By Mark Reynolds
The Views at Highland development project was again before the Lloyd Planning Board on December 5 for further review and a public hearing.
The project is proposed on a 3.6 acre parcel in the Highway Business District [HBD] located at 3715-3725 Route 9W that borders Mayer Drive and is just east of the Sunoco Gas Station on Rte. 9W. There will be 117 parking slots on-site that will be west of the two buildings.
The project consists of two, three story mixed use commercial/residential buildings. The first floor in each building is slated for retail or office space for multiple tenants, at a combined total of 20,560 sq/ft and two upper floors, each containing 22 units for a total of 44 one and two bedroom apartments.
Project attorney Taylor Palmer, of Cuddy & Feder, was accompanied by the engineer and architect. Palmer started with traffic issues that the public has been complaining about for months. He said their own traffic study, “confirms that we will not have any potentially significant environmental impacts on traffic.”
Andrew Villari, of Stonefield Engineering and Design, said there was a meeting on September 26, 2019 that included county and state agencies as well as officials of the Town of Lloyd and the Ulster County Planning Board to discuss traffic issues in and around the intersections of Rte. 9W, South Chapel Hill Road and Mayer Drive. He acknowledged that neither the county or the state have any plans to widen the roadways in this area but echoed Palmer’s assertion that traffic generated by The Views will be “insignificant” and “minor” in comparison to the numerous surrounding proposed development projects.
Villari said to prevent traffic from traveling through the Hudson Hills development in order to reach the retail shops, they are proposing to change South Chapel Hill Rd, from a one way southbound road into a two way, north and south roadway. He said drivers coming south on Rte 9W who take South Chapel Hill Road will meet some type of barrier in the road that will force them to turn right onto Mayer Drive. Likewise cars traveling north on South Chapel Hill Road will have to make a left onto Mayer Drive. He said this suggestion, which includes traffic calming measures, has been presented to the Lloyd Planning Board and their consultants and to the county and the state.
Villari said, “the feeling that came out of that meeting [Sept. 26] was it’s possible, let’s do some design drawings and that’s what we’ve done.”
Vallari also stated that their proposal for two, 3 story buildings is permitted in the zone.
“It’s not an over-sized development and it is compliant with the zoning that the property lies in,” he said.
During the Public Hearing George Kerr said if the project builds into a cliff face they will hit rock with seams that run east to west. When blasting travels through the seems, “it increases 100% for every 10 feet. It’s going to crack foundations and who is going to pay us as homeowners when our foundations, our basements and our walls are cracked by the blasts?”
Neighbor Patricia Chapman said this project will bring additional noise, light, “and an infringement into the neighborhood that we bought into for privacy and for safety.”
Chapman said the developer is trying to make traffic in this area work.
“Because of what I’ve heard on projects that have already been approved, it’s going to be a horrible situation and that they’re only going to make it a little bit more horrible, which is not a compelling argument for me for how it’s going to work,” she said.
Shelia Parilli, who has lived on Mayer Drive for 47 years, is quite near to the proposed project.
“In fairy-tale land the traffic and parking sounds perfect, it’s not perfect. You will have stores there that are not closing at 5 p.m. when people are coming home. I’m concerned that the overflow is going to wind up on Mayer Drive, without a doubt,” she said. “We don’t want this and that is really going to cause havoc. I know a lot of my neighbors are going to be constantly calling the police because people are going to be parking on our street.”
John Hines said turning South Chapel Hill Rd into a two-way road will be dangerous for everybody.
“You’re affecting a lot of people’s quality of life. My concern is head-on collisions,” he said.
Hines said there are many families with children living in this area, “and on Mayer Drive there are going to be accidents; it’s going to be a nightmare; it already is. As your traffic guy said there is no plan [by DOT] to fix it and as insignificant as you might say traffic is, when you live there it’s not insignificant to us.” He also said that light coming off of this project will shine directly into his backyard.
Salk Drive resident Terrance Wilson pointed out that Planning Boards are charged with keeping town residents safe.
“This is not a plan right here; this is jam it in there into this small spot...but it just doesn’t fit into the plan in my mind of the town,” he said. “To jam it into a spot and then modify that road to a two-lane road is a ridiculous proposal. There is going to be a head-on collision at South Chapel and Mayer and someone is going to die on that road.”
Resident Ken Smith said the developers of this project are trying to fit 12 pounds of potatoes into a 5 pound bag. He said the Planning Board has been told that traffic, “is going to get worse no matter what, therefore I urge the town to rezone it...it should not be zoned for residential multi-family units.” He said although The Views is a beautiful project, it is being proposed in the wrong location.
Laura Swinborn lives in the Highland Hills development. She said her development has about 150 homes and The Views is seeking 44 apartment units and next door, the Village in the Hudson Valley is proposing 200+ units. She said she favors development but urged the board to, “really think about where we’re concentrating this development because right now I feel like a hostage in my housing development...For me to get to my job in Kingston I have to plan an hour and a half.”
Marc Fanelli has lived in Hudson Hills for nearly 20 years. He asked the board if the water tower in his development can handle an additional 44 apartments and the retail stores.
Donald Hoffay is a 33 year resident of Mayer Drive and lives just four houses up from the proposed development. He said if South Chapel Hill Road is permitted to be two way, you may have a scenario where a car flies off of the road and into the gas station or into the gas pumps.
“You can make lines and you can do all that stuff to slow traffic down [but] nobody obeys that law anyway. They go right through stop signs and go flying down the street and there is going to be an accident there,” he said. “If you do this I just want it on the record that I’ll be the first one to say we told you so. It’s crazy.”
Karen Feo lives on Salk Drive.
“Now they’re going to put a rental property in my back yard and bring down our value [with] the lighting, the parking, the pollution and the traffic,” she said. “You cannot get out to Chapel, you can’t get out on Rte. 9W and traffic is backed up. Traffic now is a nightmare, I can’t imagine what it’s going to be like once all these projects get approved.”
The Planning Board extended the Public Hearing until January 23 at 7 p.m. and in addition written comments may be submitted to Dave Barton, Building Department Director c/o Highland Town Hall, 12 Church St., Highland, NY 12528.