Lawyer: Town Rushed Proposal Without Adequate Public Input

By DEBRA MOFFITT
FLY CREEK

An attorney representing a Manhattan developer who wants to build 126 homes west of Otsego Lake says Otsego town officials attempted to change land-use rules without following procedures for public notice and open meetings.

Among those proposed changes: limiting how large parcels are subdivided into smaller lots. The town’s amended draft comprehensive plan says parcels of 40 acres or more could be subdivided into no more than three lots (approximately 13 acres). Existing land-use laws in the Town of Otsego permit residential-agricultural lots to be as small as three acres.

Landowner Fraydun Manocherian, whose family owns 34 buildings and 3,500 apartments mostly in New York City, launched plans last year to build a large development spanning the Towns of Otsego and Springfield. Area residents and elected officials have said they’re concerned about the development’s impact on the community’s environment, water supply, roadways and character.

But Manocherian’s attorney, Allyson Phillips, said public outcry alone doesn’t justify land-use changes.

“New York courts have routinely reiterated that local land-use determinations may not be based upon generalized community objections to a proposed development,” she wrote in a four-page letter with footnotes addressed to Otsego Town Supervisor Ted Feury.

Phillips and two engineers recently appeared before the Otsego and Springfield planning boards to give an update on Manocherian’s plans, which now include 50 single-family homes in Otsego and 76 dwellings in Springfield, a combination of 30 single family homes and a 46-unit duplex community.

“While we are concerned the (comprehensive plan) amendment will have the effect of precluding the Manocherian landowners from productively using their property in Otsego, the larger implications for the future development of the town are also troubling,” Phillips wrote.

She asked the town to “rectify the situation,” and requested the Town of Otsego keep the public hearing open. On June 10, the same day the Phillips letter is dated, the town council heard public comments on the comprehensive plan, though most spoke about a proposed limit on short-term rentals.

Otsego has extended the comprehensive plan public hearing until July, according to its website. Comments can be e-mailed or mailed.

The land-use restriction on large parcels would impact more than just Manocherian, Phillips said in the letter. She estimated 259 parcels totaling approximately 24,727 acres or 65.4 percent of the town’s land would be affected by the limits on subdividing lots.

“This lack of transparency surrounding the development of the plan amendment raises questions concerning compliance with the procedural requirements included in town law 272-a,” Phillips wrote. “It also raises questions concerning the town’s compliance with the Open Meetings Law, which generally requires minutes to be available within two weeks of any meeting where a public body is conducting official business.”

Town officials provided the letter to AllOtsego, but did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Phillips challenged how Town of Otsego officials made the determination that the comprehensive plan changes would not require an Environmental Impact Statement. Her letter detailed steps in the timeline and alleged that documents that should have been on the town’s website were not posted there. Accessed this week, the town’s website includes 10 documents related to the comprehensive plan, including meeting minutes.

At the June 10 Town Council meeting, Fly Creek Fire Chief Adam Kantor questioned whether local services would be stretched thin by so many new homes.

“I’m more concerned with infrastructure and can it support the growth?” he said.

Also at the June 10 meeting, Town Councilmember Deb Dalton addressed the large crowd and explained the complexities of the comprehensive plan process.

“The comprehensive plan is not a law. It’s a vision with goals,” she said. “It’s not a law. It’s a work in progress.”

She and other town officials encouraged the public to submit comments in writing.

According to New York’s Department of State, local comprehensive plans go hand-in-hand with zoning.

“The comprehensive plan should provide the backbone for the local zoning law,” a technical document on the Department of State’s website says.

The Town of Otsego’s Planning Board will meet next on Tuesday, July 7 at 7:30 p.m. The town also recently formed a Land Use Committee.