Feagles Lake developer addresses board

Many questions left to be answered

By FRITZ MAYER

NARROWSBURG, NY — Steve Adler, the developer who owns Feagles Lake, presented his concept to develop 400 units near the lake to the Tusten town board on October 8.

The proposal is for 100 buildings, with four units per building on about 380 acres of land surrounding the lake in a planned-use development (PUD). If the town agrees to the plan, the developer has said that the side of the lake across from Route 97, just south of Narrowsburg, and the ridgeline would remain forever undeveloped, as would about 80 percent of the heavily wooded parcel.

Adler, who has already approached the planning board with the concept, said the plan could mean $140 million in home sales for the town, which would bring significant new tax revenues.

He said that with the current soft second-home market, the plan would take several years to unfold, but in the long term, “this could make a tremendous difference to the financial future of the town.”

Because current town zoning does not allow for a PUD, the town would have to specifically agree to the plan or change the zoning laws.

Adler touted the environmental benefits of his plan, but his primary focus was the possibility of future economic benefits.

“There’s very little opportunity for economic development here,” he said. “It’s too far from the interstate; the river isn’t navigable; the same issues that held down development for the last 150 years still remain. You’re not going to make money from industry or anything like that. If tax revenues are going to increase, it has to be based on, I think, some sort of proposal like this.”

He also told the board, “This is a concept proposal and if you’re interested in it, and want to move forward with me, I’ll work with you. If you say this is too much of a big change for us, we don’t want it, then you’ll just tell me that and I’ll go back to the traditional approach of getting a standard subdivision approval.”

Supervisor Ben Johnson asked a couple of questions, specifically about the dam at the lake, which is in need of repair.

Adler said the dam would be repaired to the specifications of the Department of Environmental Conservation and the town.

Johnson said that before the board would move forward in considering the project, Adler and his partner Stuart Venner would have to address the 18 points and questions raised in a letter from the town’s engineer, Joseph Gottlieb, on August 18.

The questions and points concern identification of wetlands, an environmental impact statement, an evaluation of the dam, a storm water plan, identification of threatened or endangered species, analysis of the impact on the town water and sewer system if the development ties into it and other technical matters.

The board made no formal motion on the matter before the meeting ended.