Members of the Bethlehem Town Board are studying the town’s housing makeup to consider whether it would be more prudent to approve housing developments in the planning process as outlined in the town’s Comprehensive Plan, or to advocate for more open space.
As more housing developments come before the Town Board, town staff were recently asked to provide an update on all of the projects that have been developed or introduced since the Comprehensive Plan was adopted in 2005. The plan calls for diversified housing options within the town, other than single-family homes, but some board members have noticed developers are using that statement as the main justification for construction of apartments or condominiums.
“We want to make sure these developments will still be needed in the future,” said Councilwoman Joann Dawson.
Town officials are currently updating the town’s Comprehensive Plan. The most recent major projects to come before the board include Delmar Pointe, a townhome development to potentially be built along Delaware Avenue, and Wemple Corners, a mixed-use development targeted for the corner of Wemple Road and Route 9W.
Deputy Town Planner Rob Leslie presented the board with a summery of the projects and current building trends at a Town Board meeting on Wednesday, May 22.
Leslie said according to the latest housing data from the American Community Survey, from 2007 to 2011, about 70 percent of all housing units within the town are single-family homes. About another 23 percent are apartment-style units, while about 6.5 percent are single-family attached units, or condos. Compared to other towns in the Capital District, this mix of housing is seen as “moderate.”
Since 2005, a total of 577 housing units have been approved for construction within the town, with the largest growth in the apartments category. Leslie said 340 apartment units have been built or are now under construction within Hamlet-zoned districts. Also, about 69 percent of those apartments are being built south of the Delmar Bypass.
“I don’t think that’s a surprise to anyone since the majority of the land area that remains in an undeveloped state is located south of the bypass,” he said. “The area north of the bypass is generally close to being built out.”
The Gables is currently the only single-family condominium project now under construction.
Leslie said there are currently 15 housing projects before the town that have yet to be approved, and 60 percent of them are in Glenmont. The plans call for about 950 apartments, out of a total of 1,352 housing units. About half of the apartments are targeted for senior housing.
According to the town’s staff, board members should keep in mind several factors during the approval process, including consumer demand for different housing types, the town’s senior demographic and any potential revisions to the Comprehensive Plan.
Leslie said if all of the proposed projects were approved, the portion of single-family homes within the town could decrease to 65 percent.
“The Comprehensive Plan wanted to see more diversity in housing styles and wanted to see more options available, but the Comprehensive Plan never said how much is enough,” said Supervisor John Clarkson. “So that’s the question to some extent. The market will drive and to some extent will be based on the choices made by the Town Board and Planning Board.”
The supervisor said the Comprehensive Plan Assessment Committee should be ready to present their proposed changes to the Town Board on June 12.
“There hasn’t been anything presented that shows the Comprehensive Plan has been off base or not working, this is more refinements of what are the desired outcomes of that plan,” he said.