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State scrutiny awaits Awosting development plan
By Dawn Letus
Correspondent, January 23, 2003

GARDINER - The state Department of Environmental Conservation Wednesday agreed to lead the environmental review of the proposed Awosting Reserve, a 350-unit housing subdivision, golf course and recreation center that would span the borders of Gardiner, Shawangunk and Wawarsing.

During a teleconference between state Sen. John Bonacic, R-Mount Hope, agency Regional Director Marc Moran and the supervisors of those towns - Jack Hayes, John Valk and Richard Craft, respectively - Moran agreed his agency could take the lead in the review, Bonacic said in a news release.

The Gardiner Town Board, which is still awaiting a response on lead agency status from other agencies, must formally approve the designation.

"The project is proposed to be built in an ecologically sensitive area," Hayes said. "We must ensure that all environmental impacts are addressed. Having the DEC as lead agency is the best way to ensure that."

"The significance of this project, and the fact that it encompasses parts of three towns, puts the state in the best position to determine its full environmental impact," Valk added.

Tuesday night, project developer Roger Beck gave the Gardiner Planning Board an abbreviated presentation of the proposed project. The board subsequently recommended the town ask the state agency to lead the environmental review, Hayes said.

Along with Hayes, town councilmen Fred Fischer and Paul Colucci, and the town's newly hired environmental attorney, Kevin Young of Albany, attended Tuesday's meeting. Hayes said the session was not open to comments from the public.

At a combined meeting of the Town Board and Planning Board scheduled for Feb. 6, Beck will expand his presentation and the boards will allow time for public comment, Hayes said.

One question raised at Tuesday's meeting, Hayes said, was how cluster development plans compare to conventional sketch plans.

"A conventional sketch plan has to show how many homes could be built on the same piece of property under current zoning. Then it has to be compared to a cluster plan that allows for more open space," Hayes said Wednesday.

Some, including town planning consultant James Freiband, thought Beck's proposed conventional plan was inaccurate, Hayes said.

In the plan, building lots were proposed on 45-degree slopes and in
flag-shaped configurations, which are not authorized under town code, Freiband said in his memorandum to the Planning Board.

The conventional plan must be accurate for comparison purposes, Hayes said. Advocates of cluster development say smaller conventional plan numbers reduce the number of units allowable under cluster development, he said.