Malta Supervisor Paul Sausville will again propose zoning changes to the downtown development plan, something he’s received mixed support for in the past.
Sausville sent out an e-mail, Monday Dec. 28, detailing various changes he wants the Town Board to consider that would cut back on the currently planned development. If approved, the plan would go through a rezoning process that could result in the loss of millions of dollars for investors and postpone or halt construction, according to developers.
Some developers, board members and residents are saying the proposed changes are unnecessary, not smart and made without appropriate knowledge of the situation.
Sausville wants to increase setbacks, decrease building heights, decrease the size of the downtown district all which will promote sprawl. That’s not what you do to promote smart growth,` said Bob Miller Jr., a developer with an interest in downtown Malta.
Miller was one of the founders of a coalition of developers, residents and former local government officials called `No More Sprawlta.` The group is outraged by Sausville’s zoning proposals.
Miller said that in 2005 the downtown plan was correctly zoned, and several third parties were consulted to ensure it included principles of anti-sprawl and smart growth. He said he questions why Sausville is not consulting third parties this time around.
`They engaged professionals because they correctly understood they didn’t have the knowledge to develop a plan. The town needed a broad base in order to develop a vision, it couldn’t just be one person, it must be the community at large. Now that forward thinking is reversed,` said Miller.
Miller said the current plan is endorsed and approved by the Environmental Protection Agency, the Department of Transportation, the Urban Land Institute and American Institute of Architects. The plan to build up downtown was created to meet the growth that is expected to spin out of the construction of a GlobalFoundries plant.
`This [GlobalFoundries] is a big project coming forward in the town. Let’s figure out how we want to grow and figure out how we want to do it because the town will grow and we have to be ready,` said Miller.
Currently planned for downtown are various apartments, lofts, townhouses and brownstones that would help accommodate the labor and residents that the GlobalFoundries plant will attract.
Councilman Peter Klotz said he is against Sausville’s proposal and is confused as to why the downtown development plan is being made an issue.
`I don’t think it’s a necessary plan of changes. There was a plan and zoning put into place over a number of years by lots of different people and experts that we’ve hired,` said Klotz. `I’m willing to listen to what Sausville has to say, but I’m not convinced we need what he’s proposing.`
Former councilwoman Sue Daley-Nolen stepped down from the Town Board last year after serving for 16 years. She said that Sausville didn’t have the votes to approve those changes when he first proposed them, and it’s foolish to try again.
`It took a lot of thought and people involved and money to set up this plan. To think that he’d be able to just change everything is not good planning for the people in Malta,` said Daley-Nolen, who ran against Sausville in November for position of supervisor.
Controversy is surrounding a statement by Sausville that he circulated a survey to residents about the downtown development. He said nine out of 10 residents responded they would prefer a `hamlet-like town,` but some are calling into question just how many residents were polled.
Daley-Nolen said if Sausville did put out a survey as part of his campaign, she’d like to see the questions and know who paid for it.
`He made mention that everyone said they didn’t want this development, but when I ran against him, they all told me they did. So I don’t know what houses he went to,` Daley-Nolen said.
Miller said No More Sprawlta requested the surveys numerous times but were never granted access.
Miller said he and other residents are concerned with the impact Sausville’s zoning proposals would have should they be approved. He said that in addition to stopping development for at least the next year, a lot of money would be lost by people investing in Malta.
`You’ve lost money and pushed development into neighboring communities, and the town of Malta is left with the impacts of AMD being in town but not being able to fully realize the economic benefits of it,` said Miller. `New York state has invested $1.25 billion in the Town of Malta ` in the middle of the worst economic downturn in years, why would any town turn back on an investment in the community?`
He said there will be a loss of jobs in construction, service, all jobs that would have been created. There will be higher taxes and costs associated with the studying needed for rezoning downtown.
Developer Bruce Schnitz said rezoning jeopardizes the trust between a town and its residents.
`Based upon current legislation, a lot of developers like myself spent millions of dollars getting approvals based upon the standards and designs and zoning laws the town has in place. If someone were to arbitrarily change those at this late date, for us that’s financial catastrophe,` said Schnitz, also a member of No More Sprawlta.
Councilwoman Tara Thomas said she thinks it’s a good idea to analyze the proposed changes and supports reducing the downtown boundaries. She said a report done by River Street Planning a few years ago recommended several of the changes that Sausville proposed in his e-mail.
`It’s been an ongoing discussion with the new and old town boards on how downtown is going to take shape and how to still have a small-town feel. It doesn’t surprise me that the supervisor wants to revisit the master plan,` said Thomas. `Changes need to be evaluated, and a year and a half ago when he brought the same discussion, I was in support of downsizing the plan.`
Sausville was unavailable to comment by press time as he was out of the office until Friday. In response to an e-mail asking him to clarify his position, he referred to a letter he wrote to the Spotlight several months ago that addressed the ongoing downtown battle.
In it he wrote, `Malta’s downtown projects currently planned by developers call for three-, four- and five-story buildings with one project having 330 apartment/condo units and 70,000 square feet of retail on 10 acres of land if each of the 30 suburban towns surrounding our urban centers planned a city-like downtown with these population densities, it would take the problem of sprawl to a new level.`
He also said that creating a city-like downtown in Malta would just cause it to resemble the cities that it borders, taking away from the small-town character it’s known for.
Both Miller and Schnitz said they want to emphasize that this is not developer versus town, and the bigger picture is that Sausville didn’t consult the people that should have been consulted before proposing changes.
Representatives of No More Sprawlta plan to sit in on the next public workshop on the matter Tuesday, Jan. 26, to share their concerns.
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