There is hereby established a reserve in the general capital fund which shall be noted and designated as the "Open Space Trust Fund." A separate bank account shall be established and maintained therefor entitled "Bernards Township Open Space Trust Account." As directed by the Township Committee, funds from the Open Space Trust Fund may be utilized to acquire all types of interests in real property, including, not by way of limitation, fee simple acquisitions, easements, development rights or any other lesser interests in real estate which will further the goal of open space acquisition and preservation, and may further be utilized for the construction of public park infrastructure as defined in Section 2-28.1, artificial turf athletic fields and maintenance of lands acquired for recreation and conservation purposes owned by the Township. The lands in which such interests may be acquired shall include undeveloped land as well as land containing improvements at the time of acquisition, provided that the principal purpose of the acquisition is to preserve open space. The Township Committee shall have the option of paying for land acquisitions with improvements upon them either solely through the Open Space Trust Fund or by apportioning the cost thereof by charging the Open Space Trust Fund for the land portion and the capital account for the improvement portion. It is understood that such acquisition may occur via gift, purchase or by eminent domain proceedings pursuant to N.J.S.A. 20:3-1 et seq. In addition, the Township Committee may authorize the disbursement of moneys from the Open Space Trust Fund to assist the County of Somerset in acquiring interests in real property, located within the Township, for the purposes stated herein, provided that suitable arrangements are made to assure that:
a.
Such lands are made subject to restrictions substantially
similar to those imposed by this section; and
b.
In the event that such interests subsequently are
sold, the net proceeds of such disposition will be paid over to the
Township's Open Space Trust Fund in the same proportion that the Township's
contribution bore to the original purchase price.
[1]
Editor’s Note: The changes enacted by this ordinance
were approved by the voters at the election held 11-4-2014.
[Ord. #1287, 12-18-1997, § 2, adopted; Ord. #1438, 1-23-2001, amended]
Beginning in 2001, a special tax rate shall be added to the total township tax rate in the amount of $0.04 per $100 of the annual assessed valuations and tax rate, the revenue from which shall be deposited into the Open Space Trust Fund. The Township Committee may, in its discretion, deposit additional municipal moneys into the Open Space Trust Fund, which deposits shall then be subject to all of the provisions governing the Open Space Trust Fund. The Open Space Trust Fund shall also be permitted to accept donations and testamentary bequests. The funds accumulated within the Open Space Trust Fund shall be utilized for the acquisition of real estate and interests in real estate as more fully delineated in Subsection 27-1.1 hereinabove. In connection with such acquisition, the funds may be utilized for appraisals and other items of expense permitted by law in connection with the acquisition or as a down payment for the issuance of bonds or for debt service for the same purpose at the discretion of the Township Committee. Any and all interest accruing shall remain in the Open Space Trust Fund and may be utilized for the above-described purposes. In no eventuality shall the Township pay more than fair market value for the land to be acquired. The Township shall obtain a minimum of one appraisal from a certified appraiser, plus the appraisal of the tax, as a guide to the fair market value. The cost of such appraisal may be paid out of the Open Space Trust Fund.
[Ord. #1287, 12-18-1997, § 3, adopted]
The land acquired under the Open Space Trust
Fund shall be utilized for all categories of open space, including
parks, recreation areas, natural areas, greenways, wildlife habitats,
preservation of farmland and such other uses consistent with the concept
of open space.
No real property or interest therein acquired with these funds from the Open Space Trust Fund shall be sold, conveyed, leased or otherwise alienated unless it is needed for another public use or otherwise furthers the purposes of the Trust. If such a sale, lease or conveyance is made, the Township Committee shall be required to (1) place the moneys received into the Open Space Trust Fund and (2) in due course, replace, such property or interest with property or an interest of at least equal fair market value and of reasonably equivalent usefulness, size, quality and location. In satisfying the requirements of Clause 2 of the preceding sentence, the Township Committee shall not be required to expend the entire proceeds of the sale, lease or conveyance at a single time or on a single acquisition, or to expend the proceeds within a specific time following the sale, lease or conveyance, and may, in its discretion, combine all or a portion of the proceeds with other moneys from within or outside the Open Space Trust Fund toward any acquisition which is permissible under § 27-1.1 of this chapter, provided that the property or interest so acquired is made subject to all of the restrictions of §§ 27-1.3 and 27-1.4 of this chapter. The deed of any property acquired wholly or partly with funds from the Open SpaceTrust Fund shall contain a specific notation reflecting that the property was acquired with funds from the Open Space Trust Fund.
