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Village of New Paltz, NY
Ulster County
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Table of Contents
Table of Contents
[Amended 10-10-2012 by L.L. No. 9-2012]
The following rules shall be considered a part of the contract with every person who takes water supplied by the Village of New Paltz, and every person taking water shall be considered as having expressed his consent to be bound thereby:
A. 
All water rents are payable to the Village Treasurer quarterly on the first days of March, June, September, and December in each year.
B. 
A penalty or late charge shall be charged and added to the water rent in the amount of 5% of the amount of such rent for the first month and an additional amount of 1/2% thereof for each month or portion of a month thereafter that such water rent remains unpaid after it becomes due.
C. 
If bills remain unpaid 60 days after they become due, the water supply shall be shut off and will not be turned on again until all charges are paid and until payment in addition thereto of a charge set annually by resolution of the Board of Trustees for turning on the water. Notice of intention to shut off the water supply shall be served by the Department of Public Works, or its representative, personally or by certified mail, return receipt requested, at least 10 days prior to the shutoff date upon the person or persons occupying the premises as determined from the latest assessment roll of the Village or the records of the Ulster County Clerk's office. Any person so served may, within eight days thereafter, file with the Village Treasurer a written notice of appeal and request for a hearing before the Board of Trustees if such person desires to contest the action. Except in case of emergency, the procedure shall be stayed until such time as a hearing is held by the Board of Trustees and a determination made. The notice of intention shall contain a statement setting forth the rights of the water user under this subsection.
[Amended 10-22-2014 by L.L. No. 13-2014]
D. 
No claim for damage or rebate shall be allowed by reason of the water being shut off.
E. 
No rebate shall be allowed for vacancy or disuse of water until notice has been given in writing to the Village Treasurer and the water turned off for a full quarter. In no case will rebate be allowed unless notice as aforesaid is given.
F. 
If a rebate is allowed for vacancy or disuse of water, there shall continue to be an annual charge set annually by resolution of the Board of Trustees, for the rent of the service line.
[Amended 10-22-2014 by L.L. No. 13-2014]
A. 
The owner of any house, building or property used for human occupancy, employment, recreation or other purposes situated within the Village of New Paltz, and abutting on any street, alley or right-of-way in which there is now located or may in the future be located a public water main of the Village, is hereby required at his expense to connect such house or building directly with the Village water supply system in accordance with the provisions of this chapter within 90 days after the date of official notice to do so, provided that said public water main is within 100 feet of the property line and the connection to said public water main is feasible.
B. 
Application for water must be made to the Village Clerk-Treasurer. All work, material and method of installation insofar as they affect the water service shall be under the supervision of and approved by the Superintendent of Public Works or his authorized representative.
A. 
When an application has been approved, the connection with the water main shall be made as soon as practicable. All work, material and method of installation insofar as they affect the water service shall be under the supervision of and approval by the Superintendent of Public Works or his duly authorized representative.
B. 
Material for a Village water main shall be of brass, copper, cast iron, ductile iron, wrought iron, open-hearth iron, or steel, with appropriate approved fittings. Only 95-5 type solder shall be used inside buildings. All threaded ferrous pipes and fittings shall be galvanized or cement lined. When used underground in corrosive soil, all ferrous pipes and fittings shall be coal-tar enamel coated.
C. 
The pipes and tubing for the service line shall be type K copper tube with flared fittings. The water service pipe from the street main to the water distribution system for the building shall be of sufficient size to furnish an adequate flow of water to meet the requirements of the building at peak demand, and in no case shall be less than the tap at main and 3/4 inch service. The curb stop and connection to the street main shall be as approved by the Superintendent of Public Works.
D. 
After the trench has been properly dug to a depth of at least 4 1/2 feet by the property owner and notice thereof given to the Superintendent of Public Works, the Village shall make the connection with the water main. The Village shall furnish and maintain for each service all pipes and fittings to and including curb cock and shall also furnish, install, and maintain the proper meter and tap the main for the sum set annually by resolution of the Board of Trustees for a three-fourths-inch connection and a sum set annually by resolution of the Board of Trustees for a connection using a pipe larger than three-fourths inch in diameter. All the above materials shall remain the property of the Village.
