Bethel zoning adopted

Golf course battle continues

By FRITZ MAYER

KAUNEONGA LAKE, NY — Two and a half years after adopting a new comprehensive plan, new zoning provisions have been adopted to complement the plan. At a town meeting on June 24, the Bethel town board voted unanimously to adopt amendments to the zoning code.

The most controversial aspect of the amendments is a change to the minimum size of lots required for the construction of new single-family homes. Some in the community, most notably former supervisor Harold Russell, had argued that the minimum should remain one acre, because raising it to more than that would create a hardship for young people who wanted buy property, build a home and stay in the town. On the other side of the debate were those who argued that in order to preserve open space and the character of the town, minimum lot size should be increased to four acres.

In the end, the board adopted a compromise requirement with varying lot sizes. At the meeting, supervisor Dan Sturm explained it this way. “Minimum lot sizes in rural areas will be increased from one to two acres, in agricultural areas increased from one to three acres, and in particularly environmentally sensitive areas from one to five acres. In the sewer district, lot size requirements are reduced from just under one acre to one half acre.”

Sturm said the amendments “will provide satisfactory opportunities for residential growth to accommodate all income groups in Bethel.” Of the changes overall, he said, “We are encouraging residential growth in the right areas, and we’re protecting the character of our town into the future. We are protecting our environment and our quality of life with this zoning law that we passed here tonight.”

The Smallwood golf course

Among the zoning changes was the creation of the forest conservation district, which will require lots for new houses to be at least five acres, and the property commonly called the Old Smallwood Golf Course was rezoned with that designation.

Attorney Larry Wolinsky, on behalf of developer Robert Van Zandt, has in the past argued in front of the board that changing the zoning in this manner would in effect be stripping the land of its development rights, and there was much speculation that this might lead to a court battle.

Indeed, the board is already involved in a legal tussle with Van Zandt. In August 2008, the board revoked a permit for a curb cut at the property because the developer was deemed to have done work well beyond the limits of what the permit allowed. Van Zandt took the matter to court.

At the meeting, town attorney Robert McEwan told the board that the court had thrown out two of the five counts of the lawsuit, but that Van Zandt is appealing that decision to the Court of Appeals. In the meantime, McEwan continues to defend the town against the remaining counts.

Sturm said if Van Zandt brings another lawsuit regarding the zoning change to the property, the town would vigorously defend the zoning amendments.

Jonathan Hyman, director of Preserve Smallwood Country Life, a group that strongly opposed the construction of the townhouses, and who advocated for the change in zoning to the property because of environmental considerations, said this was not the end of the matter.

He said the group would continue to monitor any construction project on the property to ensure that the unique environmental qualities of the approximately 200-acre parcel are protected.