Lawsuit challenging Tuxedo Reserve dismissed

TUXEDO — Town of Tuxedo officials expressed gratitude this week for a New York State Supreme Court ruling saying it acted properly when issuing special permits for the Tuxedo Reserve project.

On March 5, the court dismissed a lawsuit by the Tuxedo Land Trust (TLT), challenging Tuxedo Reserve, the planned community of almost 1,200 residential units and over 30,000 square feet of commercial development in Tuxedo.

TLT sued the Town of Tuxedo Town Board, its planning board, building inspector and the developer Tuxedo Reserve Owner LLC.

Since 2004, the proposed Tuxedo Reserve housing development project has been filled with conflict, with supporters saying the high end housing development provides new tax revenues, a sewage treatment plant, a new highway garage, a new town hall and a new source of students for the Tuxedo School District, which is currently awaiting a decision from the Greenwood Lake School District as to where it wants to send its approximately 300 high school students for the 2012-2013 school year.

But those who oppose the development are highly vocal in their dissention, noting environmental studies focusing on wetlands, wildlife and plant life are inaccurate, the alleged tax benefits are based on hard to believe assumptions, and student projections are not correct.

Environmental challenge The process begin in 2004, according to Town of Tuxedo Supervisor Peter Dolan, the town issued a special permit and preliminary plan approval in the “Southern Tract” of the project, allowing Tuxedo Reserve to commence work.

Since that time, several amendments to the special permit were issued, most recently in 2010.

“Those amended approvals were challenged by a few local residents and two local environmental organizations, wrote Steven Barshov, who represented the developer, Tuxedo Reserve Owner LLC, in court proceedings, in his firm’s blog, SPR Environmental Log Blog. “They claimed … that the amended approvals were issued in violation of the State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQRA). The March 5 decision dismissed the 12-count lawsuit in its entirety for lack of standing and failure to state a claim upon which relief could be granted.”

The court ruling said the petitioners had no standing to sue.

“The decision held that the rebuttable presumption of harm arising from alleged proximity to a project site’s boundaries was offset by the presence of a significant conservation buffer that the developer plans to create along the perimeter of the project site,” wrote Barshov.

Additionally, he wrote, the court said “that because that conservation buffer is designed to insulate the petitioners from the potential adverse impacts of the project, it rebuts the presumption that the plaintiffs’ proximity to the project forces them to suffer an injury different from that which would be endured by any other member of the general public.”

The court also dismissed all of the non-SEQRA claims, saying the Tuxedo Town Board didn’t violated the Open Meetings Law, didn’t act unethically, and did not engage “in contract or spot zoning.”

Thirty days to appeal Village of Tuxedo Park Thomas Wilson - one of the petitioners in the case who is also a TLT managing partner - did not return several Photo News calls or an e-mail to the village office by press time for comment.

However, a posting on the Tuxedo Land Trust Website’s home page said “Battle continues! TLT reviewing court decision - will appeal.”

Dolan noted TLT has 30 days to file an appeal and six months to file paperwork.

“It’s pleasing to know that the town board, the planning board and the building inspector did everything correctly,” said Dolan. “This has nothing to do with whether we’re happy with the Tuxedo Reserve project or not. The court said we did nothing improper.”

He noted the town has spent “$100,000 of taxpayer money” defending the case and assuming TLT appeals, will be spending more.

“In general, the town is in need of this project,” he added. “We’ll get a new sewer treatment plan from it, $2 million in seed money, a new highway garage, a new town hall and the roads will be private so we don’t have to maintain them. We know this development to be tax positive. And hopefully the school kids that come from this development will alleviate the problem with the Tuxedo School Distinct as the Greenwood Lake School District looks at what it’s going to be doing.”

- Nancy Kriz