To be considered for inclusion in the Nature
Preserve, a site must meet at least one of the following criteria:
A.
It serves as habitat for endangered, threatened, special
concern or rare species as listed in New York State Environmental
Conservation Law § 11-0535 or the New York State Natural
Heritage Program.
B.
It contains habitat or significant concentrations
or populations of breeding, feeding or resting wildlife.
C.
It contains freshwater or saltwater wetlands or ponds.
D.
It contains outstanding examples of natural communities
as identified by the New York Natural Heritage Program or the East
Hampton Natural Resources or Planning Department.
E.
It contains geological features which are vulnerable
to human disturbance, such as cliffs, bluffs, deep slopes, beaches
or dunes, or which are prime examples of interesting geological processes,
events or periods such as kettleholes, kames, eskers or outwash stream
channels.
F.
It is particularly suited to and appropriate for environmental
education programs or academic research programs.
G.
It provides an essential buffer to lands in the Nature
Preserve or to other Town, county, state or federal park land or open
space.
H.
It protects watershed areas critical to recharging
precipitation into the Town's sole-source aquifer or maintaining surface
water quality.
A.
Nomination. A nomination regarding Town-owned property
for dedication to the Nature Preserve must be submitted to the Town
Board in triplicate on the form prescribed by the Town Board. A nomination
for dedication may be made by Town agencies, community organizations
and interested individuals.
B.
Evaluation.
(1)
Every written nomination submitted to the Town Board
shall be referred to the Department for an evaluation.
(2)
The Department shall utilize the criteria contained in § 182-10 in making a written evaluation on whether the nominated property should be considered for inclusion in the Nature Preserve. Said written evaluation shall be forwarded to the Town Board within 45 days of receipt of the nomination from the Town Board.
C.
Referral to Town Board. The Town Board shall review the written evaluation it receives pursuant to Subsection B above. If the Department's evaluation recommends against dedication to the Nature Preserve, no public hearing need be held. If the evaluation recommends dedication to the Nature Preserve, said nomination is subject to public hearing.
D.
Hearing. The Town Board shall schedule a public hearing
within 45 days of receipt of a positive referral for dedication from
the Department. Said hearing shall be held not less than three nor
more than 30 days after public notice has been given of the time and
place of holding such public hearing. Such notice shall be given by
the Town Clerk, causing the same to be published once in the official
newspaper of the Town.
E.
Dedication. Following the public hearing, the Town
Board, by resolution, may dedicate all, part or none of the Town-owned
property discussed at the public hearing to the Nature Preserve.
F.
Trustee lands. Dedication pursuant to this chapter
shall have no effect on wetlands, beaches, highways, underwater lands
or other property in the ownership of the Trustees of the Freeholders
and Commonality of the Town of East Hampton.
[Added 9-18-1992 by L.L. No. 31-1992]
A.
In order to preserve and protect environmentally sensitive
Town-owned property, the Town Board shall establish a Nature Preserve
Committee and appoint annually the Committee members. The Committee
shall be composed of a minimum of 10 East Hampton Town residents and
additionally one Town Board member and one Town Trustee. The Town
Director of Planning or his/her designee and the Town Director of
Natural Resources or his/her designee shall serve as ex officio advisors
to the committee on an as-needed basis.
[Amended 3-3-2000 by L.L. No. 1-2000]
B.
The Nature Preserve Committee shall be responsible
for performing the following tasks:
(1)
Inventorying existing Town-owned property to assess
possible inclusion of said property in the Nature Preserve.
(2)
Maintaining a register listing of the property that
has been dedicated to the Nature Preserve.
(3)
Preparing or causing to be prepared management plans
for properties dedicated to the Nature Preserve to ensure that said
properties' unique features are preserved and protected.
(4)
Advising the Town Board of enforcement and management
problems.
[Added 3-3-2000 by L.L. No. 1-2000]
A.
The properties dedicated to the Town Nature Preserve
are hereby declared to be held in trust for the benefit of the people
of the Town of present and future generations and declared to be put
to their best and most important use for the public benefit.
B.
Property owned by the Town and dedicated under this
chapter to the Nature Preserve shall not be cleared or improved in
any manner, except to provide opportunities that facilitate the purposes
set forth in the management plan and/or enhance educational or wilderness
experiences, without each of the following procedures having first
taken place:
(1)
The Town Board shall hold a public hearing to allow
public comment on the proposed land clearing on or improvement to
certain property dedicated to the Nature Preserve. Said hearing shall
be held not less than 14 nor more than 30 days after public notice
has been given of the time and place of holding such public hearing.
Such notice shall be given by the Town Clerk, causing the same to
be published once in the official newspaper of the Town.
(2)
Following the hearing, the Town Board shall, by a
majority-plus-one vote, pass a resolution that makes a finding of
an imperative and unavoidable public necessity requiring said land
clearing on or improvement to certain property dedicated to the Nature
Preserve.
C.
