Quoted Text

ROTTERDAM
Property owners sue over zoning change
BY JUSTIN MASON Gazette Reporter

    Several Becker Drive property owners have filed an Article 78 lawsuit against Rotterdam, claiming members of the Town Board engaged in spot zoning when they approved a zone change that will allow developer Robert Iovinella to construct a commercial building near their homes.
    The 26-page legal action asks that the town’s decision be overturned because board members didn’t adhere to Rotterdam’s comprehensive plan when considering a request to change Iovinella’s 3.4 acres from agriculture to general business. In addition, they argue the town failed to comply with State Environmental Quality Review requirements and created an “exclusive benefi t” for Iovinella by rezoning the property, which lies between Becker Drive and Duanesburg Road.
    “The town board has engaged in illegal spot-zoning by singling out the property for classification totally different from the surrounding area for the benefit of [Iovinella’s company] Aladan and to the detriment of other property owners,” states the lawsuit filed in Schenectady County Supreme Court earlier this month. “The zoning change was not part of a well-considered and comprehensive plan calculated to benefit the community as a whole.”
    Iovinella initially requested the zone change in 2005, but later withdrew his application when the town’s Planning Commission didn’t act on it. He submitted the same request four years later and received a positive recommendation from the commission.
    Then in September 2009, several property owners filed a protest petition with the town objecting to the rezoning on the grounds that it was inconsistent with the surrounding properties. The all-Republican board never took action on the application before the November election, in which four out of five members were voted out of office; the fi fth resigned in December.
    In February, the new board revived Iovinella’s application and conducted a public hearing, despite not knowing the type of commercial project the developer intended to build. Numerous adjoining residents again objected, claiming commercial development would destroy the character of their neighborhood and remove a critical buffer between their homes and the Interstate 88 interchange off Duanesburg Road.
    The board ultimately sided with the developer, approving the zone change and amendment to the comprehensive plan......................................>>>>.....................>>>>............http://www.dailygazette.com/news/2010/jul/27/0728_rott_spot/

Ya see....this is whay they have a COMP PLAN!!! To avoid spot zoning! It is just sooooooooooooo rotterdam!

The last two paragraphs of the article are interesting.  Why do we need a Town Attorney?

And finally...the residents are getting involved and fighting back!   The current administration needs to realize that they were elected to serve in the best interest of all the residents, not just the developers!

Property owners sue over zoning change
BY JUSTIN MASON Gazette Reporter



    Several Becker Drive property owners have filed an Article 78 lawsuit against Rotterdam, claiming members of the Town Board engaged in spot zoning when they approved a zone change that will allow developer Robert Iovinella to construct a commercial building near their homes.
    The 26-page legal action asks that the town’s decision be overturned because board members didn’t adhere to Rotterdam’s comprehensive plan when considering a request to change Iovinella’s 3.4 acres from agriculture to general business. In addition, they argue the town failed to comply with State Environmental Quality Review requirements and created an “exclusive benefi t” for Iovinella by rezoning the property, which lies between Becker Drive and Duanesburg Road.
    “The town board has engaged in illegal spot-zoning by singling out the property for classifi cation totally different from the surrounding area for the benefi t of [Iovinella’s company] Aladan and to the detriment of other property owners,” states the lawsuit filed in Schenectady County Supreme Court earlier this month. “The zoning change was not part of a well-considered and comprehensive plan calculated to benefit the community as a whole.”
    Iovinella initially requested the zone change in 2005, but later withdrew his application when the town’s Planning Commission didn’t act on it. He submitted the same request four years later and received a positive recommendation from the commission.
    Then in September 2009, several property owners filed a protest petition with the town objecting to the rezoning on the grounds that it was inconsistent with the surrounding properties. The all-Republican board never took action on the application before the November election, in which four out of five members were voted out of office; the fi fth resigned in December.
    In February, the new board revived Iovinella’s application and conducted a public hearing, despite not knowing the type of commercial project the developer intended to build. Numerous adjoining residents again objected, claiming commercial development would destroy the character of their neighborhood and remove a critical buffer between their homes and the Interstate 88 interchange off Duanesburg Road.
    The board ultimately sided with the developer, approving the zone change and amendment to the comprehensive plan. Lone Republican Gerard Parisi was the only member to vote against both, claiming the town shouldn’t give Iovinella a “carte blanche” approval to build a commercial building near a residential neighborhood.
    Jeffrey Baker, an attorney for the four Becker Drive property owners, did not return a call for comment Tuesday. Likewise, an attempt to reach Donald Zee, an attorney for Iovinella, was unsuccessful.
    Town Attorney Michael Godlewski said the town would follow Iovinella’s lead in the case. He said it’s in the developer’s interest to defend the lawsuit.
    “They’re the ones who will spend the time fighting it,” he said.
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elections have consequences

Quoted from clubhouse

    Town Attorney Michael Godlewski said the town would follow Iovinella’s lead in the case. He said it’s in the developer’s interest to defend the lawsuit.
    “They’re the ones who will spend the time fighting it,” he said.
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          Hey Mike G., hate to tell ya, but the law suit is against the Town of Rotterdam, and YOU will be defending it.  The developer is not named in the suit, the Town is.  Read the newspaper article again, Residents sue Town of Rotterdam!  It was the action that the Board rezoned and ammended the Comp Plan contrary to the last study that is alledged to be illegal.  The developer plays no role in an Article 78.  That is a legal vehicle against a municipality or State agency.  

