1995-05-26
FREDERICK P. CLARK ASSOCIATES, INC.
Planning / Development/ Environment/Transportation
Rye, New York and South port, Connecticut
David J. Portman, AICP
Howard I. Reynolds, PE
David H. Stolman, AICP
350 Theodore Fremd Avenue
Rye, New York 10580
(914) 967 -6540
REC'-"'\/ED
L~v .
Michael A. Galante
Joanne P. Meder, AICP
Jim Donovan, RLA. ASLA
J UNO 1 1995
MEMORANDUM
ELAINE SNOWDEN
TOWN CLERK
To:
supervisor Constance O. smith and the
wappinger Town Board
william Parsons, Chairman, and the
Town of Wappinger Planning Board
Date: May 26, 1995
subject: Existing and Proposed zoning of Conservation Office
Park (COP) Districts
As requested, we have prepared this memorandum for the purpose of
discussing the existing and proposed zoning of the various COP
Districts in the Town. It is our understanding that this matter
will be discussed at the Town Board work session on June 12th.
Therefore, it is important for any comments which the Planning
Board may have with regard to this matter to be received by the.
Town Board by June 12th.
INTRODUCTION
It is our understanding that the Conservation Office Park zoning
district was created in the 1980s, at a time when southern Dutchess
County was developing in a relatively strong manner, and at a time
when it appeared to be important to create and implement a zoning
district which would provide for campus office development at a
relatively low density in order to preserve a certain amount of
open space. As suggested above, the permitted density in the COP
District is the lowest of all of the non-residential zoning
districts in the Town. Specifically, the COP District permits the
least amount of building coverage (a maximum of 15%) of all the
non-residential zoning districts and the COP and Conservation
Commercial (CC) zoning districts permit the lowest floor area ratio
(a maximum of 0.2) compared to the other non-residential zoning
districts.
As we are all aware, the strong development of the 1980s has not
continued into the 1990s. Further, the economy in southern
Dutchess County has been hurt by the downsizing of corporations
such as IBM. The COP zoning district is therefore a remnant of a
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bygone era and should be replaced with zoning which is appropriate
for the times.
There are six COP areas within the Town. It is recommended that
four of these areas are rezoned from COP to other zoning
classifications as explained below. It is recommended that two of
the six COP areas remain zoned COP for the time being for the
reasons also explained below. These six COP areas are shown on the
attached figures. These figures will be used as part of the SEQRA
analysis and as part of thr local law regarding the proposed zoning
amendments and rezonings.
COP DISTRICT #1
COP District #1 consists of 60 acres occupied by much of the BJ's
Shopping Center, and the adjacent 24-acre parcel of land to the
north which has frontage on Myers Corners Road. This rezoning area
also includes a 15.5-acre portion of a Highway Design (HD) District
on which the parking lot for the BJ's building is actually located.
The 24-acre parcel is largely undeveloped and contains New York
State Department of Environmental Conservation wetlands. This
rezoning area is bordered by the BJ's building (already zoned SC)
and one-family residences to the south and the east, Route 9 to the
west and the Wappingers Plaza Shopping Center to the north.
It is recommended that this area be rezoned from COP and HD to the
Shopping Center (se) District. The SC District is appropriate for
this rezoning area since the majority of this area has already been
developed as a shopping center. Further, the 24-acre
underdeveloped lot with frontage on Myers Corners Road separates
two existing shopping centers; rezoning this property to SC would
link these separate SC Districts. The COP and SC dimensional
requirements are very similar and the SC District would effectively
increase the variety of permitted uses without dramatically
changing the overall development density in this important area of
the Town. Rezoning this area to SC would also be responsive to the
dramatic change in the economic climate (i.e., a very soft office
market and a relatively stronger retail market).
'The following analysis of the rezonings assumes that the
proposed revisions to the text of the Zoning Law are adopted at the
same time as the rezonings.
