Section 25-401
* § 25-401 Authorization for the establishment of city business
improvement districts. Pursuant to the provisions of section nine
hundred eighty of the general municipal law, business improvement
districts shall be established and extended as hereinafter provided.
* NB Amended by L.L. 78/85, language juxtaposed per Ch. 907/85 § 14
Section 25-402
§ 25-402 Definitions. As used in this chapter:
(a) "Average full valuation of taxable real property" means the
valuation obtained by taking the assessed valuation of taxable real
property in the district as it appears upon the last completed and four
preceding assessment rolls of the city and dividing each by the
applicable state equalization rate as determined by the state board of
equalization and assessment pursuant to article twelve of the real
property tax law for each of the assessment rolls and dividing the sum
of the quotients thus obtained by five.
(b) "District" means a business improvement district established
pursuant to this chapter.
(c) "District charge" means a levy imposed on behalf of a district as
provided in the district plan.
(d) "District management association" means the association
established pursuant to section 25-414 of this chapter.
(e) "District plan" or "plan" means a proposal as defined in section
25-405 of this chapter.
(f) "Owner" means owner of record.
(g) "Tenant" means an occupant pursuant to a lease of commercial space
or a dwelling unit, other than an owner.
Section 25-403
§ 25-403 Contents of the district plan. The district plan shall
contain the following:
(a) a map of the district;
(b) the written report or reports of the city council containing:
(1) a description of the boundaries of the district proposed for
establishment or extension in a manner sufficient to identify the lands
included;
(2) a description of the present and proposed uses of such lands;
(3) the improvements proposed and the maximum cost thereof;
(4) the total annual amount proposed to be expended for improvements,
maintenance and operation;
(5) the proposed source or sources of financing;
(6) the proposed time for implementation and completion of the
district plan;
(7) any proposed rules and regulations to be applicable to the
district;
(8) a list of the properties to be benefited, and a statement of the
method or methods by which the expenses of a district will be imposed
upon benefited real property, in proportion to the benefit received by
such property, to defray the cost thereof, including operation and
maintenance. Notwithstanding any inconsistent provision of section
25-407 of this chapter, the plan may provide that all or any class or
category of real property which is exempt by law from real property
taxation and which would not benefit from the establishment or extension
of the district may nevertheless be included within the boundaries of
the district but such property shall not be subject to any district
charge;
(9) a statement identifying the district management association for
the district; and
(10) any other item or matter required to be incorporated therein by
the city council.
Section 25-404
§ 25-404 Powers of the city council. Upon establishment of a district
pursuant to the provisions of this chapter, the city council shall have
authority to exercise the following powers with respect to such
district, subject to the provisions of this chapter:
(a) To provide for district improvements located on or within
municipally or district owned or leased property which will restore or
promote business activity in the district:
(1) construction and installation of landscaping, planting, and park
areas;
(2) construction of lighting and heating facilities;
(3) construction of physically aesthetic and decorative safety
fixtures, equipment and facilities;
(4) construction of improvements to enhance security of persons and
property within the district;
(5) construction of pedestrian overpasses and underpasses and
connections between buildings;
(6) closing, opening, widening or narrowing of existing streets;
(7) construction of ramps, sidewalks, plazas, and pedestrian malls;
(8) rehabilitation or removal of existing structures as required;
(9) removal and relocation of utilities and vaults as required;
(10) construction of parking lot and parking garage facilities; and
(11) construction of fixtures, equipment, facilities and appurtenances
as may enhance the movement, convenience and enjoyment of the public and
be of economic benefit to surrounding properties such as: bus stop
shelters; benches and street furniture; booths, kiosks, display cases,
and exhibits; signs; receptacles; canopies; pedestrian shelters and
fountains.
(b) To provide for the operation and maintenance of any district
improvement;
(c) To provide for additional maintenance or other additional services
required for the enjoyment and protection of the public and the
promotion and enhancement of the district whether or not in conjunction
with improvements authorized by this section, including:
(1) enhanced sanitation services;
(2) services promoting and advertising activities within the district;
(3) marketing education for businesses within the district;
(4) decorations and lighting for seasonal and holiday purposes; and
(5) services to enhance the security of persons and property within
the district.