[Amended 5-21-2008 by L.L. No. 3-2008; 10-22-2014 by L.L. No. 13-2014]
E. 
An application for the supervision and approval by the Superintendent of Public Works or his duly authorized representative for the connection with the water main made to premises outside of the incorporated boundaries of the Village shall be accompanied by a fee of:
[Added 10-9-2002 by L.L. No. 15-2002; 10-22-2014 by L.L. No. 13-2014]
(1) 
For residential premises located outside of an established water district of the Town of New Paltz: set annually by resolution of the Board of Trustees; or
(2) 
For any nonresidential premises: set annually by resolution of the Board of Trustees.
A. 
Original installation. The property owner shall be responsible for all costs and expenses incurred by the Village in making the tap in the water main, laying service to the curb box and installation of the curb box as well as the service on his property.
B. 
Maintenance. The Village shall be responsible for the maintenance, repair, and replacement of the curb box and the water service from the main to the curb box.
C. 
Meter maintenance and replacement.
(1) 
Owner's responsibility. Any damage to the meter by freezing, hot water or other negligence of the owner or persons in possession of premises shall be payable by the owner at cost. The owner or persons in possession of the premises shall pay the cost of testing a meter which is found not to be defective. The owner or persons in possession of the premises shall pay the cost of damage or repair within 30 days after a demand for payment is made by the Village Clerk-Treasurer. All charges for repair, replacement or testing of meters which remain unpaid on the first day of April next following the date the expense was incurred shall be added as a special assessment to the account of the owner of the premises on the real property tax roll of the Village of New Paltz for the fiscal year next following, unless within 30 days after the demand for payment is made by the Village Clerk-Treasurer the owner shall file an application with the Board of Trustees showing that the charge should not have been incurred and the Board of Trustees approves the rescission of the charge.
(2) 
Meters two inches and more. All water meters serviced by a two-inch pipe or larger are hereby required to be tested every five years and the expense of such testing and repair, if necessary, shall be paid by the applicant for water service and, if not paid, shall be billed to the owner of the property served in the event the applicant is not the owner.
No claim shall be valid against the Village by reason of the inadequacy or breakage of any service pipe, fittings or fixtures or arising out of any accident or damage that may result from shutting off the water for repairs of the mains, for new work or any purpose whatsoever.
The Superintendent of Public Works and other Village employees shall have the right to enter upon all premises supplied with water by the Village at all reasonable hours for the inspection of the pipes, hydrants, meters, draws, valve boxes, spigots, hose boxes and other attachments, and shall have the right and power to cut off the water service from the premises should the aforesaid pipes, fixtures or attachments, or any of them, be out of repair or not placed where the Superintendent of Public Works shall designate.
[Amended 10-9-2002 by L.L. No. 15-2002; 10-22-2014 by L.L. No. 13-2014]
All service pipes and fixtures, except the meter on the property owner's side of the curb box, shall be kept in good order and repair at all times at his own expense and, on failure to do so, the water may be cut off and kept off until such pipes and attachments are put in proper order and repair and the expense of cutting off and turning on the water is paid to the Village Clerk-Treasurer by the owner. The Village shall be entitled to not less than 48 hours' notice from the property owner that the necessary repairs have been completed and that the water may be turned on. The charge for cutting off the water and turning on the water shall be set annually by resolution of the Board of Trustees.
No person who is a customer of the Village water service and having a hydrant or tap on his premises shall permit the water therefrom to be drawn, taken or used by the occupants of other premises not paying water rent, under penalty of having the water turned off and forfeiting his privilege to use the water service of the Village.
A. 
Tampering. No person, except the Superintendent of Public Works or his duly authorized representatives, shall disturb or break any seal placed on a meter or interfere in any way with the mechanism of said meter so as to cause it to register improperly.
B. 
Bypassing. No taps or connections shall be placed in such a manner so that any person shall be able to draw off water that does not pass through the meter.
A. 
Leaks of metered water. All leaks in the service or any other pipe or fixture on the premises of the consumer or on the consumer's side of the curb box shall immediately be repaired at the expense of the consumer.
B. 
