DRAFT Final Environmental Impact Statement for Rapp Road Residential /Western Avenue Mixed Use Redevelopment Projects Town of Guilderland, New York Lead Agency: Town of Guilderland Planning Board Guilderland Town Hall Route 20 Guilderland, New York 12084 Contact: Kenneth Kovalchik, Town Planner (518) 356-1980 Project Sponsor: Prepared By: Rapp Road Development, LLC The Chazen Companies One Crossgates Mall Road 547 River Street Albany, New York Troy, NY 12180 (518) 869-3522 Contact: Stuart Messinger, AICP (518) 273-0055 July 2020 Report Contributors: The Chazen Companies Maser Consulting, P.A. 547 River Street 400 Columbus Avenue, 180E Troy, NY 12180 Valhalla, NY 10595 Contact: Stuart Messinger, AICP Contact: John Collins, Ph.D., P.E. (518) 273-0055 (914)-347-7500 Hartgen Archaeological Associates, Inc. B. Laing Associates, Inc. 1744 Washington Avenue Extension 103 Fort Salonga Road – Suite 5 Rensselaer, New York 12144 Fort Salonga, New York 11768 Contact: Adam Lucier Contact: Michael Bontje (518) 283-0534 (631) 261-7170 Whiteman, Osterman and Hanna, LLP Camoin Associates One Commerce Plaza – 19th Floor 120 West Avenue - Suite 303 Albany, New York 12260 Saratoga Springs, New York 12866 Contact: Robert Sweeney, Esq. Contact: Daniel Gundersen (518) 487-7600 (518) 899-2608 Date of Notice of Completion of DEIS: February 12, 2020 Date of Public Hearing: March 11, 2020 (rescheduled); March 25, 2020 (rescheduled); May 13, 2020 DEIS Comment Deadline Date: March 23, 2020, extended to May 4, 2020; further extended to May 26, 2020 Date of Notice of Completion of FEIS: TABLE OF CONTENTS Executive Summary ....................................................................................................................................... i Section 1 Introduction ............................................................................................................................... 1 Section 2 Responses to Substantive Comments ........................................................................................ 2 2.1 Biological, Terrestrial and Ecology .............................................................................................. 2 2.2 Historic, Cultural and Archeological Resources ......................................................................... 48 2.3 Traffic and Transportation .......................................................................................................... 52 2.4 Land Use and Zoning ................................................................................................................ 100 2.5 Character of the Community/Neighborhood ............................................................................. 118 2.6 Schools, Community Facilities and Municipal Services ........................................................... 130 2.7 Air Quality and Noise ............................................................................................................... 135 2.8 Municipal Revenues and Finances ............................................................................................ 146 2.9 Alternatives ............................................................................................................................... 153 2.10 Water Resources ....................................................................................................................... 162 2.11 Miscellaneous ........................................................................................................................... 167 Section 3 Written Agency Comments, Public Comments and Public hearing transcript ..................... 187 Appendices 1. “Management Plan for the Conservation of the Crossgates Karner Blue Butterfly Habitat” dated October 5, 1981 2. Resume of Michael P. Bontje 3. Spreadsheet of Field Investigation Dates 4. List of additionally-observed species of the sites’ biota 5. Reproduction of the relevant portion of Figure 8 in the APB Management Plan update of 2017 6. July 1, 2020 Maser Consulting responses to May 26, 2020 New York State Department of Transportation comment letter 7. New York State Department of Environmental Conservation email dated April 1, 2020 8. United States Army Corps of Engineers jurisdictional determination 9. New York State Department of Environmental Conservation opinion 10. Maser Consulting P.A. Response Letter dated April 10, 2020 11. Maser Consulting P.A. Response Letter to Albany County Planning Board dated April 9, 2020 12. 