Law Commons^™

Incorporating Ny Land Banks Into The Delinquent Property Tax Enforcement Processes, J. Justin Woods

Elisabeth Haub School of Law Student Publications

This article argues that New York municipalities should integrate land banks into the tax enforcement process to break the unhealthy cycle perpetuated by real estate and lien speculators. By transferring all tax liens and foreclosed properties to local land banks, municipalities can generate an important funding source that will help cover land banks' operations while simultaneously maximizing land banks' ability to reinvest lien proceeds and equity into redeveloping or demolishing properties with little or no value. If New York municipalities use their Land Bank Act powers fully, local and regional land bank efforts can become a vital tools for planning …

Land Use Planning For Solar Energy: Resource Guide, Jessica A. Bacher, John R. Nolon, Tiffany Zezula

Environmental Law Program Publications @ Haub Law

This document was created to help New York State localities develop and adopt solar friendly policies and plans. It begins by presenting the local government’s role in land use planning and regulation and introduces common characteristics of “solar friendly” communities. The resource then describes how municipalities should begin a solar energy initiative through an official policy statement that provides support for solar energy and that authorizes a task force to shepherd the process, appropriate studies, training programs for staff and board members, inter-municipal partnerships, and outside funding sources. Next, the document explains how municipalities should engage the entire community in …

Zoning For Solar Energy: Resource Guide, Jessica A. Bacher, John R. Nolon

Environmental Law Program Publications @ Haub Law

This document is designed to help New York State localities amend zoning and other land use regulations to permit the development of solar energy systems in their jurisdictions. While it applies to many types of solar energy systems, this resource guide focuses primarily on solar electric or photovoltaic (PV) systems. It begins by describing the local government’s role in land use planning and regulation. It then discusses the importance of defining all solar energy systems that a community wants to allow in existing zoning districts and shows how to incorporate those definitions in the zoning ordinance. Next, the guide explains …

Land Use Law Update: New York's New Climate Change Resiliency Law, Sarah Adams-Schoen

Scholarly Works

New York State’s lawmakers passed 2,603 bills over the course of the 2013-14 session, 658 of which passed both houses. Although counties and local governments are likely focusing their attention on budget-related items such as the property tax freeze/rebate program, local governments — and zoning and planning officials and practitioners in particular — should also take note of the newly enacted Community Risk and Resiliency Act (CRRA).

Sustainability And Land Use Planning: Greening State And Local Land Use Plans And Regulations To Address Climate Change Challenges And Preserve Resources For Future Generations, Patricia E. Salkin

Scholarly Works

Although a coordinated national policy on climate change should be developed, initiatives at the local government level through the land use planning and regulatory control processes have tremendous potential to dramatically contribute to the reduction of green house gas emissions, leading to a reduction in the carbon footprint and ultimately to a more sustainable environment. Part I of this article discusses opportunities for using the comprehensive land use planning process to address sustainability and provides examples of how this is being accomplished across the country. Part II mentions the growing number of state and local climate action plans (and cross-references …

States Beginning To Recognize That Training Is Essential For Members Of Planning And Zoning Boards And Local Legislative Bodies, Patricia E. Salkin

Scholarly Works

Members of planning and zoning boards and local legislative bodies constantly make decisions that may be worth millions of dollars to applicants and that may have serious impacts on public health and safety. Unlike other players in the land use decision making process members of local legislative bodies and land use boards have no specific education or training in land use matters prior to their election or appointment putting them in the position to learn solely from “on the job training”. Five (5) states currently require mandatory training and continuing education courses for members of planning boards and zoning boards …

Community Forests: A Perspective, Robert Mccullough

Community-Owned Forests: Possibilities, Experiences, and Lessons Learned (June 16-19)

22 pages.

"Robert McCullough teaches in the University of Vermont Graduate Program in Historic Preservation. He wrote The Landscape of Community: Communal Forests in New England."

Slides: Tug Hill Commission, Ny, Linda Gibbs

Community-Owned Forests: Possibilities, Experiences, and Lessons Learned (June 16-19)

Presenter: Linda Gibbs, Natural Resources Specialist, Tug Hill Commission, NY

26 slides

Ethics In Land Use: Using Ethical Allegations As A Sword Rather Than A Shield, Patricia E. Salkin

Scholarly Works

No abstract provided.

Golden And Its Emanations: The Surprising Origins Of Smart Growth, John R. Nolon

Elisabeth Haub School of Law Faculty Publications

This article provides the background for the adoption of the Ramapo ordinance, explains its precocious inventions in some detail, and describes other dramatic local inventions emanating from the Ramapo approach to smart growth. It ends with a reflection on the Quiet Revolution, the continuing disquiet that accompanies the spectacular smart growth inventions of local governments in this country, and modest recommendations for reform. Along the way, the reader will encounter the rebirth of performance zoning, local environmental laws that protect critical environmental resources, a local abandoned property reclamation act, the use of mediation to solve border wars between localities, an …

The Politics Of Land Use Reform In New York: Challenges And Opportunities, Patricia E. Salkin

Scholarly Works

No abstract provided.

Affordable Housing: Update On Federal And State Activities, Patricia E. Salkin

Scholarly Works

No abstract provided.

Introduction: Dedication To James A. Coon, John R. Nolon

Elisabeth Haub School of Law Faculty Publications

This issue of the Pace Law Review is dedicated to a man and an idea in which he believed. James A. Coon was land use counsel to the Department of State in New York when he died in 1992. For a quarter of a century he served as counsel to several New York State agencies, all involved in some way with providing technical assistance to those interested in the subject of land use law. For James Coon, and those who learned from him, land use law carries with it a significant set of responsibilities. It establishes the rules that dictate …

Regional Planning In New York State: A State Rich In National Models, Yet Weak In Overall Statewide Planning Coordination, Patricia E. Salkin

Scholarly Works

No abstract provided.

A Comparative Analysis Of New Jersey's Mount Laurel Cases With The Berenson Cases In New York, John R. Nolon

Elisabeth Haub School of Law Faculty Publications

Due to the widespread concern over the lack of affordable housing in New York, renewed interest has been expressed in the landmark case of Berenson v. Town of New Castle. That case and an associated line of decisions define the legal rules that will be used by the courts in New York to decide whether municipal zoning unconstitutionally excludes affordable types of housing. Interest has been piqued further by two recent lower court cases in New York which differ greatly in their approach to defining the legal standards to be used in reviewing allegedly exclusionary land use practices.