
this section within 15 days of issuance of said positive declaration,
or such period as the respective Board shall otherwise establish,
in an amount to be set by the Planning or Zoning Board.
G.
All applicants with matters pending before the Town Board, Planning
Board and Zoning Board of Appeals as of the effective date of this
article shall be required to comply with the new fees and escrow account
maintenance provisions contained herein.
H.
In cases when the complexity of an application (or lack thereof)
or unusual circumstances surrounding the matter require that the initial
fee or the percentage of that initial fee to be maintained in escrow
be modified, the Planning Board, Town Board or Zoning Board of Appeals
is authorized to grant such modification within the following guidelines:
(1)
The amount of any initial fee modification shall be reasonably related
to the costs attendant to the Town's review of the application.
(2)
The amount of any escrow maintenance percentage shall be reasonably
related to the complexity of the project as well as the stage to which
the project has progressed as of the time of modification.
I.
Each of the Town's consultants who render services pertaining
to a land use or development application shall submit monthly itemized
vouchers to the Town (through the Commissioner of Planning and Development
to the Planning Board and/or Zoning Board) reasonably setting forth
the services performed and amounts charged for such services.
J.
Copies of said itemized vouchers shall be transmitted by certified
mail to the applicant simultaneously with their delivery to the Commissioner
of Planning and Development, together with a statement notifying the
applicant that the failure to object to payment of the amount of the
charges contained in said itemized voucher out of escrow funds within
15 days of the receipt of said notice shall constitute an agreement
by the applicant as to the reasonableness of the charges.
K.
The Planning Board and/or the Zoning Board of Appeals (as appropriate)
shall review vouchers for services rendered to each and shall communicate
its approval of same to the Commissioner of Planning and Development.
The Commissioner of Planning and Development shall review and audit
all such vouchers and shall determine, in its discretion, the engineering,
legal and planning fees which are reasonable in amount and necessarily
incurred by the Town in connection with the review and/or approval
of the land use or development application.
L.
A fee or expense or part thereof is reasonable in amount if it bears
a reasonable relationship to the customary fee charged by engineers,
architects, economists, attorneys or planners or other relevant professionals
within the region for services performed on behalf of applicants or
reviewing boards in connection with applications for land use or development.
The Commissioner may also take into account any special conditions
for considerations as the Commissioner may deem relevant. A fee and
expense or part thereof is necessarily incurred if it was charged
by any of the abovementioned professionals for a service which was
rendered on the written order of the Commissioner in connection with
application review.
M.
After review and audit of such voucher by the Commissioner, the Commissioner shall authorize payment of same and shall provide to the applicant a copy of the voucher as audited. The Commissioner shall also be responsible for auditing the vouchers submitted to it by the Town consultants for land use approvals which it must approve, including but not limited to open development area approvals under the Town Law. The provisions of Subsection K of this section shall apply to professional and consulting reviews undertaken on behalf of the Town relating to any approval to be considered by the Town.
N.
The Planning Board and Zoning Board of Appeals are hereby authorized,
at the time of action on any project, to make payment of any amount
then overdue or, per written estimate, likely to be later incurred,
a condition of approval. No plat or plans will be signed and no building
permit or other permit shall be issued until such time as all reimbursement
of costs and expenses, determined by the respective Board to be due,
have been fully paid.
O.
Amounts paid pursuant to this article shall be placed in an escrow account to fund expenses incurred by the Town in processing the application as provided for in Subsection A, above. The Town shall keep a record of the name of the applicant and project and of all such monies deposited and withdrawn. Monthly vouchers submitted by any of the Town's professional review contractors shall be examined and audited by the Commissioner and provided to the applicant, and the applicant may appeal said audit amount as provided herein.
P.
All fee and expense reimbursement payments are due and payable within 15 days after delivery of a copy of an itemized voucher to the applicant as provided for in Subsection K, above. Interest shall accrue on any unpaid itemized voucher at the rate of 9% per annum. The pursuance of an appeal hereunder shall not affect the obligation to pay interest on any unpaid balance ultimately determined to be due.
An applicant may appeal, in writing, to the Town Board for a
reduction in the required reimbursement amount. An appeal must be
filed with the Town Board no later than 15 days after certified mail
delivery or other recorded delivery to the applicant of the contested
voucher. Upon such appeal, the Town Board, in its discretion, may
determine that an applicant is not required to reimburse the Town
for that part of an engineering, legal or planning fee incurred by
the Town for services performed in connection with an application
matter for which the Town Board determines the applicant bears no
responsibility and which was beyond the reasonable control of the
applicant. The Town Board's determination shall be in writing
and shall be made no later than 60 days after receipt of the applicant's
appeal.
All fees shall be payable to the Town of Babylon.
