Philmont planners OK Summit Heights homes

By: Richard Roth IndeNews January 13, 2006

PHILMONT-The Summit Heights subdivision has won final approval from the village Planning Board, opening the way for Philmont Ventures Ltd. to proceed with its plan to sell the 69-lot subdivision to another developer.

       Planning Board member Sean Ryan cast the only dissenting vote, after asking the board to reconsider several aspects of the plan.
       One area of concern, Mr. Ryan said, was that no provision had been made for sidewalks. Another was that not all the trees removed during site preparation will be replaced. Another was that the subdivision's economic impact needed clarification. And finally, he said, development should proceed in three stages, rather than the two stages specified in the plan offered by Philmont Ventures, so that the lakefront will be protected in case the developer fails to deliver on promises to provide necessary infrastructure.
       Mr. Ryan was overruled on every issue. Planning Board Chairman Charles Nichols dismissed his concern about tree removal as "aesthetics," saying he himself had removed 40 trees from his own property just this year. He told Mr. Ryan there was no room for sidewalks, which were unnecessary in any case. And an economic study was done for the Village Board, he said, asking Mr. Ryan if that wasn't "enough."
       Mr. Ryan replied that he would need to examine the study for himself, but he was unable to muster support among other board members for delaying the vote on those grounds. Mr. Ryan was also alone in believing lots in the subdivision nearest the reservoir should be developed last, which Mr. Nichols said was simply not practical.
       Philmont Ventures Ltd. will be required to post a $2.5 million construction bond to ensure that all infrastructure for the development is completed satisfactorily, including roads, water lines and septic systems. Some sewage will have to be pumped to collection pipes at a higher elevation.
       The subdivision incorporates two conservation areas: 11 acres adjacent to the reservoir, and 20 acres to the south of the area to be developed. The developers are committed to making a $50,000 payment for public recreation upon receiving a signed subdivision map.
       Before the meeting, copies were circulated of a $797,993.70 judgment in Westchester County against Alfred Mattikow, a consultant to Philmont Ventures Ltd. whose wife is one of three principals in the firm; and Mr. Nichols distributed envelopes to Planning Board members that appeared to contain the same material. He called bringing it to the board without a signature "childish," saying it had been taken "off the Internet." The judgment itself was never discussed.
       The subdivision is being advertised for sale online by Preston Mountain Realty with an asking price of "$1,750,000, or $25,000 per lot, whole package only!" The website appears not to have been updated for some time; it states that final approval was expected in June, 2005, and the stated asking price is nearly $750,000 below current cost estimates just for creating the infrastructure.
       Any cost overruns will have to be covered by a corresponding increase in the construction bond. Bonds must also be posted for maintenance; engineering, inspection, and legal costs; and insurance.
       Speculation builder Billy Cole of AHG Properties in Red Hook, who has done some residential construction in Philmont, estimated that individual lots in Summit Heights could be worth as much as $50,000 in the current real estate market, and that he could build a 1,500-square-foot modular house on one of the lots for about $130,000 to $140,000. A house assessed at $200,000 would pay about $1,900 in Philmont Village taxes.
       There may be one additional hurdle for Philmont Ventures to surmount. Albany attorney Marc Gerstman has appealed a decision by the Department of Environmental Conservation upholding the Planning Board's SEQRA (State Environmental Quality Review Act) filing for the subdivision plan, and DEC has yet to announce its final ruling.
      

To contact reporter Richard Roth e-mail rroth@indenews.com.©The Independent 2006

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