THOMPSON — The New York State Court of Appeals has reinstated the Town of Thompson Planning Board’s approval of the Avon Park warehouse project, reversing an Appellate Division ruling in the long-running legal challenge over the proposed development near Rock Hill.
The case was first heard in Sullivan County Supreme Court, where the Planning Board’s approval was upheld. That ruling was later overturned by the Appellate Division, Third Department, before the Court of Appeals reversed that decision and reinstated the Supreme Court judgment.
The case centered on Glen Wild Land Company LLC’s plan to build two warehouse buildings totaling about 560,000 square feet. The project, located off Route 17 near Exit 109, has been opposed by members of the Lake Communities Alliance, who argued that the project appeared more like a distribution center than a warehouse.
According to court papers, Glen Wild submitted its application in November 2021 and later revised it in December 2021, seeking site plan approval and a special use permit from the Town of Thompson Planning Board.
The court noted that Thompson’s Town Code defines both “warehouse” and “distribution center.” Under the code, warehouses are allowed in the zoning district with site plan approval and a special use permit, while distribution centers are not.
“The Town Code’s distinction between a warehouse and a distribution center depends on the actual use of the property,” the court wrote.
The Planning Board approved the project with the condition that the property be developed and used only as a warehouse.
During the May 5 Thompson Town Board meeting, Town Attorney Michael Meddick told the board that the Court of Appeals had reversed the Appellate Division and upheld the original Sullivan County Supreme Court decision.
Meddick said the ruling found that the Planning Board “acted correctly and properly” when it granted site plan approval and a special use permit for the Avon Park warehouse project.
Town Supervisor Scott zMace asked whether the applicant would have to return to renew the approval.
“So do they have to come back for it to renew it?” Mace asked.
Meddick said no, explaining that the approval had been restored.
“They’re back to where they were initially,” Meddick told the board.
In its memorandum, the Court of Appeals found no error in the Planning Board’s decision to approve the project as a warehouse. The court also found no error in the board’s environmental review under the State Environmental Quality Review Act.
“Despite petitioners’ contention that the number and density of loading docks reflected in the project proposal ‘likely’ indicates that the property’s actual use will differ from what the Planning Board approved, we perceive no error of law or abuse of discretion in the Planning Board’s issuance of the site plan approval and special use permit limiting it to use as a warehouse,” the court wrote.
The Court of Appeals ordered that the Appellate Division ruling be reversed and that the Sullivan County Supreme Court judgment be reinstated.
Following the decision, the Lake Communities Alliance told its members in a letter that the ruling was disappointing, but not a complete loss.
“After mixed legal outcomes, at the Court of Appeals — the highest court in New York — the final ruling disappointingly went against us,” the LCA stated.
The group said it brought the challenge because it believed the site was not zoned for distribution center use.
According to the LCA, the project includes two warehouse-distribution centers totaling 561,600 square feet on about 175 acres, along with 294 employee parking spaces, bays for 105 truck trailers, utility infrastructure and local roadway changes.
“This project was approved by the Planning Board in July of 2022 as a warehouse,” the LCA stated.
The LCA also pointed to the Court of Appeals’ language about loading docks, saying the court acknowledged that the design could “likely” suggest a use different from what was approved.
However, the group said the ruling also makes clear that the project can only operate as a warehouse.
“We have a decision from the highest Court in New York which reinforces that the project may only be used as a warehouse,” the LCA stated.
Meddick told the Democrat that the ruling was important for planning boards across the state because it means boards do not have to speculate about what an applicant might do in the future.
He said the Appellate Division’s ruling could have created a difficult standard where projects could be sent to the Zoning Board of Appeals based only on an opponent’s claim that an applicant may use the property differently than proposed.
Meddick said the central point is that the Planning Board approved a warehouse, and that is the only use permitted under the approval.
The LCA, however, said it remains concerned about the Avon Park project and other large-scale development proposals along the Route 17 corridor between Monticello and Rock Hill.
At the town board meeting, Mace said the town was still waiting for its county 239 review on proposed zoning definition changes and wanted to make sure there were no conflicts in the definitions.
LCA President Jessica Lansdale also said the organization had hired a zoning attorney to review the proposed changes, including definitions for warehouses, trucking terminals and distribution centers.
The LCA also said a 2021 traffic study, based on warehouse-use traffic numbers, found that Rock Hill’s vehicle capacity would be maxed out once Avon Park opened, requiring major infrastructure upgrades for future development.
“Since then, development in the hamlet has increased significantly,” the LCA stated. “This could mean an updated traffic study will show Rock Hill no longer has the capacity for Avon Park traffic.”