Town Board approves purchase-of-development-rights easement for Emerick Tree Farm, seeks 50% county match

The Town of Warwick on March 26 approved a resolution authorizing the town supervisor to enter into an agreement to purchase the development rights to a 30.5-acre property known as Emerick Tree Farm at 101 Sleepy Valley Road for $275,000, and to seek a 50% matching grant from the Orange County Open Space Fund.

The resolution, moved and seconded and carried by voice vote, directs the supervisor to execute a conservation easement and any other documents necessary to formalize the purchase of development rights (PDR). Town officials characterized the acquisition as advancing the town’s agricultural and farmland protection plan and preserving recognized conservation values on the parcel.

Supervisor Dwyer said the board has created a Community Preservation Advisory Board (CPAB) and that the proposed acquisition follows CPAB recommendations and the town’s farmland protection plan. The board also classified the action as a Type II action under the State Environmental Quality Review Act, meaning no further SEQRA review was required under the conditions stated in the resolution.

The resolution instructs the town clerk to forward the revised plan to the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets, and the Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation as part of the PDR process. The board authorized the supervisor to seek and accept any matching funds necessary to complete the easement.

The resolution takes effect immediately.

Provenance: Topic in transcript begins with the board reading and debating the PDR resolution; related remarks and the voice vote appear in the meeting record.