[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town Board of the Town of Webster 12-20-2007 by L.L. No. 7-2007;[1][2] amended in its entirety at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I) (Ch. 152 of the 1991 Code). Subsequent amendments noted where applicable.]
[1]
Editor's Note: This local law also provided that the repeal of sections enacted by this local law would be effective 2-28-2010.
[2]
Editor's Note: This local law also superseded former Ch. 152, Open Space Preservation, adopted 5-7-1992, as amended.
It is the intention of the Town Board of the Town of Webster to repeal the existing law and discontinue the existing open space preservation program, specifically, that effective February 28, 2010 (or "immediately"), no new applications will be considered, and no renewals of existing applications will be approved. It is the intention of this provision to discontinue the existing program. Upon expiration of the latest contractual term hereunder, the effect of this chapter is null and void. All lawfully entered contracts and agreements with the Town pursuant to Chapter 220 as existing prior to February 28, 2010, shall continue until such time as the agreements expire by their terms, or until such time as the beneficiaries seek to cancel or terminate the agreements pursuant to the procedures set forth in §§ 220-7 and 220-8 below. It is the stated and express intention of the Town Board that such agreements or contracts in existence pursuant to Chapter 220 prior to the effective date of February 28, 2010, shall not be extended, renewed or renegotiated. There will be agreements through the 2032 assessment roll. These agreements are filed with the Assessor and an updated list is filed annually with the Town Clerk and Finance Director including owner name, address, tax account number, acreage, and taxable exemption amount.
For the purpose of this chapter, the terms used herein are defined as follows:
FARMLAND
Certain contiguous acreage, used in conjunction with an ongoing agricultural venture, for the purpose of significant financial gain, actively utilized for the production of, or as support land for the production of agricultural products for the two fiscal/tax years immediately preceding the filing of an application under this chapter. Land used in agricultural production shall not include land or portions thereof used for processing or retail merchandising of such agricultural products.
OPEN SPACE or OPEN AREA
Any acreage characterized by natural scenic beauty or whose existing openness, natural condition or present state of use, if retained, would enhance the present or potential value of abutting or surrounding urban development or would maintain or enhance the conservation of natural or scenic resources. Open space or open area shall not include a principal dwelling and shall be designated as falling outside the open area. The exact size of the excluded area shall be determined by the Conservation Board based upon information provided in the application and the Conservation Board's own field study, which study shall take note of and assure that the excluded area will conform to the minimum lot size of the zoning district wherein the parcel lies. Any proposed acreage that cannot be further subdivided and still be in compliance with Chapter 350, Zoning, of the Code of the Town of Webster shall not be deemed an open space or open area for the purposes of this chapter. In addition, approved subdivisions or site plans providing for phased development shall also not be deemed an open space or open area for purposes of this chapter.
Any lands currently used, in whole or in part, for commercial or industrial purposes shall not be eligible for application under this chapter.
A. 
Any acreage approved for benefits under the New York State Agricultural Assessment program as set forth in Agriculture and Markets Law Article 25AA, Sections 305 and 306, shall not be simultaneously eligible for the acquisition of interest or rights in real property under this chapter.
B. 
Any acreage for which development rights have been sold shall not also be eligible for the acquisition of interest or rights in real property under this chapter.
C. 
Any acreage subject to any residential exemption set forth in Chapter 304 of the Webster Town Code (infra) shall not also be eligible for the acquisition of interests or rights in real property under this chapter. These residential exemptions shall, however, be allocated and limited to the qualifying residential acreage of the parcel as defined in Real Property Tax Law Article 4, as amended, and as designated as falling outside the open area as defined in § 220-2 of this chapter.
Effect. In no event shall the acceptance of an application of acreage into the program, or the execution of an agreement thereof, limit or be construed to limit the authority and right of the assessor to reevaluate and adjust the assessed valuation of such acreage in years subsequent to, and subject to, the agreement.
A. 
After the Town's acquisition of interests or rights pursuant to this chapter, the assessed valuation placed upon such open space or area for the purpose of real estate taxation shall take into account and be limited by the future use of the land.
B. 
The Assessor of the Town of Webster is required to take into account and be limited by the limitation on the future use of the land resulting from the conveyance of interests or rights. The following table shall apply to those parcels affected prior to repeal of the current law and termination of new applications into the open space preservation program:
Percentages of Remaining Value of Encumbered Acreage
Years
Conservation
Farming
5
75
40
6
65
32
7
56
28
8
48
24
9
41
20
10
35
17
11
30
15
12
26
13
13
23
12
14
21
11
15
20
10
16
19
17
18
18
17
19
16
20
15
21
14
22
13
23
12
24
11
25
10
The owner or owners may petition the Town Board for cancellation of the agreement, or the Town Board may on its own motion seek cancellation, upon good cause shown. Such cancellation may be granted only upon payment of the amounts provided in § 220-8. Such amounts or a portion thereof may be waived by the Town Board only if good cause for cancellation is catastrophic illness, death of the property owner, or otherwise in the interest of justice.
A. 
At the time of such cancellation, or if the terms of the conveyance of interest or right have been violated by the landowner, the Town will assess rollback taxes and a penalty, unless waived, as described in § 220-7. The penalty shall be assessed against all the land under conveyed interest or right, except in the case of the death of a sole owner in which case the penalty will be assessed only against that portion which is to be developed or changed in use within one year of the date of death. Thereafter, the penalty and payment of abated taxes will be levied upon the land under the conveyed interest or right. The penalty decreases with the length of time the interest or right has been held by the Town of Webster. This encourages the owner to stay in the program as long as possible.
B. 
If there is a substantial violation of the terms and conditions of the agreement or if said agreement is canceled by the Town Board upon petition, the then owner or owners of said property must pay to the Town of Webster, unless waived pursuant to § 220-7, both of the following amounts:
(1) 
Calculation and payment of abated taxes. All taxes granted abatement under and pursuant to the agreement, said taxes to include the state, county, town, school districts and all special improvement districts and other taxing units to which the property is subject, shall be repaid. Such repayment of abated taxes shall be returned to the rightful taxing jurisdictions. In the event an amount less than the full amount due is received, then a proportionate share of the total received shall be returned to each of the rightful taxing jurisdictions. The amount of the payment of such abated taxes shall be limited as follows: any agreement broken before its 11th year will be subject to a five-year maximum rollback; an agreement broken between its 11th and 15th year will be subject to a four-year maximum rollback; and an agreement broken in its 16th year or later will be subject to a three-year maximum rollback; and
(2) 
Calculation and payment of penalties. The penalty shall be assessed on the basis of the previous year's tax abatement multiplied by a factor equal to the term of the agreement divided by the current year of the agreement. This factor shall not exceed five.
Any and all penalties calculated pursuant to § 220-8B(2) collected by the Town and attributable to the Town pursuant to § 220-8 shall be used solely for open space and/or parkland acquisition or improvement or maintenance purposes.
In accordance with the time lines for the notice of increased assessments or change in taxable status as set forth in New York State Real Property Tax Law §§ 510(1), 510-a or 511, the Assessor of the Town of Webster shall give notice, by first-class mail, facsimile transmission or electronic means, of the upcoming expiration of the agreement to the last known owner or owners of record of the property subject to this chapter. Failure to provide such notice by this subsection, or the failure of an owner to receive same, shall not preclude any adjustment to the assessment of the affected parcel(s) due to expiration of said agreement, nor shall it affect the validity of the levy, collection, or enforcement of taxes on said property.
The repeal of those sections of Chapter 220, as enacted by Local Law No. 2 of 2010, shall take place effective February 28, 2010.