The Agricultural Planned Development District (AgPDD) is established as a planned development district pursuant to Town Law § 261-c.

The AgPDD classification may be considered on a floating zone basis. Upon rezoning to the AgPDD classification, all principal and accessory uses, restrictions and controls listed in the specific AgPDD shall govern the lands subject to the rezoning.

The lands must consist of a subdividable parcel of at least seven acres meeting the Town's preservation goals and included in the Community Preservation Project Plan (CPPP), which may consist of a lot designated as a separate Tax Map number, or of two or more contiguous lots with separate Tax Map numbers. A landowner may also apply for the rezoning of a parcel contiguous to property already zoned AgPDD or already preserved, even if smaller than seven acres.

The parcel must be enrolled in an agricultural district or individual commitment, pursuant to Article 25-AA of New York State Agriculture and Markets Law.

The Town Board must find that the parcel provides an environmental, physical, economic, aesthetic, social or cultural benefit to the Town.

Application. An applicant shall submit two copies of the following to the Town Board:

Upon receipt of a completed application, the Town Board shall review the application at a work session and make a preliminary determination whether the Board is interested in considering rezoning of the parcel to AgPDD. If the Town Board is interested in considering the rezoning, it shall refer the application to the Planning Board and the Land Preservation Committee for review and recommendation.

Upon receipt of the application, the Land Preservation Committee shall consider the application at its next meeting and prepare recommendations to the Town Board with a copy to the Planning Board.

If the applicant seeks agricultural and/or residential structure areas, the placement shall be agreed upon among the Land Preservation Committee, the Planning Board and the landowner.

Upon recommendation of the Planning Board and the Land Preservation Committee, the Land Preservation Coordinator shall commission a survey and a title search of the property, which will be forwarded to the Planning Department upon receipt.

The Planning Department will calculate the yield on the parcel based on the zoning in effect at the time of the application.

Environmental review. The Town Board shall comply with SEQRA in acting upon any application for the rezoning of any lands to the AgPDD classification.

The Planning Board shall provide a report within 90 days of the date of the meeting at which the referral is received from the Town Board. No action shall be taken by the Town Board until receipt of the Planning Board report or the expiration of its sixty-day review period, whichever comes first. The review period may be extended by mutual consent of the applicant, the Town Board, the Planning Board, and the Land Preservation Committee.

Planning Board report. The Planning Board may recommend approval, approval with conditions, or disapproval of the proposed rezoning. In preparing its report, the Planning Board shall take into account the recommendations of the Southold Town Farm and Farmland Protection Strategy, adopted as policy by a Town Board resolution of January 18, 2000, and supporting documents; the recommendations of the Land Preservation Committee; the studies contained in the Town's comprehensive planning efforts and initiatives; the existing characteristics of the property and the surrounding properties; the environmental, social, physical, aesthetic, economic and cultural aspects of the property and its surroundings; and such other factors as may be necessary to carry out the purposes of this article and this chapter. The Planning Board's report shall provide detailed reasons for its recommendation.

Public hearing. Within 30 days of the receipt of the Planning Board report or the expiration of the Planning Board review period, whichever occurs first, the Town Board may schedule a public hearing on the application, with the same notice prescribed for zoning amendments.

Town Board action. Within 30 days of the date of the closing of the public hearing, the Town Board shall either approve or disapprove the rezoning and file its decision with the Town Clerk, with notice to the applicant. In approving such rezoning, the Town Board shall determine, after considering the Planning Board's recommendation, that the subject parcel contains adequate resources, environmental quality and public facilities, including adequate transportation, water supply, waste disposal and fire protection, and that there will be no significant environmentally damaging consequences. If approved, the Town Board shall amend the Zoning Map of the Town in accordance with the approval and forward a copy of the resolution containing the decision to the Planning Board, the Land Preservation Committee, the Agricultural Advisory Committee, and the applicant. Any such approval shall be subject to the conditions of approval, as set forth below in § 280-175 of this chapter.

The boundaries of the rezoned property, permitted uses thereon, and number of development rights shall become part of this Town Code and the Zoning Map shall be amended accordingly.

The Land Preservation Department shall coordinate the closing and filing of the easement in accordance with its normal procedures for purchase of development rights.

Easement.

At any time, the landowner may offer to sell development rights on all or part of the parcel that has been zoned AgPDD. The development rights may be sold to the Town or to others provided that the landowner enters into a preservation easement on the property in a form acceptable to the Town. The preservation easement shall list the number of development rights sold and the number remaining, based on the yield for the parcel as set forth at the time of rezoning to AgPDD.