2
COP - CONSERVATION OFFICE PARK
HB - HIGHWAY BUSINESS
HD - HIGHWAY DESIGN
HO - HIGHWAY OFFICE
R-40 - 1 FAMILY RESIDENCE
R-20/40 - 1 FAMILY RESIDENCE
R-20 - 1 FAMILY RESIDENCE
R-10 - 1 FAMILY RESIDENCE
RMF-5 - MULTI-FAMILY RESIDENCE
SC - SHOPPING CENTER
It PROPOSED REZONING AREA
PROPOSED ZONING REVISIONS
Town of Wappinger, New York
COP DISTRICT # 1 ~
FREDERICK P. CLARK ASSOCIATES. INC
PIa nning/Developmenl,' Envir cnmen! ITr anspor I alion
Scale in Feet
MAY 1995
I
1000
500
I
1000
COP DISTRICT #2
COP District #2 is the 59-acre COP District encompassing the
Pizzagalli office building complex on Myers Corners Road which is
the site of the Laerdal Medical Corp. operation. This property was
almost fully developed under its prior Planned Industrial (PI)
zoning and the existing office building complex is currently
nonconforming with respect to the bulk and other dimensional
requirements of the COP District. It is recommended that the
zoning of this property be changed back to PI in order to be
consistent with the existing use and development of the subject
property.
3
,
PI
PROPOSED ZONING REVISIONS
Town of Wappinger, New York
COP - CONSERVATION OFFICE PARK
R-40 - 1 FAMILY RESIDENCE
R-20 - 1 FAMILY RESIDENCE
PI -PLANNED INDUSTRY
[Hi?:?:?:1 PROPOSED REZONING AREA
COP DISTRICT #2
ti
FREDERICK P. CLARK ASSOCIATES. INC.
PIa nni ng /0 e velo p m ~ n I,' En" ir onm en 1/ Tr a n sp or t a tion
MAY 1995
Scale in Feet
I
1000
500
I
1000
COP DISTRICT #3
COP District #3 consists of the 124-acre COP District located along
the east side of Route 376 to the north of Myers Corners Road.
This area includes the 4.4-acre parcel which was recently contract
rezoned to Highway Business (HB) for the Family Farms Market
proposal.
other than the vacant "Castle" building and electrical utility
transmission lines, cOP District #3 is undeveloped. It is bounded
by one-family homes on the west, by Route 376 on the west and
south, on the east by proposed County Route 11, and on the north by
a utility right-of-way. The surrounding areas primarily include
one-family residences in the R-40 and R-40/80 Districts.
We recommend that this area be rezoned from COP and HB to
Conservation Commercial. The lO-acre minimum lot size of the cOP
District has proven to be a deterrent to the commercial development
of the subject properties. The CC District would add retail and
service uses, among others, to the permitted uses of the rezoning
area and would allow such development on smaller, more affordable
lots. This rezoning would also be generally consistent with the
zoning and use of properties to the east of the subject rezoning
area in the Town of East Fishkill.
4
~
HB
TO CC
Town of East Fishkill
CC - CONSERVATION COMMERCIAL
COP - CONSERVATION OFFICE PARK
HB - HIGHWAY BUSINESS
R-40/80 - 1 FAMILY RESIDENCE
R-40 - 1 FAMILY RESIDENCE
R-20 - 1 FAMILY RESIDENCE
kd PROPOSED REZONING AREA
PROPOSED ZONING REVISIONS
Town of Wappinger, New York
COP DISTRICT #3 ~
FREDERICK P. CLARK ASSOCIATES. INC.
Planning/Developmen I /Environmentl Tr anspor tat ion
Scate in Feet
MAY 1995
I
1000
SOD
I
1000
COP DISTRICT(S) #4
COP District(s) #4 consists of three separate COP Districts
comprising a total of 340 acres in the northern portion of the Town
to the east of the Dutchess County Airport. The three COP
Districts are located adj acent to the Airport Industrial (AI)
District and zhave frontages on Maloney Road, Airport Business
Center Drive, New Hackensack Heights Road and proposed County
Route 11.
with the exception of the small portion of land fronting on New
Hackensack Heights Road, it is recommended that COP District #4 be
changed from COP to AI. It is recommended that the area along New
Hackensack Heights Road be rezoned to R-40 in order to be
consistent with the adjacent residential lots.
Rezoning the vast maj ori ty of this area to AI would permit a
broader range of uses on smaller, more affordable lots. Further,
the AI District is appropriate given the area's proximity to Route
376, the Dutchess County Airport, Airport Business Center Drive and
the possible future connection to proposed County Route 11. The
increased development density, smaller lots and broader range of
uses will permit and encourage more intensive, economically
feasible and productive use of these lands. The relatively large
5-acre minimum lot size of the AI District will require substantial
investment and will encourage quality development of each lot while
providing adequate area for future expansion.
