“I believe there was already a meeting planned for the town and village staff to review the record and establish the baseline facts and conditions of Woodland Pond’s approval,” he said, “so there was nothing yet for the town or village to discuss.”
For their part, the Lent Farm residents are glad their complaints were heard. There are also hopeful signs in the way Zimet delivered her message — she said “when” not “if” the board approves the gate.
“The homeowners in the neighborhood are ecstatic,” Winfield said. “We’re just very, very thankful that what we consider a very dangerous situation is rectified.”
What Lent thinks of the ‘Lent situation’
David Lent, the man after whose family the subdivision is named, also came to the Town Board in July to lobby his elected officials to take action — albeit of a different kind. He wanted them to keep that road open.
“I understand that … some of the people who live up by Lent Road or Warring Lane wanted to close the road that goes into Woodland Pond,” he said. “When I designed that subdivision, it was approved by the Town Board and the village Planning Board.”
He denied the neighbors’ claim that it was always meant to be a cul-de-sac.
“I could have designed it so it would have dead-ends in it or cul-de-sacs. And it probably would have gotten more lots out of it,” he said. “But I strongly believe this town has too many cul-de-sacs — too many dead-end roads — and nobody’s going to put in a great big highway to satisfy the traffic problems in New Paltz. And we have a major traffic problem.”
Lent compared the road that shares his name to Henry W. Dubois Drive. Nearly a half-century ago the town and village were arguing whether that road should exist. “Just think what would be the condition in this town today if there wasn’t Henry Dubois Drive. If you think traffic is bad now — take that street out and have only one street through town.”
The former owner of that subdivision asked the Town Board to consider connectivity and traffic flow.
“I think it’s important that we keep that road and other roads open to try to alleviate the traffic problems that exist in the town,” Lent said. “Let’s get rid of cul-de-sacs and certainly not make more of them.”
One of the neighbors’ complaints had to do with the fact that the original number of vacant lots went from the original 11 to 14. Lent Farm residents had wanted the town to block New Paltz Views from subdividing that land further until work on the road had been completed.
However, town Planning Board members recently approved a lot line revision that would split the empty lot housing the so-called “debris pile” at Warring and Lent into two lots.
What’s next?
Neighbors like Winfield still want the town to compel the developer to bring the roads up to spec so it can be dedicated as an official town road.
Since the meeting that might help resolve many of the outstanding Lent Farm issues takes place well after our deadline, it is unclear if the Town Board might discuss the dedication of the road as well.
However, New Paltz Views has $150,000 in escrow that the town could tap into to use to, for instance, improve the road.
For the Lent Farm Homeowners Association, making Lent and Warring town roads is the next step.
