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Town of Goshen, NY
Orange County
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Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Code
New Laws (4) Index
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").
A. 
No subdivision of any lot, tract, or parcel of land shall be effected and no street, sanitary sewer, storm sewer, water main, or other facilities in connection therewith shall be laid out, constructed, opened, or dedicated for public use and travel, or for the common use of occupants of buildings abutting thereon, except in strict accordance with the provisions of this chapter.
B. 
This chapter applies to lot line adjustments, as defined herein, but does not apply to lot mergers which eliminate but do not change lot lines. (See § 83-6 below.)
C. 
Applicants shall fully comply with the provisions of Article 16 of the Town Law, § 334 of the Real Property Law, § 136 of the Highway Law, applicable provisions of the Public Health Law, and with all provisions of the Town Code, as well as with the provisions of this chapter, except where waivers from this chapter are expressly authorized by the Planning Board.
D. 
When any subdivision of land is proposed to be made and before any contract for the sale of land or any offer to sell such subdivision or any part thereof is made, and before any grading, clearing, construction or other improvement is undertaken on such land, the subdivider or his duly authorized agent shall apply in writing for approval of such proposed subdivision in accordance with the procedures in this chapter.
E. 
This chapter applies to all lot line adjustments and subdivisions of land as defined herein, in any zoning district in the Town of Goshen. Within the RU District, as established in Chapter 97, Zoning, all subdivisions shall be open space developments, small-scale developments, or conservation density developments, as described therein.
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.
A. 
Although a lot line adjustment does not require approval as a subdivision, lot lines may not be changed (other than for lot mergers) unless an amending map has been approved and signed by the Planning Board Chair. The map may be signed and recorded following sketch review and Planning Board approval of the final lot line adjustment map in a form acceptable for filing in the County Clerk's office. The purpose of such review shall be only to confirm compliance with zoning dimensional requirements and to ensure that existing on-site utilities and driveways are located on the parcel on which an existing building which they serve is situated.
B. 
All property owners whose lots will be affected by the lot line adjustment must sign a consent to file.
C. 
Other procedural requirements of this chapter, including the public hearing requirements, do not apply, unless the Planning Board determines, in the course of its review of the lot line adjustment, that there are issues that would justify holding a public hearing. Such issues may include, without limitation, the presence of an officially adopted trail corridor on the subject parcel. In such a case, the Planning Board may reclassify the lot line adjustment as a minor subdivision, hold a public hearing in accordance with the provisions of § 83-22, and require that the applicant comply with applicable rules for subdivisions. To the extent that this section may conflict with the provisions of § 276 of the Town Law, the Town Board hereby declares its intention to supersede the Town Law pursuant to the Municipal Home Rule Law, Article 2, § 10 et seq.
D. 
Lot mergers, in which lot lines between lots in the same ownership are eliminated, do not require any approval under this chapter.
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.