Awosting Reserve developer wins round in court
By Jesse J. Smith , Freeman staff Daily Freeman Wednesday, March 3, 2005

GARDINER - A state Supreme Court justice has rejected a town Zoning Board of Appeals ruling that would have effectively scuttled plans for proposed 350-unit luxury housing complex at the base of the Shawangunk Ridge.

Even so, property owner John Bradley says he has no plans to go ahead with a project of that size on the 2,660 acre site.

Bradley is locked in an arbitration battle, attempting to dismiss the development firm he hired to design and build the subdivision and that he now accuses of mishandling the project. The proposed Awosting Reserve development set off a furor among Gardiner residents who saw it as too big and intrusive for the environmentally sensitive area.

In November 2003, Gardiner Building Inspector Don Otis issued a determination that zoning regulations did not permit the use of central sewer treatment systems in the ARR (Agricultural Residential Recreational) Zone 200, where the subdivision was planned. Since the only alternative sewage disposal system, individual septic systems, was considered unfeasible for a project of that size, the ruling effectively blocked the proposed development.

Otis' ruling was later backed by the town Zoning Board of Appeals.

Last month, in response to a suit by developers challenging the ruling, state Supreme Court Judge Thomas J. Spargo found that town had improperly interpreted the zoning regulations. According to Spargo, the town's contention that central sewage treatment was not permitted because it is not included on a list of permitted uses in the zone was at odds with other zoning code provisions as well as Ulster County's Sanitary Code.

Spargo said zoning board members themselves had found the zoning code "confusing and ambiguous" in regard to central sewer in the ARR 200 zone and had requested that the Town Board amend the regulations to clarify them.

Town Supervisor Carl Zatz, who was elected in 2003 with heavy support from those opposed to the development plan, said he expects the controversy over the site to continue.

"It's still a pretty active project," said Zatz. "A group (of developers) still exists and there is an intention to develop it one way or another."

Despite the favorable ruling, Bradley said he never intended for the site, part of a massive tract adjacent to Minnewaska State Park which he and his partners have acquired over 40 years, to be developed on such a large scale. He has recruited a new team to come up with smaller scale alternatives.

Bradley said the new plan is likely to be about half the size of the Chaffin-Light project and may incorporate technology that naturally treats and recycles effluent without chemicals or traditional septic systems.

Bradley dismissed, however, a proposal by project opponents that the land be sold to the state and added to Minnewaska State Park.

"I want to see as much of (the reserve) as possible remain in private hands," said Bradley, who added that he envisions a 70 to 80 percent "green easement" for the site. "I really feel that well intentioned, intelligent, thoughtful land owners or land managers will do a better job of caring for the land than the government."

Bradley must still contend with proposed new regulations for the ARR 200 zone, which are expected to be approved by the Town Board soon. The new rules, drafted to bring the code in line with the town's master plan, include restrictions on slope-side building and cluster development.

Bradley said the zoning changes are aimed at his property and promised to fight them in court if the board adopts them.

©Daily Freeman 2005

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