Section 25-405
§ 25-405 District plan.
(a) The mayor may provide for the preparation of a district plan, upon
his or her own initiative, or at the request of an individual or agency
designated by him or her, or at the request of the city council, or upon
the written petition, signed and acknowledged, of (1) the owners of at
least fifty-one percent of the assessed valuation of all the taxable
real property within the boundaries of the district proposed for
establishment or extension, as shown upon the latest completed
assessment roll of the city, and (2) at least fifty-one percent of the
owners of real property within the area included in the district
proposed for the establishment or extension.
(b) The establishment or extension of a district shall be based upon
the district plan filed in the office of the city clerk, except as
provided in subdivision (c) of this section.
(c) The district plan shall first be submitted to the city planning
commission which shall forward a copy within five days to the city
council and to the council member or members representing the council
district or districts in which the proposed district is located, to the
community board or boards for the community district or districts in
which the proposed district is located, and to the respective borough
board and borough president, if the plan involves properties located in
two or more community districts. Each community board shall notify the
public of the proposed plan in accordance with the requirements
established by the city planning commission, and may conduct a public
hearing and submit a written recommendation to the city planning
commission not later than thirty days after receipt of the plan. The
city planning commission shall review the plan and recommendations, and,
after a public hearing, prepare a report. The city planning commission
shall submit its report to the mayor, to the affected borough president,
to the city council and to the council member or members representing
the council district or districts in which the proposed district is
located, together with copies of any recommendation of a community
board, within sixty days from the date of expiration of the community
board's period for reviewing the plan and submitting recommendations.
This report shall certify the city planning commission's unqualified
approval, disapproval or qualified approval with recommendations for
modifications of the district plan. A copy of this report together with
the original district plan shall be transmitted for filing with the city
clerk. In the event the city planning commission shall fail to submit
its report within ninety-five days of receipt of the original district
plan, it shall be required to immediately transmit the original plan to
the city clerk for filing and no report of the city planning commission
shall be necessary.
(d) All district plans shall conform with the requirements of this
chapter. The mayor may determine that the plan or any part of the plan,
shall be prepared by, or under the supervision of city officers and
employees to be designated by the mayor, or by persons or firms to be
employed for that purpose. Except as otherwise provided in this chapter,
the expense incurred for the preparation of the plan or part of the plan
shall be a city charge.
(e) If the city shall thereafter establish or extend the district or
provide the improvements or additional services or contract for the
required services, the expense incurred by the city for the preparation
of the plan or any part of the plan shall be deemed to be part of the
cost of the improvement, or the rendering of additional services, and
the city shall be reimbursed in the amount paid, or the portion of that
amount which the city council, at a public hearing held pursuant to this
chapter, shall allocate against the district.
Section 25-406
§ 25-406 Notice and hearing.
(a) After the filing of the district plan in the office of the city
clerk, the city council may adopt a resolution and shall enter the same
in the minutes of its proceedings. This resolution shall contain a copy
of the district plan, any report of the city planning commission or
board, the fact that a district plan is on file in the city clerk's
office for public inspection and the time when and the place where the
city council will meet and hold a public hearing to hear all persons
interested in the subject thereof.
(b) The resolution shall also contain a statement that any owner of
real property, deemed benefited and therefore within the district,
objecting to the plan must file an objection at the office of the city
clerk within thirty days of the conclusion of the hearing on forms made
available by the clerk, and, further, that if (1) owners of at least
fifty-one percent of the assessed valuation of all the benefited real
property situated within the boundaries of the district proposed for
establishment or extension, as shown upon the latest completed
assessment roll of the city, or (2) at least fifty-one percent of the
owners of benefited real property within the area included in the
district proposed for establishment or extension, so file their
objections, the district will not be established or extended.
