Potsdam City Zoning Code
ARTICLE XI
Land Use Application Review Fees
§ 180-48 Purpose.
The Village of Potsdam has the potential to incur significant expenses in professional consultant review of applications for subdivisions, site plans, special permits, zoning amendments and any similar or related local, county, state or federal laws and procedures, when such professional consultant review is necessary to carry out the purposes of the laws of the Village of Potsdam. There is hereby established the authority to submit any such land use application that may come before any board in the Village to a professional consultant, such as a planner, engineer, attorney, environmental expert, or other professional consultant, as it may deem reasonably necessary, to enable it to review such applications as required by law.
§ 180-49 Retention of expert assistant; reimbursement by applicant.
A.
The Village may hire any consultant and/or expert necessary to assist the Village in reviewing a land use application, including, but not limited to, technical or engineering consultants or special legal counsel.
B.
Except as otherwise provided in the Village Code, if prior to the completion of a review of a land use application the Village discovers the need to retain consultants and/or expert services, the applicant shall deposit with the Village funds sufficient to reimburse the Village for the reasonable costs of consultation and/or evaluation in connection with the review of the application. The Village will maintain a separate escrow account for such funds.
C.
Upon receipt of such funds, the Village Clerk shall cause the money to be placed in an account in the name of the Village and shall keep a separate record of all money so deposited and the name of the applicant and the project for which the sums were deposited.
D.
The Village's consultants and experts shall invoice the Village for services rendered in reviewing the application. The Village shall furnish a copy of each invoice received to the applicant upon receipt of the invoice by the Village.
E.
The Village shall review and audit all invoices received and shall approve payment only if such fees are reasonable in amount and necessarily incurred by the Village in connection with a review of a land use application. For the purposes of this chapter, a fee is reasonable in amount if it bears a reasonable relationship to the average charge by such an expert to the Village or others for services performed in connection with the review of a project similar to that involved in the land use application. In this regard, the Village may take into consideration the size and type of project involved in the land use application and any special conditions or considerations as the Village may deem relevant in connection with the review of the particular land use application.
F.
Contracts for the retention of experts shall be let pursuant to the purchasing policy of the Village, unless the contract is one that must be competitively bid.
G.
After payment of all outstanding invoices, any funds held by the Village upon completion of a review of a land use application shall be returned to the applicant.
§ 180-50 Exceptions.
A.
Every development that achieves a negative declaration under Part III of the SEQR short environmental assessment form conducted under the rules of 6NYCRR Part 617, as may be amended from time to time, shall be exempt from the further application of this chapter.
B.
Notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained in this chapter, an applicant or developer shall not be required to reimburse the Village for any part of a fee incurred by the Village for services performed in connection with matters, including but not limited to those resulting from complaints by third parties, as to which the Village determines the applicant had no responsibility or were beyond the reasonable control of the applicant.
§ 180-51 Severability.
If any section, clause or provision of this chapter or the application thereof to any person is adjudged invalid, the adjudication shall not affect the other sections, clauses or provisions or the application thereof that can be sustained or given effect without the invalid section, clause or provision or application, and to this end the various sections, clauses or provisions of this chapter are declared to be severable.