4.04 A
�y
4.4
ZONING.Affirm Feeney Project-Consistency with Top of the World PUD—5-3-2021
RESOLUTION AFFIRMING CONSISTENCY OF THE FEENEY PROJECT
WITH THE TOP OF THE WORLD PLANNED UNIT DEVELOPMENT
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RESOLUTION NO. : ,2021
INTRODUCED BY :
WHO MOVED ITS ADOPTION
SECONDED BY
WHEREAS James & Susan Feeney are seeking building permit approval from the
Town of Queensbury to expand a residence off Lockhart Mountain Road in the Town of
Queensbury, and
WHEREAS,upon recommendation from the Zoning Administrator, Dennis MacElroy,
agent for the Feeneys,has requested that the Queensbury Town Board affirm that this proposed
project is consistent with the Top of The World Planned Unit Development as approved by the
Town Board by Resolution Nos: 77.1984 and 179.2007, and
WHEREAS, the Town's Senior Planner has reviewed the proposed project to be sure it
is in compliance with the PUD Ordinance and Top of The World PUD and has recommended
that the Town Board adopt a Resolution affirming that the proposed project is consistent with
the Top of The World PUD so that the project will be able .to move forward through the
building permit process,
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT
RESOLVED, that the Queensbury Town Board hereby affirms that the proposal by
James & Susan Feeney to expand a residence off Lockhart Mountain Road in the Town of
Queensbury is consistent with the Top of the World PUD as approved by the Town Board by
Resolution Nos: 77.1984 and 179.2007,and
BE IT FURTHER,
RESOLVED, that the Town Board hereby authorizes and directs the Senior Planner to
a
present a certified copy of this Resolution to James & Susan Feeney, the Zoning Administrator
and the Town Buildings & Codes Enforcement Department and take such other and further
actions necessary to effectuate the terms of this Resolution .
Duly adopted this 3`d day of May, 2021, by the following vote:
AYES
NOES
ABSENT:
ENVIRONMENTAL DESIGN
PARTNERSHIP LLP. 900 Route 146 Clifton Park,NY 12065
(P)518.371.7621 (F)518.371.9540 edpllp.com
March 26, 2021
Town of Queensbury Town Board
742 Bay Road
Queensbury, NY 12804
Attn: John Strough, Supervisor
Re: Top of the World PUD
Dear John:
On behalf of Jim Feeney, Principal Owner of the Top of the World Golf Course& Resort,within the
Top of the World PUD; I present the following information in an effort to resolve a building permit
issue.
The Top of the World Planned Unit Development(PUD)was created in the late 1980's under the
ownership of the Galesi Group,areal estate development company. The PUD was subject to review,
approvals and permitting by both the Town of Queensbury and the Adirondack Park Agency(APA).
The 1986 APA Permit(Permit 86-332-2 issued in 1987) is the primary document providing guidance
for the Galesi Group proposed development. Mr. Feeney originally purchased the golf course from
the Gales!Group but subsequently purchased all the remaining lands of the PUD. Mr. Feeney and
family has had a residence in a building associated with the Golf Course buildings since 1998. The
building in question is referred to as 'The Bunk House'and was renovated for the Feeney's use by
Building Permit 98-006 issued by the Queensbury Building &Codes Department in January of 1998.
Work under this permit was completed during 1998 with a final Certificate of Occupancy issued by
the Town in February 1999. The Feeney's have used this structure as their onsite residence ever
since.
In October of 2020 Mr. Feeney submitted an application for a building permit involving work that
would expand the existing 1584 sf two-story residence by an additional 832 sf: The addition will be
one-story with a full basement area and will include a screened-in porch of approximately 148 sf and
an open entry porch of approximately 107 sf. A 30 sf dormer expansion will be added to the existing
second floor. While I believe the Building Dept.was ready to issue the requested permit,Zoning
Administrator Craig Brown had some questions regarding the original permitting under APA Permit
86-332-2.
In APA's 1986 permit there was reference to the Top of the World structures that existed at the time
and what the future plans for them would be—refer to Finding of Facts 12. Some were to be
removed and some were to have continued use in various capacities. I have attached for your
review the section of the APA permit(Findings of Fact 12[h])that has caused Craig to question the
building permit request. I wrote the original 1987 letter which this section of the permit refers to and
I recall the areas of the buildings provided included an expansion quotient.
As can be seen,the Bunk House was included as one of the existing structures and was allocated an
overall area of'3276 sf. The proposed area is not the issue that Craig has questioned but the actual
use. My 1987 description of the three structures (Sports Cottage, Bunk House and Sun Deck)
included under 12(h) called for the structures to be "renovated and used to store equipment and to
house grounds maintenance personnel". I believe Craig's concern is that the description does not
specifically include the phase 'residential use'in addition to the phrase 'house grounds
u
ENVIRONMENTAL DESIGN PARTNERSHIP, LLP. 900 Route 146 Clifton Park,NY 12065
Shaping the phvsi.ai �mi-I 0n ill enL (P)5 18.37 1.7621 (F)513.371.9540 edpllp.com
maintenance personnel'. In 1997 when the Feeneys took over the ownership of the golf course they
began the process of renovating the Bunk House so it could "house' golf course personnel .....
which happened to be themselves. The Town Building Department issued Permit 98-006,the work
was completed and certified and they have resided in the Bunk House,when onsite,for over 21
years. They would now like to build an addition to the structure,staying within the square footage
area(3276 sf maximum) allowed under the APA permit. As a result of Craig's concern,the recent
(October 2020) Building Permit application was put on hold until this issue could be resolved. Craig
suggested that we obtain a "consistency finding"from the Town's regulatory authority. Since this
project is under a PUD,that authority would be the Town Board.
With that background information provided I am requesting that your Board review this issue and
provide the suggested 'consistency finding'so that the Feeneys can obtain the requested building
permit and they can expand the structure and continue the use that has been in-place for the past 21
years.
If necessary, I will be available to attend a regular Board meeting or a workshop meeting to further
clarify the existing conditions and requested structure addition. Thank you for your attention to this
matter.
Sincerely,
'Peviviis Wlac�lra�
Dennis MacElroy, PE _
The Environmental Design Partnership, LLP
518 376-4485
Attachment
Cc: Craig Brown
Dave Hatin
Jim Feeney
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