Quoted from AVON

          Hey Mike G., hate to tell ya, but the law suit is against the Town of Rotterdam, and YOU will be defending it.  The developer is not named in the suit, the Town is.  Read the newspaper article again, Residents sue Town of Rotterdam!  It was the action that the Board rezoned and ammended the Comp Plan contrary to the last study that is alledged to be illegal.  The developer plays no role in an Article 78.  That is a legal vehicle against a municipality or State agency.  

The article 78 may be beyond MG's scope of work in the town. He should have know this.

Win or lose....I applaud the residents of the Becker St. area for doing their homework and pursuing this issue.

Enter
Mr delorenzo, Mr Brick and Mr Zee

Let the arm twisting begin

Quoted from TippyCanoe

Enter
Mr delorenzo, Mr Brick and Mr Zee

Let the arm twisting begin

         Don't think these dudes can help at this point, the merits of the case were established after the public hearing was closed and the Town Board voted for the rezone.  There already is case law to overturn the rezone.  These dudes may try to influence a judge though  . . . . .

exactly my point

which goes back to the question, just who is the real Donald Zee?

Quoted from clubhouse

    Town Attorney Michael Godlewski said the town would follow Iovinella’s lead in the case. He said it’s in the developer’s interest to defend the lawsuit.
    “They’re the ones who will spend the time fighting it,” he said.
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          So if B.I. has to defend the rezone on behalf of Rott., ie. no legal work or costs to the Town, doesn't this explain all the spot zones and failure to adhere to the Comp Plan?  If the Town can rezone without impunity, where is the incentive to follow the laws?  If T. of Rott. was on the hook for illegal rezones I am sure we would see a lot less of it!  Interesting . . . . .

           I think this was the parcel that the residents tried to reach out to N.D. (remember she is for the residents) to take a look at so she could see the impacts to them.  She stiffed them, never looked at the property, and voted YES for the rezone.  That was the cause (at least so I was told) of the fracas between her and one of that resident she roasted at the one public heearing.  Now the pieces of the puzzle are starting to fit better!

Again I say 'kudos' to these residents of the Becker St. area who are apparently 'educated and smart enough' to not stand for this rotterdam bullcrap that has haunted the town for decades!!!! It was a 'rotterdam as usual' drama that gets played out in th all the time. Well perhaps not so easily this time or anytime in the future.

And ND shamefully made it a personal issue when she blasted a resident right at a th meeting. Guess she didn't know what she was setting the town up for. They do now.

Quoted Text

ROTTERDAM
Judge rejects charge of spot zoning of property
BY JUSTIN MASON Gazette Reporter

    Rotterdam officials did not engage in spot zoning when they approved developer Robert Iovinella’s request to change his property off Becker Drive from agricultural to general business uses, a Schenectady County Supreme Court justice ruled last week.
    In her 16-page ruling, Judge Karen Drago found that the town did its due diligence in reviewing Iovinella’s zone change request before approving the measure in February 2010.
    She said the town appeared to have properly balanced the town’s commercial needs with the character of the surrounding neighborhood near Thruway Exit 25A when the zone change was approved.
    “It is noted that over the last decade, as the town made amendments to the comprehensive plan, it has not deviated from its mission to promote economic growth surrounding this Exit 25 corridor,” she wrote in her decision, dated April 20.
    “It appears as though the town has struggled with the diffi cult task of maintaining the balance between this commercial development and preserving the character of the surrounding residential neighborhoods.”
    In July, a group of four neighbors had fi led an Article 78 petition to overturn the zone change, claiming members of the Town Board didn’t adhere to Rotterdam’s comprehensive plan.
    The lawsuit claimed the zone change for Iovinella’s 3.4 acres between Becker Drive and Duanesburg Road was done without the town meeting State Environmental Quality Review requirements. .....................>>>>..........................>>>>......................http://www.dailygazette.net/De.....r01402&AppName=1

Quoted from TippyCanoe

Enter
Mr delorenzo, Mr Brick and Mr Zee

Let the arm twisting begin

         So Tippy predicted the outcome last July!  Good insight to a bad outcome . . . .

Amazing how 'some' folks can obtain a zoning change, or anything else for that matter, when they are delinquent on their taxes.

Checked the Real Property data on the Town's website and these parcels still have a Homestead exemption and are considered "residential".   Is this another one of those "friends and family" favors?    If the developer wants a rezone to business, let's get rid of the homestead and residential status and tax the property as business!

Maybe we need a full-time ASSessor who can get the job done!