To the Editor:

I am writing this to the Guilderland Planning Board as an appeal to conscience.

I am a volunteer with Save the Pine Bush and I am responding to the proposal to build on part of a 50-acre parcel at 24 New Karner Road. I have serious concerns about this project and hope this communicates them clearly. Please ask any questions you may have on these concerns and I will clarify them.

These 50 acres were designated for full protection by the Albany Pine Bush Commission in March of 2017. In 2017, the Albany Pine Bush Management Plan explained that each designated area is made up of a core area and concentric areas that are diminished in value to wildlife due to the “edge effects.”

When a piece of land is near a major road or even a development and parking lot, there is a wide swath of land that becomes inaccessible to the wildlife. They will avoid it, and if they don’t, they are at risk of becoming roadkill.

A “fair” threshold for wildlife is 25 to 125 acres. Of course, this 50 acres, minus 11 from the development and an additional reduction from fragmentation edge effects reduces the actual habitat to under 25 acres, which is “poor.” However, it is connected to a larger piece of land, the Kaikout Kill, rendering it an important wildlife corridor.

The total land acreage is much larger with these pieces intact (24 plus 30 New Karner Rd.). Putting 11 acres with the long side of the rectangle facing New Karner Road is a considerable barrier to mammals and reptiles moving north and south, parallel to New Karner Road. To give you some context: 125 acres are needed to accommodate grassland birds; bobcats need 1,500 acres; red foxes are more adaptable to smaller tracts of land.

When it comes to habitat, size matters! Larger animals and grassland birds disappear from smaller patches of land; species density increases both with distance from disturbance and with larger patches of land.

The management plan points out that golden warblers, long-tailed weasels, and the striped skunk are just three of the species of mammals and birds that can thrive in about 25 acres of land.

Guilderland receives important benefits from hosting the Pine Bush Preserve between its borders and having the Discovery Center on the edge of the community. Guilderland’s land values are high because it is a desirable place to live. These values are undoubtedly increased by the town’s association with the Pine Bush.

The green space cools the temperatures in summer and provides recreation for families. The fact that the Albany Pine Bush is a National Natural Landmark is a feather in the cap of the whole region. The area is listed as a tourist destination. The hotel industry has thrived in Guilderland, in part because of its proximity to a national treasure.

In return, Guilderland has lived with controlled burns and become a national example of an urban community that values endangered species and rare ecosystems. In contrast with many areas of the country, Guilderland has been successful in saving quality Pine Bush and continuing to host Karner blue butterflies while they have been extirpated from Canada and other sites across the United States. Guilderland should be proud of what it has accomplished.

Yet, to continue to allow over 70 rare species to thrive, Guilderland has to give a little. They cannot build in areas designated for full protection.

Guilderland must think carefully about the best locations for affordable housing and conclude that it would not be inside an ecosystem zone that needs protection from vehicles and noise.

It is contrary to Guilderland’s own climate goals to build housing that cannot be accessed by bus. Guilderland is being called to rely on smart-growth principles even more than other areas.

When I lived in affordable housing, which was subsidized housing in the state of California, I could not afford a vehicle. I had to rely on public transportation to assist me and my children. I had to find ways to go to work without a car. My children were walked to and from preschool.

I fear that residents in the proposed project in the proposed location will not be able to afford to live there, rendering it not “affordable” at all.

In return for the economic, social, and cultural prestige gained by its association with the Albany Pine Bush, Guilderland must prepare a full Environmental Impact Statement for any development on typical Pine Bush soils. We appreciate the ongoing commitment Guilderland has to maintaining a beautiful residential and commercial community next to an irreplaceable and globally rare ecosystem. We want to encourage that.

But I also want to point out two more things that might help to explain our requests above. One, Guilderland has a seat on the Albany Pine Bush Preserve Commission where their concerns and desires can be expressed; we hope Guilderland will make full use of this privilege.

Other communities face similar challenges. I offer the example of Voorheesville and New Scotland, two fairly proximate communities with high land values in part due to their proximity to the gorgeous Thacher Park, an Audubon Important Bird Area with rare bat hibernacula on site.

In order to accomodate the park, which has removed a large swath of land from consideration for development, the municipalities have consented to reduce the speed limit on Route 156 to 15 miles an hour, inconveniencing their residents and increasing their obligation to process speeding tickets over at the New Scotland Town Court.

The communities in the region may or may not be thrilled with the accommodations they make to be so close to a natural wonder with waterfalls, forests, and amazing vistas. But they accept it as part of their obligation to their sense of place.

I find it inspiring that the patriotism of the people of Albany County manifests as an extraordinary loyalty to the land. Our painting, photography, writing, and our culture are all informed by this passion we share.

In a day and age of commercialism and false values, the commitment of our municipal governments to supporting the real values of our people is deeply appreciated by the long-term residents of this region.

Grace Nichols

Save the Pine Bush