Developer touts fiscal benefits of proposed housing

By Donna Cafaldo , Correspondent Daily Freeman May 1, 2005

PORT EWEN - The company proposing a 520-unit housing development on Esopus Lake, off U.S. Route 9W, have told Esopus planners that the project could generate more than $500,000 in taxes annually for the town and more than $1.83 million for the Kingston school district.
Raphael Zucker, president of New Jersey-based Somerset Development, accompanied by an entourage of attorneys, engineers, planning consultants and financial analysts, fielded questions from the town Planning Board on Thursday about the project design, the type of housing proposed and water, sewer and economic impacts.
Planners are seeking information they need to make a recommendation to the Town Board about a required zoning modification.
The 350-acre parcel, known as the Silver property, received a zoning change in 1992 that cleared the way for a "planned unit development." The controversial zoning change not only set the number of units at 350 but also established the basic layout of the parcel in the form of a preliminary site plan.
Zucker said the plan, which he describes as placing a village within the town, fits in with what already exists locally.
"In reality, these setbacks are not unfamiliar," he said. "It helps to bring the community together while living in modern times."
The new plan also calls for less site use and less wetland disturbance, he said. Also proposed is a reduced total of 40,000 square feet of mixed retail and office space, which developers still say could yield 224 permanent jobs with an annual payroll of $7.9 million.
Sales taxes for construction materials could generate more than $5.2 million for Ulster County and state, they said.
Questions were raised at Thursday's meeting about the affordability of housing and assessed values.
Zucker said affordable housing can be created by legislation or by design. He said plans do not call for subsidized housing but a mix of housing prices that will not render any unit excludable.
"The amenities we proposed are designed to bring the community in, not leave them out," Zucker said.
Several town planners raised concerns about what's happening with housing in Esopus.
"We have condos assessed at $66,000 that are selling for $440,000 down at Riverview," said Planning Board member Roxanne Pecora.
Developers said they understood the town is looking to receive the biggest bang for its buck. Planning Board Chairman Russ Shultis urged developers to review town assessments first.
Zucker said if town planners are uncomfortable with the proposed design and desired the original plan instead, it still could be done. But he cautioned that is not the vision he believed the site called for.
"Adding 50 percent more to your community should be something great," he said.
Town planning consultant Dan Shuster recommended developers provide a more detailed site plan sketch. Zucker suggested planners take a road trip to an already existing Somerset community to get a better sense of what is being proposed.
Developers requested a special workshop meeting in late May, but planners made no firm commitment. Shultis said he was ready to set a public hearing to gauge the public's opinion of the project.
Developers agreed preliminary traffic studies need to be fine-tuned, along with sewer and water impact studies.
Zucker said he thought the meeting went well but conceded there is a long road ahead. He projected the project would cost more than $100 million for "just the sticks and bricks" and potentially swell to more than $200 million.

©Daily Freeman 2005

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