Water Key in $400 Million Catskills Resort Project

New York Governor Eliot Spitzer announced today an agreement on a major new resort complex in the Catskills--the largest and most environmentally advanced development project in the region in generations--and the protection of more than 1,400 acres of land. The agreement between Crossroads Ventures LLC, environmental groups, New York State and New York City will end a seven-year legal and regulatory battle and allow the project to move forward while still assuring strict environmental protections and land preservation.

"This project will simultaneously revitalize the region's economy by creating hundreds of new jobs and protect the environment through green buildings, watershed protection and land preservation," said Spitzer. "I thank all the parties who came to the table and accomplished great things for the Catskills. Their hard work illustrates that environmental protection and sustainable economic development can go hand in hand."

The new resort will be built on the border of Ulster and Delaware counties in the towns of Shandaken and Middletown, N.Y. It is located in an environmentally sensitive area of the New York City watershed in the central Catskill Mountains. The project includes two hotels, 259 lodging units, a conference center, spa and organic golf course. The land is adjacent to the state-owned Belleayre Mountain Ski Center and will feature ski-in/ski-out recreational opportunities. The projected cost of the project is $400 million. It is expected to create 450 full-time permanent jobs, 150 part-time jobs and 1,800 construction jobs over an estimated eight-year construction period.

With nine million New Yorkers relying on the Catskill-Delaware watershed to provide a safe and reliable source of drinking water, and this area being home to prized trout streams, protecting water quality was a guiding principle of this agreement. Crossroads Ventures has agreed to scale back the size of the development and to shift all proposed development ouut of the highly sensitive and impaired Ashokan Reservoir basin.

Key components of the agreement include:
• State acquisition of 1,216 acres of land on the Big Indian Plateau to be added to the State Forest Preserve through a purchase negotiated by the Trust for Public Land. The Big Indian Wilderness Area and the adjoining Slide Mountain Wilderness Area together make up the largest contiguous tract of wilderness in the Catskill Park;

• State acquisition of 78 acres at the former Highmount Ski Center to be integrated into a westward expansion of the state-owned Belleayre Mountain Ski Center and a New York City watershed conservation easement on 200 acres of nearby lands;

• Clustered development approach that reduces the total number of acres to be disturbed from 573 acres to 273 acres, a 52 percent reduction;

• Construction of environmentally sound green buildings that meet specifications set forth by the U.S. Green Building Council. These buildings will obtain certification under the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design program;

• Elimination of one golf course and redesign of the remaining golf course to minimize pollution impacts, including a commitment to organic golf course management;

• Substantial redesign of the resort to eliminate the placement of most buildings on steep slopes, while buffering wetlands and streams. The physical disturbance of the land by the proposed resort is reduced by half;

• Reduced visibility of the resort from wilderness areas of the Forest Preserve, design and materials alterations to help the resort better fit its surroundings and the use of lighting designed to avoid potential effects on night skies;

• Comprehensive and heightened storm water management design to control and manage runoff;

• Elimination of two proposed sewage treatment plants. Instead, the resort will utilize an existing New York City-owned, state-of-the-art sewage treatment plant in Pine Hill;

• Reduction of the total number of the resort's hotel and loging units, thereby reducing resort-related traffic and demands on local water resources;

• Half a million dollars in state funds for local smart growth projects through a new Central Catskills Smart Growth Initiative. Funding is from the state's Environmental Protection Fund and will be administered by the Department of Environmental Conservation. Separate from this agreement, the state will begin a public collaborative process to explore scenic by-way designation for the Rte. 28 corridor;

• Protection of Birch Creek and its aquatic habitat through elimination of the Big Indiana Plateau development and a rigorous permit condition which limits use of the existing water supply wells in drought conditions.

Annual property tax revenue of more than $2 million is expected to be paid to the town of Shandaken and the town of Middletown, local school districts and Ulster and Delaware counties. Annual sales tax revenue to the state and Ulster and Delaware counties is expected to be more than $2 million.

Congressmember Maurice Hinchey said, "I applaud Governor Spitzer for his leadership in developing a solution for the Belleayre Resort project that will help create new jobs and spur economic growth while minimizing negative impacts to the surrounding environment and protecting the integrity of the New York City watershed. When I introduced the lower build alternative for this plan as a starting point for these negotiations almost two years ago, I envisioned a final project that greatly resembled what was agreed to today. In particular, I applaud the state's purchase of more than 1,200 acres of wilderness to be included in the Catskill Forest Preserve as well as the developer's commitment to environmental safeguards such as the organic golf course and the incorporation of Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design certification in all of his buildings. While this project represents a dramatic improvement from what was originally proposed, I still intend to follow the subsequent review process carefully, particularly with regard to its size and potential impacts on the hamlet of Pine Hill."

Environmental Protection Agency Regional Administrator Alan J. Steinberg said, "The environmentally sensitive plan for a smaller development of Belleayre demonstrates that when government and the private sector are willing to take creative approaches, economic growth need preclude environmental protection. The new plan, with its focus on land preservation, conservation and sustainable practices, allows for the continued rigorous protecttion of the New York City watershed, the source of drinking water for millions of New Yorkers.

New York City Department of Environmental Protection Commissioner Emily Lloyd said, "We are pleased with the resolution and believe that it strikes just the balance between protecting the watershed and developing the local economy that the Watershed Memorandum of Agreement seeks to establish. The storm water management protocols developed for this agreement reflect state-of-the-art thinking and represent a comprehensive approach toward addressing storm water and erosion control. Most importantly, because there will be no development on the Big Indian Plateau, this agreement protects New York City's drinking water from potential erosion that could be caused by construction and land use changes in the geologically sensitive Ashokan Reservoir basin."

Pat Foye, chairman for the Empire States Development Corporation/Downstate said, "This agreement should serve as a model of how private-public cooperation can advance a region's economic development. This is truly a win-win-win situation; skiiers will have a new, world-class resort, an environmentally crucial part of the Catskill region will be preserved and Ulster and Delaware counties will get an infusion of capital and new jobs."

All the parties signed an agreement in principle, which lays out the agreement in detail. A supplemental environmental impact statement will be prepared for public review. All existing laws and regulations and opportunities for public participation will govern the review of the project.

Source: All American Patriots