Shortly after the town board withdrew a controversial proposal for a partial building moratorium, the Town of Hurley launched an online survey this week to receive public feedback on the draft comprehensive plan released in mid-April. According to the town, the survey, as well as a public presentation on the draft comprehensive plan on June 6, is the next step in finalizing a 10-year plan that reflects the ideals of Hurley residents.

“In a perfect world we would have every single resident taking part in the comprehensive feedback process,” said Town Supervisor Melinda McKnight at a town board meeting Tuesday evening.

Going forward, the draft comprehensive plan will be the subject of focus group discussions, interviews with stakeholders and the town planner, and reviews by the Hurley and Ulster County planning boards.

The town has stated that the draft plan drew from public input from surveys and workshop meetings throughout 2022 and “reflects the public’s desire to maintain Hurley’s historic, small-town, rural character.” The plan, the town stated, “takes into account concerns expressed by the public, which included overdevelopment, increased traffic and the potential loss of a sense of community.”

The draft notes that Hurley’s rocky terrains and inadequate water infrastructure make it unsuitable to certain developments. But a statement from the town said that the plan does not take an “anti-development stance.”

“Rather, it calls for development that is incremental, sustainable, well-designed, locally oriented and at a scale appropriate for the community,” the town stated.

On Tuesday evening, the town board withdrew a proposed nine-month moratorium on development projects in some parts of town in response to public criticisms that the law was anti-development and jeopardized landowners’ rights.

The public hearing on Tuesday evening was a continuation of the hearing that opened on April 18. The first hearing saw a range of opinions from the public with more speaking in favor of than against, but the majority of residents speaking at Tuesday’s meeting said they disapprove of the moratorium.

“Over the course of the two hearings about the proposal, it became clear that Hurley residents did not favor a moratorium being enacted,” McKnight said after the meeting. “We took their comments to heart and deferred to their judgment.”

The board made several adjustments to the proposal in the weeks following the first hearing. Notably, the moratorium would have been extended from the A2.5 and A4 zoning districts to encompass major subdivision projects, site plan applications, and/or special use permit applications across the entire town on properties larger than 15 acres. In addition, the moratorium would have prohibited land development activity on more than one acre or where proposed site disturbance would require an excavation and filling permit.

The revised moratorium plan also provided exemptions to agricultural projects, visual assessments, certificates of appropriateness, signs and projects which already had conditional approval. Both the original and revised versions included an “escape hatch” that allowed people who could prove the application of the moratorium to their property caused “economic hardship” to appeal to the town board for a waiver.

Despite the exemptions and hardship waiver, residents at Tuesday’s hearing decried the moratorium’s expansion and voiced concerns that it disrespected landowners’ rights.

“I don't like development,” said resident Gary Graff. “But I never felt that right to impose those feelings on anybody else.”

Several attendants at the public hearing suggested that if enacted, the moratorium could prompt litigation against the town, leading to an increase in legal costs. One resident stated that it was unfair for the town to levy a tax upon land in “limbo.”

“Why can't the planning board just deal with specific projects that might arise during comprehensive plan revision instead of blanketing the entire community with a moratorium?” asked Karen Gill.

Another resident said that between septic fields, driveways and house footprints, even many projects on small properties disturb more than one acre and therefore the moratorium would have prohibited almost any project.

After closing the public hearing, McKnight made a motion to withdraw consideration for the moratorium. The board voted in favor unanimously.

“The town will continue to monitor development proposals in Hurley,” McKnight said later. “And it will act in accordance with local laws to ensure that proposed projects serve the best interests of our residents.”

To view the town's draft comprehensive plan, click here: tinyurl.com/ycjkphrw. To take the comprehensive plan survey, click here: tinyurl.com/2hxnm3wa

At the same meeting, the board voted to adopt a revised 284 Agreement that included paving projects removed from the agreement first prepared by the Highway Department. The town previously stated it excluded paving projects from the agreement to transfer money to general repairs for drainage problems. Highway Superintendent Mike Shultis, however, refused to sign the agreement, saying that the paving projects were necessary and budget money could not be moved around.

On Tuesday, McKnight said that the board had a discussion with the Highway Department earlier that day and agreed that the paving projects were necessary. The board and Shultis signed the 284 Agreement after the meeting.

In Other Hurley News:

Reformed Church Yard Sale

The Fifth Annual Hurley Reformed Church Yard Sale will be held on Saturday, June 3 from 8 a.m.-3 p.m. at the church on Main Street. Spots can be rented for $25 for the day. Please call Kelly at 845-532-2995 to reserve a spot. Refreshments will also be served.

Planning Board Meeting Time Change

According to an announcement from the town, beginning in June 2023, meetings of the Hurley Planning Board, which are held on the fourth Thursday of each month, will start at 6 p.m. instead of 7 p.m. Planning Board meetings are held at Hurley Town Hall, 10 Wamsley Place, and are open to the public.

Vacancy on Ethics Board

There's a vacancy on the Town of Hurley Ethics Committee, the town reports. Hurley residents interested in filling the seat should send a letter of interest to Hurley Town Clerk, P.O. Box 569, Hurley, NY 12443 or clerk@townofhurley.org.

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