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Paramount Country Club’s Plan To Build 230 Units Adjacent To Golf Course Requires a Zone Change from R-160 Conservation Land to R-22
By Tina Traster
A spate of housing planned for New City is a flashpoint for the upcoming midterm elections.
Democrats who are hoping to unseat Town Supervisor George Hoehmann and the all-Republican board are using overdevelopment as a criticism of the current administration. A slew of proposed residential developments along North & South Main Street raises issues of traffic, safety and altering the character of the hamlet.
But a proposal by the owners of the Paramount Country Club to build 230 housing units on 36 acres of vacant land it owns adjacent to its golf course and country club raises an even graver issue: Is the town willing to rezone existing R-160 land, which protects and conserves open space, to allow residential housing, which is needed in the town.
That is the debate that took place last week at the Clarkstown Planning board, which is tasked with giving either a thumbs up or thumbs down assessment and recommendation to the Town Council. Whatever decision they arrive at is nonbinding; it will be up to the town to make a final decision on the zone change, or perhaps the people of New City, who can ultimately vote on the plan in a permissive referendum, if it’s included in the November ballot.
If past is prelude, the Planning Board will likely bless the project, though it would not be surprising to see the machinations of the application grind on beyond the November election.
Gil Heim, a planning board member and former chair, questioned the wisdom of changing zoning from R-160, which would allow 48 units, to R-22, which permits 230.
“What are we opening up?” he questioned. “I don’t see a benefit from this zone change. Okay, people will be able to golf but is that the only benefit? I think going from R-160 to R-22 is too drastic a jump.”
He added that the proposal should be put to a permissive referendum in Ward 1.
“Let them have a say,” he added.
The plan before the Planning Board was pared down last year from 247 units to 230 units to make the project more palatable for town officials who are being asked to grant the Mandelbaum family, which owns the 60 Zukor Road site, zoning changes if the development is to go forward.
The plan calls for 128 townhomes, 70 condominiums, 30 golf villas, and two single-family homes.
Paramount will need zone changes for the residential portion of the parcel, most of which sits on R-160 zoned land that allows one single-family house per four acres. The existing R-160 designation serves to protect and conserve open space but allows residential building.
To build its project, the developer asked the town to change the zoning to R-22, which allows for denser residential zoning and options to cluster houses. Last September, the Clarkstown Town Board voted unanimously to refer the request to the Planning Board for its recommendation on the zone change. Re-mapping (changing the zoning designation) is discretionary with the Town Board; it is not required to act on the petition.
Remapping the parcels from R-160 to R-22 could set a precedent for other developers seeking to develop other large parcels of conservation land.
But attorney Lino Sciaretta, who is representing Paramount said at last week’s meeting that “Zoning it discretionary,” it doesn’t necessarily set precedent. Though the rezoning may not set legal precedent, it could open the door to other types of claims, particularly if the denial to consider other up-zoning is based on protected factors like race or religion.
Up-zoning is a change in zoning that permits higher-density development in areas with previously restrictive regulations. By allowing multi-family housing, higher building heights, or smaller lot sizes, municipalities can increase housing supply in exchange for loss of open space.
The original plan called for 128 townhouses, 84 condominiums, 33 single-family golf villas and two single-family lots. The proposal would add more than 500 parking spaces to the vacant, largely wooded parcel.
Heim also raised the issue of traffic along Main Street and Phillips Hill Road. The board voted unanimously to ask the applicant to conduct additional traffic studies that take into account the Main Street corridor.
The board also agreed to take additional time to study how an R-160 zone change has potentially impacted other zones in the town.
These additional requests will likely push the application’s pathway from Planning Board to Town Board beyond November.
Towns and villages in Rockland County are grappling with a dearth of housing, particularly for those who want to downsize. Paramount envisions a “Florida-style,” amenity-chocked, market-rate residential housing community that would appeal to an older, possibly retired demographic. Features of the plan include access to amenities such as the golf course, dining, pools, tennis, pickleball and a gym.
“There’s a significant demand for aging-in-place residential development,” said Steven Lapper, president of Paramount and an advisor on the project. “Residents who want to sell larger single-family homes and stay in the community, can’t. The county’s at or near peak. It’s not unique to Rockland but it’s dire.”
The market-rate community will not be age restricted; several of the configurations are large enough for families, while the condos are more suitable for empty nesters. The applicant says the project will set aside a yet-to-be-determined number of units to be rented by first responders. It did not present an affordable housing component.
But there is also pressure to preserve open space and maintain what’s left of Clarkstown’s bucolic feeling.
When the town board considers a zone change, it passes a local law after holding a public hearing. The change must be in accord with Clarkstown’s Comprehensive Plan, and if it isn’t, an amendment to the Comprehensive Plan must also be passed.
The remapping is subject to and must comply with the state environmental review requirements under the State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQRA), which requires an initial determination of potential significance of and ongoing consideration for environmental impacts.
Due to the site’s location within 500 feet of a county stream and park, a GML 239 referral would be needed when a formal application is submitted to the Town. A GML 239 referral is a review by the Rockland County Planning Department for compliance with codes and comprehensive plans.
The developer is offering to place a deed restriction on the existing golf course and country club, which covers roughly 65 percent of the 217-acre property. The Paramount Country Club, formerly the private estate of Adolf Zukor, the founder of Paramount Pictures, has long served as an award-winning championship par 70 golf course, tennis and swim club.
To sweeten the deal, Paramount is floating the notion of opening the golf course “in a limited fashion, at certain times,” to residents. Access would require payment, and the developer has not outlined what times of the day, or during the year, residents could play on the links.
At present, clubhouse members pay a $3,500 initiation fee and $6,000 a year in dues.
