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PV Town Board Sets Stage for Adopting Master Plan
Final Generic Environmental Impact Statement approved
by Edward Paul Greiff
The Putnam Valley Town Board at a meeting held November 28, 2007 unanimously adopted the Comprehensive Master Plan and Zoning FGEIS (Final Generic Environmental Impact Statement). This clears the way for the Town Board to adopt the Comprehensive Master Plan at the next Town Board meeting in December. If they do this they will achieve their stated goal, and the public's expressed wish, of having a Comprehensive Master Plan in place by year-end.
The general public comment expressed at the meeting was that in an administration plagued with problems from day one this is a major accomplishment that Supervisor Sam Davis, the Town Board, the Master Plan Committee, and Chazen can all be proud of.
But it is not there yet. Councilman and newly-elected Town Supervisor Bob Tendy expressed his concerns about being saddled with a Master Plan that can lead to lawsuits because it does not agree with Zoning Code changes and if that's the case then they are back to square one, he implied. Specifically Tendy questioned Town Attorney David Gordon why only one of his three clarifications to the Plan was incorporated and why the ability to create a PUD (Planned Unit Development) was left out. Who made that decision, he asked?
A Planned Unit Development can be used to override any already established District in Town.
Gordon gave a half hour dissertation responding to Bob Tendy's comments and said Jan Johansen correctly made the decision not to revise the Master Plan document, which would cause further delays. But there is nothing to prevent the Town Board from amending the Master Plan after it is adopted.
Councilman Tendy accepted Attorney Gordon's explanation, assuring him that the new Board has the right to make any changes as they feel.
The big question and debatable issue is whether or not commercial development will help relieve the tax burden on residents and businesses in Town. And if so, what type of commercial development is best. Councilwoman Wendy Whetsel asked for concrete numbers, statistics to prove that commercial development will help relieve the tax burden.
Then there are those who argue before more commercial development is undertaken the existing commercial buildings such as The Mahopac National Bank building and the Santucci blue building need to increase their tenant occupancy, which is currently at only fifty-percent occupied. A concerted effort needs to be made to fill these vacancies with commercial entities that add to the Town's list of services and that will be able to be sustained by the Putnam Valley population.
A big unanswered question raised by Councilwoman Wendy Whetsel is if Cortlandt Town Center is only six minutes away from Oregon Corners, what will attract people to shop at Oregon Corners rather than shop at Cortlandt Town Center mall?
Councilman and newly-elected Supervisor Tendy has said he will have an open door policy available to everyone. He didn't waste time when Chris Rosen asked him if they could talk about commercial development in town. Tendy invited Rosen outside to discuss the issue as Tendy had a cigarette.
The next Town Board meeting is a work session scheduled for Wednesday, December 12, 2007 at Town Hall.
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