Marlborough PB OKs subdivision, solar farm

By Rob Sample
Posted 1/15/25

Residents of Marlboro’s Summit Drive, Overlook Bluff, and Dragotta Road got a reprieve of sorts at the Marlborough Planning Board’s first meeting of 2025 on January 6. The developer of a …

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Marlborough PB OKs subdivision, solar farm

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Residents of Marlboro’s Summit Drive, Overlook Bluff, and Dragotta Road got a reprieve of sorts at the Marlborough Planning Board’s first meeting of 2025 on January 6. The developer of a proposed 24-unit apartment complex there decided to put the plan on ice.

The proposal called for the complex to sit on seven acres adjacent to the neighborhood with access from just a single point: Summit Drive, a one-block cul-de-sac lined with single-family colonial houses. The project has met fierce opposition in the neighborhood, which consists of three dead-end streets.

“Considering feedback obtained from the Board and the public at the initial public hearing, the property owner has decided to reevaluate the project design and layout,” said Matthew Towne, project engineer for Willingham Engineering of New Paltz, in a letter to the board. “We anticipate significantly redesigning the proposed development to reflect these comments as much as practical.” Willingham is the developer’s consulting engineer on the proposed complex.

The letter further requested that the board close the public hearing, which was first convened on December 2, 2024. The developer will redesign and resubmit the proposed project, but provided no timetable for when that would happen. Upon resubmission, the Planning Board and its consultants would again thoroughly review it and reschedule a public hearing.

Board Chairman Chris Brand noted that he intended to honor the developer’s request and close the public hearing but first gave several attendees an opportunity to comment and ask questions. Drew Griffiths, who lives at 8 Summit Drive, asked if the town’s rule on the maximum number of residences accessible via a single point could be invoked.

“We don’t know what the [redesigned] proposal is even going to be at this point, so I can’t comment,” noted Brand. The developer’s plan to alter the layout may alter that access point.

“Would the developer’s revision of the project require the re-circulation of a public notice to residents?” asked Overlook Drive resident Justin Wieczorek. Gerard Comotos, the board’s attorney, noted that it would, given the indeterminate postponement of the project and any future hearing date.

Board member Cindy Lanzetta noted that although multifamily development can be permitted in a single-family neighborhood, it is nonetheless considered a “special use.”

“This allows for additional leeway and subjectivity in deciding on what’s best for the community,” she said. Of particular concern is the number of parking spaces the developer would provide. Nearby homeowners have stated concerns over traffic and parking spillovers on their streets, which might limit the number of apartment units the developer could build.

The Planning Board went on to approve, with conditions, two proposals that were the subject of previous public hearings: a three-lot housing development along Burma Road in Marlboro, plus a solar farm proposed by Highland Solar at 206 Milton Turnpike in Milton. The three-lot Burma Road development was proposed by an organization named Marlboro Property Management, whose owner is Sam Dong of Poughkeepsie.

The Burma Road subdivision earned a SEQR Notice of Non-Significance, a judgement made under New York State’s State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQRA). The notice signifies that a proposed project won’t adversely affect the environment.

The solar farm’s owner is Highland 201 Solar LLC, an affiliate of New York City-based renewable-energy company Carson Power. Pat Hines, the town’s consulting engineer, noted that the application included a Full Environmental Assessment Form (FEAF) required by SEQRA, which demonstrated it to have no significant adverse impacts on the environment. These included considerations such as stormwater runoff, wetlands, tree clearing, noise, and the visual landscape.

A three-lot subdivision proposal at the corner of Old Indian Road and Cubbard Drive was the topic of ongoing review, but was ultimately referred to the town’s Zoning Board of Appeals. The owners of the property are Nicholas Atkins and Andrew Skvarcius, who were represented at the meeting by architect Karin Reynolds of Stone Ridge.

The existing corner lot encompasses a four-bedroom house, occupied by Skvarcius, and two barns. Under the proposal one of the barns would be renovated into a combination studio and two-bedroom residence for Atkins.

The division of the parcel into two lots necessitated the ZBA review, because the buildings on the revised two lots would lack the required 75-foot setback from their respective lot lines. Reynolds noted that one lot has an existing well, and the owners expressed a willingness to drill a new one for the second lot.

However, the parcel is within the boundaries of the town’s municipal water supply. Under town rules, municipal water hookups by the two properties would be required.

The final item aired at the meeting was a brand-new application by Asa and Shulamit Nathanson, to operate a bed-and-breakfast lodging at 69 Bingham Road. The lodging space would be a first-floor bedroom of the Nathansons’ 4,000-square foot house, which sits on a 10-acre parcel and already includes sufficient parking required for two overnight guests.

In relatively short order, the application was deemed satisfactory and the Planning Board set a February 3 date for a public hearing on it. “I just want to say it is probably the best application we have received for a B&B,” said Lanzetta. “We appreciate that very much.”