• Abstract and Figures
• Public Full-text

This community newsletter publishes information, events, problems and concerns affecting the people of Palisades. 10964 needs your moral and financial support. Please send a contribution for 10964 to Box 201, Palisades, NY 10964. With your help you'll find OCTOBER 1988 No. 104 10964 in your mailbox every month. SS*! FROM THE STAFF OF 10964: IBM sf It is with regret that we announce the resignation with her band, sang nightly at the piano, ran a of Leslie Price Hayes as Editor. We want to thank her household and so on and so on. Let's face it, that's a for her tireless efforts over the past two years in hectic schedule and in this regard, we understand her making this newsletter better than ever. Those of us on desire to step down, although she will certainly be the staff know just how much effort is involved to get missed by us all. On behalf of this newsletter, we still this publication to appear, as if by magic, in Palisad- hope Leslie will write for us occasionally, and, knowing ians's mailboxes each month. As Editor, Leslie was her inexhaustible brand of energy, we expect to hear responsible for pulling it all together. great things about her doings in the future. Thanks It is amazing how Leslie successfully managed the again, Leslie, and we wish you the best. Editorship of 10964 and appeared in plays, performed Holly Whitstock Seeger <& THE TOWN HALL QUESTION VANISHING WOODLANDS Prompt Action Urged Update on the Alpine Boy Scout Land Sale Some time ago I was asked to write a description of In the May issue of 10964,1 reported thatthe Alpine the activities of the committee created to study options to Boy Scout Camp had sold a tract of land located off meet the Town of Orangetown's need for office space. Piermont Road (Route 340) at the end of Pierson Avenue Since I had been appointed to the panel by the Town in Norwood, N. J., to a group of developers known as Board last July, I assumed there would be some interest­ Norwood East Hill Associates. My original article was ing news to report by this time. Based on that assump­ based on information from this group as well as the Boy tion, l promised to report to 10964 our progress to the Scouts. I have now discovered that there are two end of September. This report must be very short groups, Norwood East Hill Watch and Norwood Nature because no meetings of the committee have been called Association, who are actively opposing the development to this date. (If meetings have been held I have not been plans for this property known as Norwood East Hill. notified.) This fact is cause for concern, because, in my The Norwood East Hill Watch is headed by Ian view, the selection of the most advantageous route to and Yvonne Maitland of Norwood, and they have been meet the town's present and future needs for office space tenaciously fighting against these development plans requires considerable study and should not be left for a for the past eight years. Mrs. Maitland reports that decision to be recommended by panel members after a Norwood East Hill, a tract comprising 151 acres, was few hasty meetings. originally part of the Rockefeller Trust. This contrasts The special committee consists of Councilmen with information I had received from Mr. Dan Ruth, Thomas Swift and Roger Pellegrini and thefollowingtown Camping Director of the Boy Scouts of America, who officials: John Rocco, chairman of the Planning Board; had said that the land had been given by a private William Crable, chief of police; William Zimmerman, head donor. According to Mrs. Maitland, the bulk of the of the Building Department; Joseph Clarke, Parks and donated land is located in Alpine. It amounts to Recreation superintendent; Bernard Albin, chairman of approximately 650 acres and is protected by a stipula­ the Architecture and Community Appearance Board of tion stating that if the Boy Scouts should decide that they Review. The perspectives of all of the above members no longer need the land, ownership of the deed automati­ should be very helpful in assisting the Town Board to cally goes to the Palisades Interstate Park. For some reach a wise decision in providing for the town's needs reason, this condition did not apply to the Norwood for present and future office space consistent with the section and the result is the existing turmoil. general concern for utility, economy and aesthetics. An interesting side note is that the same terms did (Cont'd p. 3) (Cont'd p. 2) VANISHING WOODLANDS (Cont'd from p. 1) not apply to some property in Rockleigh, N. J., as well, Developers, had put together developments of luxury and when the Boy Scouts