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RALLYING CRY
NEW SAUGERTIES TIMES October 18, 2001 Vernon Benjamin
Residents turn out in droves to support change in zoning
to eliminate mining in residential areas Some 250 people appeared at the Saugerties
high school auditorium early this month for the second of two town board public
hearings on a proposal to change the zoning law by banning quarries and mines
in residential zones. Most were advocates for the change because of an impending
application for a new quarry in Veteran.
The second hearing lasted more than three hours. Dozens of
individuals rose to testify, most railing against Shott Mine Inc., the Veteran
project that was not the subject of the hearing. Several advocated for the change
based on residential growth in the town and the availability of quarry resources
elsewhere, including seven existing Saugerties operations.
Also speaking were advocates for mining, including engineer
Richard Praetorius, comprehensive planning committee secretary Ellie Henkel
and attorney Kevin Bernstein, who represented Gilbert Shott. Bernstein said
passing the new law would "send a clear message to any business that it cannot
rely on established law at the time if there happens to be some community opposition.
He cited an Ulster County Planning Board memo suggesting that the town reconsider
the proposal in light of the fact that it would affect some 80% of the community
land from mining consideration if enacted.
Praetorius, who is chairman of the county planning board,
said he had done survey and property boundary work for Shott but was speaking
as a landowner, business power and resident. He said a change of this magnitude
should include an analysis of existing mining patterns and the mining resources
(like limestone, shale, sandstone and sand and gravel) that Praetorius said
was "critical to our future development."
Henkel noted that seven mines currently existed in the town.
She said that a moratorium on commercial building permits was expanded to include
mining when the zoning law was under consideration in 1989, and the zoning commission
spent "many hours" trying to decide how to deal with mines. The current regulation
allowing mining in residential zones by special use permit was the result.
Several speakers in support of the proposal noted that stone
and other quarry materials were readily available elsewhere, including from
some existing town businesses. Shot, who sat in the front row with his granddaughter
and other relatives, was characterized as a Westchester County "outsider" only
interested in the economic benefits. He was criticized for abruptly moving trucks
in and removing palletized stone after the first public hearing two weeks earlier.
CARES, the citizen action group formed to fight the project,
objected to the removal of the stone and demanded a fine from the state Department
of Environmental Conservation. Shott's action prompted building inspector Paul
Andreassen to inspect the site and issue a formal stop-work order. Bernstein
said the removal was legitimate because it was not mining per se, but only the
removal of materials mined when the operation was legitimate.
Town officials said informally they did not expect DEC to
act against Shott over the removal of the stone.
The lack of mining before Shott's arrival two years ago was
evident in testimony provided by hydrogeologist Paul Rubin. He had a GIS survey
map that clearly showed the mine area as forested as late as 1996. Rubin said
the presence of "interconnected fractures" in the underlying rock meant that
pumping out water below the water table to accommodate the mining would "affect
a huge area."
Speakers talked about the changed nature of the Saugerties
landscape, the rise of residential growth, and the incompatibility of mining
with those changes. Spider Barbour, a naturalist who studied the Beaverkill
creek during the Winston Farm debacle, said the stream would be "ruined" with
a "really badass biology and all that native stuff gone" if 124,000 gallons
of water projected for the Shott mine were discharged into its tributary on
a daily basis. He termed existing law "very ineffective, poorly enforced," and
the DEC "underfunded."
A real estate broker spoke on the negative effect on housing
prices if mining were allowed. An attorney said the ordinance change was needed
because the town "cannot regulate mining under state law." A woman talked about
the attractiveness of Saugerties as a tourism venue and said that would be compromised
by mining in residential areas. Brian Donahue, one of the leaders of CARES,
reminded the board of a 1500-signature petition against mining that they had
received.
Some cautionary testimony was also received. Barry Benepe,
an architect with a home in Saugerties, suggested a moratorium while the planning
board reviewed the proposal and a case was established on the need for the law.
Another speaker talked about ways the state environmental quality review form
could be filled out to show the benefits of restricting mining.
"You can't reconcile a heavy-duty intensive mine with that
comprehensive plan," said Norm Schwartz.
At the conclusion of the hearing supervisor Greg Helsmoortel
said the town would likely act on the proposed law at the next regular meeting
on October 24. That action was expected to be unanimous consent regarding its
adoption. V.B.