N.Y. Town Law § 57: Dissolution of special improvement districts

§ 57. Dissolution of special improvement districts. 1. Whenever the

town board of a suburban town shall determine after a public hearing as

hereinafter provided that it is in the public interest to manage,

maintain, operate and repair as a town function, pursuant to title five

of this article, any improvement or service provided or authorized to be

provided by one or more special improvement districts, it may adopt a

resolution dissolving all special improvement districts wholly located

in such town created or existing to provide such improvement or service.

The resolution dissolving the district or districts shall provide for

the assessment of the costs of any improvement provided or authorized to

be provided by such district or districts, including the principal of

and interest on any bonds or other obligations authorized to be issued

for the purposes of such district or districts or which have been issued

for the purposes of such district or districts and are outstanding and

unpaid as of the date of such dissolution, to be borne partly by the

area of the town outside of any villages and partly by lands benefited

thereby; or by the area of the town outside of any villages; or entirely

by lands benefited thereby as the town board, in its discretion, shall

determine. Where however, (1) any part of the costs of the improvement

is to be borne by property in a described benefited area, such costs

shall be assessed, levied and collected from the several lots or parcels

of land within such benefited area either in the same manner and at the

same time as other town charges, or in just proportion to the amount of

benefit which the improvement shall confer upon such lots or parcels, or

(2) any part of the costs of the improvement is to be borne by the

entire area of the town outside of any villages, and such area has not

been determined to be the benefited area, such costs shall be assessed,

levied and collected from the several lots and parcels of land in such

area in the same manner and at the same time as other town charges.

2. Any such resolution shall provide that the cost of the management,

maintenance, operation and repair of such improvement or service shall

thereafter be a charge upon the area of the town outside of any villages

and shall be levied and collected in the same manner and at the same

time as other town charges.

3. The district or districts shall be dissolved on the first day of

January next succeeding the effective date of the resolution dissolving

such district or districts provided, however, that if the effective date

of such resolution shall be subsequent to the first day of August in any

year, the dissolution of such district or districts shall be effective

on the first day of January of the second succeeding calendar year.

4. Upon the dissolution of any such district or districts pursuant to

this section, the improvement or service provided or authorized to be

provided by such district or districts shall thereafter be a town

function and the town board shall be responsible for the necessary

management, maintenance, operation and repair thereof. All the property

of such district or districts shall become the property of the town.

5. The town board shall conduct a public hearing on the proposed

dissolution of a district or districts pursuant to this section, on

notice published at least ten but not more than twenty days before such

hearing in a newspaper or newspapers designated pursuant to subdivision

eleven of section sixty-four of this chapter and shall also cause a copy

thereof to be posted upon the bulletin board in the office of the town

clerk. Such notice shall specify the time when and the place where such

hearing will be held and in general terms, describe the proposed

dissolution, and where appropriate, the proposed basis of apportioning,

levying and assessing all improvement costs and shall specifically state

that the cost of the management, maintenance, operation and repair of

such improvement or service provided or authorized to be provided by the

district or districts proposed to be dissolved shall thereafter be a

charge upon the area of the town outside of any villages and shall be

levied and collected in the same manner and at the same time as other

town charges.

6. The town board may complete any improvement authorized to be

provided in the district or districts dissolved or to be dissolved and

finance such improvement pursuant to the local finance law.

7. The town clerk shall cause a certified copy of any such resolution

to be duly recorded in the manner prescribed in paragraph (d) of

subdivision six of section fifty-four of this chapter and to be filed

with the state comptroller no later than ten days after it shall become

effective.