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Save the Lakes is a member of the Shawangunk Ridge Coalition.
CONTRIBUTE NOW TO SAVE THE LAKES "EXPERT FUND"
On this page you will find documents (pdf files) associated with all aspects of the development, and links to various articles that have appeared in the media.


1)  CLICK TO DOWNLOAD 'GREEN' OVERDEVELOPMENT POSES A NEW CHALLENGE IN ULSTER COUNTY.
THIS ARTICLE WAS PUBLISHED IN THE SUMMER 2009 ISSUE OF THE SIERRA CLUB'S SIERRA ATLANTIC NEWSLETTER; IT PROVIDES A CLEAR OVERVIEW OF THE PROJECT'S ISSUES AND IMPACTS.


2)  CLICK TO DOWNLOAD PAUL RUBIN'S FACT SHEET(PDF) ON IMPORTANT WATER ISSUES ASSOCIATED WITH THE PROPOSED DEVELOPMENT OF WILLIAMS LAKE, PREPARED FOR SAVE THE LAKES

3)  CLICK TO DOWNLOAD AN OVERVIEW (PDF) OF THE GEOLOGY, LAKES, WETLANDS, AND WILDLIFE OF THE WILLIAMS LAKE PROPERTY CREATED FOR THE SIERRA CLUB BY HYDROLOGIST PAUL RUBIN


APRIL 1, 2009 - DEC RELEASES FINAL SCOPING DOCUMENT

CLICK TO DOWNLOAD A PDF OF THE
FINAL SCOPING DOCUMENT


CLICK HERE TO REVIEW SAVE THE LAKES
SCOPING COMMENTS SUBMITTED TO THE DEC


Special thanks go out to the Biodiversity Partnership for their submission,
and to Paul Rubin for his expert hydrological analysis.
Vital community character issues were deemed by the DEC to be beyond the Final Scope, which effectively defers these issues to the brief public comment period when the Draft Environmental Impact Statement is finally completed.
DEC TIMELINE
On July 2, 2008: New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Commissioner Pete Grannis named DEC Region 3 office as lead agency for the SEQRA review process.

On August 4, DEC sent out SEQR Positive Declaration (DEC No. 3-5146-00063/00007) outlining 16 major impacts of concern to be addressed in the scoping process.

On September 17, 2008 the DEC issued a Draft Scoping Document for a Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) an important 20 page, detailed document.

April 2010: DEC rejects HRVR's first submitted DEIS as insufficient and incomplete, and admonishes HRVR for not copying the Town of Rosendale with the submission.
(Document obtained through FOIL request).

May 2010: HRVR submits a legal appeal to the DEC that contests the DEC's position, and urges that the environmental review process be expedited. (Document obtained through FOIL request).

June 2010: DEC rejects this appeal. (Document obtained through FOIL request).

As of July 2010, HRVR has not resubmitted their DEIS.
Other background documentation:

Click here to download a PDF of the DEC August 4, 2008 SEQR Positive Declaration outlining 16 major impacts of concern to be addressed in the Scoping Process.

Click here to download a PDF of DEC Commissioner Grannis' decision to name DEC Region 3 as Lead Agency.

Click here to download a PDF of DEC Regional director Janeway's 01/04/08 letter to the Town outlining the reasons that DEC requested Lead Agency.

Click here to download a PDF of Mr. Janeways' follow-up letter dated 02/11/08 answering concerns expressed by Rosendale town officials on the Lead Agency issue.

Click here to download a PDF attorney Ed Williams' letter to Commissioner Grannis detailing the history and physical features of Williams Lake along with an exhaustive analysis of HRVR's development plan.

Submission by Canopy/HRVR to the Town of Rosendale:

Canopy/HRVR submitted a proposed zoning amendment change to the Town of Rosendale. Since spot zoning is illegal, this document instead describes the project plan and suggests that this plan outline a new spa/resort zoning requirement for the town. This is an attempted end-run around the issue of spot zoning, and would constitute a developer-driven rewriting of the zoning code.

