This chapter shall be known and may be cited as "The Subdivision Law of the Town of Goshen" and as Chapter
83 of the Code of the Town of Goshen.
This chapter regulates the approval of subdivision
plats in the Town of Goshen, authorizing the Planning Board to:
A. Approve and conditionally approve plats showing lots,
blocks, or sites, with or without streets or highways;
B. Pass and approve the development of entirely or partially
undeveloped plats already filed in the office of the Orange County
Clerk.
This local law (also cited as "this chapter") is enacted pursuant to the authority and power granted by Municipal Home Rule Law of the State of New York, Article 2, § 10 et seq., and §§ 271, 276, 277, and 278 of the Town Law, in conformance with the Comprehensive Plan for the Town of Goshen, to protect and promote public health, safety, comfort, convenience, economy, natural, agricultural, and cultural resources, aesthetics, and the general welfare, and for the additional purposes listed in §
97-3 of the Town of Goshen Zoning Law (hereinafter "Zoning Law").
It is declared to be the policy of the Town of Goshen to consider land subdivision plats as part of a plan for the orderly, efficient, environmentally sound, and economical development of the Town of Goshen, consistent with the Town of Goshen Comprehensive Plan and Chapter
97, Zoning, and the requirements of the State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQRA). The following objectives shall guide the Planning Board's decisions on land subdivisions:
A. Land to be subdivided shall be of such character that
it can be used safely for building purposes without danger to health,
or peril from fire, flood, or other menace.
B. Proper provision shall be made for stormwater management,
potable water supply, wastewater collection and treatment, and other
needed improvements and utilities.
C. Streets shall be of such width, grade, and location
as to appropriately accommodate present and anticipated future vehicular,
bicycle, and pedestrian traffic and to facilitate fire protection,
while minimizing disruption of the natural environment.
D. Park or other natural areas of suitable location,
size, and character for playground or other passive or active recreational
purposes shall be shown on subdivision plats, where appropriate.
E. Proper provision shall be made for leaving undeveloped natural areas and corridors to mitigate the adverse environmental impacts of subdivision and to sustain a diversity of native vegetation and wildlife, to protect water resources, agricultural land, and scenic viewsheds, and to implement the Town's policies of protection of its environmental and cultural resources pursuant to Chapter
97, Zoning.
F. New development shall be laid out in a manner that
reflects and complements historic development patterns.
All provisions of this chapter shall be construed broadly to fulfill the purposes and policies stated in §§
83-3 and
83-5 above and the policies expressed in the Town of Goshen Comprehensive Plan (hereinafter the "Comprehensive Plan").
Nothing in this chapter shall prohibit a subdivider
from placing self-imposed restrictions not in violation of this chapter
on the development. Such restrictions shall be indicated on the plat,
for informational purposes only. The notation of such self-imposed
restrictions on the plat shall not confer any power or obligation
on the Town to enforce them, unless the Planning Board has made such
restrictions a condition of approval.
To the extent that any provisions of this chapter are inconsistent with the Town Law of the State of New York, Chapter
62 of the Consolidated Laws, Article 16, §§ 271 and 276, 277 and 278, the Town Board of the Town of Goshen hereby declares its intent to supersede those sections of the Town Law, pursuant to its home rule powers under Municipal Home Rule Law, Article 2, § 10 et seq., of the Consolidated Laws of the State of New York.
Should any section or provision of the regulations
contained herein or as amended hereafter be declared by a court of
competent jurisdiction to be invalid, such decision shall not affect
the validity of the regulations as a whole or any part thereof other
than the part declared to be invalid.