KNOX — A nine-lot subdivision has been proposed for property on Bell Road in Knox. If approved, it would be the first major subdivision the rural town has seen in years.

At the same time, the town board is looking to create more business districts and eliminate blight.

Soon after Vasilios Lefkaditis became supervisor in 2016, he asked the planning board to work up a law that would eliminate blight in town.  The planning board chairman at the time, Robert Price, had responded with a written list of concerns.

Now, there’s a new planning board chairman, Tom Wolfe, appointed by a town board that has two councilman elected on the same Republican slate as Lefkaditis.

Lefkaditis has also pushed for more than the current single business district in town. Although the planning board twice recommended against a business district at routes 156 and 157, Lefkaditis had wanted to move ahead with a public hearing on the matter.

He couldn’t get enough town board votes last year but this Tuesday, the vote was 4 to 1 in favor of holding a hearing — the first step in establishing a business district.

Blight law

The town board on Tuesday reviewed a bill drafted by its new town attorney that would govern blighted or vacant properties.

Councilman Karl Pritchard objected to language in the bill, saying that low-income residents could be targeted by the law because “they paint their house the wrong color or their grass is too tall.”

Lefkaditis said that he had thought the board wanted to address abandoned property, and Pritchard agreed that there were dangerous properties in town that need to be dealt with. Lefkaditis asked attorney Robert Stout, who was serving in place of the town’s primary attorney Javid Afzali, to change the law to address only vacant property.

Councilman Earl Barcomb asked whether this was an issue that has to be addressed by the building inspector.

“How much farther do we need to go?” he asked.

Lefkaditis said that the town has cited a number of properties over the last year and that is could be an enforcement issue.

The board agreed to adjust the proposed law and discuss it at the next town board meeting, with a public hearing possible in April.

Stout said that whether a new law would be able to address vacant buildings more easily would depend on what is in the property maintenance code or zoning code. Lefkaditis said that the only such enforcement in the zoning ordinance references junked cars, but that the law “doesn't have any teeth” because it states that “inoperable” as opposed to unregistered vehicles cannot be left on one’s property, meaning cars that can drive are legal to be abandoned on one’s property.

518 Bozenkill Rd

Lefkaditis said that a resident is looking to buy the vacant property at 518 Bozenkill Road and open a garage. A year-and-a-half ago, a resident wanted to buy the property and do the same. The supervisor said that it is a half-acre nonconforming lot.

“Is there any way that we can approach the county?” asked Lefkaditis. “Because this gentleman wants to approach the county now and he’s hoping that the board will support him … .”

Lefkaditis said that the lot had been up for auction from the county multiple times before. The lot cannot have a garage as per the Knox zoning code but could request a variance from the zoning board, he said. The supervisor wondered if the applicant could have the auction approved upon the granting of such a variance.

Stout said that the town cannot suggest that the zoning board would rule a certain way or influence the zoning board.

“Because it sounds like, based on what you’re telling me, it’s their call,” he said, adding that the resident could get an unofficial decision from the zoning board.

Lefkaditis asked if the town board could voice its support to the zoning board. Stout said it was fine as long as it was clear the board was expressing an opinion.

Barcomb asked whether the neighbors would be interested in the vacant property or should be alerted that it is up for auction. Lefkaditis said that the neighbors already had the opportunity when it went up for auction before. He asked if the board could send a notice to neighbors about it.

“It’s — unusual,” said Stout.

In the gallery, Travis Stevens, an Albany County legislator, said that the county legislature recently created a committee to look at land dispositions. He also said that the Albany County Land Bank now handles foreclosed property.

Lefkaditis said that the property was tax foreclosed and “kind of in limbo,” and hadn’t gone to the land bank.

A representative of the Albany County Land Bank said that the organization does not appear to own the property, but added that the Land Bank is currently selling property that was foreclosed in 2011.

“What if I wanted to buy it and it wasn’t available?” asked Joan Adriance, a Knox resident, from the gallery. “It’s a slippery slope.”

Lefkaditis said that the property is in blight condition and would benefit the town to be bought.

Councilman Kenneth Saddlemire suggested that the town board wait to see what the county does and then act if the applicant does not receive the property, possibly sending a letter of support.

Two years ago, the town planned to remove tires and old vehicles from the abandoned property after a neighbor with an expensive home complained. Lefkaditis had also asked then about the town drafting a law to address blight.

The county tax assessment rolls list George Blowers as owner of the abandoned property, which has a taxable value of $21,600 and a full market value of $36,000. Blowers and the property are also listed on county’s list of delinquent properties based on 2012 liens.

Nine-lot subdivision

The planning board is in the preliminary stages of reviewing an application for a nine-lot subdivision on Bell Road.

The applicant, Robert Young, proposed the subdivision in December, planning board Chairman Tom Wolfe told The Enterprise on Wednesday. The property is located at 99 Bell Road and would be divided into nine parcels, with Young keeping one and selling the rest as undeveloped plots of land.

“Now, that can change, but that was our understanding,” said Wolfe.

Planning board member Robert Price said at Tuesday’s meeting that the property is around 35 acres and includes one road connecting to Bell Road.

Wolfe said that Young’s representative is scheduled to present a preliminary plat — a map of the property — at the planning board’s March 8 meeting. The board will review the property and determine if more information is needed or not before a public hearing is scheduled.

Wolfe said that the board will have to hold a public hearing within 45 days after the preliminary plat is received. This is dictated in the town’s subdivision regulations created in 1979. He said the hearing could either be held at the following meeting or at a special planning board meeting.

The board is unfamiliar with some of the rules dictating major subdivisions, or property divided into more than five parcels, Wolfe said. At the beginning of his time on planning board, eight or more years ago, he said that one other person submitted an application for a major subdivision, but withdrew the application.

Wolfe said that Young’s application is still in the preliminary stages.

“We won’t be able to say much — or anything — until after the March meeting,” he said.

“Bob Young” is listed on two parcels on Bell Road owned by David Dileo of Mooresville, North Carolina, according to the Albany County tax assessment rolls. The property at 99 Bell Road is listed under Alan D. Dockey and has a taxable value of $67,600 and a full-market value of $112,667.

Business districts

The town board voted, 4 to 1, to hold a public hearing at its next meeting for a proposed business district at the intersection of routes 156 and 157.

Barcomb, the sole vote against a hearing, said that he had voted against establishing such a district previously based on what property owners in that area had said, and that, if these residents changed their minds, he would reconsider his vote.

The supervisor has long pushed for new business district in town. The town board had voted twice on approving this business district last year. Both times the votes failed in a 2-to-2 tie. Barcomb had voted against the district once and had been absent for the other vote.

Wolfe said that the town would need to notify residents and businesses in that area. Lefkaditis said that the board would be able to send a letter to these residents.

The planning board also asked for more time to hold public informational meetings before issuing a decision on a proposed business district along Route 146. The town board agreed to allow the planning board to do so. Wolfe said that the planning board would discuss this at its next meeting on Thursday.

The planning board had formerly recommended that the town not establish a business district at Route 156 and 157. Wolfe, who was not chairman at the time, was the sole vote against that decision. Stout said that the planning board did not have to reissue an opinion on the district for the town board to hold another public hearing.