A.
Under the provisions of this chapter and state statutes,
the Borough of Mendham, other governmental agencies, the Board of
Education and state, county and other public bodies can be designated
to maintain and accept public open space for recreational or conservational
uses. These public agencies can accept and maintain such open spaces
whether or not the dedication is conditioned upon the same being made
available to public use.
B.
Where a subdivision or site plan is required, this
chapter shall require that the applicant provide for an organization
for the ownership and maintenance of any open space for the benefit
of owners or residents of the development if said open space is not
dedicated to the municipality or other governmental agency. Such organizations
shall not be dissolved and shall not dispose of any open space, by
sale or otherwise, except to an organization conceived and established
to own and maintain the open space for the benefit of such development,
and thereafter such organization shall not be dissolved or dispose
of any of its open space without first offering to dedicate the same
to Mendham Borough wherein the land is located.
C.
In the event that such organization shall fail to
maintain the open space in reasonable order and condition, the administrative
officer designated by resolution to administer this section may serve
written notice upon the owners of the development, setting forth the
manner in which the organization has failed to maintain the open space
in reasonable condition, and said notice shall include a demand that
such deficiencies of maintenance be cured within 35 days thereof and
shall state the date and place of a hearing thereon, which shall be
held within 15 days of the notice. At such hearing, the designated
municipal body or administrative officer may modify the terms of the
original notice as to deficiencies and may give a reasonable extension
of time not to exceed 65 days within which they may be cured. If the
deficiencies set forth in the original notice or in the modification
thereof shall not be cured within said 35 days or any permitted extension
thereof, the Borough, in order to preserve the open space and maintain
the same for a period of one year, may enter upon and maintain such
land. Said entry and maintenance shall not vest in the public any
rights to use the open space except when the same is voluntarily dedicated
to the public by the owners. Before the expiration of said year, the
designated Borough body or officer, as the case may be, shall, upon
its initiative or upon the request of the organization theretofore
responsible for the maintenance of the open space, call a public hearing
upon 15 days' written notice to such organization and the owners of
the development to be held by such Borough body or officer, at which
hearing such organization and the owners of the development shall
show cause why such maintenance by the Borough shall not, at the election
of the Borough, continue for a succeeding year. If the designated
Borough body or officer shall determine that such organization is
ready and able to maintain said open space in reasonable condition,
the Borough shall cease to maintain said open space at the end of
said year. If the Borough body or officer shall determine that such
organization is not ready and able to maintain said open space in
reasonable condition, the Borough may, in its discretion, continue
to maintain said open space during the next succeeding year, subject
to a similar hearing and determination in each year thereafter. The
decision of the Borough body or officer in any such case shall constitute
a final administrative decision subject to judicial review.
D.
If a municipal body or officer is not designated by
resolution to administer this section, the governing body shall have
the same powers and be subject to the same restrictions as provided
in this section.
E.
The cost of such maintenance by the Borough shall
be assessed pro rata against the properties within the development
that have a right of enjoyment of the open space in accordance with
assessed value at the time of imposition of the lien, shall become
a lien and tax on said properties and be added to and be a part of
the taxes to be levied and assessed thereon and shall be enforced
and collected with interest by the same officers and in the same manner
as other taxes.
A.
Applicability.
(1)
If the Master Plan of Mendham or the Official Map
of Mendham provides for the reservation of designated streets, public
drainageways, flood control basins or public areas within the proposed
development, before approving a subdivision or site plan, the approving
authority may further require that such streets, ways, basins or areas
be shown on the plat in locations and sizes suitable to their intended
uses. The approving authority may reserve the location and extent
of such streets, ways, basins or areas shown on the plat for a period
of one year after the approval of the final plat or within such further
time as may be agreed to by the developer.
(2)
Unless during such a period or extension thereof the
government entity having jurisdiction shall have entered into a contract
to purchase or institute condemnation proceedings according to law
for the fee or a lesser interest in the land comprising such streets,
ways, basins or areas, the applicant shall not be bound by such reservations
shown on the plat and may proceed to use such land for private use
in accordance with applicable development regulations. The provisions
of this article shall not apply to the streets and roadways, flood
control basins or public drainageways necessitated by the subdivision
or land development and required for final approval.
B.
Compensation to applicant. The applicant shall be
entitled to just compensation for actual loss found to be caused by
such temporary reservation and deprivation of use. In such instances,
unless a lesser amount has previously been mutually agreed upon, "just
compensation" shall be deemed to be fair market value of an option
to purchase the land reserved for the period of reservation, provided
that determination of such fair market value shall include but not
be limited to consideration of real property taxes apportioned to
the land reserved and prorated for the period of reservation. The
applicant shall be compensated for the reasonable increased cost of
legal, engineering or other professional services incurred in connection
with obtaining subdivision or site plan approval caused by the reservation.
A.
Any parcel of land receiving preliminary subdivision,
site plan or planned development approval for a use other than agricultural
or horticultural, notwithstanding its valuation, assessment and taxation
as an agricultural or horticultural use pursuant to the provisions
of the Farmland Assessment Act of 1964, P.L. 1964, c. 48 (N.J.S.A.
54:4-23.1 et seq.), shall be valued, assessed and taxed as of January
1 of the year following such preliminary approval as other land in
the taxing district, such value and assessment to be established and
taxes paid in accordance with the provisions of Sections 8 and 9 of
the Farmland Assessment Act of 1964, P.L. 1964, c. 48 (N.J.S.A. 54:4-23.1
et seq.), provided that the provisions hereof shall apply serially
to any development whose preliminary approval proposes construction
in stages, and only that stage of the development designated for the
earliest application for final approval shall be valued, assessed
and taxed as provided herein until certificates of occupancy for 50%
of the building permits in such stage have been issued, at which time
the second stage shall be valued, assessed and taxed as provided herein,
and so on until qualification for valuation, assessment and taxation
pursuant to the provisions of the Farmland Assessment Act of 1964,
P.L. 1964, c. 48 (N.J.S.A. 54:4-23.1 et seq.), lapse for the last
stage of such development.
B.
Any parcel of land, otherwise qualifying as an agricultural
or horticultural use pursuant to the provisions of the Farmland Assessment
Act of 1964, P.L. 1964, c. 48 (N.J.S.A. 54:4-23.1 et seq.), for which
preliminary approval shall have lapsed pursuant to law or for which
the owner thereof shall have made request, in writing, to the governing
body for the rescinding of such preliminary and all subsequent approvals
shall be assessed, valued and taxed in the manner provided in the
Farmland Assessment Act of 1964, P.L. 1964, c. 48 (N.J.S.A. 54:4-23.1
et seq.), as of January 1 of the year following such lapse or rescission.
C.
Any parcel of land to which the provisions of Subsection A hereof are applicable but which cannot be developed because of the lack of available sanitary sewage or water supply capacity necessary to serve such development shall be exempt from the operation of the provisions of Subsection A herein for the period from January 1 of the year following the calendar year in which such development becomes impracticable because of such lack of capacity to January 1 of the year following the calendar year in which such capacity becomes available.
D.
The provisions of this article shall apply to any
parcel of land designated as an agricultural or horticultural use
pursuant to the provisions of the Farmland Assessment Act of 1964,
P.L. 1964, c. 48 (N.J.S.A. 54:4-23.1 et seq.), which has tentative
or subsequent planned development approval or site plan approval on
the effective date of this chapter.
