May 15, 2008 11:59 am
—
By MICHELLLE MILLER
Staff Writer
SPRINGFIELD— When discussing adopting
a proposed moratorium at Monday night’s
Springfield Town Board meeting, Councilman
Dan Rosen said the town has ``left the
barn door open for too long.’’ He said the
town has been hit by a lightning bolt of projects
lately, and needs to get something in
place soon.
The meeting, which was held at the Community
Center, focused on getting the phrasing
of the proposed moratorium, Local Law
No. 1, just so. After several drafts of the law,
board members are hoping they have something
on which the town can agree. A public
hearing has been set for Thursday, May 22
at the Community Center at 7 p.m.
The new phrasing of the law says, ``For a
period of nine (9) months there shall be a
moratorium on all new development projects
in the Town of Springfield, which the planning
board determines to be a Type One action.’’
Type One actions are more likely to have
a significant adverse impact on the environment
than unlisted actions, and may require
the preparation of a draft from the Environmental
Impact Service, according to the
SEQR Cookbook.
According to the law, the purpose of having
a moratorium in place is because the
land use regulations of the Town of Springfield,
as currently written, may be inadequate
to address an application for approval
of certain significant land uses. The law says
these projects may have dramatic and longterm
impacts on public health and safety,
the environment, natural resources, public
infrastructure, and revenue base of the town.
In addition, the visual impact of such projects
may be significant and may have a broad
effect on the economic value of adjoining
lands.
With talk of Springfield becoming a possible
venue for a three-day music and arts
festival, a possible motorcycle track in the
works and developers wanting to add another
ballpark similar to the Cooperstown
Dreams Park, those living in the area are
starting to get worried about what their
quaint little town might become.
Rosemarie Harrison, who lives on Hoyer
Road in East Springfield, said she was horrified
when she read about new projects.
``You will be opening the gates of hell,’’
said Harrison at the meeting. ``I moved here
20 years ago to get away from it, not to have
it on my front doorstep.’’
Harrison said she came to the small town
of Springfield from New Jersey, and as mush
as she dislikes the idea, would move again if
necessary. She said the parking
lot to the music and art
festival is planned to be right
next to where she lives, and
she does not want it to turn
into the anniversary of Woodstock.
``We also don’t need the
tons of garbage that will be
left behind,’’ said Harrison.
``When you get large groups
of people together, you are
bound to have all sorts of
trouble.’’
Gary Sikkema, owner and
broker of Pathfinder Reality
Inc., said he feels people
should look at the three-day
music and arts festival project
with an open mind. He
said Madison Square Garden
Inc., which is preparing to
purchase 1,000 acres to accommodate
up to 74,000 fans
annually for a three-day music
event, has a good reputation.
Sikkema advised residents
to research and read
testimonials on past events
the organization has put on.
``You will find people are
generally happy with how
things go,’’ Sikkema said.
``Before taking sides, all the
people of this town should do
their research and weigh the
pros with the cons.’’
Results of the Town of
Springfield Comprehensive
Plan Community Survey indicate
keeping the land rural
is important, however. Fiftyfive
percent of those who
completed a survey expressed
it is of extreme importance
and 35 percent felt rural
preservation is important.
The importance of water
quality was the only issue
that ranked higher, with 56
percent. The survey had 407
responses out of a population
of about 1,200, which is a
little better than a 30 percent
response. Comprehensive
Plan committee member
David Staley said this was
an adequate sample size that
is considered statistically
relevant.
Rosen says hopefully people
will show up to the public
hearing and give the board
members a better understanding
of what they want
for the town.
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