(c) The city council shall cause a copy of the resolution or a summary
thereof to be published at least once in the City Record or a newspaper
in general circulation in the city, the first publication to be not less
than ten nor more than thirty days before the day set for the hearing
required by this section. In addition, not less than ten nor more than
thirty days before the date set for the hearing, the city council shall
cause a copy of the resolution or a summary thereof to be mailed to each
owner of real property within the proposed district at the address shown
on the latest city assessment roll, to such other persons as are
registered with the city to receive tax bills concerning real property
within the proposed district, and to the tenants of each building within
the proposed district. If the city council publishes or mails a summary
of the resolution, such summary shall include the business address of
the city clerk, a statement that copies of the resolution shall be made
available free of charge to the public, the improvements proposed and
the maximum cost thereof, the total annual amount proposed to be
expended for improvements, maintenance and operation, and a statement
indicating the rights of owners to object pursuant to subdivision (b) of
this section.
(d) The resolution may further state the place, other than the city
clerk's office, where the district plan may be inspected in advance of
the hearing, if the city council determines that, in the public
interest, any additional place of inspection is necessary or desirable.
Section 25-407
§ 25-407 Establishment or extension of the district.
(a) Not earlier than thirty days after the conclusion of the last day
of the public hearing held pursuant to section 25-406 of this chapter,
the city council shall determine:
(1) whether the notice of hearing for all hearings required to be held
was published and mailed as required by law and is otherwise sufficient;
(2) except as otherwise provided in section 25-403 of this chapter,
whether all the real property within the boundaries of the proposed
district or extension will benefit from the establishment or extension
of the district;
(3) whether all the real property benefited is included within the
limits of the proposed district or extension; and
(4) whether the establishment or extension of the district is in the
public interest.
(b) (1) If the city council shall determine the question of paragraph
four of subdivision (a) of this section in the negative, or if the
requisite number of owners shall have filed their objections as provided
in section 25-406 of this chapter, the city council shall adopt a
resolution disapproving the establishment or extension of the district,
stating the reasons for its determination and enter the same in the
minutes of its proceedings. Thereafter no plan for the establishment or
extension of a district to include any part of the property proposed to
be included in the disapproved district may be prepared as provided in
section 25-405 of this chapter until the expiration of at least one year
from the date of disapproval.
(2) If the city council shall find that notice was incorrectly or
insufficiently given or that, except as otherwise provided in section
25-403 of this chapter, any part or portion of the real property within
the boundaries of the proposed district or extension is not benefited
thereby or that certain property benefited thereby has not been included
therein, it shall call a further hearing at a definite place and time
not less than ten nor more than thirty days after this determination. In
the resolution calling such hearing, it shall specify the necessary
changes, if any, to the boundaries of the proposed district or extension
to be made in order that, except as otherwise provided in section 25-403
of this chapter, all of the real property and only that real property as
is deemed benefited shall be included within the boundaries of the
proposed district or extension. Such a further hearing shall also be
required in the event that the city council proposes to amend the
district plan to reduce improvements or services or provide additional
improvements or services not included in the original plan prior to the
establishment of the district. Notice of the further hearing shall be
published and mailed in the manner provided in section 25-406 of this
chapter, except that, where boundaries are to be altered, this notice
shall also specify the manner in which it is proposed to alter the
boundaries of the proposed district or extension. The further hearing
shall be conducted in the same manner as the original hearing.
(c) If and when the city council shall determine in the affirmative
all of the questions set forth in subdivision (a) of this section, and
provided that the requisite number of owners shall not have objected as
provided in section 25-406 of this chapter, it may adopt a local law
approving the establishment or extension of the district as the
boundaries shall be finally determined and the construction of the
improvement or providing of the service in the district. Such local law
shall become effective only upon compliance with section 25-408 of this
chapter.
(d) Upon the recommendation of the district management association and
after a public hearing, the city council may adopt a local law at any
time prior to or after the establishment of a district to change the
method of assessment as set forth in the plan. Notice of such public
hearing and a description of the proposed change shall be given in the
manner set forth in section 25-406 of this chapter.
Section 25-408
§ 25-408 Review by the state comptroller. (a) The state comptroller
shall review as provided in this section: (1) the establishment or
extension of a district; and (2) the amendment of a district plan
pursuant to subdivision (c) of section 25-410 of this chapter.
