Overdevelopment, Tension Concern Orangetown Supervisor Candidates

PEARL RIVER, NY — Overdevelopment in Rockland County poses a threat to Orangetown, both candidates for town supervisor agree. Both Teresa Kenny and Thom Kleiner single out the high-density development going on in the nearby town of Ramapo. And they have similar ideas for addressing it.

"Residents are palpably fearful of their quality of life being compromised by the overdevelopment occurring in Ramapo spilling into Orangetown," Kleiner, a former town supervisor running for re-election, told Patch. "This is a tangible threat that affects one's daily living, property values and piece of mind."

Kenny appears on the Republican, Conservative, SAM and Libertarian party lines on the ballot. Kleiner is on the Democratic and Green lines.

Kenny cited the work in recent years by the Republican majority on the town board, singling out

• An LLC Disclosure Law that requires all LLC's to reveal their members whenever they apply for a permit or an action before the land use boards;
• A law to regulate the placement of places of worship and schools by addressing deficiencies in the Town code regarding lot and bulk controls, which resulted in a larger minimum lot size requirement;
• A law to implement to town's "Do Not Knock" registry;
• A law to establish a landlord registry;
• A law to improve the public notification to neighbors of land use projects and zone change requests;
• Establishing non-residents fees for use of our parks and recreational facilities;
• Increasing fines for violators of our town code; and
• Hiring additional code enforcement officers.

However, she told Patch, "these laws and actions are not enough. With the continued efforts of Ramapo developers to change the character of our suburban communities in Rockland (such as the proposed Pascack Ridge Development), more must be done to strengthen and protect our zoning laws and enforce our town code."

While agreeing on zoning and town code enforcement, Kleiner argued that part of Rockland Republicans' stance on overdevelopment did more harm than good.

"All of us must try to address the issues raised by overdevelopment without engaging in toxic and divisive political rhetoric," he told Patch. "The town and county Republican parties have exploited this issue for political gain, even though there is very little difference between their position and that of the Democrats outside the Town of Ramapo. Their actions have not helped the situation, rather they have inflamed religious tensions, encouraged anti-Semitic acts, and pitted neighbors against neighbors without offering any tangible solutions to address the issues of overdevelopment."

Kenny's proposals most closely linked to development issues include:

• Update the Town's woefully outdated comprehensive plan, which hasn't been updated since 2003 and review and strengthen our zoning laws and town code;
• Establish a land trust to purchase "under threat" properties to avoid fire sales and market the properties to proper buyers or repurpose for use by town residents;
• Work with environmentally friendly businesses to commercially develop RPC, fill the IRG property, improve the Route 303 corridor and protect large properties such as Nyack College and HNA.

Kleiner's plan also includes:

• Increase penalties for people and companies that repeatedly violate the building codes
• No downzoning
• Aggressively prosecute violations of the town's Do Not Knock law

SEE:

• Orangetown Candidate Profile: Kleiner For Town Supervisor
• Orangetown Candidate Profile: Kenny For Town Supervisor

MORE READING:

• Overdevelopment Is Biggest Issue In Clarkstown Elections
• County GOP's "Storm" Video Unleashes Political Firestorm

Editor's Note: Kenny appears on the Republican, Conservative, SAM and Libertarian party lines on the ballot. Kleiner is on the Democratic and Green lines. The lines each candidate's name will appear on the ballot were incomplete and incorrect in the original version of this report. Patch regrets the error.