Planning board continues public hearing on Security Realty workforce housing after applicant requests pause pending local law

The Rhinebeck Planning Board on Tuesday agreed to continue the public hearing on Security Realty & Development Group Inc.’s workforce housing site-plan application until Jan. 21 after the applicant asked the board to take no further action while the town adopts a local law rezoning the subject property for workforce housing.

The applicant’s attorney, Charles Martabano, wrote the board this afternoon requesting an adjournment because the town has not yet adopted the local law the planning board said it needs to use the affordable-housing floating district for the project. The letter said the planning board should not issue final site-plan approval until the local law is adopted.

The continuation matters because the applicant’s proposal and the town board’s anticipated local law are linked: the local law would specify lot- and bulk-parameters that the applicant says would make the site plan consistent with the approved concept plan and may override underlying BG-district regulations.

At the meeting Planning Board members discussed several outstanding technical and procedural items tied to the proposal: a request for more information from the New York State Department of Transportation (DOT) on highway/driveway access and traffic details; the need for coordination between the town board and planning board over what provisions of the zoning law, if any, the town board would waive or amend; and a number of public comments emphasizing support for affordable housing alongside concerns about steep topography, tree removal and visual impacts.

Resident Thea Burgess told the board, “I’m very much in favor of construction of affordable housing,” and urged the board to move the project forward when the procedural prerequisites are met. John Clark, a member of the Village Planning Board, said the village will send formal comments and noted, “The planning board fully supports the idea of affordable housing on this project,” while asking the planning board to consider how the development could be integrated with village streets and the adjacent Wells Manor property.

A planner summarized DOT comments submitted to the board: DOT said it received a conceptual plan in November but needs a SEQR lead-agency letter and additional application materials before it can issue a work-permit review. DOT listed required materials including a complete set of site drawings showing existing and proposed conditions within the state right-of-way, traffic counts and turning templates for school buses and delivery vehicles, pavement and signage details, and other engineering details. The board said it will expect an update from DOT at the Jan. 21 meeting.

Board members and members of the public debated whether the planning board can complete its review before the town adopts the local law. Planning staff said the planning board’s review is separate from the town board’s legislative action but also agreed the local law’s provisions will affect what adjustments or waivers the planning board can legally apply to the site plan.

After discussion, a motion to continue the public hearing to Jan. 21, 2025 carried by voice vote. The applicant requested the adjournment in writing; the board accepted that request and scheduled the next update.

The board also discussed a recommendation from the town attorney and planning staff that the planning and town boards meet to compile a list of specific zoning provisions that the town board would need to amend or waive for the project as currently designed. Planning staff said they would compile prior comments and outstanding materials and requested additional written input from board members to prepare for such a joint meeting.

The planning board’s continuation preserves the public-comment record and leaves open both the technical reviews (DOT, visual assessment, tree and stormwater impacts) and the town-board zoning action that the applicant says is necessary before final site-plan approval.

What’s next: the planning board will seek an update from DOT and expect the town board’s local-law progress before the Jan. 21 meeting; the board also invited formal village comments and public submissions ahead of the continuation.