367.2001
RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING AMENDMENT OF TOWN ZONING
ORDINANCE TO AUTHORIZE FESTIVAL PARKING ALTERNATE
DESIGN FOR CERTAIN QUALIFYING USES AS PROPOSED BY
THE GREAT ESCAPE THEME PARK
RESOLUTION NO.: 367, 2001
INTRODUCED BY : Mr. Tim Brewer
WHO MOVED ITS ADOPTION
SECONDED BY : Mr. Daniel Stec
WHEREAS, the existing Queensbury Zoning Ordinance, Chapter 179, Article IX, §179-66,
requires construction and maintenance of off-street parking associated with certain commercial or
institutional buildings or uses, and
WHEREAS, in instances where off-street parking is required under the Zoning Ordinance, the
Ordinance prescribes that parking lots must contain internal landscaped “divider strips” and “traffic
islands” to physically separate aisles of parked cars with passive curbing structures “for the purpose of
ensuring safety of vehicles moving within the parking area and to control speed,” and
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WHEREAS, on June 25, 2001, in connection with a proposed major expansion of the Great
Escape Theme Park LLC (Great Escape) in the Town, the Town Planning Board as SEQRA Lead
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Agency accepted a Final Generic Environmental Impact State (FGEIS) and on July 11, 2001 issued a
SEQRA Findings Statement and decision approving such expansion subject to the mitigation measures,
project conditions and impact thresholds for future development set forth therein, and
WHEREAS, the FGEIS for the Great Escape proposed the creation of 2,600 new off-street
parking spaces within the Park property to mitigate the existing and future impacts of traffic congestion
on Route 9 and the I-87 Exit 20 interchange in the vicinity of the Park, and
WHEREAS, the FGEIS and Findings Statement evaluated several alternative parking lot
designs and determined that a so-called “festival parking” design which eliminates the internal divider
strips and traffic islands within the proposed Great Escape parking lots and which substitutes active
management with parking lot attendants for traffic control purposes would minimize environmental
impacts from the Project, and
WHEREAS, the Planning Board’s decision and findings regarding allowing an alternate
parking lot design were supported by the FGEIS analysis which determined that elimination of curbed
islands and use of lot attendants to direct parking from an entering queue would minimize traffic
impacts by allowing cars to be more quickly parked, thus reducing traffic delays, and
WHEREAS, the FGEIS also determined that the festival parking layout would minimize
environmental impacts from the Project by allowing fewer acres of land to be disturbed for parking lot
construction with the proposed alternate lot design compared to the conventional retail parking lot
design requiring passive curbed islands and similar traffic control structures, and
WHEREAS, because the proposal for an alternate parking lot design and its attendant potential
environmental impacts and benefits was considered in detail in the generic environmental review for the
Great Escape expansion project, no further SEQRA compliance is required in connection with this
proposed action requesting that the Town Board amend the Town Zoning Ordinance to allow for the
proposed alternate festival parking lot design, and
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WHEREAS, on or about September 10, 2001, the Town Board adopted a Resolution
authorizing submission of the proposed amendments to the Town’s Planning Board for report and
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recommendation and setting a public hearing on the proposed amendments for October 1, 2001, and
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WHEREAS, on or about September 18, 2001, the Queensbury Planning Board considered
the proposed amendments and made a positive recommendation to the Town Board to approve the
amendments, and
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WHEREAS, on or about September 12, 2001, the Warren County Planning Board
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considered the proposed amendments and determined that there was no County impact, and
WHEREAS, the Town Board duly conducted its public hearing concerning the proposed
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amendments on October 1, 2001, and
WHEREAS, the Town Board has considered the conditions and circumstances of the
proposed amendments,
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT
RESOLVED, that the Queensbury Town Board hereby amends the Official Town Zoning
Ordinance concerning the proposed amendments to the off-street parking requirements of the Town
Zoning Ordinance proposed by The Great Escape Theme Park described in this Resolution and more
specifically as follows:
1. §179-66(B)(3) regarding “Off-Street Parking and Loading” shall be amended by
adding the following underlined words:
Except for an enclosed shopping center and those parking lots or parking
areas for which the Planning Board authorizes a Festival Parking
Alternate Design as provided by §179-66(B)(3)(d) of this Ordinance, any
parking lot or parking area that will contain more than one hundred fifty
(150) cars shall be effectively divided by planted divider strips planted
with trees fixed in place so as to effectively divide each parking area of
one hundred fifty (150) cars from another driveway and parking area for
the purpose of ensuring safety of vehicles moving within the entire
parking area and to control speed.”
2. A new subsection §179-66(B)(3)(d) shall also be added to the provision regarding
“Off-street Parking and Loading” as follows:
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d.Festival Parking Alternate Design - The previous provisions of this
section to the contrary notwithstanding, the Planning Board may waive
those provisions of this subsection requiring planted divider strips and
planted traffic islands within parking lots or parking areas for uses such
as amusement centers, ski centers and similar places of mass gathering
where parking in the lots will be managed and filled by parking lot
attendants who will direct entering vehicles from an access driveway to a
particular parking space; provided, however, that for uses entitled to this
waiver, the minimum tree planting requirements which would otherwise
be mandated by §179-66(B)(3)(c)[2] and [3] for plantings within the
divider strips or traffic islands shall be added to the applicable minimum
planting requirements for the planted buffer area surrounding the
parking lot, as is otherwise required by §179-66(B)(3)(c)[1] of this section.
3. A new definition of “FESTIVAL PARKING ALTERNATE DESIGN” shall be
added to the “Definitions and Word Usage” provision of the Town Zoning Ordinance, §179-
7(B) in the alphabetical listing of definitions, immediately following the definition “FENCE” as
follows:
FESTIVAL PARKING ALTERNATE DESIGN – An alternate design
for off-street parking lots required under this Ordinance that does not
require planted divider strips or planted traffic islands or similar
structures to passively control vehicles moving across the parking lot,
which alternate design is allowable for certain uses where the parking of
vehicles will be actively managed by parking lot attendants.
and
BE IT FURTHER
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RESOLVED, that the Town Board hereby authorizes and directs the Queensbury Town
Clerk to arrange to update the official Town Zoning Ordinance to reflect these zoning
amendments, and
BE IT FURTHER
RESOLVED, that the Town Board hereby authorizes and directs the Town Clerk to send
a copy of this Resolution, if and to the extent required, to other involved or interested agencies,
and
BE IT FURTHER,
RESOLVED, in accordance with the requirements of the Town of Queensbury Zoning
Ordinance Article XIII and Town Law §265, the Town Board hereby authorizes and directs the Town
Clerk to publish a certified copy of the zoning changes in the Glens Falls Post-Star within five (5) days
and obtain an Affidavit of Publication, and
BE IT FURTHER
RESOLVED, that these amendments shall take effect upon filing in the Town Clerk’s
Office.
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Duly adopted this 1 day of October, 2001, by the following vote:
AYES : Mr. Turner, Mr. Stec, Mr. Brewer, Mr. Brower
NOES : None
ABSENT: Mr. Martin
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