(b) Within twenty days after the adoption of a local law by the city
council pursuant to section 25-407 or subdivision (c) of section 25-410
of this chapter the mayor shall forward the following information to the
state comptroller at Albany, New York:
(1) an itemized statement of the then outstanding indebtedness of the
city for all purposes, as evidenced by bonds, bond anticipation notes,
capital notes, deferred payment notes and budget notes; the amount of
budgetary appropriations for the payment of any outstanding
indebtedness, whether or not appropriations have been realized as cash;
the amount of indebtedness proposed to be contracted for the
improvement, and the amounts, purposes and probable date of issuance of
any bonds, bond anticipation notes, capital notes, deferred payments
notes and budget notes which the city has authorized to be issued but
which in fact have not been issued to date;
(2) a statement of the total assessed valuation of the taxable real
property situated in the proposed district or extension of a district,
as shown on the latest completed and four preceding assessment rolls of
the city and of the amount of city real property taxes levied against
such property in the preceding fiscal year;
(3) a statement of the average full valuation of the taxable real
property of the city determined in accordance with the provisions of
paragraph seven-a of section 2.00 of the local finance law; and
(4) a statement, the form of which shall be determined by the state
comptroller, attesting that the provisions of this chapter have been
met, signed and verified by the mayor.
(c) The state comptroller shall review the information submitted
pursuant to paragraphs one, two and three of subdivision (b) above to
determine that the tax and debt limitations provided in section 25-412
of this chapter will not be exceeded by the establishment or extension
of the district.
(d) The state comptroller shall notify the city of his or her
determination within sixty days of the receipt of the items specified in
subdivision (b) of this section. Unless the state comptroller determines
within such time that the tax and debt limitations provided in section
25-412 of this chapter will be exceeded by the establishment or
extension of the district or that the statement required by paragraph
four of subdivision (b) of this section does not comply with the
provisions of such paragraph, the city may proceed with the
establishment or extension of the district upon receipt of the notice
from the state comptroller of his or her determination.
(e) Upon the city's compliance with any other requirements established
by law, the local law adopted pursuant to section 25-407 of this chapter
shall become effective.
Section 25-409
§ 25-409 Publication; filing; judicial review.
(a) The city clerk shall cause a certified copy of the local law
adopted pursuant to the provisions of this chapter establishing or
extending any district, or increasing the maximum total amount proposed
to be expended for the improvement in any district or extension, or
changing the method of assessment, or authorizing the district to incur
debt to provide for additional improvements or services within the
district, to be duly recorded in the city clerk's office within ten days
after such local law becomes effective. When so recorded this local law
shall be presumptive evidence of the regularity of the proceedings for
the establishment or extension of the district, of the proceedings
instituted for the construction of any improvement and of all other
actions taken in relation to it.
(b) Within ten days after the local law becomes effective, the city
clerk shall, in addition to any other filing required by law, cause a
certified copy thereof to be filed in the office of the state
comptroller at Albany, New York, and within two weeks thereafter shall
cause a copy of the local law or a summary thereof to be published at
least once in the City Record or a newspaper of general circulation in
the city.
(c) This local law shall be final and conclusive unless a proceeding
to review is commenced in accordance with this subdivision. Any person
aggrieved by any local law adopted pursuant to this chapter may seek
judicial review of the local law in the manner provided by article
seventy-eight of the civil practice law and rules, provided the
proceeding is commenced within thirty days from the date of the
publication of the copy or summary of the local law pursuant to
subdivision (b) of this section. No review shall be had unless the
petitioner shall give an undertaking approved by the supreme court, or a
justice thereof, as to form, amount and sufficiency of sureties, that,
in the event of failure to modify the local law, he or she will pay to
the city all costs and expenses as are incurred by it on account of the
proceedings, as shall be determined by the court. In the event that upon
this review there shall be any modification by the court of the local
law, the court shall direct the modification by judgment which shall be
final and conclusive, and the city clerk shall cause the judgment to be
recorded and filed in the same places and manner as was the local law
which was modified.
Section 25-410
§ 25-410 Amendments to the district plan.
(a) At any time after the establishment or extension of a district
pursuant to the provisions of this chapter, the district plan upon which
the establishment or extension was based, may, upon the recommendation
of the district management association, be amended by the city council
after compliance with the procedures set forth in this section.
