An involved agency, while making its own SEQRA findings, is limited to the record developed by the lead agency. In a pair of related cases, Troy Sand & Gravel,Co. Inc v. Town of Nassau (“the DJ Action”) and Matter of Troy Sand & Gravel, Co. Inc., (“the Article 78”) the…
The Appellate Division upheld the denial of area variances to permit the legalization of an addition to an accessory structure. In the Matter of Sacher v. Village of Old Brookville, the Court and the Zoning Board appear to have been influenced by the fact that the applicant had constructed the…
The Appellate Division had to once again remind a Zoning Board of Appeals that practical difficulty is no longer the test for an area variance. In Matter of Mimassi v. Town of Whitestown Zoning Board of Appeals, the Appellate Division reversed, in part, the lower court’s dismissal of the petition…
This week the New York Court of Appeals clarified that a parking variance is an area variance, except when it is not. In Matter of Colin Realty Co. v. Town of North Hempstead, the Court concluded that, in most instances, a parking variance is an area variance. However, at the…
The Appellate Division, in a somewhat rare instance, upheld the denial of a special permit to expand an existing day care center. In Matter of Smyles v. Board of Trustees of Incorporated Village of Mineola, the Court found there was sufficient expert evidence that the expansion of the facility would…
The Appellate Division restated the limited nature of judicial review of the decisions of a Zoning Board of Appeals (ZBA). In Matter of Slonim v. Town of E. Hampton Zoning Bd. of Appeals, the Court noted that the ZBA properly upheld the determination of the building inspector finding that a…
A divided New York Court of Appeals validated local zoning laws of two towns that banned hydrofracking in that Town. In Matter of Wallach v. Town of Dryden, the Court held that state law did not preempt the right of local municipalities to ban certain mining activities. The Court noted…
The Second Circuit Court of Appeals held there was a claim that was ripe for adjudication, in view of the ten years of delay in processing the Plaintiffs application, even though there was no final determination on Plaintiff’s subdivision application. In Sherman v. Town of Chester, the Court’s summary of…
The Appellate Division overturned a determination by the Albany Board of Zoning Appeals (BZA) that found an event at which the audience stands is not a permitted use of an auditorium. In Matter of Albany Basketball & Sports Corp. v. City of Albany, the Court held, since the issue was…
In a case where the claim is the Not For Profit Corporation Law Article 15 (cemetery law) preempts local zoning, the Appellate Division held a local prohibition on crematories was not invalid. In Matter of Oakwood Cemetery v. Village/Town of Mt Kisco, the local cemetery claimed that a new zoning…