| Welcome to the Cooperstown Crier |
|
||||||||||||
|
|
|
1-17-2008 By MICHELLE MILLER Staff Writer However, after a long, heated discussion between board members and the public, the board agreed to form a committee in order to continue working out glitches in the proposed moratorium. Town Supervisor Tom Armstrong said the board would leave it in the hands of the committee, which will be made up of two town board members and two planning board members, to come up with something new for the board to hear in a few months. "As it (the proposed moratorium) stands, it looks like a blank check and I cannot vote for it," said Councilman Richard Rathbun, who said he had difficulty understanding some of the language in the proposed moratorium. For example, the proposed moratorium said the town would not approve any "unprecedented" projects. Rathbun said he believed the word unprecedented could be interpreted to mean just about anything and needs clarification. Armstrong agreed that the use of the word unprecedented in the moratorium would not work. According to Armstrong, the purpose of the moratorium is to stop the development of a recent proposal of a baseball camp in the town of Springfield. However, Armstrong said the moratorium would not serve that goal if the word "unprecedented" were not better defined, because a proposal for a baseball program has already been brought to the board in the past. Councilman Dan Rosen said he believes the creation of a moratorium is nothing more than a tool that will help protect the town from major development until the board can find out what the townspeople's vision for the town is. Rosen said he would like to see what people want through the comprehensive plan surveys that were sent out to Springfield residents. He said if that means waiting a year, then that is what should be done. Rosen said the moratorium was not designed to stop a baseball camp, a motorcycle track or anything else. Mary Clarke, planning board chairwoman, agreed, and said the planning board started drawing up the moratorium two months before they had a hint there might be a baseball camp built in town. She said the intention of creating a moratorium was to be able to have breathing room while a comprehensive plan is being completed. Gary Sikkema read a letter on the behalf of the Greater Springfield Merchant Association in regard to the proposed moratorium. One concern mentioned was the vagueness of the proposal. "The way it is written now, it will open the town up to several lawsuits," said the letter. The letter went on to say the merchants feel it is discriminating and vague to turn down any unprecedented project without a minimum dollar amount, because that would mean any extraordinary project would not be considered. The letter also addressed concerns about the interpretation of the proposed moratorium. The letter said, "Some of the board members seem to have personal agendas and any proposal brought before the board must have a fair hearing of the law. When you turn over your authority to the planning board, you do not know how this or future boards will interpret your intent." Unless the board intends to go ahead with zoning, the letter said, a moratorium is not needed because the town already has tools needed to take care of any project, small or large, that would come before the board. Councilman Rathbun agreed. He said that there are already regulations such as the watershed regulations, agriculture district regulations, DEC regulations, the town subdivision regulations, the town site plan regulations and health department regulations. Property value was another concern at the board meeting. Susan Weikel said she believes having a moratorium is a good idea. Weikel said development needs to be regulated and well thought out, and feels it is foolish to rush into things. Weikel said many people in Springfield use well water, and wanted to know what the town would do if it experienced a major drought, such as in the South, or if sewage contaminating ground water got into people's wells. "Those are the things you really need to think about because it can basically render your property worthless," said Weikel. Weikel said she is not against development, but believes it has to be done thoughtfully and carefully. "You need to think about everybody, not just an individual or a particular group of people," she said. Bob Boyle told board members to go down state if they wanted to see what the future entails. "You don't want it," said Boyle. "It's crazy not to have a comprehensive plan or a moratorium." Boyle said he believes property values will go down if the board leaves the town "wide open to slaughter" by outsiders. He said nobody can know what is going to happen if the town is left to the mercy of outsiders. Frank Halay, who said he came to Springfield from downstate, agreed with Boyle. "I understand what he is talking about," said Halay. "It's a mess and I see the mess coming." Halay said the board members have a simple job to do, which is to ask what the people of the town want. |
Copyright 2007, Cooperstown Crier, Cooperstown, NY All rights reserved