Looking To Simplify Zoning
By Thaddeus Flint
In an effort to try and simplify the Town of New Lebanon’s zoning, while at the same time removing some of the current conflicts found in Town codes, the Town Board moved a step closer to the possible hiring of a Zoning Rewrite Consultant at the January monthly meeting.
“We are seeing an excessive level of regulation,” said Town Supervisor Colleen Teal at the January 9 meeting, adding that “we are looking to simplify” in an effort to make the Town a more welcoming place for residents and businesses.
The idea to bring in a zoning consultant was first announced by Teal at the November 2017 meeting of the Town Board after a breakdown of the Town’s legal fees for the year so far showed a signicant amount was going toward zoning issues. And the Town probably wasn’t the only one keeping the lawyers happy, as applicants were finding that they too would probably need at least one counselor to help get them through the red tape. “Almost every single application coming through the door was requiring attorney review to figure out how to make it fit,” said Teal at the November 14 meeting. At that time, the Supervisor noted that the Town of Brunswick had gone down the zoning consultant path and it had cost around $100,000. There was hope that—should New Lebanon ever go down a similar path—the price would be substantially less as New Lebanon is substantially less populated. The estimated price tag then, which was still being used last Tuesday night, was $50,000 which the Supervisor said two months ago, “almost gave me a coronary.”
A $50,000 bill out of the blue to pay an outside firm to do what towns usually did by themselves might not quite induce heart attacks in all residents, but it would probably be pretty successful in making some of them apoplectic. And it’s not just the size of the bill. New Lebanon has shown time and again that they are willing to pay for something big, the problem is that they often don’t get anything big in return. Except the bill, they always get a bill and it’s usually big. The Town Hall is one example where all sorts of money and time was spent looking for a new Town Hall only to find it sitting at the Town Hall. Behan Planning is another example. Hired in 2013 with the goal of creating a long range plan to revitalize New Lebanon, they came to Town a few times with some nifty PowerPoint presentations and had a happy-smiley sit-down with residents in the little chairs at the Elementary School and then went away leaving some wondering where that revitalizing was happening. Were they missing it somewhere? Family Dollar appeared, but residents didn’t remember seeing that particular outfit in any of Behan’s PowerPoint slides. And, of course, there are the sidewalks. Only there aren’t any sidewalks, of course. But residents were still paying for them as of 2017.
Councilman Norman Rasmussen, who just this month is beginning his Town Board career, noted that from a breakdown of legal costs created by Teal, New Lebanon spent around $35,000 in zoning related matters in 2017. “How much would you expect that to be reduced by?” he asked.
“A substantial amount,” replied the Supervisor, adding that she envisioned a $30,000 savings in the first year after the zoning consultant’s ideas were implemented.
“So spend fifty [$50,000], and get it back in two years?” asked Rasmussen.
“That’s my anticipation,” said Teal.
There could also be the added stimulus of new businesses coming into the Town if things were just a bit simpler. Teal, in one example, noted that a simple turnaround of tenants at one of the two plazas in New Lebanon actually currently requires a site plan review. In that case, someone wanting to do something as simple as moving a desk and chair into an empty plaza space is looking at a possible red-tape delay of months before they can move a desk and a chair into an empty plaza space and make a phone call. “You’d have to wait three months to get into a shop?” said Councilman Kevin Smith. “They are gone.” Their tax revenue gone as well.
The Supervisor, however, has been along for the ride throughout all sorts of big spending projects over the years which didn’t realize big results, although then as the Town Clerk who had no say in anything. As this is essentially Teal’s idea, the Supervisor appears to be moving slowly in an effort to avoid ending up out on the sidewalk where there is no sidewalk. Her only request so far, which met no disagreement from the Board, is that the idea be further discussed at the upcoming Quad-Board meeting to be held January 30. Should the project be further supported, the Town’s attorney, Dan Tuczinski, could then prepare a Request for Proposal which would allow outside firms to provide a better scope of not only what might be accomplished, but how much that accomplishment might cost. “It’s not an easy decision,” admitted Teal.
An easier decision it would seem—although also one as of yet made—is should New Lebanon build an electric vehicle charging station? Probably the most compelling reason to do so would be to open up State grants for as much as $80,000. The reason for that, according to Robin Reynolds of the Capital District Regional Planning Commission, is that New Lebanon could use it as one of four “high impact actions” the Town needed to complete in order to be designated a “Clean Energy Community” which is needed in order to be eligible for such grants. Other benefits would be that such a station (which would cost New Lebanon itself pretty much nothing after money is received for installing a solar system) would attract electrical vehicle drivers who sometimes have to plan their trips step-by-step, in order to get where they are going without running out of power. EV people would come to New Lebanon, plug in their car and spend a few hours doing things like shopping or eating while their vehicles charged.
That seemed idealistic, and as such was immediately pounced on by resident Johanna Johnson-Smith. “Do what?” asked Johnson-Smith. “We don’t have anything to do.” Johnson-Smith also warned of the “strings attached” when it comes to accepting government grants and pointed out the EV vehicles come with their own environmental problems. Johnson-Smith’s husband, Planning Board member Robert Smith, grumbled about why he was now expected to pay to fill up someone else’s car.
Supervisor Teal responded that a decision to go forward was not in fact a decision to commit to building the charging station. She too said she was wary of “strings attached.” A vote with all in favor agreed that the Town should proceed with preparing an application. There are still two more steps to be voted on before the charging station becomes a reality.
Announcements:
New Lebanon turns 200 in 2018. April 22 is the actual birthday and plans are underway to re-enact the event, possibly in costume. A summer celebration of the bicentennial, a combination of Music in the Park and the Community Picnic, can now be added to calendars for August 19. The Supervisor says it will be “one big bang of an event.”