Leaks of unmetered water. Any leaks of water occurring between the curb box and the meter or in the automatic fire prevention sprinkler system shall be promptly reported to the Superintendent of Public Works and shall immediately be repaired at the expense of the consumer. The Superintendent shall determine the approximate quantity of water lost as the result of the leak and the cost thereof shall be added to the bill for the current quarter.
Plumbers and pipe fitters shall make full written returns for each service of the ordinary and special uses to which the water is to be applied, whether for new work, alterations, or additions with full description of all apparatus and arrangements for using water; the return shall be made within 48 hours after completion of the work. The water service shall not be let on until such return is made. No plumber or pipe fitter shall be allowed to turn on the water.
[Amended 8-14-2002 by L.L. No. 12-2002; 10-9-2002 by L.L. No. 15-2002; 5-3-2006 by L.L. No. 9-2006; 8-22-2007 by L.L. No. 7-2007; 10-10-2012 by L.L. No. 9-2012]
A. 
Generally. The Village Treasurer of the Village of New Paltz shall cause all water rents to be collected in advance in so far as practicable, at such time or times as the Village Board shall direct. The Village Treasurer shall prepare, or cause to be prepared, a list or roll containing the name of each person, company, corporation or association owning lots or buildings indebted or to become indebted to the Village for the use of water or water meters or for service or other charges in connection with said supply of water. It shall then proceed to fix and set down in a separate column the amount of said charges, to be known as "water rents," accrued and chargeable upon each lot, part of lot or building. The amount of such water rents shall be fixed annually by said Village Board according to its best judgment, in proportion to the amount of water consumed or likely to be consumed or in proportion to the benefits accruing thereto. Rates shall be set to encourage and foster conservation of water usage and infrastructure resources among the highest-volume users, who have the greatest impact on the system as a whole, and who have the greatest ability to implement efficiencies to conserve water and lessen overall system degradation. All water charges shall be billed to the owner of the real property receiving water service. For all billing purposes, the owner shall be the person or entity shown as the owner on the current Village tax assessment roll.
B. 
Inside Village users. The meter charge to consumers inside the Village limits shall be at the rate and schedule as determined and established from time to time by resolution of the Village Board, and maintained by the Treasurer. Unpaid water rents shall be a lien on the property upon which the water is used, and such liens shall be superior to every other lien or claim, except the lien of an existing tax.
C. 
Outside Village users. The meter charge to consumers outside the Village limits whose water service is not provided under an agreement either with the Town of New Paltz or the State University of New York shall be at the rate of 150% of the Village rate. Those properties to which water service is provided shall, by accepting such service, agree to a lien against the property for nonpayment for any such water charge made under this provision.
D. 
Assessment. The Village Board shall authorize the Village Treasurer to receive, levy and collect the several sums specified and assessed against each person, company, corporation or association owning lots or buildings which are connected to the public water supply in proportion to the amount of water consumed or likely to be consumed or in proportion to the benefit accruing thereto.
E. 
Collection. The Village Treasurer is authorized to collect water rents as assessed. The procedure for collection, as well as the times and rates for payment or the imposition of penalties, late fees or other expenses or costs, shall be established from time to time by resolution of the Village Board. In any circumstance where an industrial or institutional user has multiple water meters on one or more parcels of land within the water service area, all water consumed by that user shall be consolidated and billed as if recorded by one water meter. For the purposes of this section, the terms "industrial" and "institutional" user shall be consistent with the definition of such users in the Sewer provisions of the Village Code.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: See Ch. 163, Sewers.
F. 
Omission from rent roll. In the event that the water rent accrued and chargeable upon any lot, part of lot or building is omitted from any water roll for any cause, it shall be included in the next roll after such omission is discovered and shall be collected in the same manner and have the same lien and in all respects have the same force and effect as any other water rent.
G. 
Change of rules; special rates and contracts. The Village reserves the right to change water rules and regulations, and to negotiate and agree upon special rates or contracts with specific users in all proper cases.
H. 
Meter failure. In case any water meter shall fail to register the quantity of water passing through the same, the property owner shall be charged at the rate of consumption as registered at the average of the last three readings.
I. 
Final meter readings. Consumers requesting a reading of their water meters upon a transfer of title shall be charged a fee set annually by resolution of the Board of Trustees for each such reading, to be paid at the time the request is made.