let it be known that it was single family homes. up for sale, the residents of that town united to buy Ms. Lupow reports that the Rio Vista Developers the land. It is now a bird sanctuary. Apparently, there specialize in "improving" the land with roads, utility was no such sentiment in Norwood. lines and pipes, etc. The tract is divided into lots Mrs. Maitland informed me that Norwood East Hill is which are then sold individually. As a result, there is on the New Jersey Register of Natural Areas, a state no guarantee as to what the actual look of the designation given to exceptional natural resources. In homes will be, and the Rio Vista Developers take no addition, they have a great deal of support from the responsibility for that aspect. Sierra Club and the New Jersey Audubon Society. Be that as it may, the real issue here is not the She emphasized the importance of a natural wood­ physical appearance of these prospective homes but land outside the polluted metropolis of Manhattan in rather their lact of appearance at all. At present, due terms of filtering air and water. She is certain that to the lack of permits, no work has begun on the flooding problems will plague Piermontand Sparkill in land, and Ms. Lupow feels strongly that, in the event the event that the development is built, as they are that the DEP bill does not go through, it will still be directly below Norwood East Hill. She also stated that years before the developers wade through all the the entire area of the Boy Scout Camp represents the necessary red tape. highest density of breeding birds in this area, Despite the threat of impending bulldozers just including red-shouldered hawks. Additional wildlife waiting for the word to "improve" the land in comprises seven species of orchids, 22 varieties of Norwood, both opposing groups maintain positive ferns, native grey foxes, pileated woodpeckers and attitudes. Ms. Lupow feels that there is always a woodturtles. chance that the permits will not go through. She Despite these facts, the Town of Norwood can't say one way or another how things will turn granted the Norwood East Hill Associates preliminary out, but it's eight years since the plans were first approval. However, as of this date, no permits of any proposed and something has always come up in their kind have been issued and are contingent upon favor. approval from various governmental groups, one of The expression, "it ain't over 'til it's over," comes which is the Department of Environmental Protection. to mind. By finally getting to the other side of the Ms. Susan Lupow, President of the Norwood story, I feel that the once cold, hard facts of my Nature Association, the other opposing group, previous article have somewhat thawed. In the event informed me that there is a bill under debate in the that the pending DEP bill passes in New Jersey and New Jersey State Legislature to protect 470 acres of the land becomes protected by law, perhaps it will natural woodlands. The Norwood tract, as well as serve as food for thought to us here, just over the portions of Alpine and Rockleigh, are among this border, as the issue of vanishing woodlands is one acreage that the DEP would like to save in the name which is close to our hearts as well. of the state. She feels that this bill represents a bright light of hope for their side, as there now Holly Whitstock Seeger appears to be a climate for land preservation in Bergen County, and cites her own address of Englewood, N. J., as an indication that the residents of Norwood are not the only ones involved in this dispute. According to Ms. Lupow, if the bill comes through, the state would buy back all 470 acres in question. At that time, the land would be assessed by several firms and the deciding sale price would be the highest one given. In effect, Norwood East Hill Associates would still earn a profit. Undoubtedly, this is not the sort of profit the land developers had in mind. During my conversation with Mr. Mavroudis, their attorney, he said he could not understand what all the fuss was about and gave me the impression that development was just about to begin. He also cited two other locations where his company, which is a subdivision of the Rio Vista 2 NEWS FROM THE PTA Albert E. Dickson, Regional Director NYS Dept of Transportation 4 Burnett Blvd. Poughkeepsie, N. Y. 12603 Michael J. Mignogna, Regional Traffic Engineer NYS Dept. of Transportation 4 Burnett Blvd. The three South Orangetown PTAs and PTA Coun­ Poughkeepsie, N. Y. 12603 cil, composed of delegates from the three PTAs, held their installation of officers at the South Orangetown Hon.

Load more

  12

Copy Link