LIBERTY – As the Liberty Town Board’s initial determination on the Lake Hills Estates Planned Use Development (PUD) is expected on December 4, Town Board member and County Legislator-elect Brian McPhillips noted his questions on the project remain unanswered at the regular meeting on November 20.

Town Supervisor Frank DeMayo invited Planning Board Attorney Jacob Billig to go over the process of making a determination. Billig noted that the plan currently sits in a “sketch plan stage” as the final determination hinges on “a whole host of development guidelines.” 

He went on to say these guidelines are laid out by State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQRA) examinations, among other mandated forms and “checklists,” and would be looked at by the Planning Board if passed off by the Town Board.

If so, the project would face mandatory rigorous testing and examination by the Planning Board. These tests would consist of various studies that would take a look at sewer, water, traffic and visual potential impacts on the lake and surrounding areas.

However, at a previous meeting, Supervisor DeMayo crafted a list of questions from Town Board members for the developer, to which board member McPhillips stated that he believed his and his colleague’s questions remained unanswered. 

“Everything that Jacob [Billig] said is correct, yes, those are the processes that go once it’s in the Planning Board, but we’re not doing that. We’re doing a PUD which hasn’t been done in the town [before.] In a way, this is [like] a special use,” McPhillips said. “If the determination is to come from part of my vote, then there are certain questions that I expect to be answered, as I expected you guys would want your questions answered, which haven’t been.”

McPhillips explained that a few of those questions included confirmation on the status of the 100 acre non-contigious land to be ever-wild, access to a right of way onto Route 55 and a new sketch plan. He also noted he felt his and his fellow board members’ questions reflected a number of concerns brought up by the public that have gone unanswered.

To further explain the project were presenters, Project Engineer Glenn Smith, Planning Consultant Tom Shepstone and Joel Kohn, CEO of JK Expediting Services.

Smith revised the project before the board and the crowded room of Liberty residents, noting that nothing about the project had changed since its presentation in June. It is slated to sit at the corner of Kelly Bridge Road and Route 55. He specified the gated community project sits at 79.8 acres, with plans to install 90 duplex (180 units) of 1-story buildings. Some are expected to be 2 bedrooms and some 3 bedrooms. 

Despite the presenters noting the project to have its own sewer system and treatment facility, concerns on the topic remained from the public. One commenter displayed a water filter, dirtied after only one month of use due to neighboring a similar project. Presenters noted that the development would have three proposed wells and would use roughly 55,000 to 60,000 gallons of water per day.

The presenters also claimed that the plans now include a 150-foot barrier between the project and surrounding areas, as well as plans for two entryways to the property, with the Kelly Bridge Road entry being emergency use only. One public commenter noted the narrowness of Kelly Bridge Road makes it difficult for it to have such a use, claiming that there aren’t even any street lights on the road.

Planning Consultant Shepstone gave his insights on why the project may be beneficial. 

“What I want to start with is why this project is special,” Shepstone said. “First of all, we’re talking about a project that’s oriented towards the obvious market that’s in this area that is the Orthodox population.”

Shepstone went on to say that this point notes that there would be no school children, giving the town huge tax benefits in the sense of not creating expenses for the local school boards, as well as creating new revenue for the schools without additional cost. He also claimed it would generate revenue for the businesses in town.

Public commenter and Liberty resident Harriet Dorfman, a Orthodox Jewish woman, warned that there could still be unforeseen burdens on school district taxpayers. Additionally, Dorfman questioned the possibility of arising discrimination law issues that may or may not prevent specific people from living in the PUD.

The Town moved to accept a motion to hire Delaware Engineering to represent the Town Board and possibly the Planning Board, as well as pass a motion to require the developer of the project to deposit $5,000 in an escrow account for town review.

Town Board member Vincent McPhillips was absent from Monday’s meeting. The Board moved to adjourn with the intent to continue the discussion on the PUD at their next Town Board meeting, December 4.

Public concern continues to rise

Eleven public commenters came at the project with criticism and concerns following the presentations. This was in addition to a petition for the project which garnered 150 signatories intended to highlight their intent to “preserve the rural and ecological character of Swan Lake.”

Other concerns related to  the project that were highlighted were rainwater runoff, especially with the property sitting on a slanted hillside facing the lake, the fact that a PUD project has never been built in Liberty before, the non-contiguous status of the initial property and the anticipated rise in population density of 4-5,000 people in 1 square mile of Swan Lake, should the project reach final approval.

Resident Cora Edwards noted that she believed the appilcation does not match two points of criteria in section 147-23 Town Code, thus nullifying the project in its entirety.

Edwards said, “A friend of mine said to me, if I submitted a college application and it didn’t meet the criteria for admissions, the college would just send it back.”