(A) (Public Act 97-109 as amended by Public Act 98-253). The town may:
(1) Enter into an agreement with the owner of any real property to abate the property tax due as of the date of the agreement for a period of time not to exceed seven years if the property has been subject to a spill as defined in Conn. Gen. Stat., § 22a-452c, and the owner agrees to conduct any environmental site assessment, demolition and remediation of the spill necessary to redevelop the property. Any such tax abatement shall be only for the period of remediation and redevelopment and shall be contingent upon the continuation and completion of the remediation and redevelopment process with the respect to purposes specified in the agreement. The abatement shall cease upon the sale or transfer of the property for any other purpose unless the town consents to its continuation. The town may also establish a recapture provision in the event of sale provided such recapture shall not exceed the original amount of taxes abated and may not go back further than the date of the agreement; or
(2) Forgive all or a portion of the principal balance and interest due on delinquent property taxes for the benefit of any prospective purchaser who has obtained an environmental investigation or remediation plan approved by the Commission of Environmental Protection or a licensed environmental professional under Conn. Gen. Stat., § 22a-133w, § 22a-133x, as amended by § 13 of Public Act 98-253, or § 22a-133y and completes such remediation plan for an establishment, as defined in § 22a-134, as amended by § 2 of Public Act 98-253, deemed by the town to be abandoned.
(B) Any abatement or forgiveness of taxes under division (A) of this section shall be approved by a vote of the Legislative Council and shall be contingent upon any conditions deemed appropriate by such body.
(C) The town shall notify the Commissioner of Environmental Protection, the Commissioner of Economic and Community Development and the Secretary of Policy and Management not later than 30 days after granting any abatement or forgiveness of taxes under division (A) of this section. Such notice shall provide the owner of purchaser’s name, as the case may be, and the address of the property.
(D) The Town of Hamden may offer up to a 100% real property tax abatement to owners during the period of time that they remediate their property or for seven years whichever is shorter as specified in divisions (A) and (C) of this section. The town will seek the professional review of an environmental engineer of the town’s engineering department to assess the maximum time that should be allowed for remediation work and thus for the abatement period. The owner shall provide the town with phase one and two environmental assessments and a redevelopment plan for vacant and abandoned sites. The town will decide on pay back/recapture requirements on a case-by-case basis.
(E) The Town of Hamden may consider forgiving all or a portion of back taxes and interest owed for the benefit of purchasers of vacant environmentally hazardous sites as specified in divisions (A) and (B) of this section. A redevelopment plan and environmental assessments shall be provided to the town as part of the application.
(Ord. 428, passed 12-4-00; Am. Ord. 446, passed 10-1-01; Am. Ord. 510, passed 2-7-05; Am. Ord. 562, passed 7-7-08; Am. Ord. 613, passed 1-3-12; Am. Ord. 654, passed 1-5-15)