Expansion Projects Planned in Southeast

By Holly Crocco

The Southeast Planning Board was updated on a number of proposed projects during its March 9 meeting.

Fourth-generation Salinger’s Orchard owner Tim Salinger once again appeared before the board, seeking approvals related to the expansion of business operations on his 63-acre property.

In 2024, the board approved a site plan that included a 2,884-square-foot addition to the farm store building, to expand the kitchen and bakery, seating area, and increase storage space. Improvements to parking, as well as ingress and egress, stormwater treatment, and drainage were also part of the plan.

However, a proposal to add an event venue was pulled after neighbors voiced traffic concerns.

Now, Salinger is coming back to the table, seeking approval for a 6,350-square-foot barn, which would serve as an occasional event space. Plans indicate it would hold up to 200 people and would increase the current 100 parking spaces to 168.

“Let’s cut to the chase here – it’s a traffic issue that’s going to come up, time and time again,” said Planning Board Chaiman Tom LaPerch. “I have no doubt what you’re going to build here is fantastic. You have a great reputation.”

Nicholas Gaboury of Bibbo Associates said a traffic study demonstrates the event barn will not negatively impact traffic in the vicinity of the site, since occasions would be held during off-peak hours.

“Traffic problems now are usually commuter-related,” he said, with the highest volume of traffic recorded between 3 and 5 p.m. weeknights.

“We believe that the barn that is currently proposed and the events that would take place in it would not cause a traffic impact to the area,” said Gaboury. “I know the roadway has some limitations. I know the town is working on trying to get some of those enhanced or improved in some spots.”

A public hearing on the matter has been scheduled April 13.

New York State Electric & Gas is seeking approval to replace its existing cell tower at 87 Hillside Park in Southeast, known as the Marvin Martin tower. The proposed new tower is 20 feet taller and includes two microwave antennas capable of handling future telecommunication needs, including land mobile radio, microwave backhaul, and private wireless systems.

“The increase in height is needed to support two new microwave antennas, and also the existing tower is structurally failing per current standards,” explained Jacqueline Phillips Murray, representing NYSEG. “The existing tower that’s going to be coming down and be replaced, at 160 feet, versus the replacement tower of 180 feet, is going to have an immeasurable difference in visibility than what is in the existing viewshed.”

She explained that, since submitting its original application, NYSEG has reduced the disturbance area to less than 5,000 square feet and the clearing of trees to only two.

“We’ve modified the plan so that there is no turnaround area or staging area” at the site, according to Phillips Murray. She said the plan is to have construction vehicle start out at the NYSEG service center in Brewster to do staging, and then head to the site, to eliminate the need for more disturbance.

The 66-acre site has two towers on it; in addition to the NYSEG tower, there’s a 130-foot tower that belongs to a wireless communications provider.

The NYSEG tower supports personnel and equipment in the field, “so that NYSEG can monitor the health of its electricity distribution system and more quickly and efficiently have real-time data in order to address outages… These are all upgrades to modernize the grid so they have real-time data,” said Phillips Murray.

No blasting, or evening and weekend work is expected as part of the construction, which would take about three to four month to complete, she said.

Approval has not yet been granted by the town, and the public hearing on the matter continued at the March 23 board meeting.

Earlier this month, a public hearing continued regarding the proposed expansion at Morefar, a private membership club and golf course on almost 700 acres of land on Federal Hill Road that straddles the state line.

The course was originally opened in approximately 1964 and is now owned by Back O’Beyond, Inc. The site includes an 18-hole golf course, clubhouse, residences, pro shop and cart barn, maintenance building and administrative offices, fitness building, wellness building, parking lots, driveways, cart paths, and golf course comfort station.

BOB seeks to demolish several structures and reconstruct, or renovate, new ones. The project also proposes redevelopment of the existing 18-hole golf course, including the renovation of the tee boxes, fairways, bunkers, greens, and appurtenant cart paths and utilities.

According to Jennifer Gray from Keane & Beane Attorneys at Law, the necessary modifications will result in tree removal.

“The game of golf has changed since the 1960s, particularly in how the front nine holes of the golf course were designed and constructed,” she said. “The technical advances of golf equipment in particular, or the players at any level, can hit the ball farther and harder. That results in a situation where you have a golf course with narrow fairways that are parallel with each other, which increases the chance of cross-conflict play.”

To reduce this safety issue, the fairways are being made wider.

Gray said the applicant is asking for the board to waive the need for a tree survey due to the size of the project, and since the plan already shows where tree removal will take place.

Town Planning Consultant Ashely Ley suggested that a survey of a limited portion of the site be completed, which can be used to develop a projection for the entire area.

While some trees will be coming down, others will be planted, particularly in the northern portion of the property. According to Greg Felischer of Capital Environmental Consultants, about 340 native trees and 2,000 shrubs will be added.

The board closed the public hearing, and the next step for Morefar is to have a State Environmental Quality Review Act determination completed.