The Awosting Reserve project is in "limbo," according to Gardiner town supervisor Jack Hayes, with no dates set for resumption of the review process for the controversial 349-unit gated community on 2,600 acres on the Shawangunk Ridge.
Whether the proposed subdivision can utilize a sewage treatment plant is still unresolved and is proving to be a knotty issue.
"I would say it is in limbo," said Hayes, when asked for an update on the project.
"The town's attorney and applicant's attorney have been going back and forth discussing the interpretations and what the requirements are for septic," said Hayes. "I believe that impacts the size of what the conventional plan could be."
"One of the key components of the plan is a sewage treatment plant," said Roger Beck, president of Awosting Reserve. "We understand that it makes sense for us and makes sense for the town to resolve issues regarding the sewage treatment plant before we press ahead with review of the plan. The ball is in our court to reopen discussions with the Town of Gardiner. We will be doing that in the near future, though I don't have a date for you."
Citizens groups opposed to the project, including the Shawangunk Valley Conservancy, hired engineer David Clouser of Clouser and Associates, to review plans by Awosting Reserve -- particularly in regards to whether the project complies with Town of Gardiner zoning laws. In a detailed memo to the town planning board dated March 17, Clouser asserted that Gardiner law prohibits use of a sewage treatment plant anywhere in the town beyond the central hamlet.
Town officials have largely refused to comment on the matter. Town planning board chairman Mike Boylan did not return a phone call seeking comment on the matter.
But Beck indicated that despite Clouser's interpretation of town law, the project still seeks to use a sewage treatment plant as part of its development of the ridge. "We believe we have the responsibility to include the sewage treatment plant in our plan," said Beck.
If and when the sewage treatment issue is settled, the project still faces a long approval process. It is still uncertain whether the town planning board will approve a project of the proposed magnitude on the fragile lands of the Shawangunk Ridge, with steep slopes and thin soils overlaying bedrock. The developer has yet to answer questions regarding where the project will receive water, how it will protect against fire and potential mud slides and what effect blasting the bedrock to build roads and sewage treatment systems would have on the ridge. Awosting Reserve officials have said such questions will be answered in detail during the state-mandated State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQRA) process.
The state Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) has declared itself lead agency under SEQRA, which means the DEC will coordinate the review process. The project abuts the popular Lake Minnewaska State Park and the Sam's Point nature preserve.
Other concerns have been raised about whether roads and driveways can be built to abide by town specifications. Beck said that matter has been partly resolved. "We have a new road alignment for roads within the conventional plan that meets town standard," he said.
Beck added that in the so-called cluster development plan which Awosting Reserve will ultimately submit, the developers will request a variance. "But we are not at a stage where have discussed that in any detail," he said.
A recommendation by the town planning board to the town board last month to declare the Awosting Reserve project as a cluster-type subdivision is still "tabled," according to Hayes. He said he does not know when it will be considered.
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