Developer Considering Next Steps for Proposed Sports East Project, Supervisor Russell Says New Location Possible

MATTITUCK, NY: After withdrawing his application for the Sports East Fitness facility on Main Road in Mattituck during a heated work session Monday, Paul Pawlowski said he and his partners are considering next steps — but need the cooperation of the Southold town board and supervisor.

After the dramatic meeting, during which Pawlowski said he found the planning board's decision to issue a positive declaration regarding the state environmental impact quality review and ask for a full draft environmental review "disgusting," he walked out of Town Hall.

Monday night, Pawlowski told Patch, "At this time, to be honest, our plans are to meet as partners and think about next steps. We wants what's best for our town but we can't do it without the support of our planning board and supervisor."

Southold Town Supervisor Scott Russell said that he believes it possible to work with Pawlowski on a solution.

"I think that we would be very willing to work with the him to find a good location for a project that, I believe, people see as a tremendous benefit to the community," Russell said.

The supervisor added, "Also, it's a nice idea. If the planning board has concerns over impacts, why doesn't he sit down with them to see if he can mitigate those by scaling it back?"

After planning board work session Monday, Pawlowski wrote a message on Facebook, thanking his partners in the project and those who have supported the plan.

"Sports East, in short, applied for a private sports facility something that was needed, wanted and publicly supported tenfold. Everyone lost here today, and I mean everyone. Even the very few against lost," he said.

Of the work session, he said the application for Sports East was for public benefit, not private gain, and "the best thing that could have happened for our town in many, many years."

He then asked why the proposed facility would have a negative environmental impact, when he'd said in writing that the plan was for a "first of its kind in town" septic treatment system; preservation of 70 percent of the property was planned; the setbacks would be more than doubled for privacy and safety issues with neighbors; there was support for the project from the Suffolk County Planning Commission and other agencies; the application was "well within code" and proposed on a business corridor; the allowable buildout on the lot is 180,000 and they proposed half that; the allowable septic flow is 12,000 gallons per day and their plan was for not even 30 percent of that; all codes were met; no extra noise would come from the mainly indoor and well landscaped facility; and the Architectural Review Board gave approval for the overall look.

"To sum it all up we proposed a sports facility that would be private and affordable and as a resident I am upset, to say the least. Something is not adding up here. With that said we will do what we can in the coming days as our goals are still the same."

During a heated planning board work session Monday, developer Pawlowski was told that the planning board was considering a positive declaration for the state environmental quality review act determination, meaning that they would be asking for a draft environmental review.

Planner Mark Terry said the recommendation would be for the draft environmental review, based on a number of "large or moderate significant environmental impacts" including 13 potentical impacts on transportation, concerns with groundwater and surface water quality, impacts on energy, noise impacts, potential moderate impacts on plants and wildlife due to the size of the proposed structure, impacts on aesthetics, and consistency with community character.

Attorney Charles Cuddy, representing the applicant, took issue with the idea of a draft environmental impact statement, staying that Peconic Landing was allowed to move forward with no environmental impact statement; he also mentioned another project in Cutchogue and said that project was a Type 2 determination.

"To find that this has an impact is remarkable to me," Cuddy said. "I find it difficult to believe that except for traffic, which a study says has no impact, it's hard to believe you could find any impact." The parcel has no wetlands, no farm, no hazardous material, Cuddy said. He added that the proposal took a 20 acre lot and saved 15 acres of it. All around the parcel, he said, are business-zoned parcels. "It's amazing to me that you could find a need for an environmental impact statement that's going to save 15 of 20 acres. I can't believe the board would do that."

He added, "This doesn't make any sense to me. This is pretext, and a delay, to keep them from going forward."

The decision, Cuddy said, would prevent the project from moving forward with the zoning board of appeals. "That's upsetting."

Planning Board Chair Donald Wilcenski said the board was just doing its due diligence and said he did not believe it was a delay; he said there were concerns about the traffic study, such as the timing of the study and a building across the road not taken into consideration. He said the board agreed to go through the SEQRA process because "you felt we were holding you up." But the board had questions that needed to be answered, he said.

Pawlowski, visibly upset, his voice shaking, said the board has had one question since March, which was immediately addressed.

"I haven't heard one word since then about the traffic study," he said, adding that he and his fellow applicants had mitigated every possible concern "to the letter, better than any other project. To have this happen four months later is outright disgusting. I could not be more upset. This is not normal. To have told us this, this late in the game, $103,000 later, is not normal."

Pawlowski said discussions with planning department staff were leaning toward a negative declaration. "How did that change?" A positive declaration, he said, would mean more than $100,000 and another year or two of time.

"I'm withdrawing the application," he said, standing up abruptly and leaving the room, followed by Cuddy.

"The applicant formally has withdrawn his application," Cuddy said, during the planning board meeting a few minutes later.

Town Attorney Bill Duffy said he did not consider what happened at work session to be a formal withdrawal.

However, since Cuddy formally withdrew the application, the board did not act or vote on the SEQRA determination.