Ramapo's revised rezoning plan eliminates Route 45 development, adds flexible zoning

RAMAPO — The town's proposed rezoning for its mostly rural northeast section eliminates development along Route 45 and excludes the town's highest density housing zones, officials said as a public hearing nears.

The proposed final environmental statement for the northeast corridor does allow for increased business and residential development along New Hempstead Road and Route 202, officials said.

The zoning scheme also allows for a potentially massive townhouse development at the former Minisceongo Golf Club.

And, developers would be able to petition the Town Board for projects on 20 acres or more beyond an area's zoning — known as flexible overlay planned unit development.

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Ramapo Supervisor Michael Specht said officials and planners acted in the town's best interests and considered the environmental and quality of life concerns from residents of the area during public comments.

"We did hear from the public on various points, such as water, traffic and density," Specht said. "Out planners did more study. We and our professional planners felt what was beneficial for the town was to keep what was there."

A public hearing is scheduled via zoom for 7 p.m. March 15 on the final generic environmental impact statement. Residents can send their comments to Ramapo Town Clerk's Office.

The study resulted from Ramapo Town Board members deciding several years ago to forgo a townwide master plan update and rezone areas piecemeal. Officials started with the town's northeast corridor, the most rural area which roughly borders Pomona and Clarkstown north to Haverstraw.

The town's development concept for the northeast corridor created conflicts. Many residents living in Monsey and the town's more central communities look favorably on development to create more housing and allow them to leave neighborhoods with high traffic and congestion.

At the same time, property owners in the northeast want to retain their open space amid woods and streams without numerous businesses along Route 45 or higher-density housing.

Key arguments

Areas of contention included a northern stretch of Route 45 off the Palisades Interstate Parkway near Skyview Acres, the town-owned Striker property behind the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Rockland, land owned by the Gracepoint Gospel Church on New Hempstead Road, and the 140-acre Minisceongo Golf Course along Pomona Road.

The draft proposal presented to the public included housing and businesses along the Route 45 corridor. Some estimates contended the plan could lay the groundwork for more than 1,000 houses and several dozen stores and businesses.

At the same time, New Hempstead adopted zoning that could add hundreds more homes, including 150 units on the 34-acre former Matterhorn Nursery. The village concept also calls for businesses and a hotel on property outside the town baseball stadium off Route 45. Legal action is challenging the zoning.

Residents of Skyview Acres and the Unitarian church opposed the development of the Striker property, once considered for a private schools campus, and the Route 45 corridor.

The nearly seven-decade-old Skyview Acres, the county's first interracial housing community, has a tradition of political activism and has not ruled out taking legal action to protect their property.

The elimination of the town's higher-density housing zones was advocated by many residents, though Monsey residents supported the need for more housing during the public hearings on the zoning plan.

The higher density zones in question had been approved for the Monsey area and a proposed 224-unit Pascack Ridge development bordering Spring Valley and Clarkstown, and a proposed 474 unit Patrick Farm development along routes 306 and 202. Both projects are being challenged in court.

A piecemeal zoning update

Rather than live up to its commitment for a townwide zoning review, the Town Board divided the town into sectors. Starting in 2018, the town held what's called charrettes — meetings between residents and businesses with town zoning planners — about what should be built in the northeast corridor.

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Attorney Susan Shapiro Hito, who has taken Ramapo to court on behalf of ROSA and CUPON — short for Citizens United to Protect Our Neighborhood — said the town's procedures and potential segregated housing have opened the door to legal action. She's also filed legal action against the town's rezoning of the Pascack Ridge property for high-density housing on the Spring Valley-Clarkstown border and a development scheme along Route 45.

Specht said the town has followed environmental regulations and the planning process taken meets all requirements. He said the town is doing a comprehensive plan update, starting with the northeast Ramapo corridor.

Steve Lieberman covers government, breaking news, courts, police, and investigations. Reach him at slieberm@lohud.com. Twitter: @lohudlegal. Read more articles and bio. Our local coverage is only possible with support from our readers.

This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Ramapo's zoning for northeast corridor gets hearing March 15