ZThe Town's Zoning Map does not show Airport Business Center
Drive.
5
Town of Poughkeepsie Town of LaGrange
~ COP
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TO AI
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AI - AIRPORT INDUSTRY
CC - CONSERVATION COMMERCIAL
COP - CONSERVATION OFFICE PARK
GB - GENERAL BUSINESS
NB - NEIGHBORHOOD BUSINESS
R-40/80 - 1 FAMILY RESIDENCE
R-40 - 1 FAMILY RESIDENCE
RMF-5 - MULTI-FAMILY RESIDENCE
r:::n:::) PROPOSED REZONING AREA
PROPOSED ZONING REVISIONS
Town of Wappinger, New York
COP DISTRICT #4 f'l
FREDERICK P. CLARK ASSOCIATES. INC.
PI a nnin 9 10 BV e I opmen 1 / Env iro nm en II Tr a n s p or tat ion
Scale in Feet
MAY 1995
I
1000
500
I
1000
COP DISTRICT #5
COP District #5 is located on the east side of Route 9 at McFarland
Road and consists of a 48-acre lot which is bisected by the Central
Hudson power lines and their right-of-way. The property is located
behind the Highway Office (HO) and HB Districts along Route 9 and
behind one-family residences in the R-20 District on the south side
of McFarland Road.
An application has been made for the rezoning of this area and we
recommend that this area not be rezoned by the Town Board until the
Town and Applicant have continued and concluded their dialogue
regarding the appropriate zoning of this area.
6
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COP - CONSERVATION OFFICE PARK
R-2F - 2 FAMILY RESIDENCE
R-SO - 1 FAMILY RESIDENCE
R-40 - 1 FAMILY RESIDENCE
R-20/40 - 1 FAMILY RESIDENCE
R-20 - 1 FAMILY RESIDENCE
R-10 - 1 FAMILY RESIDENCE
RMF-5 - MULTI-FAMILY RESIDENCE
HB - HIGHWAY BUSINESS
HD - HIGHWAY DESIGN
[HI SUBJECT AREA
PROPOSED ZONING REVISIONS
Town of Wappinger, New York
COP DISTRICT #5
~
FREDERICK P. CLARK ASSOCIATES. INC.
PI a nningl 0 e velopme n t IEnv ironmen II Tr a ns per tat ion
Scale in Feet
MAY 1995
I
'000
500
o
I
1000
COP DISTRICT #6
COP District #6 is an oval-shaped area of approximately 86 acres
located within a large property which extends from the west side of
All Angels Hill Road (opposite Hilltop Drive and Edge Hill Drive)
southwesterly to Old Hopewell Road. A small portion of this
district is developed with a manufacturing building which is
currently used by Flavormatic Industries. The Flavormatic site has
access from All Angels Hill Road via a private road.
An application has also been made for the rezoning of this area and
we recommend that the zoning of this area not be changed by the
Town Board until the Town and Applicant have continued and
concluded their dialogue regarding the appropriate zoning of this
area.
CONCLUSION
The proposed rezonings will provide the potential for a positive
effect on the Town's tax base by removing an absolete zoning from
the subject properties, and by making it easier to develop these
properties by permitting a wider range of permitted uses on
generally smaller (and therefore more affordable) building lots.
* * * *
We look forward to discussing the proposed COP District rezonings
at the Town Board's June 12th work session.
David H. Stolman, AICP
Daniel K. Wery, AICP
cc:
Roberts, Esq., Town Attorney
Pa i Jr., PE, Town Engineer
500\wap5-014.dhs:ev
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COP - CONSERVATION OFFICE PARK
R-40 - 1 FAMILY RESIDENCE
R-20 - 1 FAMILY RESIDENCE
J:}}}}:l SUBJECT AREA
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PROPOSED ZONING REVISIONS
Town of Wappinger, New York
COP DISTRICT #6
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FREDERICK p, CLARK ASSOCIATES, INC.
PIa nning 10 evelopm en t I Env ir 0 nm e n II Tr a n s p or t a I ion
MAY 1995
Scale in Feet
I
1000
I
1000
500
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