Town of Amenia faces lawsuit over hamlet plan

AMENIA —  The town of Amenia and the Town Board have received notice that they are being sued by Amenia K Realty, LLC, CQM of Amenia and Amenia Meadows, LLC. Amenia Meadows, LLC is comprised of a number of investors, including the Katz brothers, owners of the Freshtown supermarket.

“I consider it a frivolous lawsuit,� town Supervisor Wayne Euvrard said, explaining that the Article 78 lawsuit is based on a resolution that was passed last year by the Town Board that adopted hamlet plan number three from consultant Harry Dobson. “There were four plans to choose from, and the board looked at them and heard public comment. We reviewed them and decided to go with plan three.�

Dan Katz explained the motive behind the suit.

“We believe that option three, proposing increased development in the downtown area, amended the comprehensive plan without following any of the most basic legal requirements, including various fundamental public review procedures and environmental review,� he wrote in a statement to The Millerton News.

Euvrard said plan three allows some extra building along Route 44, by Page Lumber and Welsh Sanitation, and for possible expansion around the Freshtown Plaza. It also allows for nearly 50 homes to be built near the Syms’ development. Nineteen homes have already been applied for and approved. The plan also suggests a road behind the Amenia Post Office to connect with Lavelle Road, near Immaculate Conception Church, as well as a road near Four Brothers Pizza Inn up the west side of Route 22 to the archery store.

“Without zoning it means nothing,� the supervisor said. “It’s somebody’s dream and it’s not going to happen — we didn’t go through a complete SEQRA [State Environmental Quality Review Act] process to make it part of zoning or the comprehensive plan — that would take a lot of money and I felt we should be spending money on other things. By adopting it, it still has no teeth, according to our attorney, Mike Hayes.�

Euvrard went on to say that to implement the hamlet plan without it going through the SEQRA process would be illegal, something the town would not do. Essentially, he said, the hamlet plan is “sitting on the shelf.� He noted it was commissioned by another administration with grant money that had been awarded to the town.

That’s not enough assurance, according to Katz, who stated the town was approached by his attorney before the suit was filed and before the town had to spend any money to come to a solution regarding the matter. That, however, was not as productive a meeting as he had hoped. Now he’s looking for action.

“We hope that the board will either rescind the amendment, or adopt a clarification that option three is not the policy of the town and in no way amends the terms of the comprehensive plan,� Katz wrote.

Again, Euvrard said the hamlet plan did not amend the comprehensive plan in any way and was simply a resolution  passed by the board, but with no companion law to go with it.

What’s more, Euvrard said he believed he knew what the motive was behind the lawsuit.

“They’re afraid of competition,� he said of Noah and Dan Katz, who own Freshtown Plaza and the supermarket bearing the same name. “Competition is good. And there are no plans for another food store coming in.�

“I can understand that they want to try to save their business, but I think it’s up to the Town Board to vote on whatever plan they feel is beneficial to the town and that shouldn’t be dictated by a business owner,� former town Councilman Bill Carroll said. “Amenia is not going to go anywhere unless we get commercial business. Go to Millerton and it’s bustling, but it’s dead down here. I think [the Katz Brothers’] end goal is to keep other businesses out of town, but we need more commercial business. We can’t survive with what we have right now — we’re 50 years behind other towns.�

“The thing that upsets us is that it looks like they are trying to stop any kind of commercial development,� said Evelyn “Frankie� O’Connell, who is among a group of residents opposed to the lawsuit. “We’re not looking for another grocery store, but we would like the west side of Route 22 going north to have commercial development. That would be the ideal place because it doesn’t have wetlands like many other places in Amenia.�

One sore point for O’Connell, who acknowledged she was “kind of upset� about the suit, was that the action will cost the town money to defend.

“The town has to answer this. This is going to cost money. The town doesn’t have the money to throw away on something like this, which is frivolous,� she said, adding there is another point even tougher for her to swallow. “And then they want us to pay for their court costs.�

But Katz said in a phone interview that was blatantly untrue.

“I have no interest in anything other than getting this resolved, just like the many residents and business owners that I’ve spoken to,� he said.

Euvrard said from his perspective the scenario was not a good one for Amenia.

“It’s a waste of the town’s and the taxpayer’s money,� he said. “We have such restraints with the wetlands and everyone is trying to find the best ways to develop the land we have. And I firmly believe we need more commercial space. We need business in the town and we need more jobs and tax base.�

Katz, for his part, did not argue the point, but he did take issue with the specifics.

“Most important, we felt that the type of development adopted under option three by formal resolution of the board is bad for the town, encourages sprawl and over-development,� he stated in his release. “And it is totally inconsistent with the already adopted comprehensive plan.