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ARTICLE · 15 SEPTEMBER 2026

General Municipal Law § 239-m: Developers Beware

Farrell Fritz
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New York's General Municipal Law § 239-m requires municipal boards to refer certain planning and zoning actions to county planning boards before approval. What happens when a multi-million-dollar development project moves forward without this crucial referral, and can the damage be undone?

United StatesReal Estate and Construction
Marissa Padovano
Marissa Padovano

A multi-million-dollar development project which relies on site plans approved by a municipal board months prior is ready to break ground. However, the municipal board failed to refer the plans to the county planning board before approving them. The result? A multi-million-dollar illegal structure.

In order to ensure that local municipal planning and zoning decisions do not negatively harm a neighboring community or the county, General Municipal Law § 239-m requires certain actions, for properties within five hundred feet of certain boundaries such as neighboring city, village or towns or county or state park, be referred to the county planning board or regional planning board. This includes issuing special permits, approving site plans or granting use or area variances to properties, which, of course, are crucial and routine to most development projects.

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