Carman’s River Plan Damages Pat-Med Community

A friend from the Medford Taxpayers & Civic Association, Don Seubert, recently presented the following at the last Town Board Meeting concerning the Carman’s River Plan. 

While this is detailed , it represents an exhaustive review of the plan and the damage it will cause to the Patchogue-Medford community. Please take the time to review what is at stake.  If possible attend the next Town Meeting relative to this plan, on March 29th, at Town Hall at 5:00 p.m.  If you can’t attend, please call Supervisor Lesko and our councilmen, Tim Mazzei  (CD 5) and Connie Kepert (CD 4) to express  your displeasure with this land grab in favor of builders at the expense of our community.

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(To be read into the Town Board Minutes re: resolution # 2012-282)

Dear Supervisor and Members of the Town Board, 

We ask you to ensure the resolution is withdrawn or vote “no” for acceptance of the Carmans River Plan. The plan is flawed in critical aspects and requires work, outreach and representation by all communities not solely those immune to impacts.   

There is no threatened noose…the citizens, Town environmentalists, civics have always been able to rely on our State Officials to enact solid environmental legislation. A plan that strongly protects, restores the Carmans, sets a model for river, natural resource protection and enhances the quality of life each Brookhaven community will earn our NY State Senators and Assembly Persons full support …and why not?  

The plan must ensure each community determines their future not a named “Performance Committee” of about 5/9 LI developers. The Performance Committee is so ill-constructed and flawed that no professional science credentialed person such as an ecologist, biologist, climatologist etc. is a required member. Moreover, the committee is empty of civic-citizen-representatives which need be broadly represented… and mandated. State law requires community planning.  

As past Town Boards, past planners and Town Master Plans stated we should be reducing not increasing the number of Brookhaven dwellings. We need to do just that to protect Brookhaven’s vanishing quality of life and resources like our Carmans. Current resident-tax payers and civic groups are not clamoring for more people, houses, pollution, litter, taxes, traffic etc. Our young graduates just want a nice place to live. The Carmans Development Plan does nothing to better Brookhaven’s environment from Sound to Bay and does less than advertised in feeble attempts for the Carman’s restoration. The stated goal is only the status quo---non-degradation.

*** The flawed plan is absent of teeth regarding enforcement or environmental protection even on Town and public lands. Everything is … “a study, review, encourage, recommend, shoulda, coulda, will try, a best practice etc. When do those wimpy “shoulda s” becomes “shall be” and “must.”   

*** Loading numbers should be at the discharge pipe---not at property lines.  Modeling can be misleading. Even a five acre parcel could be almost a ½ mile from property lines---how many years is that---no less huge parcels of Regional Significance.   Besides if we are preserving 1300+ acres, properly up-zoning, with strong enforcement --- there should be little discharge. Moreover, stringent discharge numbers should be at all receiving areas pipes so everyone’s waters, communities and sensitive areas are held harmless. If serious, adopt now the most stringent of the proposed Federal and NYS DEC recommended loading capacity numbers for the Carmans … and throughout Brookhaven.                                                                                               

*** The plan is flawed it does not address what is already on the ground in the “Carmans Watershed Capturing Area” and carrying capacities.  In the plan I find not a single word addressing the Horseblock Rd. Industrial Complex. The area’s multiple plumes, polluting businesses, a time bomb of ammonia, liquid nitrogen, fireworks, diesel fuel, garbage transfer stations, power plant, compost facilities, Brookhaven Rail nuked Carmans Water Shed etc…are not to be dismissed.  

Additionally, not addressing genuine air quality, water polluting concerns and discussing expansion of the out of compliant cash cow Yaphank landfill’s myriad of pollutants, leachate fields demonstrates little serious commitment to River protection or our Town. The uses along Horseblock are deadly to the Carmans, the environment and residents. Our waters, marine life are innately fragile and require tougher protections.      

The little advertised 35 sites equating to 534 acres may seem modest, till you realize their density approaching 10.5 + (?? Re., muddled current MF code) often landing in already, dense and impacted communities. Those numbers are just the tip of the iceberg as the “Town/Performance Committee” will be on lookout for those Primary/Secondary areas 2640 ft. from “major highways” and 2500 ft. from a rail station, often without real train service. Curiously, the Carmans drafters are not residents of the receiving areas, some not even Brookhaven, AKA: “The Building Construction, High Density MF Overlay Give Away District,” Pine Barrens Credit Redemption Overlay District.

*** In just the Medford area we see heavy density projects planned by outsiders for at least 2 other river watersheds, the Swan River and the Patchogue River. How does this advance the greater goal to restore Great South Bay, LI. Sound and the Ocean?  About 10 immediate sites concern Medford residents totaling about 112 acres.   This is neither fairness nor the quality of life protection, one need uphold as Supervisor or Council Person. Medford receiving sites totals exceed whole Council Districts.

  ***The most critical factor, you have taken away from our community is the valuable resource to plan our hamlet. As other communities we have considered transferring density in one part of our community to preserve or create a special place and transfer density to a less impacting or better designed place for development. Now, you have taken that “within hamlet transfer tool” away and given it to others to decide and locate outside their hamlet for multiple benefits.      

Areas throughout the Town have little land left, little resource possibilities and are already overdeveloped. Additionally, no real preservation money will be left for other communities, resources and Council Districts, $2 1/2 million buys what? We have been waiting years for parcels to be purchased. It has to be planned and this is no plan to consider at this time. Thank you!                        

Yours truly,

Medford Taxpayers & Civic Association

Don Seubert   (MTCA, Vice–President, ABCO Recording Secretary)