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Applicant asks Niskayuna board to recommend segmented SEQR review for Harbor PUD
Summary
The Niskayuna Harbor applicant asked the Planning Board to recommend that the town board, as lead agency, consider segmenting SEQR review so the board can vote on the planned PUD concept now and reserve detailed environmental review for later site-plan submissions; town counsel will review the request and issue a formal response.
The applicant for the Niskayuna Harbor planned unit development asked the Planning Board on June 29 to recommend that the town board consider a segmented SEQR review so the board can make a recommendation on the PUD concept now and perform detailed environmental review later during site-plan approvals. Chuck Buffundi, representing Niskayuna Harbor, introduced the matter and said the applicant had submitted materials and retained counsel to guide the process.
Andy Brick, speaking as the applicant’s attorney, told the board he had reviewed prior meeting minutes and videos and recognized the board’s discomfort making a recommendation on a sketch-level PUD. Brick proposed segmentation as a practical solution: "If you feel you can't make a recommendation with sketch level review, one of the things you can recommend to the town board... is that they consider segmenting the review of the project," he said, urging the board to reserve final engineering and detailed environmental analysis for subsequent site-plan review.
Brick acknowledged that segmentation of SEQR review is generally disfavored but said there are exceptions and that courts in New York have upheld segmented reviews in appropriate cases. He offered to answer questions and asked the board to include the segmentation recommendation in its forthcoming recommendation to the town board.
Planning staff told the board that town counsel is reviewing the applicant’s letter and will issue a formal response. Staff also noted the Conservation Advisory Council (CAC) will review the project at its July 1 meeting, the Planning Board’s next meeting is July 13, and the Town Board is scheduled to consider the matter at its July 30 meeting, which could be where SEQR findings are made if the timetable holds.
The board did not take a formal vote on the segmentation request during the June 29 meeting; staff emphasized that communications about the project should go through the planning department so that recordkeeping and formal circulation are preserved. The item will move through the CAC and then return to the board and the town board for further action.
