In an effort to generate revenue without raising taxes, many municipalities on Long Island, and elsewhere in New York State, are turning to the use of various forms of land development fees to meet their fiscal challenges. In many cases, these fees can be legally and morally justified, such as when they offset the actual
Village of Asharoken Opts Out of Federal Beach Project
Asharoken, N.Y. January 10, 2017 — Swayed by public opinion, the Incorporated Village of Asharoken (“Asharoken”) opted out of a federal beach nourishment plan implemented by the Army Corp of Engineers (“ACOE”) in order to prevent the general public from accessing the Villages’ private beaches.
Asharoken is a narrow isthmus connecting the Village of Northport
Update on Town of Huntington’s Proposal To Ban Short-Term Rentals
At its January 10, 2017 meeting, the Town Board of the Town of Huntington held a public hearing to discuss its proposed ban on short-term rentals. Several residents testified at the public hearing in opposition to the ban, explaining why short-term rentals are important to the Town. A few residents explained that these short-term rentals
Public Hearing On The Town Of Huntington’s Short-Term Rental Ban Set For Tomorrow, January 10, 2017
Last April, my colleague Anthony Guardino blogged about the Town of Southold’s local law banning “transient rental properties”, which Southold defined as dwellings that are rented out for less than fourteen nights at a time. Now the Town of Huntington, New York is considering enacting a similar local law.
Huntington’s Proposed Ban
The Town
Farrell Fritz Land Use Blog – 2016 Year in Review
Before we blog our way into 2017, we wanted to take a moment to review the topics that we blogged about in 2016 and to remind our readers that the land use practice group at Farrell Fritz is a diverse group of attorneys, which is why the topics that we blog about are quite diverse.
Failure to Seek Preliminary Injunctive Relief Supports Motion to Dismiss and Renders Appeal Academic
On December 21, 2016, the Appellate Division, Second Department, rendered yet another decision whereby an appeal was dismissed “as academic” on the grounds that during the pendency of the appeal, the land use development project that was the subject of the lawsuit/appeal was completed.
Departments of Justice and Housing and Urban Development Release Updated Fair Housing Act Guidance on State and Local Land Use Laws
Jointly responsible for enforcing the federal Fair Housing Act (“FHA”), the U.S. Departments of Justice and Housing and Urban Development (“the Departments”) have issued numerous guidance documents and policy statements to help the public and state and local governments fully understand the FHA. In November 2016, the Departments issued a new guidance document (“guidance
Appellate Court Invalidates Condition Imposing Durational Limit on Special Permit
Under New York State law, zoning boards and planning boards are authorized to impose reasonable and appropriate conditions and restrictions on the grant of a variance or special permit, provided that they are directly related to, and incidental to, the proposed use of the property. Such conditions shall be consistent with the spirit and intent
East Hampton Town Board Adopts One-Year Moratorium For Wainscott
At its November 17, 2016 meeting, the East Hampton Town Board (Town Board) unanimously adopted a local law that temporarily suspends the authority of the East Hampton Town Planning Board to grant certain site plan and subdivision approvals for properties located on or adjacent to Montauk Highway in Wainscott. The moratorium applies to non-residential Central
New York State Land Banks: Are they Really Helping in the Fight Against Blight and Zombie Houses?
Although the use of land banks has been in existence for many years in other states, it was not until after the New York real estate market collapsed in or around 2008 that the New York State Legislature enacted the 2011 New York State Land Bank Act (“Land Bank Act”).
The Land Bank Act authorizes