The Planning Department is pleased to announce that you may now  review the Following Documents

The Planning Department is pleased to announce that you may now review The Town of East Greenbush's complete Draft MS4 Annual Report for 2009,  its Final  Generic Environmental Impact Statement (GEIS) and its Stormwater Management Program information in the the Documents/Download section of the website under the Planning Department.  For more Information about any of these documents you may contact:

Draft MS4 Annual Report and Stormwater Management Program information for 2009 Now Available

The Planning Department has made available for review the Town’s Draft MS4 Annual Report for 2009 in the the Documents/Download section under the Planning Department.  Once finalized later this month, it will be replaced by the Final Report.  There are also a number of documents summarizing the Town's Stormwater Management Program available there as well, which can be accessed by clicking the following link: Documents/Download section under the Planning Department.

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Town of east Greenbush Final Generic Environmental Impact Statement (GEIS) 

Read more below and you can find the complete report in the Documents/Download section under the Planning Department.

 Unlike a project-specific Environmental Impact Statement (EIS), which evaluates the

known and probable impacts associated with a specific action, a GEIS is, by design, a more flexible

evaluation tool. The technical difference between generic and site specific EIS is the level of detail

provided in the supporting documentation. While the level of detail for a site specific EIS must be

sufficient to clearly identify the immediate construction and operation related impacts, the level of detail

for a GEIS is usually at a planning or concept level (or “generic”). This allows the preparer of the GEIS to

focus on the broader issues and cumulative impacts while establishing thresholds and procedures for

future growth. A GEIS provides a hypothetical exploration of potential development scenarios and a plan

to address the associated cumulative impacts within the prescribed study area.

For a planning document to truly function as an effective tool of community development, communities

must be cognizant of the fact that, in the face of ongoing development, specific plan elements may

warrant more frequent updating. Although the Town of East Greenbush’s 1993 Comprehensive Plan

continues to be an important community resource, changes stemming primarily from community and

regional growth prompted the Town Board to update the Plan’s land use component in 2006. This land

use update, entitled the Land Use Plan Update and Zoning Study, was conducted to ensure that the

Town’s existing and emerging land use pattern was in harmony with the community’s vision for the

future. This document serves as the basis for assessing and distributing future growth projections in the

Town. This analysis of the Town’s future growth pattern was used to evaluate geographically sensitive

issues, as well as appropriate densities and update the Town’s zoning regulations accordingly.

In an effort to ensure the preservation of the Town of East Greenbush’s continued quality of life, the

Proposed Action evaluates the cumulative impacts of continued population growth in accordance with the

Town’s recently amended zoning and land use regulations. In order to better understand and quantify the

impacts of future development, an evaluation was made of the cumulative impacts associated with

continued growth on the Town’s transportation network, water and sewer infrastructure, stormwater

management program, and recreational resource inventory. The GEIS was limited to the western portion

of the Town due to the concentration of new development primarily in this area. Such development has

and will continue to directly and heavily affect the existing infrastructure in this portion of the Town. The

Study Area is delineated on the Map 1: Base Map – Study Area.

The primary purpose of the GEIS is to evaluate the cumulative impacts of growth on the Town of East

Greenbush and provide suitable mitigation to minimize the affect of development. Once established, the

mitigation process provides guidance to the Town during the project review process and clearly defines

Section I. Executive Summary

Western East Greenbush GEIS Page 2

April 2, 2009

responsibility for developers. The resulting mitigation fees help to provide an equitable means of

distributing the cost of the improvements identified in the GEIS. Developers are able to contribute to their

fair share of the development impact, without carrying an unnecessary burden often associated with

capital improvement costs. To evaluate the impacts associated with the Town’s anticipated growth trends,

a 20-year planning period was chosen. This time frame is a reasonable period considering historical

patterns. The growth associated with the 20-year planning period provides the basis for the analysis of the

potential impacts.

Limitations, or constraints, identified in the GEIS are expressed as thresholds for future development

based upon existing studies, current development trends and evaluation of potential adverse impacts to the

Town’s resources based upon known challenges. Future development projects shall be required to

complete site specific evaluation and analysis, and those that meet the thresholds shall be considered in

compliance with this GEIS.

In instances where a future action is not in conformance with the conditions and thresholds established in

the GEIS, the Town shall require applicants to submit an Environmental Assessment Form (EAF) to be

used to evaluate the potential adverse impacts associated with the proposed action. Thereafter, the Town

will determine whether the future action was not addressed or was not adequately address in the GEIS. If

the subsequent action will not result in any significant environmental impacts, a negative declaration will

be prepared by the Town. Alternatively, if the future action may have one or more significant adverse

environmental impacts, a Supplemental EIS may be required. This process provides flexibility and allows

the Town to consider site specific environmental issues and to modify requirements of the GEIS based on

the results of the supplemental SEQR analysis.

The GEIS should be considered a dynamic document that may necessitate periodic review of the existing

conditions and mitigation fees identified in this GEIS. As improvements are made to the Town’s critical

infrastructure or as growth patterns alter the Town’s landscape, it may be appropriate for the Town to

update the mitigation fees through a Supplemental EIS. Furthermore, subsequent studies prepared locally

or regionally may provide new information or alter land use patterns in the Town. Such new information

may require the preparation of a Supplemental EIS. In addition, the mitigation fees are based upon 2009

dollars and the Town may review these mitigation costs every year to account for inflation and adjust

them as necessary so that sufficient funds are available to pay for the improvements.

For More Information Contact: