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Pocantico Lake Proposed Cluster Housing will be Environmental Debacle

A project of this magnitude threatens a vital natural corridor & its water supply, risking the county's more than $10 million investment!

Westchester communities rally against a proposal before the Mt. Pleasant Planning Board to develop approx. 37 acres of property at 715 Sleepy Hollow Rd. into a 31-home Cluster Subdivision. It threatens one of the highly treasured natural open space areas in Westchester.

This proposed development could have a disastrous long term environmental impact on thousands of Westchester residents long into the future.

Clearly a project of this magnitude and significant impact to our greater Westchester community, left in the hands of 5 local planning board members requires a thorough review of the 1,500-page document (which includes appendices and reports). Before a disastrous approval is made.

Find out what's happening in Ossining-Croton-On-Hudsonfor free with the latest updates from Patch.

The developers DEIS statement was surprisingly accepted as “complete” in late December 2022. The detailed project description including their flawed interpretation of environmental impacts etc. is below (see link)

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1WYSWqIlEzGYShNtjqzB43EMqQeN9N4Ew/view?usp=sharing

Find out what's happening in Ossining-Croton-On-Hudsonfor free with the latest updates from Patch.

At the first public hearing on Feb. 2nd, there were more than 60 people present in the room. 26 speakers opposed the development 0 spoke in support of it. Agencies/Organizations/Governments that spoke: Sleepy Hollow Mayor, Mt. Pleasant Conservation Advisory Council (CAC), Pleasantville CAC, Federated Conservationists of Westchester County (FCWC), Scenic Hudson, Save Potantico Lake, Concerned Citizens of Ossining, and Westchester Land Trust. Already Several experts have found many inaccuracies, misleading statements, and important omissions. The recorded hearing can be watched on PT. Pleasant town link: http://wwtmp.com/pb.html

• The Potantico River a major nine-mile tributary of the Hudson River runs from the lake through NYS Rockefeller Preserve, travels through Sleepy Hollow (including the historic cemetery), fills the mill pond at Philipsburg Manor and ultimately reaches Kingsland Park which discharges into the Hudson River. Runoff from this development from contaminants in new fill and possible new residential lawn pesticides etc. would pollute the lake and river.

• The developers propose removing possibly more than 6 acres of forest. Damaging the ecological balance for wildlife etc.

• Thousands of Westchester County Residents signed a petition that endorsed the resolution unanimously passed by the Westchester County Parks, Recreation, and Conservation Commission signaling to the County Executive and Board of Legislators to purchase and continue to protect this beloved Park with all its intrinsic environmental benefits for wildlife, water purity, and recreational use enjoyed by residents & visitors across Westchester.

• For over 100 years it serviced thousands of Westchester residents with potable water. It is a possible reserve supply for future use.

• The developer is proposing sending the sanitary effluent from the project to the Ossining Sewer District via newly dug sewer pipe to the existing main, then entering the lift station owned and operated by Briarcliff Manor. This will cause extensive traffic disruption and inconvenience to many residents in the surrounding communities over many months!

• Purchased by Westchester County, the park was designated a Critical Environmental Area in 1990, which is one of only 6 watersheds in Westchester and is home to wetlands, wildlife habitat and an array of birdlife that awes daily visitors: bald eagles, osprey, and blue herons, to name a few. The property is a priority conservation area according to the NYSDEC Estuary Program.

• The developer continues to “market” their proposed alternatives as “preserving … open space” and our elected officials seem to be talking the bait. The reality is that the property contains steep slopes and wetlands and therefore, cannot be safely developed without great risk to all of us! Important to note tons of soil nearly 800 trucks of soil to put on top of bedrock, so houses can be built on the fill, over the bedrock, on top of the steep slopes over the lake with untold environmental impact to the water and natural ecosystem!

• Next public hearing scheduled for Thursday, March 30th, at 7:30 p.m. at Mount Pleasant Town Hall, One Town Hall Plaza, Valhalla, NY