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Town Board Closes Hearing On Somers Crossing Environmental Statement

SOMERS, N.Y. -- The review process for Somers Crossing is moving to the next step, as the Town Board voted on April 9 to close the public hearing for the project's Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) following comments from several individuals, meeting video shows.

A photo of the developer's proposed site plan for Somers Crossing.

A photo of the developer's proposed site plan for Somers Crossing.

Photo Credit: Tom Auchterlonie

As part of the vote, the board kept a period to accept written public comments open for 10 additional days.

The applicant, Boniello Land & Realty, will be required to respond to public comments in a Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS). 

Gus Boniello Jr., said at the April 9 meeting that he anticipates comment responses for the FEIS to take two to three months. Speaking on behalf of his company, he added that they would like to be in touch with the Planning Board and appear at its next meeting in May. 

Somers Crossing is proposed for an 26.68-acre parcel that is L-shaped and has frontage along Routes 202 and 100. It calls for 80 townhouses on the section near Route 100 and a 19,000-square-foot grocery store for the portion by Route 202. 

It was revealed at a meeting last month that DeCicco & Sons family market is a prospective tenant.

The project's site, which is currently a mix of two residential zones, would be rezoned under the proposal. The new mixed-use zone would be called the Multifamily Residence – Downtown Hamlet District (MFR-DH).

The board also voted, at the same meeting, to adjourn a public hearing for the project's rezoning legislation, although no date was given for when it will resume.

At the April 9 meeting, a representative from Riverkeeper argued that the project's applicant has not satisfied an environmental-review requirement to study all reasonable alternatives for the project that do not involve using the site's wetland buffer. He also called on the board to require the applicant to do so.

Richard O'Rourke, the developer's attorney, noted at the meeting that his client will addressed the questions raised during public comment.

At the meeting, Somers Supervisor Rick Morrissey addressed public comments submitted on the project from the state's Department of Environmental Conservation and New York City's Department of Environmental Protection. He described the agencies' comments as “about density issues.”

Morrissey then reiterated his concern about the density of the housing component. He also called for the townhouses to be taxed as single-family homes instead of as condominiums. Condominiums are assessed with potential rental income as a factor, which can result in lower tax bills than for their single-family counterparts.

Previous Daily Voice coverage of the Somers Crossing proposal is available here.

 

 

 

 

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