GUILDERLAND, NY: On Christmas Eve, Pyramid Crossgates submitted the Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) for their project, “Rapp Road Residential /Western Avenue Mixed Use Redevelopment Projects.” When first brought before the Town of Guilderland Planning Board in late 2018, the project consisted of building 222-unit apartment complex on Rapp Road. The project has morphed into 312-unit apartment complex on Rapp Road, a CostCo complete with a gas station plus other commercial development.

According to the NY State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQRA), the Planning Boad has 45 days to decide if the DEIS is complete – which would be February 7. Though the Planning Board had the DEIS, they were not going to release it to the public. James Bacon, a lawyer from New Paltz representing a local business, submitted a FOIL request, asking for the DEIS. The town responded that the DEIS was “intra-agency documentation and is not subject to FOIL.” While some people may think Pryamid Crossgates is an agency of the town government, Crossgates is, in fact, a separate entity. Mr. Bacon sent another letter, appealing the denial of the FOIL, and the town posted the entire DEIS on the town website. 

To view the DEIS, go to townofguilderland.org and click on “Boards and Committees”, select “Planning Board”. On the lefthand side of the screen, you will see a brown box with blue letters, click the third item down, “Environmental Impact Statement – Rapp Road Residential/Western Avenue Mixed Use Redevelopment Projects.

In addition to this project, Regal Theaters in Crossgates Maul has a proposal to raise the height of their theaters, which would shade the Karner Blue butterflies on Butterfly Hill. The Board of Zoning Appeals appears to be waiting for comments about the project from the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation.

Save the Pine Bush is now represented by Pace Environmental Litigation Clinic. A big thank you to Grace Nichols who contacted Pace and made the case to them to represent SPB in this matter.

To donate to help pay for experts and other expenses related to opposing these developments, please go to:

RappRoadGoFundMe.org

 

Published in February/March 2020
Save the Pine Bush Newsletter