Authority. The Pine Plains Planning Board, Zoning Board of Appeals, Town Board, Code Enforcement Officer, or Zoning Enforcement Officer, in the review of any applications pending before said boards, may retain such engineering, planning, legal, technical and environmental consultants, or professionals ("consultant services") as such boards or officials shall deem reasonably necessary to assist same in the review of such applications and in the inspection and approval of any installations, infrastructure or improvements after final approval of such applications.

The applicant shall reimburse the Town of Pine Plains for the cost of such consultant services.

The Town Board shall review and audit all vouchers submitted by such consultants and shall approve payment only if such consulting fees and disbursements are reasonable in amount and necessarily incurred by the Town in connection with the review, consideration and approval of the proposed project or in the inspection and approval of any installations, infrastructure or improvements after final approval of such applications. For purposes of the foregoing, a fee, or part thereof, shall be deemed a reasonable amount if it bears a reasonable relationship to the average charge by consultants to the Town for services performed in connection with the review and approval of similar projects in the Town, and if there are no similar projects in the Town, then for similar projects located in Dutchess County and the surrounding area, to the extent that such similar projects may exist. The Town Board may take into consideration the size, type and nature of the project, together with such special features including, but not limited to, topography, soil conditions, water, drainage conditions and any special conditions or considerations the Town Board may consider relevant.

A fee or expense, or part thereof, is necessarily incurred if it is charged by the engineer, attorney, planner, or other professional consultant for a service which was rendered in order to assist in the protection or promotion of the health, safety or welfare of the Town to its residents; to assist in the protection of public or private property or the environment from potential damage which otherwise may be caused by the proposed land use or development; to ensure or assist in compliance with laws, regulations, standards or codes which govern land use and development; to ensure or assist in the orderly development and sound planning of a land use or development; to ensure the proper and timely construction of public improvements, parks, and other facilities which affect the public welfare; to protect the legal interests of the Town; to avoid claims against, and liability of, the Town; or to promote such other interest that the Town Board may specify as relevant.

At such time as the application is approved or denied by the Planning Board, Zoning Board of Appeals, or Town Board, or in the event inspections are to be made by consultants after approval is granted and the work is performed, such final inspections are made and the work is determined to be satisfactory, the Town shall refund to the applicant the deposit required pursuant § 275-106, Escrow accounts, less any sums expended by the Town for such consultant services relating to said project after final audit of the consultant vouchers by the Town Board and payment of such consultant fees. A copy of the computation of said sums so expended shall be provided to the applicant at the time that the Town shall calculate the refund, if any, due the applicant.

As soon as possible after submission of any application, an escrow account shall be established, from which withdrawals shall be made to reimburse the Town for the costs of consultant services. The applicant shall then provide funds to the Town for deposit into such account in an amount to be determined by the reviewing board with the advice and recommendation of the Town's engineer, attorney or planner based on their evaluation of the nature and complexity of the application and their estimation of the project's total value, using the following schedule as a general guideline, with the decision of the reviewing board to be final and conclusive on the applicant:

At the time of submission of any application, the applicant shall, in addition to the application fee, submit an initial escrow account funding fee in accordance with the fee scheduled adopted by the Town Board by resolution and an estimate of the total project value prepared by an engineer, architect, surveyor or other qualified professional. The initial escrow account funding fee shall be in an amount sufficient to cover the consultant services costs necessary to review the application and plans upon submission, and to offer recommendations to the reviewing board as to the amount of the initial escrow deposit.

After the amount of the initial escrow deposit is determined by the reviewing board, the applicant shall be notified of the amount of the initial escrow deposit and how that amount was calculated. In the event the applicant disagrees with the amount of the initial escrow deposit, the applicant shall have the right to file written objections with the reviewing board, specifying the applicant's objection to the amount of the initial escrow deposit. The reviewing board shall, within a period of 30 days after receipt of the objections, make a final determination as to the amount of the initial escrow deposit. The applicant shall then be required to sign a written escrow agreement with the Town, specifying, in relevant part, the amount of the initial escrow deposit and the protocol for payment of consultant fees, and the auditing of same and the requirement of additional funds to be deposited in the escrow account as specified by this chapter. The application shall not be deemed complete for purposes of commencement of review of the same by the reviewing board until such time as the escrow agreement is signed by the applicant and the initial escrow amount is deposited by the applicant with the Town.

The applicant shall be provided with copies of vouchers submitted for payment by the consultants for such services as they are submitted to the Town for payment.

All sums paid by the applicant shall be deposited in a separate account by the Town, from which withdrawals as provided in this Zoning Law shall be made.

When the balance in such escrow account is reduced to 1/3 of its initial amount, the Town shall advise the applicant and the applicant shall deposit additional funds into such account to bring its balance up to the amount of the initial deposit. If such amount is not replenished within 10 business days after the applicant is notified in writing of the requirement for such additional deposit, the reviewing board may suspend its review of the application.

A building permit, certificate of occupancy, or other permit, approval or action being sought shall not be issued unless all professional review fees charged in connection with the applicant's project have been reimbursed to the Town by the applicant.

All fees required pursuant to this Zoning Law shall be collected by the Town through its bookkeeper or Town Clerk.

This Zoning Law shall be applicable to all applications pending at the time this chapter becomes effective unless a prior agreement concerning such fees between the applicant and the Town is executed.