Public hearing slated on proposed Catskill housing development

CATSKILL―Residents will once again have an opportunity to comment on a proposed housing project behind Price Chopper when the Catskill Village Planning Board holds a fourth public hearing on the development next week.

Plans for Cauterskill Estates call for the ultimate construction of 71 homes on individual lots. They are not low-income housing units and each home is projected to cost around $400,000.

“The planning board is considering the entire proposed development, but at present, we are only considering the approval of a first stage of 16 lots,” explained Planning Board Chairperson Gil Bagnell.

Property owner and developer Catskill Greene LLC of Brooklyn first pitched the project to the planning board last summer. The original subdivision approval dates back to 1991 under a previous landowner.

“Developers are not supposed to sequence a project,” said Bagnell. “If they plan to do a larger project, they must include plans for the entire proposed project even if they are only going to do one phase at the outset.  That ensures the initial phase is appropriately designed to fit in with any subsequent development.  That is why the planning board is looking at the entire proposed development of 71 houses, even though the first phase will only consist of 16.”

According to documents submitted to the planning board, prospective buyers would be able to choose ranch-style designs between 1,326 and 1,665 square feet with three bedrooms and two bathrooms, or larger Colonials ranging from 1,565 to 1,704 square feet with four bedrooms and 2.5 baths. Each includes an attached two-car garage and would be managed by a homeowners association (HOA).

At full build out, developers estimate the project would increase the population of the village, estimated at 3,745 in the 2020 Census, by around 250 people.

According to the proposal, 20 of the 51 acres would be physically disturbed.

“It is the intention of the application to dedicate the road, sewer lines, and water lines to the Village,” explained Darrin Elsom, principal engineer at Kaaterskill Associates, in correspondence to the planning board.

Bagnell noted that the first public hearing was not well attended.  The applicant complied with legal requirements for mailing notices, he said, but many people did not receive those letters from the U.S. Postal Service until after the hearing.  

“The second and third hearings were much better attended, and this is the fourth hearing next week,” Bagnell said.

“At the second hearing, a neighbor noted there were tires dumped on the property,” explained Bagnell. “The applicant had not known about this, because most of their SEQRA [State Environmental Quality Review Act] study had been limited to the 20 acres―out of 50 total―that would be disturbed.”

Those estimated 100 tires will be removed by the applicant.

The environmental review examines a multitude of issues, including stormwater runoff, infrastructure, archaeological impact, traffic and access.

The entrance to the development is off of Cauterskill Avenue and reachable from within the village via Highland Avenue or the privately owned roadway that runs alongside Price Chopper. Recently, Price Chopper put up “no through traffic” signs in an attempt to restrict vehicles.

“Nonetheless, numerous vehicles continue to use that road to access Cauterskill Avenue because the alternative, Highland Avenue, is a narrow road that joins Route 23A at a sharp angle and steep slope,” Bagnell said.

“The planning board cannot assume there will be continued access on a private road, so it is investigating the impact of the full 71-unitsubdivision on traffic.  The initial phase of 16 units would obviously present less of an impact, and we are considering both possibilities,” he said.

There have been discussions between the Village and private owner about the Village taking over the roadway, but Bagnell said the planning board has not been privy to details of negotiations.

The next public hearing is scheduled for Monday, January 12 at 6:30 p.m. at the Catskill Senior Center on Academy Street.

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