May 01, 2008 12:30 pm
—
By JIM AUSTIN
Cooperstown Crier
The village planning board has
scheduled a special meeting to review
comments it has received in regard to a
proposal to create a residential Coordinated
Development District on the old
railroad right-of-way along Grove
Street.
The proposal, from Joseph Galati,
calls for 13 single-family residences to
be built on the two-acre parcel.
The meeting will be Thurs., May 1 at
4 p.m. and is open to the public, but the
board will not be taking comments or
questions from the public.
Last week, the board listened to
comments during a public hearing on
the proposal.
Chestnut Street resident David
Svahn said he would prefer to see the
property left as a green space or converted
to a bike or walking path.
Jim Dow, a neighboring property
owner, voiced his concerns about a relaxation
of setbacks if the property is
rezoned as a Coordinated Development
District. He also worried about the
housing being used as rental property.
``Is there anyway to ensure it
wouldn’t be used for short-term rentals?”
he asked.
Maple Street resident Sally Goddard
also asked about setbacks and the density
of the homes on the long narrow
property.
She said it doesn’t seem like there is
enough room for the homes while still
maintaining the residential character
of the neighborhood.
``I’m not against housing. I’m for the
housing, just not so many,’’ she said.
Bill Rigby, a former member of the
planning board, said, ``it’s over two
acres that’s off the tax rolls right now.
As a taxpayer, I’m interested in seeing
it on the roll.’’
On Thursday, the planning board
will review the comments along with
written ones submitted prior to making
a recommendation to the board of trustees.
``We have the job of taking your comments
and coming to some sort of recommendation
for sending this to the
next stage or not,’’ said acting planning
board chairman Charles Hill.
The planning board may recommend
to the trustees that the request for the
creation of a Coordinated Development
District move forward; move forward
with conditions; or they may reject the
proposal.
If the decision is to move forward,
the applicant must submit a formal application
within six months, according
to attorney Joseph Catalano, who is
acting as an advisor to the planning
board.
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