[Amended 10-22-2014 by L.L. No. 13-2014]
[Amended 10-10-2012 by L.L. No. 9-2012]
Water rents, together with the amount of any penalty prescribed and due for nonpayment of such rents for 60 days, shall be a lien on the real property upon which or in connection with which water is used, and such lien is prior and superior to every other lien or claim, except the lien of an existing tax. The Superintendent of Public Works shall certify to the Village Treasurer the amounts of all such unpaid rents, including penalties computed to the first day of the month following the month in which the fiscal year commences, with a description of the real property affected thereby. The Village Treasurer shall present such certificate to the Board of Trustees and shall enter the same or an abstract thereof in the minutes of the meeting. The Board of Trustees shall include such amounts in the annual tax levy and shall levy the same upon the real property in default. Whenever an unpaid water rent shall be included in the annual Village tax levy, as above provided, the water fund shall be credited with the amount of unpaid rent, including penalties, and the amount so levied of the unpaid rent, including penalties, and the amount, when collected, shall be paid into the general fund.
[Amended 3-11-2020 by L.L. No. 4-2020]
A. 
No person or persons shall open any fire plug or hydrant or draw water therefrom except the Superintendent of Public Works, his duly authorized representatives, or with his permission. The Chief of the Fire Department, its officers and members are authorized to use the said hydrants or plugs for the purpose of extinguishing fires, cleaning hoses, cleaning streets, for fire drills and any other legitimate public safety purposes.
B. 
Any person or persons using a fire hydrant for any purpose other than those specified in Subsection A of this subsection shall pay a fine in an amount to be set annually by resolution of the Board of Trustees.
A. 
Declaration. Whenever the Board of Trustees shall determine that an emergency exists due to shortage of water, the Board of Trustees shall publicly declare the existence of an emergency by adopting a resolution to that effect at a regular or special meeting and causing a notice thereof to be published in the official newspaper of the Village. Thereafter no water from the Village water system shall be wasted in any manner nor shall any water be used for any purpose other than necessary household or business consumption until such time as the Board of Trustees shall declare that the emergency is terminated.
B. 
Necessary household and business use defined. Necessary household and business use shall include use of water for drinking, washing and bathroom facilities but shall not include the use of water for sprinkling lawns or shrubbery, washing of porches or vehicles or use of water in air-conditioning equipment where the water is not recirculated or for other uses of similar character.
C. 
Special uses may be permitted. The Board of Trustees may from time to time during an emergency permit use of water for certain specified purposes which shall be stated in the resolution of the Board.
D. 
Water may be shut off for violation. In addition to the penalty otherwise herein prescribed, the Board of Trustees may in the event of a violation of this section order the water to the premises of the violator to be shut off in the same procedure provided in Subsection C of § 207-1 of this chapter.
[Added 7-9-2003 by L.L. No. 5-2003; amended 8-23-2006 by L.L. No. 14-2006]
A. 
No connection may be made to the water supply and distribution system of the Village by or on behalf of the owner of any parcel of land located outside of the Village which is, or could reasonably be made, contiguous to the incorporated boundary line of the Village unless and until such parcel of land has been annexed to the Village of New Paltz in the manner prescribed in Article 17 of the General Municipal Law of the State of New York or of any laws amending or supplementing the same.
B. 
Such parcel of land defined above may connect to the Village water supply and distribution system without annexing to the Village only if:
(1) 
It is an undue hardship to connect directly to the Village water supply and distribution system, such determination to be made solely by the Village Board of Trustees; and
(2) 
The parcel in question lies contiguous to an existing Town water district; and
(3) 
The owner(s) of said parcel have received the permission of both the Village Board of Trustees and the residents of said Town water district.
A. 
Violation of any of the provisions of this chapter is hereby declared to be a violation pursuant to the Penal Law. The Building Inspector shall issue and serve appearance tickets with respect to any violation of this chapter when he has reasonable cause to believe that such violation or offense has been committed.
B. 
For every violation of any provision of this chapter, the person violating the same shall be subject to a fine of not more than that set annually by resolution of the Board of Trustees or imprisonment of not more than 15 days as provided in the Penal Law.
[Amended 10-22-2014 by L.L. No. 13-2014]