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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2024-5-3 975 Anderson Hill Road Keane & Bean, P.C. Memorandum to Planning Board Regarding Initial Project and SEQRA Review ◼ Westchester 445 Hamilton Avenue Suite 1500 White Plains, NY 10601 Phone 914.946.4777 ◼ Mid-Hudson 200 Westage Business Center Suite 120 Fishkill, NY 12524 Phone 845.896.0120 ◼ Long Island 534 Broadhollow Road Suite 130 Melville, NY 11747 Phone 631.776.5910 ◼ New York City 60 East 42nd Street Suite 810 New York, NY 10165 Phone 646.794.5747 MEMORANDUM TO: Chairperson Rob Goodman and Village of Rye Brook Planning Board FROM: Keane & Beane, P.C. RE: 975 Anderson Hill Road DATE: May 3, 2024 On April 24, 2024, the Village Board of Trustees (“Village Board”) referred to the Planning Board an application by Cohen Purchase Building Company LLC (the “Applicant”), owner of property located at 975 Anderson Hill Road (Parcel ID 129.26-1-46, 129.34-1-42, 43, 44, 45) (the “Property”) consisting of a Petition for text amendments to the Village Zoning Code concerning the standards applicable to Planned Unit Developments (“PUD”) along with a PUD Concept Plan and PUD Site Plan. The Property consists of approximately 85 acres and is located in the following Zoning Districts: PUD, Scenic Road Overlay, Airport Z-1 (Instrument Approach Zone) and Airport Z-4 (Outer Turning Zone). The requested approvals would allow for redevelopment of the former Doral Arrowwood property to include (i) a new lodge that contains a hotel and conference center (approximately 220 hotel rooms), 40 residential units, ballrooms, restaurants, and recreational and other facilities, (ii) a separate multifamily residential building, including affordable units, and (iii) a wellness center/medical office building that would also contain workforce units, together with related amenities, landscaping, parking and other site improvements (the “Project”). All relevant documents are available on the Village website under the “Development Projects” icon. At the Planning Board’s May 9, 2024 meeting, the Board should engage in the following two tasks: 1. Review the Village Board’s Notice of Intent to Declare Lead Agency and indicate your consent or objection to the Village Board serving in that role. 2. Review the Draft Scoping Outline and provide any comments to the Village Board Notice of Intent to Declare Lead Agency Pursuant to the State Environmental Quality Review Act (“SEQRA”), the Village Board has declared its intent to serve as Lead Agency for the environmental review of this Type I action. The Planning Board is an Involved Agency because the Project includes requests for approvals of a Steep Slopes Permit and Wetland Permit, both of which are within the jurisdiction of the Planning Board. The Planning Board is in receipt of the Board of Trustees’ Notice of Intent to declare itself Lead Agency, along with a response form to indicate your consent or objection to the Village Board serving in this capacity. Draft Scoping Outline With its initial submission to the Village, the Applicant included a Draft Scoping Outline. This obviates the need for a determination from the Village as to whether the Project may result in one or more significant adverse environmental impacts (i.e. Positive Declaration or Negative Declaration). The Applicant has voluntarily agreed to prepare a Draft Environmental Impact Statement (“DEIS”). The Draft DEIS Scoping Outline essentially serves as a table of contents for the substance of what is to be reviewed and studied in the DEIS. The scoping process is intended to narrow the issues to be studied so that insignificant or irrelevant environmental impacts are not included in the DEIS. After the DEIS is prepared by the Applicant and submitted to the Village for review, the Village will check the DEIS against the approved Scoping Outline to ensure the DEIS is complete. A public hearing will be held on the DEIS and then the Applicant will prepare a Final Environmental Impact Statement which responds in writing to all the substantive comments on the DEIS. Once the FEIS is accepted, the Lead Agency will prepare a Findings Statement which will conclude the environmental review of the Project. Generally, the Scoping Outline should identify the relevant significant adverse environmental impacts to be studied, describe the extent and quality of the information required, identify specific study methods or models (as applicable), define reasonable alternatives to be studied, and specify possible mitigation measures to be discussed in the DEIS to the extent such measure can be identified at this stage. To solicit public input, the Village Board has scheduled a public hearing on the Draft DEIS Scoping Outline for May 28, 2024. A copy of the Draft DEIS Scoping Outline and hearing notice has been circulated by the Village Board to all known Involved and Interested Agencies. It is expected that the Village Board will receive comments on the Draft DEIS Scoping Outline from such agencies, the public and the Village’s staff and consultants. Although the deadline for the approval of a Scoping Outline pursuant to SEQRA expires on May 26, 2024, the Applicant has consented to an extension of such deadline. Next Steps As a reminder of the basic steps involved in the SEQRA process, enclosed is a memorandum that provides a treetop review of the sequential steps involved in the environmental review of an action pursuant to SEQRA. cc: Michal Nowak, Superintendent of Public Works & Engineering Steven Fews, Building & Fire Inspector Tara Gerardi, Planning Board Secretary Sarah Brown, AICP Anthony Oliveri, P.E. David Heiser, Village Board Liaison Robert C. Zitt, Esq.