Ramapo, NY – The Village of Pomona and three residents have urged a state court to annul the town’s zoning change that would allow construction of the nearly 500-home Patrick Farm development.
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The three legal actions argue Ramapo Town Board members geared their decision to match the landowner’s desire to build high-density, multifamily housing on 208 acres of woods off routes 202 and 306 outside Pomona.
In doing so, they contend in legal papers, board members overruled the town’s comprehensive zoning plan of one house per acre to allow, in some areas of the property, eight multifamily houses per acre.
In changing the zoning, the legal papers say, Ramapo also violated municipal and environmental regulations and public trust land-use laws, as well as ignored delving deeply into the environmental impact on drinking water, traffic, population growth and the rural character of the land.
“We’ve all filed similar arguments that what they did was improperly change the comprehensive plan for the sole purpose of overdevelopment of the property,” attorney Susan Shapiro said.
She filed what’s called an Article 78 on behalf of her parents, Milton and Sonya Shapiro, who live next to the proposed development.
Attorney Bruce Levine filed one on behalf of another neighbor, Elizabeth Youngewirth. The Village of Pomona filed its own Article 78. “The lawsuits are meant to bring the whole thing back to square one,” Levine said.
“The town treated this like a site plan and everything was geared toward what the developer wanted, not what the laws called for.”
Ramapo Town Attorney Michael Klein insisted Wednesday that the town followed all the correct procedures and laws. Supervisor Christopher St. Lawrence, who pushed for the zoning change, didn’t return telephone messages.
“The review of the application for the zone change and the amendment to the comprehensive plan was subject to almost two years of review by the town,” Klein said.
“There was an exhaustive environmental review and public and written comments were carefully considered,” Klein said.
Bill Madden, a spokesman for the Monsey-based Scenic Development LLC, said the company had no comment until it could review the legal papers.
Scenic, principally owned by Yechiel Lebovits and his sons, bought the property for $7.5 million in June 2001. Clarkstown sold the land for the highest price after failing to get a golf course approved on the property by Ramapo, which bid for the land.
Before the sale, Ramapo’s 2004 comprehensive plan allowed one house per acre on Patrick Farm. The Rockland Planning Department recommended one house per 2 acres and raised numerous questions about the Scenic proposal’s impact on the community.
The Town Board in January changed the zoning to allow eight multifamily homes per acre on portions of the property. The developer wants to build 410 multifamily units, along with 87 single-family homes, including 24 affordable rental apartments for volunteers.
Madden has said the Lebovitses have addressed environmental concerns. He said about 40 acres of wetlands and natural buffers would be preserved in a design placing single-family houses along much of the perimeter, while reserving the interior for multifamily housing.
Pomona Mayor Nick Sanderson said the town essentially ignored the concerns of the village and county planners. Pomona’s legal action argues Ramapo changed the town’s comprehensive plan to allow higher-density housing without conducting a separate environmental study, he said.
“The downzoning, in our opinion, didn’t follow the right procedures,” Sanderson said.
This is one of the few remaining natural and bucolic tracts in Ramapo…why in the world would anyone, including yiddin, want to destroy this scenic area by stuffing in more high density housing ??
It will ImY”H be one of the nicest places to live in the monsey area. Every day there are many weddings and there needs to be developments as these to look out for the future. It takes many years to get these devolpments approved and we should be happy that there are smart developers as Mr Lebovits who I may add is a tremendous mentsch to realize the future needs of our community. Yes there will be many comments that he is in it for the money and these are the same people that shabbis by kiddush can’t go home happy until they hear some other yiddish neshoma went bankrupt.
All I can say is I wish him Hatzlocha and with Hashems help he should live long years to see this development flourish!!
thats good news.
at least there will remain a few trees in ramapo.
heimishe yidden should please start moving to new areas [as sullivan county etc] and not overcrowd rockland county for one big gettoh.
we should all support “preserve ramapo”.
It would be a disaster for the zoning to be reversed because then St. Lawrence would pocket all of his under the table gelt for nothing.
Most real estate developments don’t tear down every tree and build out to the property lines and crowd people in like tenements. Drive through Monsey. Look at the corner of Maple and 306. A disgusting mess! No one except the developer and the blind sheeps who move in want this. Everyone else is very sad and angry about what has happened to Monsey.
“Clarkstown sold the land for the highest price after failing to get a golf course approved on the property by Ramapo, which bid for the land.”
So we could have had a beautiful Golf Course but instead we are going to have more multifamilies. Disgusting
There is nothing wrong with downzoning to say, 1/2 acre parcels….the developer will make more money, and the homes will still be beautiful with room for a swimming pool and nice backyard…..but then the Greed sets in – 1/2 acre lots are not enough. It needs to be a monstrosity.
the truth is everyone is forgetting that we yidden have no choice but to live where other yidden are! Its easy to say go move to sulivan or other places but don’t you think there has to be yeshivas and shuls not to mention all the kosher supermarkets! There is a reason we pay a lot of money for our houses and have no choice of getting a huge house with a pool for 75,000 in mid USA! So yes you monsey good yidden that are upset that there will be developments and ruin there relaxed atmosphere we are very sorry, but that’s part of yiddishkeit.
the people who lived there moved there because of low develops rights. They have a right to oppose it. This has nothing to do with Jews. These fight happen all the time and could take years to be settled
As I said before, us long term Monseyites have been silent for the past 10 years and allowed this situation to unfold. Our esteemed Supervisor is not a friend to the us frum yidden, he is a friend of the developers who reap hugh profits and still offer unaffordable housing to our young. Just look at the prices of the units on Route 306 in Kaser, artificially elevated because the developers know the rav dictates that the flock live within a certain distance of the shul. The Patrick Farm development is absurd. It is located so far from shopping and and yeshiot that it will only generate more traffic and further congestion. Just look at Monsey, the change in the last ten years is frightening and the lives of many of us as been altered permanently. This man needs to go away, whether by choice or indictment. Please make your voice heard at Town Hall- enough already! Sad.
The bottom line is – we all hope monsey should not get any more overcrowded. Let the people start moving to new areas.
The bottom line is – we all hope monsey should not get any more overcrowded. Let the people start moving to new areas.