(b) Amendments to the district plan which provide for additional
improvements or services or any change in the method of assessment upon
which the district charge is based, or an increase only in the amount to
be expended annually for improvements, services, maintenance and
operation may be adopted by local law, provided that the city council
shall, after a public hearing, determine that it is in the public
interest to authorize the additional improvements, services or increase
in the maximum annual amount and that the tax and debt limits prescribed
in section 25-412 of this chapter will not be exceeded. The city council
shall give notice of the hearing by publication of a notice in at least
one newspaper having general circulation in the district specifying the
time when and the place where the hearing will be held and stating the
increase proposed in the maximum amount to be expended annually. This
notice shall be published once at least ten days prior to the date
specified for the hearing.
(c) Amendments to the district plan which provide for the district to
incur indebtedness in order to provide for additional improvements or
which provide for an increase in the total maximum amount to be expended
for improvements in the district, may be adopted by local law, provided
that the city council shall, after a public hearing, determine that it
is in the public interest to authorize the district to incur
indebtedness to provide for additional improvements or to increase the
maximum total amount to be expended for improvements in the district and
that the tax and debt limits prescribed in section 25-412 of this
chapter will not be exceeded. Notice of the hearing shall be published
and mailed in the manner provided in section 25-406 of this chapter. The
local law adopted pursuant to this subdivision shall not be effective
until reviewed by the state comptroller in accordance with section
25-408 of this chapter.
Section 25-411
§ 25-411 Expense of the district. (a) The expense incurred in the
construction or operation of any improvement or provision of additional
services in a district pursuant to this chapter shall be financed in
accordance with the district plan upon which the establishment or
extension of the district was based. Services for which district
property owners are charged pursuant to the plan must be in addition to
or an enhancement of those provided by the city prior to the district's
establishment. The expense and cost apportioned to benefited real
property in accordance with the plan shall be a charge upon each
benefited parcel of real property within the district.
(b) The charge upon benefited real property pursuant to this chapter
shall be imposed as provided in the district plan. If the formula
includes an ad valorem component, this component shall be determined by
the assessed value of each parcel as entered on the latest completed
assessment roll used by the city for the levy of general city taxes. The
charge shall be determined, levied and collected in the same manner, at
the same time and by the same officers, as general city taxes are levied
and collected.
(c) When a district has been established pursuant to this chapter, the
city may, for the purpose of providing funds for making capital
improvements within such district, issue and sell bonds or other
municipal obligations as provided in the local finance law and other
applicable laws and statutes. Principal and interest payments on these
bonds or other municipal obligations may be made in whole or in part
from the proceeds of charges imposed upon benefited real property within
the district.
Section 25-412
§ 25-412 Tax and debt limitations. (a) The aggregate amount of
outstanding indebtedness that is incurred to provide funds for capital
improvements pursuant to this chapter shall be chargeable against the
city's constitutional debt limit and may not exceed ten percent of the
amount allowable under that limit. The aggregate amount of outstanding
indebtedness that is incurred to provide funds for capital improvements
pursuant to this chapter and that is chargeable against the property
within the district may not exceed seven percent of the average full
valuation of taxable real property in the district.
(b) The district charge, exclusive of debt service, levied in a given
year against real property in a district may not exceed twenty percent
of the total general city taxes levied in that year against the taxable
real property in the district. The district charge so levied shall be
included in the total amount, if any, that the city is permitted by law
to raise in that year by a tax on real property.
Section 25-413
§ 25-413 Expenditure of district funds. (a) The proceeds of any charge
imposed pursuant to this chapter shall be held by the comptroller and
shall be separately accounted for in the books and records of the city.
None of the proceeds collected pursuant to this chapter shall be used
for any purposes other than those set forth in the district plan. These
funds may be paid out for district purposes in accordance with the
general procedures for payment of other city expenditures.
(b) All contracts for improvements, goods or services to be provided
in the district shall be subject to all applicable provisions of the law
relating to the letting of contracts by the city.
Section 25-414
§ 25-414 District management association.