2001 Town of Guilderland Comprehensive Plan 13. Westmere Corridor Study 14. Town of Guilderland Local Law No. 4 of 2018 establishing Transit Oriented District 15. Westmere Fire Department Letter dated June 9, 2020; Guilderland EMS Letter dated July 13, 2020, 2020; Guilderland Police Department Letter dated June 10, 2020 16. Town of Guilderland Department of Water and Wastewater will serve letter, dated February 11, 2020 17. Engineer’s Report for Wastewater Management for Rapp Road Residential/Western Avenue Mixed Use Redevelopment Projects 18. B. Laing Associates Supplemental Air Quality Report 19. New York State Department of Transportation Letter dated October 7, 1994 20. Maser Consulting P.A. Response Letter dated April 21, 2020 21. B. Laing Tree-Clearing Report for “Site 2” 22. Albany Pine Bush Preserve Technical Committee June 18, 2020 Project Review Update 23. July 1, 2020 Maser Consulting responses to Greenman Pederson Letter comment letter 24. Traffic Mitigation Plan Update (DEIS – FEIS) 25. Line of Site Drawing 26. Compilation of all Rapp Road Traffic Alternatives EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 1.0 DOCUMENT PURPOSE Pursuant to New York State Environmental Conservation Law (ECL) Article 8, SEQRA [SEQRA refers to the State Environmental Quality Review Act, while SEQR refers to the environmental review process stipulated in the statute and implementing regulations (6 NYCRR Part 617)]; and Part 617 of Chapter 6 of the New York Codes, Rules and Regulations (6 NYCRR Part 617), environmental review must be completed for projects that may result in a significant adverse environmental impact so that these impacts can be identified and avoided or mitigated to the maximum extent practicable. This Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS), which incorporates the previously issued Draft EIS (DEIS) by reference, has been prepared to evaluate potentially significant adverse impacts and reasonable alternatives. Moreover, measures to reduce/mitigate the significant adverse impacts that may potentially result from the construction and operation of the projects are identified in the EIS. Steps of the SEQR process are summarized below. i 2.0 PRIOR PROCEEDINGS 2.1 Application and SEQRA Background In November 2018, Rapp Road Development, LLC (“RRD” or the “Applicant”) filed site plan and subdivision applications to the Planning Board for a proposed development of 222 one and two bedroom apartments in five buildings with underground and surface parking on a ±19 acre site on Rapp Road (the “Proposed Rapp Road Project”) within the Town’s Transit Oriented Development (“TOD”) district. RRD submitted a completed Part 1 of a Full Environmental Assessment Form (“FEAF”), which identified agencies that may be required to issue a permit or approval, including the Town Board, Guilderland IDA, NYS Department of Environmental Conservation, Albany County Planning Board and NYS Office of Park, Recreation and Historic Preservation. The Planning Board determined that the Project constituted a Type 1 action under SEQRA, that a coordinated environmental review was required, and declared its intention to act as Lead Agency under SEQRA. None of these identified agencies expressed a desire to act as SEQRA Lead Agency and the Planning Board became the SEQRA lead agency. At its July 10, 2019 meeting, the Town Planning Board designated itself as SEQRA lead agency. On July 19, 2019, RRD filed a revised FEAF. Although the Planning Board had already undertaken a nine-month SEQRA and zoning review of the Rapp Road apartment project (November 2018 through July 2019), as lead agency, stopped the process and determined to expand the scope of the environmental review to include the assessment of the cumulative impacts of developing additional TOD zoned lands owned by the applicant or related entities in the immediate area of the Rapp Road site. 2.2 The Positive Declaration A determination of significance is the critical step in the SEQRA process in which the Lead Agency, having considered Parts 1 and 2 of an FEAF, decides whether an environmental impact statement must be prepared for an action. In furtherance of this determination, the Planning Board issued a Part 3 to the FEAF which redefined the “SEQRA Action” as Rapp Road Residential Development and Additional Lands. In support of that decision, Part 3 of the FEAF provided: Based on the information in Parts 1 and 2 and the entire record before the Planning Board, including expert environmental reports, the proposed action consisting of the development of 222 apartments on 19.68 acres will not have a significant adverse environmental impact on the environment. However, because the proposed action is 1) in the vicinity of other property within the Transit Oriented District located between Crossgates Mall Road and Western Avenue (see attached plan); and 2) this property is owned or controlled by entities affiliated with the project sponsor and ii developable with the TOD that utilize the same transportation and municipal facilities, the Planning Board determines that there may be a potentially significant