At the discretion of the Town, the Town may commission a new survey and a title search of the property.

The Land Preservation Coordinator shall make a determination of the number of development rights remaining for purchase on the parcel based on the original yield, as calculated by the Planning Department, less any development rights sold and shall so advise the Land Preservation Committee. The Land Preservation Committee shall make a recommendation to the Town Board on the purchase of development rights.

The Town Board shall hold a public hearing on the question of the purchase of development rights from the AgPDD-zoned parcel, and may adopt a resolution approving or disapproving the sale. Any resolution shall set forth the number of development rights purchased and the number remaining on the parcel. At the time of sale, a preservation easement as set forth above in § 280-175 shall be filed indicating the additional number of development rights that have been extinguished from the parcel and the remaining number of development rights.

Development rights may be purchased by the Town in increments of one-half of a development right.

The Town Board shall not be required to purchase development rights from a parcel zoned AgPDD sooner than 180 days after the previous purchase on the same parcel, and any refusal by the Town to do so shall not be considered an election not to purchase pursuant to § 280-180E.

Upon the landowner's application, the Town shall purchase 10% of the landowner's residual development rights, or not less than one full development right, per calendar year. Any fractional amount shall be rounded to the nearest half of a development right. The Town may, if requested by the landowner, purchase more or less than 10% each year.

No application for sale of development rights received after November 1 of any calendar year shall be closed until the following calendar year, unless the Town and the landowner mutually agree to close in the same year.

Participation in the AgPDD shall not preclude the landowner from participation in other preservation programs. If a landowner wishes to negotiate with the Town for the sale of development rights, the Town will only consider a conservation subdivision pursuant to § 280-181B, or the sale of all remaining development rights on the parcel, and the Town will only pay for the appraisal one time. If an agreement is not reached between the Town and the landowner, subsequent negotiations and application for sale of development rights through the Land Preservation Program will be permitted; however, the Town will obtain the appraisal at the expense of the landowner.

Unless otherwise specified, the price for development rights for subsequent development right sales to the Town will be as set forth in § 280-176.

Any reserved area for development shall be set by the Town Board and defined in the Town Code at the time of rezoning to AgPDD. A landowner may apply to the Town Board to amend such Code if circumstances have changed since the rezoning. Any new additional reserved area will be deducted from the available development rights on the parcel, and any reduction in the reserved area may increase the development rights available on the parcel. Any reserved area for development shall not exceed 20% of the buildable area of the parcel.

Any structure proposed on a parcel which is zoned AgPDD will require the approval of the Land Preservation Committee prior to issuance of a building permit. The approval of the Committee shall take into account the conditions set forth in the preservation easement on the property.

If a residential structure exists on property zoned AgPDD, any new structure accessory to such residence must be located within 150 feet of the existing residential structure.

Any structures, other than those for agricultural production, shall reduce the number of development rights available for sale or transfer.

If the Town elects not to purchase 10% of development rights as set forth in § 280-177G, the landowner may pursue a standard subdivision as set forth in § 280-181C. If there has been a subsequent request by the landowner for purchase of development rights and an agreement by the Town to purchase at least 10% of development rights pursuant to § 280-177G, the landowner is not eligible to pursue a standard subdivision.

If the landowner of property zoned AgPDD files for subdivision of the property, the Land Preservation Coordinator shall advise the Planning Board of the number of development rights remaining on the parcel.

Any conservation subdivision of AgPDD property must accomplish preservation of 80% of the parcel and density reduction of 75% of the original yield. If the landowner elects to pursue this conservation subdivision, the land preserved by the sale of development rights shall apply toward the required preservation component.

If the Town elects not to purchase 10% of development rights as set forth in § 280-177G, the landowner may pursue a standard subdivision. For a period of 10 years from the date of the Town's election not to purchase development rights pursuant to § 280-177G, the yield for the subdivision shall be based on the zoning in effect on the parcel at the time it was zoned AgPDD, after which the yield shall be that of the underlying zone in effect as of the date of the subdivision. Land already preserved by the sale of development rights shall not be applied toward any preservation or subdivision open space requirement or the yield calculation. The yield calculated pursuant to § 280-174F shall not be the yield for the standard subdivision. The standard subdivision yield shall be calculated pursuant to Chapter 240 of the Town Code.