Cazenovia Pilot

Chenango Crossing - Patriot Enterprises - Town of Cazenovia Elections

The community debate about Chenango Crossing continues. This week's Cazenovia Republican contains a front-page article documenting concerns about the project; it also contains a profile of the landowners, Mr. and Mrs. Koglmeier, and there is a full-page advertisement taken out by the proposed subdivision's developer, Patriot Enterprises.

The Koglmeiers purchased the land along Chenango Street with intent to develop it eventually, and they have decided the time is right. They and their children have been my neighbors, and they have treated my family and me courteously. My own property was once part of the Koglmeiers' land, so to a small and indirect degree I am one of those who has benefited from the development south of the village of Cazenovia .

We are in the middle of election season, with town and county elections just two weeks away. There are two issues in Town of Cazenovia elections, both of which touch on the Chenango Crossing development:

Land Use / Planning / Zoning . There can be no doubt that Cazenovia is growing. The existing housing stock is virtually 100% occupied, and the last three years have seen the development of dozens of new apartment/townhome units on Carriage Lane as well as the first phase of the South Village development. That, coupled with the sale and subdivision of several farms in the southern half of the town of Cazenovia , has led to an increase in the number of people living in our community. As a result, we see:

• An increase in required services from law enforcement to fire prevention to education;
• Greater demand on our natural resources, especially water; and
• A change in the character of the community from "rural with a village core" to "suburban/rural mix with denser development around the old core".

As development pressure expands toward the Cazenovia area from the west (Manlius/Pompey) and north (Sullivan/Chittenango), the demand for more homes and services will continue to grow.

Some believe this is just fine; some are mortified. I believe it is inevitable. And that's precisely why I also believe that we need to do a far better job than we have been of both enforcing existing land-use guidelines (including the comprehensive plan, the CAPP reports, and zoning laws) and continuing the community dialog about the Cazenovia we have today and the one we will leave to our children and grandchildren.

Transparency . During the past summer, the village of Cazenovia had its first contested trustee election in several years. Voter turnout was the highest it has ever been. Why? Citizens were concerned about the rapid and seemingly haphazard annexation of land to the village for the purpose of development. The Koglmeier property - i.e., the proposed Chenango Crossing development - was symbolic of this as the last of four properties annexed in two years.

The perception among many residents was that the village board and mayor were part of a closed system that made annexation, and other, decisions based upon the self-interest of a small group rather than the community as a whole. This perception was validated to some extent when developers and landowners campaigned hard in support of the mayor and the incumbent trustee. The challenger won the trustee's spot in a landslide (57%-43%) running on a platform of democracy - open government and active, open consideration of all voices in the Cazenovia community.

The Town's government suffers from a similar perception of closed decision-making, even going as far as to suppress public comment from meetings unless questions were submitted in advance and approved by the council in closed session. The perpetual stunt of generating incumbency through the retirement of mayors and supervisors (and subsequent appointment of handpicked successors) has also aroused the suspicion of voters. This is especially true this year, as the contested village and town elections have raised voter interest in issues and the process of local government.

Both of these political issues play directly into the Chenango Crossing situation. When Patriot Enterprises claims in their advertisement that the proposed development meets the letter of the law, they may be correct. However, the annexation process was suspect, enabled by the seemingly fast-tracked and closed decisions of both the town and village boards. That flawed beginning does not justify continued bad choices.

Furthermore, Patriot has attempted to show that the Chenango Crossing development is similar to both the Old Farms and South Village developments in its scale and impact. The aerial photo in their advertisement actually illustrates many of the problems with the development that separate it from those others. The proposed development:

• Extends the southern edge of the village;
• Will force the removal of hundreds of mature trees; and
• Is not in an area included as an annexation/residential development possibility in the CAPP report and village comprehensive plan (the other sites were) largely because of the wetlands that comprise most of the property and protect the village's water supply.

Patriot Enterprises' protests and aggressive tactics in the face of broad community opposition indicate their desperation regarding this project. Dealt a small political blow in the village elections when one of the annexation champions was turned out of office, they now have to deal with dozens of residents at every planning meeting, and a new contested election in which land use and the future of Cazenovia are key issues. Chenango Crossing is a harbinger of how Cazenovians will decide their future.

Had the Koglmeiers decided to sell their land for the development of five or six homes within the scale and style of existing Chenango Street homes ( South Village and Old Farms notwithstanding), we as a community would not be having this discussion. Had they elected to create townhomes or single-family homes that did not show their backsides to Chenango Street (pun intended), we would not be having this discussion. Instead, they and Patriot Enterprises opted for maximum profit and for leveraging an effectively closed process in the annexation and proposed development of the land. As a result, the residents of the town and village have taken notice of both the quality-of-life (land use/planning) and quality-of-representative-government (transparency) issues that are central to both the future of Cazenovia and to the current town and county elections.

Perhaps those speaking out in this process, myself included, represent the other side of the situation Mr. Koglmeier identifies in the paper this week. He says that he is doing what he planned all along, what is right for him and his family, but that it is unpleasant to have his neighbors, many of whom he has known for years, angry with him. To him, it seems worth the risk for the financial gain he hopes to achieve. For me, speaking up about these issues is worth the risk for the Cazenovia I love and the one for which we all share responsibility.