Flooding a concern for residents at proposed Fieldstone Estates
Planning Board to address plan on Thursday, Aug. 17
by JESSICA L. FINCH Associate Editor

Living in neighborhoods that already flood during heavy rains, Peter Wasiewicz and Chuck Ferrigno don't want to see the development of the 24-unit Fieldstone Estates.

With the support of residents in the Hopkins Road, Brenridge Drive, Dodge Road and Shellridge Drive quadrant, the two have formed a committee to fight the proposed elimination of woods within those roads for a housing development by CL&F Development.

Their main reason against it? Flooding.

Ferrigno, a Brenridge Drive resident, said the development of the land would increase the flooding problem already facing him and his neighbors. The recent summer storms that dropped inches of rain in a matter of hours flooded the streets and yards in this section of East Amherst.

"When there is a lot of rain, the drains backflow, and the ponds couldn't handle flooding," he said, referring to the three proposed retention ponds that would be built with the development.

According to Wasiewicz, the site plan calls for the three ponds to flow into an existing pond located southeast of the project at Stableridge. The problem, he said, is that the pond already has problems handling water runoff.

The land is properly zoned for the development, but as a result of the Town Board reinstating the 800-foot single access code, the current site plan would have to be modified.

The board voted to change the comprehensive plan for the town so that any street with one access must be 800 feet or shorter for safety reasons. For a few months the code would have allowed a street with 30 units or less to meet the code.

Supervisor Satish Mohan attempted to amend the resolution to allow any development in process to continue, but that did not receive enough votes to pass.

Residents became concerned about the project a year ago, which was before the code was changed to the 30-unit version.

The two residents, along with many neighbors, said they have been attending meetings from the start and will continue to voice their concerns.

"It wouldn't bother me to have people in my back yard, but it would bother me to have water in my back yard," Wasiewicz said.

Sean Hopkins, of Hopkins, Garas & Sorgi, PLLC, is representing the development and said the plan has been developing well over a year now.

"We have provided the town with extensive documents addressing each potential environmental impact," he said. "Basically, all this hard work has been done to insure compliance with the state environmental quality review act."

He added that the proposed subdivision would be surrounded by subdivisions and should be the type of development the town is looking for.

Hopkins also addressed the 800-foot code concern, stating that although the existing code was in effect when plans were initiated, the proposed change was known. He said the developers planned on the new code being in effect.

"We are evaluating this code change," he added.

The next step for the plan will be at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 17 when the Planning Board will discuss a proposed preliminary plat review. The item is currently No. 11 on the agenda, and meetings are held in town hall.

e-mail: jfinch@beenews.com