Town residents oppose auto recovery lot

By Laura Fitzgerald
Posted 3/20/19

Town of Montgomery residents expressed opposition against a proposed auto recovery facility near Browns Road at the public scoping meeting for BHT-Montgomery.

The 118-acre project will contain …

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Town residents oppose auto recovery lot

Posted

Town of Montgomery residents expressed opposition against a proposed auto recovery facility near Browns Road at the public scoping meeting for BHT-Montgomery.

The 118-acre project will contain about 4,115 parking spaces for storage of used inoperable insurance salvage/resale vehicles, according to the draft scoping document for the Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS). It also includes a 9,900 square foot motor vehicle sales building and a 70,000-sqaure-foot drop off and pick up area. Cars will be sold through an online auction.

It is located between Stone Castle Road and Browns Road, with 17K bordering the southern portion.

The project also includes stormwater management controls, fencing that will fully enclose the vehicle storage area, an access from NYS Route 17K and an emergency access through Lotocke Drive to Browns Road.

The planning board issued a positive declaration for the project, finding it may have potentially significant adverse environmental impacts. The action requires the assembly of a DEIS, which will address potential environmental impacts and mitigation measures.

Several residents questioned the right of the facility to operate in the I3 zone, which prohibits junkyards. Town of Montgomery Building Inspector Walter Schmidt ruled the property to be an auto recovery facility because it fit the dictionary definition, despite the town code not containing a definition for that use, and granted the special exception use permit.

John Brown, member of the Historic Brown Family Farm, which adjoins the BHT property, said the property is actually a junkyard, and cited the New York State General Municipal Law 136

“ ‘Junk yard’ shall mean any place of storage or deposit, whether in connection with another business or not, where two or more unregistered, old, or secondhand motor vehicles, no longer intended or in condition for legal use on the public highways, are held,” the law states.

Brown also cited Montgomery’s town code, which defines the term “junkyard.”

“Any land or structure or part thereof exceeding 300 square feet in area used for collecting, storage or sale of wastepaper, rags, scrap metal or other scrap or discarded material; or for the collecting, dismantling, storage or salvage of machinery or vehicles not in running condition, or for sale of the parts thereof,” the town’s zoning code states as the definition.

Brown also directed attention to a similar application submitted to the Town of Thompson by BHT in October 2018, in which the project is labeled a salvage yard for the storage of about 6,700 salvage vehicles. The applicant describes the project as an “outdoor sales lot” on the Town of Montgomery Environmental Assessment Form (EAF).

Brown submitted an appeal to the town zoning board of appeals challenging the building inspector’s final use determination and requested the scoping session be delayed until after the appeal goes through the board. Almost two dozen residents attended the zoning board meeting, hoping to have the building inspector’s decision overturned and the application ultimately denied.

Ross Winglovitz, Managing Principal with Engineering and Surveying Properties, P.C, said the property is not a salvage or junkyard because there will be no dismantling of vehicles on site.

Brown also pointed to an inconsistency on the project’s EAF, submitted in September 2018. The existing conditions do not list any acreage as agriculture use, however one parcel in the two-parcel property had an agricultural exemption in 2018. To be granted an agricultural exemption, seven acres of land must be farmed, and the owner must have made at least $10,000 from agricultural production, according to town assessor Dennis Ketcham.

Multiple residents spoke in opposition to the project at the scoping session, expressing concerns over storm water, visual, noise, air, traffic and property value impacts.

Kristen Brown, another member of the Brown farm, said the potential for water pollution from vehicle fluid leakage is huge because of the site’s proximity to the Tin Brook and the permeable gravel surface the cars will sit on.

The site lies in a floodplain district and contains about 53 acres of wetlands, less than .1 of which will be disturbed. The EAF also states unmapped potential wetland buffers will be encroached upon and developed in some locations. It includes 27 acres of impervious surfaces.

Stormwater runoff will be directed to on-site storm water management facilities, then to on-site wetlands, according to the EAF.

Winglovitz said oil and gas is removed from cars if there is damage to vehicles’ operating system.

Kristen Brown said storm water run-off and potential pollution to groundwater and the Tin Brook will directly affect their farm, which is downriver of the project, since their animals drink from that stream.

“The potential for degraded groundwater is huge,” Brown said. “That could be a severe economic impact to our farm and possibly put us out of business in the meat industry.”

All of the environmental concerns will be addressed in the DEIS, including mitigation measures, Winglovitz said. A Stormwater Prevention Pollution Plan (SWPP) will be drafted that will outline requirements to mitigate potential storm water impacts before and after construction.

Kristen Brown said the project will be an eyesore. This will erode trust in their customers, who come directly to the farm to purchase their products and treasure the peaceful pastoral scene.

“Would you come to buy meat from me if I’m directly adjacent to a junkyard?” Brown said. “How do you know what is going to be in the meat of our animals?”

She is concerned about noise from backup beepers on payloaders, which are used to move the cars.

The business will only operate during regular business hours of 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Saturday, which is no different from any other commercial business that could inhabit that property, Winglovitz said.

Dust from the gravel could create air pollution and cause respiratory issues in their family and their animals, Kristen Brown said.

Although the emergency access road is supposed to be for emergency services, Browns Road resident and real estate agent Lynnette Wright was concerned the drive could be utilized by vehicles transporting cars, which cuts through a residential road. The road has pedestrian and bicycle traffic which would be affected by large vehicles passing through.

Wright said the combination of visual, noise, traffic and quality of life impacts would classify the project as a nuisance neighbor, which can cause a substantial decrease in property values. It also might take longer for Browns Road homes to sell.

“You have just thrown the desirability [of your home] out the window,” Wright said.

Other residents echoed the same concerns, worried about how their overall quality of life would be affected.

“We really don’t want this,” Browns Road resident Jose Hernandez said.

The town planning board is accepting written comments until 12 p.m. on March 22. Comments may be emailed to Suzanne Hadden at shadden@townofmontgomery.com, delivered in person or mailed to town of Montgomery planning board, town hall—110 Bracken Road, Montgomery, NY, 12549.