ROSA VOWS TO PROTECT ENVIRONMENT, APPEALS LOWER COURTS DECISION IN CASE AGAINST THE TOWN OF RAMAPO AND SCENIC DEVELOPMENT
Ramapo, NY (October 23, 2011) – On Friday, October 21st, the law firm of Tabner, Ryan and Keniry, representing the citizens Group, ROSA (Ramapo Organized for Sustainability and a Safe Aquifer), received Judge Thomas Walsh’s decision on ROSA’s Article 78 proceeding against the Town of Ramapo and the developer of the historic Patrick Farm property, Scenic Development LLC. ROSA had petitioned the Court to vacate Ramapo’s decision to grant the developer preliminary subdivision approval, arguing that the town had ushered in the controversial development on the environmentally sensitive property in an arbitrary and capricious manner. The court denied ROSA’s petition. ROSA’s Director Suzanne Mitchell stated, “While disappointing, this lower court decision was not unanticipated and does not deter ROSA’s advocacy to ensure that this ill-conceived and dangerous project is reviewed with integrity.” ROSA has long maintained the Town has been unrealistic and reckless in its review of a development that includes nearly five hundred homes, most of them high density, multi-family units built on a property that sits atop an EPA designated sole source aquifer.
“When ROSA filed this first lawsuit, which will be one of many, we understood that an appeal to a higher court would likely be necessary. We have been clear to all ROSA supporters from the beginning that there would be many battles throughout the process — and that we are in it for the long haul”, explained Mitchell. She went on to say, “Holding the Town of Ramapo accountable for its failure to seek an opinion on the project’s serious environmental issues by professionals other than those representing the developer is a major concern. We have already been addressing this by engaging in an ongoing dialogue with State and Federal agencies and requesting that they evaluate a number of important issues, the underreported wetlands among them. Additionally, since the recent storms, it is abundantly clear that the properties and roads surrounding the Patrick Farm already prone to flooding, is now a major concern that the Ramapo Planning Board has failed to address adequately.”
ROSA’s attorney, Tom Fallati said, “We were pleased that Judge Walsh rejected the defendants’ attempt to avoid a decision on the merits through a number of procedural roadblocks. We also believe that Judge Walsh’s decision on the merits would have been different had he considered the expert affidavits that we presented. We are confident that the appellate court will find, based on the entire record, that the Town of Ramapo acted arbitrarily in considering the Patrick Farm development project.” Mitchell elaborated further, “Evidence provided by our engineers explained how the unmapped wetlands would dramatically change the density and design of the development. ROSA’s engineers also found serious and substantive flaws in the traffic study accepted by the Ramapo Planning Board. We believe these facts provide for a strong appeal.”
The approvals necessary for Scenic to proceed are an ongoing issue, and ROSA says it fully intends to be active throughout the process in monitoring the work and reports presented by the developer and the Planning Board’s evaluation of these materials. Deborah Munitz, ROSA board member, states, “When ROSA said it would pursue every avenue possible to mitigate the impacts caused by this inappropriate development, we meant it. There is still ample opportunity to work out a better plan and solution for this property, so we are not deterred by this lower court ruling. This first court case is just the beginning of what will be our ongoing and forceful legal advocacy. ROSA will ensure that the citizens of Ramapo, the Courts, and appropriate government agencies such as the Federal EPA, the NY State DEC, the Federal Army Corps of Engineers, and the County of Rockland are all actively engaged with this development.”