Utility easements may be granted by the Town Board
on the perimeter of property dedicated to the Nature Preserve by a
majority-plus-one vote.
A.
The properties dedicated to the Nature Preserve are
hereby declared to be held in trust for the benefit of the people
of the Town of present and future generations and declared to be put
to their best and most important use for the public benefit.
B.
Property owned by the Town and dedicated under this
chapter to the Nature Preserve shall not be conveyed, leased, exchanged
or otherwise disposed of without each of the following procedures
having first taken place:
(1)
The Town Board shall hold a public hearing to allow
public comment on the proposed conveyance, lease, exchange or other
disposal of certain property dedicated to the Nature Preserve. Said
hearing shall be held not less than 14 nor more than 30 days after
public notice has been given of the time and place of holding such
public hearing. Such notice shall be given by the Town, causing the
same to be published at least once in the official newspaper of the
Town.
(2)
Following the hearing, the Town Board shall, by a
majority-plus-one vote, pass a resolution that makes a finding of
an imperative and unavoidable public necessity requiring conveyance,
lease, exchange or other disposal of certain property dedicated to
the Nature Preserve.
(3)
The Town Board resolution which supports the conveyance,
lease, exchange or other disposal of certain property dedicated to
the Nature Preserve shall be subject to mandatory referendum.
(4)
All other local, state and federal laws regarding
divestiture of property shall be complied with.
[Added 1-16-2003 by L.L. No. 1-2003]
A.
Any management plan prepared by the Nature Preserve Committee pursuant to § 182-12B(3) of this chapter must be formally adopted for a property or properties in question as follows:
(1)
The proposed management plan shall be discussed at
a regular meeting of the Nature Preserve Committee and must be approved
by a simple majority of the Nature Preserve Committee members then
in attendance; and
(2)
The Committee shalt thereafter, in writing, recommend
the adoption of the management plan to the Town Board; and
(3)
The Town Board shall, within 60 days of receiving
a management plan recommendation or amendment thereto from the Nature
Preserve Committee, schedule a public hearing on a proposed management
plan (which may incorporate changes to the proposed management plan
made by the Town Board) for the property so implicated upon at least
seven days' notice.
B.
After holding a public hearing as set forth above,
the Town Board may adopt the proposed management plan, or any part
or amendment thereto, by simple resolution.
C.
A management plan, amendment or part thereof that
has been adopted pursuant to this section shall be filed with and
maintained by the East Hampton Town Planning Department.
[Added 1-16-2003 by L.L. No. 1-2003]
A.
The following activities shall be prohibited in all
duly dedicated Nature Preserves subject to the penalties set forth
herein:
(1)
Unauthorized digging and/or artifact recovery;
(2)
Unauthorized woodcutting or clearing of vegetation;
(3)
Abandonment of domesticated animals;
(4)
Littering.
[Amended 2-4-2016 by L.L.
No. 4-2016]
(a)
No person shall throw or deposit litter, as defined herein,
upon any duly dedicated Nature Preserve.
(b)
A lack of eyewitness testimony shall not bar prosecution under the provisions of § 182-16A(4)(a) of this chapter, and it shall be presumptive evidence, rebuttable by competent evidence, that the identity of the person accused of a violation of these provisions may be established if litter found deposited in violation of these provisions contains substantial evidence of that person's identity.
(5)
Uncontained fires or burning of any kind;
(6)
Unauthorized vehicular access.
[Added 1-16-2003 by L.L. No. 1-2003]
The Town's Nature Preserves are an important
public resource. The establishment, maintenance and cataloging of
public access trails are an important component of maximizing the
value of this resource to the Town as a whole. To effectuate the goals
set forth herein, the following procedures shall govern all trail-related
activities on Nature Preserve property.
A.
Trail establishment.
(1)
Individuals or organizations that are proposing new
trails on Town Nature Preserve properties shall submit a map of the
proposed trail together with a narrative describing the location of
the trail, its relationship to other established trails on adjacent
properties and the proposed use of the trail to the East Hampton Town
Natural Resource Department.
(2)
Within 45 days, the Natural Resource Department shall
submit comments, including a recommendation for approval or denial
of the proposed access trail to the Town Board.
B.
Database of trail resources.
(1)
To further the purposes of this chapter, the Town
Natural Resources Department shall maintain a database of all duly
recognized trails on public and private property. For the purposes
of this section, a duly recognized trail shall be a trail that is
located on public or private land with the express permission of the
landowner. Any trail recognized or recommended in a management plan
adopted hereunder shall constitute a duly recognized trail for purposes
of this section.
(2)
The database maintained hereunder shall be updated
every five years by the Town's Natural Resource Department, or other
such department as may be duly designated to perform the responsibilities
of this chapter by the Town Board.
(3)
The Town Natural Resource Department shall publish
an official map of all the East Hampton trails with the first such
map to be made available to the public in fiscal year 2004. The official
map shall be updated every five years and shall be made available
to the public through the Town Clerk's office for a reasonable fee.
