This section authorizes grants, leases, easements, and lesser interests, including permits, for the use of state-owned land underwater and the cession of jurisdiction thereof consistent with the public interest in the use of state-owned lands underwater for purposes of navigation, commerce, fishing, bathing, and recreation; environmental protection; and access to the navigable waters of the state; with due regard for the need of affected owners of private property to safeguard their property.
Where the boundary line between land underwater and the adjacent land lies within a public road or street, and the name of the owner or owners of such adjacent land or the place of residence cannot be ascertained to the satisfaction of the commissioner, grants or leases may be made by the commissioner in his or her discretion to the owner or owners of the land adjoining the road or street inshore of such land underwater in the manner herein provided, but a grant or lease so made shall not be regarded as depriving any other person of the exercise of his or her riparian rights.
Where the title to such public road or street is in a county, city, town or village, grants or leases may be made by the commissioner in the manner herein provided to the owner of the land adjoining the road or street inshore of such land underwater, but no such grant shall be made unless the consent thereto of such county, city, town or village shall first be filed with the commissioner, or unless, having been duly personally served with a notice of application of such grant, the county, city, town or village fails to file an objection with the commissioner or, having filed such objection, fails to present to the commissioner sufficient proof or other reasons satisfactory to the commissioner why the grant should not be made.
Upon any transfer of such lands, or at the request of the owner of the adjacent upland, the commissioner may convey such lesser interest as may be minimally required to allow a conveyance of marketable title by that owner of the adjacent land. Consideration charged in such instances shall reflect the interest so conveyed.
Except where timely application for such an interest has been made within one year pursuant to this subdivision, the commissioner is authorized to require the term of such lease, easement, permit, or other interest to be retroactive to the effective date of the rules so adopted. Any instrument conveying an interest in real property which is made retroactive shall include provision for payment of consideration for the portion of the term which extends retroactively including, where appropriate, interest on such consideration at the same rate then currently in effect and applied to judgments rendered in the court of claims.
N.Y. Pub. Lands Law § 75