CLICK TO DOWNLOAD ANALYSIS AND QUESTIONS RAISED BY THE PROPOSED ZONING CHANGE

CLICK TO DOWNLOAD CANOPY'S SUBMISSION LETTER
CLICK TO DOWNLOAD THE CANOPY'S ZONING PETITION
CLICK TO DOWNLOAD AMENDMENT EXHIBIT D
CLICK TO DOWNLOAD HRVR's PROPOSED DRAFT SCOPING DOC

Starting in late 2007, Save the Lakes has sponsored a number of public forums to discuss various aspects of the proposed development, from alternatives to impacts. These events include:

RESORTING TO MADNESS - DECEMBER 2007 (PDF)
ALTERNATIVES TO CANOPY - APRIL 2008 (PDF)
SCOPING FORUM - OCTOBER 2008 (PDF)
FLOW: WATER ISSUES - APRIL 2009 (PDF)
A TALK BY U.S. REPRESENTATIVE MAURICE HINCHEY - APRIL 2010 (PDF)


PLEASE BE ADVISED that citizens who wish their opinion to be known on this issue should send a letter to the Town Supervisor, Mr. Pat McDonough, Town Hall, P.O. Box 423, Rosendale, NY 12472, with a copy to the Regional Director of DEC Region III, Mr. Willie Janeway, at the DEC office in New Paltz, and whose mailing address is 21 South Putt Corners Road, New Paltz, NY 12561-1696.

Supervisor McDonough welcomes your comments, as does Mr. Janeway at the DEC.

Following are links to various articles about the proposed development that have appeared in local and regional newspapers.

----The Daily Freeman - Proposed environmental study for Williams Lake project deemed inadequate April 24, 2010

----The Daily Freeman - Assessment hike limit defended for Williams Lake site March 22, 2010

----The Daily Freeman - Williams Lake site developer waits on DEC February 10, 2009

----The Daily Freeman - Williams Lake development proposal faces scrutiny today February 6, 2009

----The Daily Freeman - Williams Lake developer may seek tax relief January 28, 2009

----The Daily Freeman - Escrow account for planned resort may grow January 16, 2009

----The Daily Freeman - Resident questions deficit in Rosendale escrow account for Williams Lake review January 14, 2009

----The Daily Freeman - Rosendale enlists legal aid for resort review September 12, 2008.

----Hudson Valley Business News: Williams Lake site under state eco-umbrella July 28, 2008

----The Daily Freeman - Williams Lake developers will propose zoning change. December 4, 2007

----
Ulster County Press June 7, 2007

----The New York Times summarizes the situation. September 23, 2007

----Ulster County Press August 8, 2007. Residents rally 'round the lake

----The Sierra Club - Williams Lake Threatened!

----The Daily Freeman - Williams Lake Owner Mum on Resort Plan, For Now.

----The Daily Freeman - TOWN BOARD AND PLANNING BOARD TO SHARE LEAD AGENCY STATUS?

----msnbc.com 02/14/08: Mysterious "white nose syndrome" spreads to endangered Indiana Bats in Caves of Williams Lake

PRESERVE AND PROTECT ENVIRONMENTAL INTEGRITY AND COMMUNITY CHARACTER
CONTRIBUTE NOW TO SAVE THE LAKES "EXPERT FUND"

We at Save the Lakes firmly believe that this gated community/real-estate "resort" plan is an example of inappropriate overdevelopment. Community character, the health of the local economy at the grassroots level, water resources and the environment will all be adversely impacted.


PLEASE MAKE A DONATION
This is a volunteer effort - help us pay our expenses for expert analysis, legal advice, printing costs, signs, internet...

Through the auspices of Friends of the Shawangunks YOUR DONATION IS FULLY TAX-DEDUCTIBLE.
DONATE BY CHECK OR MONEY ORDER:
You can make a 501(c)(3) deductible charitable contribution by sending a check or money order for ANY amount
made out to:
Friends of the Shawangunks
and mail it to
Save the Lakes   P.O. Box 153   Rosendale, N.Y. 12472-0153
Please note Save the Lakes as a memo on your check, and be sure your address is on the check for year-end tax purposes. THANK YOU!


PLEASE, CONTRIBUTE WHAT YOU CAN
When the Draft Environmental Impact Statement is completed, expert studies and legal advice will be called upon.
This is the kind of project that has torn apart rural communities across the country.

Short-term gain for the few must be weighed against the long-term negative impacts that everyone will experience.

Please contribute. Help our locale from being dominated by profit-driven outside investment interests. We are fighting to keep our natural resources for the community to nurture and enjoy.

ABOUT THE PROPOSED DEVELOPMENT   |    THE ISSUES AND IMPACTS    |    SOLUTIONS AND ALTERNATIVES
DOCUMENT DOWNLOADS   |    WHAT YOU CAN DO    |   CONTACT US    |   HOME
Save the Lakes is a member of the Shawangunk Ridge Coalition.