A public comment session on the Hudson Valley Hasidic Jewish village of Kiryas Joel’s controversial annexation proposal was held Tuesday evening — despite calls from some elected officials and area residents to postpone the session because of inclement weather. A village spokesman is defending the decision to press forward.
The Orange County Village of Kiryas Joel conducted a voluntary public scoping session as part of its responsibilities as the designated lead agency reviewing the environmental impact of a petition advanced by local property owners in the Town of Monroe. That petition is to annex 507 acres to the village. The New York Department of Environmental Conservation in January designated Kiryas Joel as lead agency to oversee the State Environmental Quality Review, or SEQR, process. Republican Orange County Executive Steve Neuhaus calls it poor judgment to have held the scoping session during a storm.
“I not only spoke to the leaders from Kiryas Joel on the phone, but I also emailed them and said, this is not a safe environment right now with the weather the way it is,” says Neuhaus. “There was plenty of time ahead of time to know that the forecast was going to be bad. Our 9-1-1 center sends out updated weather advisories. And there was a 100 percent chance of snow and sleet.”
Here’s Democratic Assemblyman James Skoufis, speaking Wednesday.
“It is an outrage that this meeting continued last night and was not postponed. I called on the Village of Kiryas Joel as did other elected officials. Both parties called on the village to postpone last night’s meeting,” says Skoufis. “We were under a winter weather advisory from the National Weather Service until 10 a.m. today. And roads were icy. Beyond just being dangerous, it was actually impossible for many people to attend.”
Paul Larrabee is spokesman for the Village of Kiryas Joel. He says about 75 people turned out for the scoping session.
“That session was scheduled for more than three weeks. And there were various schedules that need to be accommodated,” says Larrabee. “At the same time there are a series of religious observances coming up this week that made postponing it impossible for this week. And as we get deeper into March that scheduling isn’t going to get any easier, and the ability to predict the weather no easier either.”
He emphasizes that written comments, which will be accepted through March 10, carry the same weight as verbal comments.
“For those who are looking for an opportunity for theatre or some sort of sporting event that might take place at these kinds of sessions, that one thing,” Larrabee says. “But the content and the merit of what’s discussed doesn’t matter if it’s on paper or whether you’re standing behind a podium.”
Skoufis, who supports grassroots organization United Monroe, a staunch opponent of the proposed annexation, contends that fewer people will bother with written comments and that holding the session during wintry weather closed out a number of voices.
“It’s a further expression by the village board and Kiryas Joel that they really don’t care about conducting this process in an open and fair manner,” Skoufis says.
Larrabee characterized Tuesday night’s public comments as ranging from supportive of the annexation and the services and amenities that would come with it to concern about transportation and environmental impacts. Meanwhile, Neuhaus says the county is an interested party to the process, and will hold a parallel review.
“With it being such a big impact to, in particular, Orange County and southern Orange County, we believe that to really ensure to the public that all their questions and concerns are answered that we should run our own parallel study,” says Neuhaus. “And the fact that in the middle of a major ice, sleet, and snowstorm that you don’t cancel a meeting, it’s another reason why the public is asking for a separate session. And that’s really what we’re going to do. We’re going to accommodate them.”
Larrabee points out that the Draft Generic Environmental Impact Statement can be accessed online.
“When there are issues such as weather or complex schedules or holidays or any of these other things, the whole reason the scope is posted online is to provide 24/7 access to someone who wants to let their fingers do the walking and evaluate the content from their home or their office or wherever it might be convenient for them on a mobile device,” says Larrabee.
Larrabee says that based on both verbal and written comments, a revised scope will be prepared, likely before the end of March.
