The Summit at Forts Ferry
Many residents in Colonie have been following the development proposal by Frank Nigro for a large senior living facility on Forts Ferry Road called “The Summit.”
The project has been on many agendas for the Colonie Planning Board and Zoning Board of Appeals, and the West Latham Neighborhood Association and neighbors of the proposed project have been raising concerns. The project design has changed several times, and despite direction and discussion by the Planning Board and other town officials for the developer to meet with the Neighborhood Association, adequate outreach and meetings with neighbors have not occurred.
October 2018: Latest Developments
Forts Ferry area residents have been advocating for their quality of life, their property values, traffic matters and more. The Summit was placed on the packed October 16, 2018 Planning Board agenda, this time for final approval.
On the Friday before the meeting, the Town denied the neighbors' Freedom of Information Law (FOIL) request for the Town Designated Engineers' evaluation of this project, which they were seeking in order to prepare for the meeting.
Late Monday, October 15th, the day before the meeting, the Town reversed that decision and GRANTED the FOIL request. THIS IS AN IMPORTANT VICTORY FOR THE NEIGHBORS as they seek transparency around the decision making pertaining to this project!
However, despite this victory, this late decision leaves the neighbors with mere hours to review the hundreds of pages of documents and prepare for the Planning Board meeting where final approval of the Summit is scheduled. Unless, of course, the Town grants the neighbors' reasonable request to postpone this Planning Board review of the Summit to allow for a meaningful examination of the files.
See the documents on the Summit at Forts Ferry just released for public review:
Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plan (549 pages)
Site Plans (22 pages)
Water District Extension Report (22 pages)
Geotechnical Evaluation (61 pages)
Garage Design (1 page)
Notice of Substantial Compliance with Subbmittial Requirements (5 pages)
Comment Response Letter (14 pages)
CALL TO ACTION: POSTPONE AND ALLOW RESIDENTS TIME TO REVIEW DOCUMENTS
The meeting agenda is already packed, and it is clear to the Town that there are residents interested in becoming more informed prior to the meeting so they can meaningfully participate. Postponing the review of the Summit would allow for transparency and informed resident participation, elevating the discussion. It would also shorten the overly packed agenda where FIVE projects are scheduled for review, a practice which often makes for a long and grueling night for resident, applicant and Planning Board participants alike.
What’s the rush? Why would the Board not encourage a delay to allow the public review of the newly released documents? What do you think?
Please let the Town know you support delaying this project review to give residents time to look at the newly released files and encourage transparency in our Town government. Email:
Town Supervisor Paula Mahan: MahanP@colonie.org
Town Board Member Paul Rosano (liaison to Planning Board): RosanoP@colonie.org
Planning Board Chair Peter Stuto: c/o PEDD@colonie.org
Planning and Economic Development Director Joe LaCivita: LaCivitaJ@colonie.org