Woodbury Common project not so popular, says mayor

Woodbury Mayor Andrew Giacomazza came out in strong support of the re-appointment of Planning Board Chairperson Christopher Gerver at the June 13 village of Woodbury Board of Trustees meeting and questioned the motives of Trustee James Freiband, the lone board member to object to the appointment.

When asked why he voted against the appointment, Freiband claimed it was because Gerver, as well as other planning board members, did not submit the necessary documentation of education needed to participate on the board. This claim was denied by Mayor Giacomazza, who said only one planning board member was missing his required education, and he was not voted back onto the board, adding that Gerver has gone above and beyond with his certifications. Village attorney Kelley Naughton clarified that some institutions no longer provide a physical certificate of completion, which may explain why Freiband was not able to find records.

Tara Burek, who serves as an advisor to Giacomazza and is married to Gerver, spoke in defense of her husband and called out Freiband’s comments as slander. She pointed to Gerver’s commitment to the village of Woodbury and his dedication to his role on the planning board.

“My husband has his educational requirements, has always had his educational requirements,” said Burek, speaking to Freiband. “If you’re going to come at him with something, please make sure it’s factual. I cannot sit here and continuously correct you in your misstatements because not everybody in the public will fact check you. You have a responsibility as a board member to state fact and not mislead the public any more than you already have.”

Speaking in support of the planning board chair, Giacomazza said, “Nobody does more for the village of Woodbury than Chris Gerver. You would have to be on the planning board or be on this side of the table to understand what goes on each and every meeting. I get upset when people want to dump on my planning board and my volunteers. I am not going to have it.”

Giacomazza further praised the work of the planning board as a whole and addressed concerns that applications were being held up by saying the issue was with the applications being submitted incorrectly and that if things were done properly the process would move along.

Woodbury Common expansion

Regarding the planning board, Giacomazza mentioned the recent public hearing held for Woodbury Common’s expansion and noted that only a small number of Woodbury residents, who were affiliated with the retail center, spoke in favor of the expansion; the rest were from elsewhere, he claimed. He shared that he knew many residents were not in favor of the project but did not speak out at the hearing.

“This was an important application in front of us. The Woodbury Common had everybody from the Orange County tourism, New York State tourism. They were selling how wonderful, great an expansion of the Woodbury Common is, and I kind of know that the residents of Woodbury are not crazy about the expansion of the Woodbury Commons, but that’s not what my planning board got to hear that night.”

Giacomazza took some of the blame for the lack of participation by Woodbury residents, saying that he doesn’t post the planning board agendas on the village Facebook page out of concern that it will require comment monitoring all day. Giacomazza shared that going forward he will post the planning and zoning board agendas to Facebook and may turn off commenting or have the board chairs help answer questions that arise.

In addition, Giacomazza said he is working with Burek to create an open house where village residents can learn how the various village boards work, how bills become law, and other procedures.

Senior housing

During the meeting, the village board heard from residents who were concerned about a requested zoning change which would enable a senior housing development to be built on Route 32 between Ford Avenue and Spring Road.

One resident questioned why the application received a negative declaration for environmental review, pointing to the nearby wetlands, Woodbury Creek, and a designated floodplain. He asked the room if anyone was in favor of the project and told the village to go out to resident seniors and see if this is something they want.

Another resident shared concerns about who would occupy the building, and worried that someone who is 55 or older may purchase a unit and then rent it out. “I feel like the senior housing is a trojan horse that’s used to get approval and then off it goes,” said the resident.

Trustee Susan Fries-Ciriello acknowledged resident concerns and shared her view that not allowing a senior housing zone, which limits developers’ abilities to build on the property, could open the village up to different projects with greater impact on the environment.

“I want to be in the best scenario to preserve the most amount of land, if that makes sense, the most amount of trees and the least amount of development,” said Fries-Ciriello. She added that the proposed location for the senior housing isn’t perfect, but is reasonable.

The board also raised concerns about the project’s stress on local emergency departments. “I’m thinking it’s going to be a strain on ambulance services and the fire department which are already strained now to begin with, and they’re going to be further strained with the Woodbury Commons adding a fifth phase and everything else that’s going on here,” said Giacomazza.

The applicant representative shared that the structures would be code compliant, include an alarm system, and have fire access roads onsite.

The representative also addressed concerns regarding the project’s potential impact on flooding and traffic. He acknowledged that flooding in the area is an issue; however, he claimed that his project would not make the situation worse. He highlighted the applicant’s efforts to mitigate the impact of construction, including a sediment erosion control plan. The representative said the applicant will work with the village on how to best control traffic and encouraged the board to reach out to state legislators to seek funding to support traffic mitigation efforts.

While the public hearing for the proposed zoning amendment is now closed, the public may still submit written comment to the board.

Ethics committee

During the meeting, the village board approved the establishment of an ethics committee. Referencing a statement by Freiband that was published in The Photo News, Giacomazza shared that he believes in transparency and called out those who would question his principles and ethics and said it was time to establish some oversight.

Trustee Matthew Fabbro asked why the board didn’t already have an ethics committee and shared his concern that, with the upcoming campaign season, the committee could be turned into something political.

The ethics committee was approved with full support from the board.