(a) There shall be a district management association for each district
established pursuant to the provisions of this chapter (which shall
pursuant to the not-for-profit corporation law have one or more classes
of membership, voting or nonvoting) for the purpose of carrying out such
activities as may be prescribed in the plan. Notwithstanding any
inconsistent provision of paragraph (e) of section six hundred eleven of
the not-for-profit corporation law, the certificate of incorporation or
by-laws of such association shall provide for voting representation of
owners of property and tenants within the district, and may provide that
the votes of members who are property owners be weighted in proportion
to the assessment levied or to be levied against the properties within
the district, provided that in no case shall the total number of votes
assigned to any one such member or to any number of such members under
common ownership or control exceed thirty-three and one-third percent of
the total number of votes which may be cast.
(b) The board of directors of the association shall be composed of
representatives of owners and tenants within the district, provided,
however, that not less than a majority of its members shall represent
owners and provided further that tenants of commercial space and
dwelling units within the district shall also be represented on the
board. The board shall include, in addition, four members, one member
appointed by each of the following: the mayor, the comptroller, the
borough president of the borough in which the district is located and
the council member representing the council district in which the
proposed district is located, or if the proposed district is located in
more than one council district, by the speaker of the city council after
consultation with the council members representing the council districts
in which the proposed district is located. The additional four members
shall serve as the incorporators of the association pursuant to the
not-for-profit corporation law. The association may be incorporated
prior to the effective date of any district established pursuant to this
chapter.
(c) In addition to such other powers as are conferred on it by law,
the district management association may make recommendations to the city
council with respect to any matter involving or relating to the
district.
(d) For such consideration as it may deem appropriate and consistent
with the powers granted pursuant to section 25-404 of this chapter, the
city council may license or grant to the district management association
the right to undertake or permit commercial activities or other private
uses of the streets or other parts of the district in which the city has
any real property interest.
Section 25-415
§ 25-415 Dissolution. (a) Any district established or extended
pursuant to the provisions of this chapter, where there is no
indebtedness, outstanding and unpaid, incurred to accomplish any of the
purposes of the district, may be dissolved by local law of the city
council upon its own motion or upon the written petition of (1) the
owners of at least fifty-one percent or more of the total assessed
valuation of all benefited real property included in the boundaries of
the district and (2) at least fifty-one percent of the owners of
benefited real property within the area included in the district. The
city council shall request and consider the recommendations of the
district management association concerning any proposed dissolution;
provided that if the association has not submitted recommendations to
the city council within sixty days after request therefor, the city
council may adopt any such proposed dissolution without considering such
recommendations. In the event of dissolution, all assets of the district
shall revert to the city.
(b) A certified copy of the order of dissolution shall be filed with
the state comptroller at Albany, New York.
Section 25-416
§ 25-416 Existing districts. Any special improvement or assessment
districts, or any business improvement districts established pursuant to
article two-B of the general city law, or any districts having filed an
application with the state comptroller as provided in such article prior
to the effective date of chapter two hundred eighty-two of the laws of
nineteen hundred eighty-nine, shall be subject to the provisions of this
chapter but shall not be required to comply with any provisions of this
chapter which are contrary to or more restrictive than those under which
the district was estab- lished or proposed to be established as
evidenced by an application filed with the state comptroller prior to
the effective date of chapter two hundred eighty-two of the laws of
nineteen hundred eighty-nine. Any reference to article two-B of the
general city law or any section thereof in any state or local law, plan
or agreement shall be deemed to be a reference to article nineteen-A of
the general municipal law, or the appropriate provision of such article.
Section 25-417
§ 25-417 Severability. If any provision of any section of this chapter
or the application thereof to any person or circumstance shall be
adjudged invalid by any court of competent jurisdiction, such order or
judgment shall be confined in its operation to the controversy in which
it was rendered and shall not affect or invalidate the remainder of any
provisions of any section of this chapter or the application of any part
thereof to any other person or circumstance and to this end the
provisions of each section of this chapter are hereby declared to be
severable.
To the extent possible under law, Friends of Devin Balkind for Public Advocate has waived all copyright and related or neighboring rights to New York City Administrative Code. This work is published from: United States.
Special thanks to Benjarmin Kallos and Thom Neale who made this content publicly available as a bulk download.