The New Scotland Town Board asked town attorney Mike Mackey to draft a six-month extension to the existing moratorium on commercial zone development at its Wednesday, Dec. 10, meeting.
At that same meeting, Daniel Mackay, founder of the advocacy group New Scotlanders for Sound Economic Development, announced he will run for a seat on the town’s planning board, and encouraged others in support of change to do the same.
Town Supervisor Tom Dolin said he and the Town Board considered asking the town’s attorney to draft a three-month extension, but after discussing the matter, they realized resolving the commercial zone issue might take a bit longer. The current moratorium expires March 1.
The initial six-month moratorium and subsequent three-month extension both proved to be too short to resolve the issue, causing the town to play it safe and consider another six months of the moratorium.
We’ve been wrong the last two times, Dolin said, as he elicited a chuckle from those in attendance.
If the six-month extension to the moratorium is officially adopted, the town will use that time to consider how to proceed in drafting new legislation for the town’s zoning code.
There are two positions opening up on the planning board in the new year, Mackay said; one renewed annually and one is for Planning Board Chairman Robert Staph’s position, which carries a seven-year term. Staph has served since 1992.
Mackay cited `the need for new energy and vision` as reason to challenge Staph.
He also questioned why the Town Board has not advertised the position more aggressively.
`The Town Board has not sent any signal to the public that we need renewal,` Mackay said.
Others at the meeting voiced support for arguments in favor of a size cap on retail buildings, as NS4SED had advocated since Sphere Development LLC announced plans to develop the former Bender Melon Farm with a 137,000 square-foot `anchor` store, such as Target.
Bob Prentiss, a Voorheesville resident, former state Assemblyman and member of the NS4SED spoke in support of a size cap for retail buildings.
`We want sound economic development, but not unbridled development.` Prentiss said.
The Commercial Zone Advisory Committee, charged with drafting new legislation for the town’s zoning laws, recently lost some of its members to resignations amid a potential conflict-of-interest controversy surrounding its member and co-chair Liz Kormos.
The town formally decided not to pursue any legal action against Kormos on Wednesday, Nov. 12, and she has not been sanctioned in any way for any violation of the town’s ethics code.
Kormos and Michael Naughton, the two original CZAC members who did not resign after the controversy, released a report on Monday, Dec. 8, to the New Scotland Town Board recommending a 50,000-square-foot size cap on retail buildings, a figure supported by NS4SED, a group of which Kormos is also a member.
`Since it is unclear whether the Town Board will replace the three members of CZAC that resigned and allow CZAC to complete its charge; Michael Naughton and I felt it was important that the Town Board see the analytical data that clearly shows that the proposed 100,000-square- foot retail building and a 350,000-square-foot shopping center is neither economically viable nor sustainable,` said Kormos.
Kormos’ study suggested that the largest size big-box retail store that could be supported in New Scotland is 36,000-square-feet, based on a `community draw,`10-minute drive. The report stated that 18,000 new homes would be needed to support a 100,000-square-foot retail store, and a `regional` draw would not be supported because there are too many other regionally drawing stores within a 15-minute driving distance with access to major arterial or interstate roadways.
The report also said that 16,000 to 46,000 square feet of grocery store space could be supported.
Controversy over the report ensued as meeting attendees and board members quarreled about the information provided by Kormos.
Councilman Richard Reilly said he has reservations about the information from Kormos, citing the conflict-of-interest matter that had earlier been dismissed. He said, though, he is interested in seeing as much data as possible regarding potential zoning changes. The board is also considering reports made by former CZAC chairwoman Roz Robinson and member Cindy Elliot.
Others spoke out against the validity of those reports, since Robinson and Elliot resigned from their positions on CZAC.
Robinson defended her report, stating she thought the information would still valuable regardless of her position on the committee. She said she was unsure the state of CZAC and drafted the four-page report in case the board decided it wanted to see additional information.
`Frankly I though the CZAC was in limbo,` Robinson said. `There was no indication from the town board.`
Kormos, a commercial real estate consultant, provided the board with a `market feasibility study` that states the limitations of development based on `demographics and shopping patterns in the Town and surrounding areas,` according to information provided by NS4SED.
Supervisor Tom Dolin said the board will discuss the findings at the Wednesday, Jan. 14, meeting, giving the rest of the board time to look it over and make comments.
`Whether or not CZAC exists or doesn’t exist, there were five people who sat through the meeting,` Reilly said.
Mike Welti, of Behan Planning Associates, the private consulting firm hired to assist in the zoning changes said he used Kormos’ report, along with information gathered from the public workshop and other data to also compile his own report, which included some zoning language, but said there is still work to be done.
`[My report] at least tries to capture where we got with the process,` Welti said. `We did not get as far as we like to have gotten.`
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