The Town of Newburgh Planning Board met this Thursday, April 15, to review applications for a timber harvest, solar farm and three separate subdivisions.

Christopher Prentis of Lower Hudson Forestry Services brought an application to the Planning Board for the proposed Gerentine timber harvest. The project will span seven tax parcels with an access point on Old Post Road.

The project aims to selectively harvest 154 mature hardwood trees at a rate of approximately 9 trees per acre over 18 acres of Gerentine’s total 24.61 acres of land. Aside from the selected trees, the land is not being cleared and - at this time - nothing is being built on the property. The project will follow the town’s hours of operation and would optimally take 2-4 weeks to complete.

Prentis said there are no New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) classified streams or wetlands on the property, although there are DEC harvesting restrictions due to the property’s population of Indiana bats. In order to preserve the bat population, harvesting can only occur on the property between October 1 and March 31.

Several Newburgh residents in attendance at the public hearing expressed concern over the accuracy of property line markers and the project’s possible infringement on their land. “I had asked for a property line markout. I don’t want my trees taken down or damage to my property,” said a Newburgh resident whose 10.4 acres overlap the Gerentine timber harvest.

In response to these concerns, Prentis said that he would flag the property lines every 15-20 feet to increase the clarity of the land boundary, adding that surveyor stakes and stone walls outline much of the surrounding land.

The trees set to be harvested have been marked and some come within 20 feet of the flagged property line.

“The folks who’ve participated, I think they’re brought up some really valid concerns as the home owners there. I heard one woman mention buffers, and I’ve heard a couple people with concerns about their property line and their own trees,” said Newburgh resident Donette Smith. “Given the concerns that these folks have, is there a reason why you wouldn’t do a new survey just so that everyone can feel assured that their property is intact and it’s not encroaching on them?”

In response to this, Prentis stated that an updated survey could cost upwards of $10,000 and would negate profits from the project. According to Ewasutyn, there is no legal requirement for a recertification of the existing survey.

Since harvesting cannot begin until October 1, property owners with adjacent land were encouraged to review their property lines and assess whether any marked trees may be encroaching on their land.

The Board granted approval for the Gerentine harvest with conditions including a requirement for an inspection fee and that soil erosion control is in compliance with the DEC.

The continuation of a public hearing for the Darrigo solar farm was also brought to the Board on Thursday night.

Michael Morgante of Arden Consulting presented the application for the solar project, which will be located on 86 Lakeside Road.

The project has previously gone through extensive overview from the Planning Board and received public comments and concerns, particularly in regard to drainage and flooding. According to Morgante, the majority of those concerns have been addressed.

To mitigate flooding, the solar farm plans to use the existing drainage on the land and to additionally install a culvert pipe across Patton Road. Morgante also intends to add a French drain to the center portion of the site. The drain will travel south, connecting into existing catch basins along the access road and eventually empty into the DEC wetlands on the property. “The [surrounding] houses are in a low land area - I think they have an existing condition out there - and we want to make sure that we don’t exacerbate that problem,” said Morgante.

Still, concerns about the project’s potential to exacerbate flooding were brought up by Robert Peel, whose property borders the solar project. During the meeting, Peel presented a letter written 50 years ago in regard to ongoing flooding on his family’s property. He gave a copy of the letter to each member of the Board. “The statement in this letter, which is from a lawyer, is that our property is fully engulfed with water,” said Peel. He continued to question how the proposed drainage system would be maintained following completion of the solar farm.

“By placing [the drain] on the proposed site plan, it becomes enforceable,” Morgante responded, adding that The Code Enforcement Office and the Highway Superintendent would receive any potential complaints about flooding and pass the issue along to Morgante to resolve.

Public concerns were also raised about a potential foliage buffer between the solar farm and the surrounding residential areas. Morgante agreed to plant Evergreen trees to obscure the view of the solar farm.

The Board granted conditional final approval to Darrigo solar farm provided that the general plans are submitted with signatures, fees are paid, clearing and grading performance security is in place, and landscaping plans remain consistent with the discussion on Thursday night.

Other items presented at the meeting were three separate subdivisions, including the Lands of Zazon 11-lot subdivision. The project proposes the construction of ten new buildings covering 13.56 acres on the northside of Fostertown Road. The board granted final conditional approval for the 11-lot subdivision with conditions including approval from the Orange County Department of Public Works for the construction of an access road and a submission of a Declaration of Restrictions to preserve and maintain the rain gardens on the individual lots.