Chelsea & Hughsonville Projects

The January 6, 2025 TOW Planning Board Meeting focused on Projects in Chelsea and Hughsonville.

First up was a discussion about the Chelsea Farm Subdivision. This was a follow-up discussion from a previous meeting, where the yet-to-be new owner (the sale hasn't been completed) of the project of 17 homes on 102.7 acres in Chelsea requested clarification on the timing of when Certificate of Occupancy (CO) and Building Permits could be issued. A resolution was written by the Town Planner... and distributed to everyone the day of January 6th - so there wasn't a lot of time for people to think through it.

So....of the 17 proposed homes... 13 will require the creation of a new road. Clearly a prerequisite to getting the appropriate permits etc. However, 4 of the proposed sites border existing roads - 2 on Chelsea Road and 2 on River Road. The Developer asked that the resolution be ammended to basically state that a new road would NOT be a prerequiste for him to start work on, and potentially selling, those 4 homes - because they do not require a new road to access their properties. This started a convoluted discussion of "wait, what? and how does this affect other prerequisites that were agreed to in 2016, and how come we are just finding out about this now? and is it a request re: a building permit vs. a CO"... and long story short, the discussion has been tabled until the January 22 meeting, so that the Planner can rewrite the proposed resolution to include all the prerequisites. The developer's attorney asked the boards permission to work with the Town Attorney and it was granted.

Also - the project was given a 90 day extension, as the sales process is on-going.

Then the representatives of the congregation "Iglesia Cristiana El Sembrador" in Hughsonville came forward with their site plan. The proposed plan is to construct an addition with meeting rooms, an office and a bathroom. The Planning Board has become aware of the historic nature of properties in Hughsonville (I would say better late than never -- but no... the abomination being built across from the church will be an on-going sore point that several members of the current Planning Board approved) - but nice that the chairmen mentioned the historic nature of the church's property. In anyevent, the Building Department has concerns about sheds (that are ancient.. why they have just noticed them is amazing) and lighting at the church's property, which while valid concerns are very much ancillary to the project. The architect and the Pastor reiterated that they are not changing the worship space or anticipate a change in participation/use of the building (50 people at the English Service on Sunday and 150 people at the Spanish Service on Sunday). They will not be changing the current parking space (the town planner reiterated that the parking requirements are based on number of pews - which will not be changing) -- and that their current septic tank (requiring periodic pumpings) will be adequate (the board asked for copies of the correspondance with the County Board of Health). The Planner and others on the board coached the architect on the zoning codes that need to be adhered to -- including the lighting codes (even if powered by solar), the requirement to get a letter from the state Historic Preservation Office, putting the current sheds on the site plan and getting documentation from the Fire Prevention Bureau (the current size/occupancy does not require a sprinkler system), but may require a fire wall between the new building and the existing building. So the church will need to update their site plan and come back to the planning board.

Continuing in Hughsonville, the owner of two properties on Farmers Crossing at 97 New Hamburg Road would like to consolidate the two properties into 1 deed. One property has a house being built on it, the other will include a driveway. It will not change any of the easements on the property, and when a signature line (requiring information from the town) is added to the plan, the plan will be updated and submitted. The Board waived a requirement for a public hearing and authorized the planner to prepared a resolution to be voted on at the next planning board meeting.

Moving down New Hamburg road, the Obercreek Farm Brewery & Tasting Room project requested a 90 day extension from November 20, 2024 through May 19, 2025 so that the Planning Board Chairman can sign the plan so that a building permit application can be submitted. This extension was approved by the Board.