The Wetland Parking Area

The two wetland lots were conveyed to the Grantee (Faith Bible Church) from the Grantor (Shrub Oak Lake Estates) with six terms and conditions.  Below is a photo of the deed. Take specific note of #'s 3 and 4.  Please, discuss amongst yourselves and we'll reconvene after the New Year.

3. The Grantor hereby reserves a permanent easement on behalf of its membership to use the subject parcel at all times for parking purposes at no cost to the Grantor or any of its individual members.  

4.  That the subject parcel be permanently posted by the Grantee [Faith Bible Church] to indicate it as private property for the exclusive use of the members of the Grantor [Shrub Oak Lake Estates] and the Grantee. 

In case you were wondering, yes--Shrub Oak Lake Estates is an active membership corporation in the state of New York.

Chairman Gregg Bucci Didn't Read The Deed For The Wetland Lots

A quick snippet from Yorktown Zoning Board of Appeals meeting minutes, June 2011.  

“Chairman Bucci told him [editors note: that would be me!] that if that is true, such uses are with the permission of the owner and that unless the parties using the applicants property have some sort of legal contractual arrangement or legal ability to claim some sort of ownership interest in that property, that’s done with the permission of the owner. It has nothing to do with whether the owner owns the property or makes arrangements to allow people to park there.”

 I'm a SOLE man.  More on that later.  

Merry Christmas. 

A Brief Intermission

I hope you are having a good holiday season.  News of the Yorktown Zoning Board of Appeals' approval of all of the zoning variances is disheartening, for sure.  However, make sure to check back in after all the holiday hectic-ness ends.  I promise you exciting new developments.  Not only will there likely be a planning board hearing or working session, but we may even see some litigation.

Sewers

The new development requires a sewer connection to get planning and environmental approvals.  They have graciously offered the surrounding community a "dry" sewer pipe that would parallel their private sewer line.  We still need a site for the tank and pump house required to make it actually work.  This is something the church is not responsible for, nor should they be.  It is an opportunity to open a dialogue with the town about our sewer situation. 

 The vast majority of the community that surrounds the proposed new development has no sewer service.  We do, however, pay a sewer tax.  I understand that we "voted" ourselves into a sewer district.  They ran into trouble finishing the system and here we are today with no plan to ever finish the project.  Yet they gladly keep taking our tax money to pay for a service we are not provided.  I'm sure there's a lot of nuance in the law, but that smells like taxation without representation, if you ask me. 

If we, the Mohegan Lake community, are wise, we should lobby the town to at least formulate a plan.  A 5, 10, 15, 25? year plan to get us set up with modern sanitary services--THAT WE PAY FOR ALREADY.  The proposed new development provides us a golden opportunity to get some kind of commitment and the church's gracious offer provides us a foot in the door.  Even if it's just lip service, I think it's important the town recognize the issue formally.

Write the town board.  Write the town engineer.  Write the town supervisor.  Let them know this issue is important to you. 

Feigning Deliberation

Sadly, it was predictable: the rubber stamp came down hard tonight.  The Yorktown Zoning Board of Appeals granted all 5 zoning variances for FBC in the face of overwhelming evidence that the parking load cannot be supported by the new building. They never asked questions about whether or not the variances were the minimum adjustment to established, valid zoning laws.  They didn't ask the applicant if they could reduce the 3 major zoning variances by even 6 inches. 

Now that it's official, we've got an uphill battle--but one worth fighting.  Get ready for a 15 day window where we will be allowed to comment on the environmental concerns.   I'll bet we see a planning board working meeting in the near future.  I'll keep an eye out and keep this site fresh.  Please stay tuned.

Congratulations to Albert A. Capellini, Esq. on his successful bid for for 5 zoning variances which  the Yorktown ZBA unanimously approved tonight.  He certainly worked hard for them.