To the Editor:

In a rush to beat the March 31 federal and state deadline for tree removal of habitats for the nearly decimated population of long-eared northern bats, the Stewart’s corporation cut down 27-plus half-century-old pine trees on Helderberg Avenue on March 24.  Stewart’s, apparently confident of receiving Altamont Village Zoning Board of Appeals approval after the fact, was granted three substantial variances needed for expansion during a remotely held meeting on March 31.

Stewart’s won’t actually be allowed to begin construction on the new building until the state lifts a pause on nonessential business put in place to help contain the spread of coronavirus. Was the tree removal essential? That question was asked by The Altamont Enterprise of Stewart’s spokesperson, Chuck Marshall, who stated that there had been no suspension of the federal regulation governing the seasonal restriction of tree-cutting that allows trees to be taken down only between Nov. 1 and March 31.  

Tree removal proceeded elsewhere in Guilderland during the same week. Notably, the Guilderland Building and Zoning Inspector Jacqueline M. Coons issued a cease-and-desist order on three specific sites on Thursday, March 26, pending an opportunity to review further tree removal with the Guilderland town attorney and the state’s Department of Environmental Conservation. The tree-cutting was protested by a dozen Save the Pine Bush volunteers Thursday at one of the sites in the Pine Bush area where tree-cutting was occurring. 

The Altamont Stewart’s expansion has been a source of community division since 2014. Although the ZBA vote on March 31 had been expected to give Stewart’s the green light by granting the variances, the tree removal clearly had a sobering effect on all the board members. The view of Stewart’s huge, now treeless parcel clearly shows the severity of the encroachment into a long-standing residential neighborhood and especially how adversely impacted the nearest neighbor will be. One board member called the sight “jarring” but still voted for the variances adding, “I believe it will be nice when it’s all done.”

But will it? In casting one of the two “no” votes (out of five) on the variance that allows Stewart’s to build within 20 feet of 111 Helderberg Avenue, veteran board member Kate Provencher said, “I believe that there is a very clear detriment to the neighborhood … It causes a decrease in the property value of the properties in the residential neighborhood … It’s irreversible … There isn’t any support from the neighbors … it sets a precedent … I think it affects our sense of community and connection and we’ve already agreed that the variance is self-created.” My thanks for your words, Ms. Provencher.

As to envisioning the end result, I believe we’ve had the Western Avenue Stewart’s to look at for several years to get a reasonable sense of how it will look in Altamont. The basic building/pavement ratios are similar and show the Stewart’s standardized business model. The proposed Altamont store would be only 40 square feet smaller. In 2015, Altamont voted against the Stewart’s expansion based on the appearance of the Western Avenue property, which Stewart’s said would be a model.

The purpose of the ZBA is to protect residents and affected property owners within the community from undesirable development. It is independent from the village board. We trust this body to enforce well-conceived safety and environmental codes. The ZBA isn’t intended to protect business interests or to promote growth — that’s someone else’s job.  During the Stewart’s expansion, I came to appreciate what an extremely important function the board has, what a difficult job it has, and how knowledgeable its members must be.

At the March 31 meeting, Maurice McCormack, the chair of the ZBA, and a 22-year veteran of the board, announced he was not being re-appointed to his position. No reason was given. With a board already comprised of two new members who are just learning the ropes, I’m concerned that much of the institutional knowledge of the board will be lost. Losing a seasoned, knowledgeable and expert board member in this position should be of concern to everyone, regardless of how you feel about the Stewart’s expansion, but this matter is certainly an illustration of how important this board is.

 I urge Mayor Kerry Dineen to re-appoint Maurice McCormick to the ZBA. 

Secondly, I ask the planning board to postpone the scheduled April 27 remote hearing on the Stewart’s site approval plan. Given that Stewart’s can’t move forward until nonessential work restrictions are lifted, the planning board should wait until in-person meetings can be resumed.

Fran Porter

Altamont