King v. County of Saratoga Industrial Development Agency

208 A.D.2d 194, 622 N.Y.S.2d 339, 1995 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 577
CourtAppellate Division of the Supreme Court of the State of New York
DecidedJanuary 26, 1995
StatusPublished
Cited by6 cases

This text of 208 A.D.2d 194 (King v. County of Saratoga Industrial Development Agency) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of the State of New York primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
King v. County of Saratoga Industrial Development Agency, 208 A.D.2d 194, 622 N.Y.S.2d 339, 1995 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 577 (N.Y. Ct. App. 1995).

Opinion

OPINION OF THE COURT

Peters, J.

This proceeding concerns the siting of a paper sludge landfill on a 232-acre site in the Town of Northumberland, Sara-toga County, owned by respondent Scott and Finch Landfill Partnership (hereinafter the partnership). The partnership is comprised of two large paper companies: Scott Paper Company, which manufactures paper products at its plant in Washington County and Finch Pruyn & Company Inc., which manufactures paper products at its plant in Warren County. The partnership was formed in 1987 when, due to standards newly promulgated by the Department of Environmental Conservation (hereinafter DEC), it became apparent to both paper companies that they shared a common need to build a new lined landfill to be used for the disposal of their paper sludge.

In April 1989, the partnership entered into a contract to purchase the 232-acre parcel and thereafter engaged in hydro-geologic testing to establish its qualifications for a landfill. In April 1990, the partnership submitted a planned unit development (hereinafter PUD) application to the Town for the paper sludge facility to be located on such land. At that time, the partnership intended to finance the construction and operation of such facility through private sources. Upon receipt of the application, the Town initiated the requisite environmental review pursuant to the State Environmental Quality Review Act (ECL art 8; hereinafter SEQRA). In June 1990, the Town designated itself as the appropriate "lead agency” and determined that the project had significant environmental impacts requiring the preparation of a draft environmental impact statement (hereinafter DEIS). In October 1990, the partnership resubmitted the DEIS, making the changes and additions required by the Town. In December 1990, the DEIS was determined by the Town to be complete and it directed the filing of a notice of completion pursuant to 6 NYCRR 617.10. Public hearings were conducted in February 1991 pursuant to 6 NYCRR 617.8 (d), and in July 1991 the Town [197]*197Attorney notified the partnership that the public comment period would close in July 1991 and that it was to file its final environmental impact statement (hereinafter FEIS) on or before September 6, 1991. The Town intended to vote upon the PUD application at the October 1991 meeting. The FEIS was never submitted and, on or about September 30, 1991, the partnership notified the Town that it was withdrawing its application. Accordingly, no vote was ever taken.

In September 1991, the partnership applied to respondent Saratoga County Industrial Development Agency (hereinafter SCIDA) for $18,000,000 in financing and other assistance potentially available to qualified industrial development projects as defined in the State Industrial Development Agency Act (see, General Municipal Law art 18-A). The application before SCIDA was accompanied by a DEIS which essentially mirrored that which was previously submitted to the Town, with the exception that it included a request that SCIDA establish itself as the "lead agency” for SEQRA purposes, stated an intent to utilize a double-liner system, and provided for access to the facility via easements from consenting landowners rather than through Town property. Responses to comments made in the public hearings previously conducted were included.

SCIDA determined that the partnership’s project was an " '[industrial pollution control facility’ ” (General Municipal Law § 854 [8]) and that it qualified for the funds earmarked for the development of industrial development projects (see, General Municipal Law § 852). In November 1991, SCIDA passed an "inducement resolution” for the project, indicating that it would further entertain the application subject to a showing of compliance with all SEQRA requirements and a demonstration that the proposed facility would be environmentally compatible.

In November 1991, SCIDA named itself the "lead agency” for the project, retained an engineering firm to provide independent technical advice and assistance, and authorized its attorneys, inter alia, to begin the required SEQRA process of "agency coordination” (see, 6 NYCRR 617.6) to review the proposed DEIS. In December 1991, counsel for SCIDA contacted all agencies listed by the partnership as being potentially "involved” or "interested agencies” (see, 6 NYCRR 617.2 [t], [u]), with the requisite notification that SCIDA would be the "lead agency” for the coordinated agency review (see, 6 [198]*198NYCRR 617.6 [b]). While DEC approved SCIDA’s self-designation as "lead agency”, the Town challenged such designation.

In January 1992, the Town filed a petition with respondent Commissioner of Environmental Conservation pursuant to 6 NYCRR 617.6 (e), which was opposed by the partnership and SCIDA. The Commissioner rejected the Town’s application, determining that it was not qualified to be even an "involved agency” much less the "lead agency” because it had no discretionary approval authority over the project now that the access road over Town property had been changed (see, 6 NYCRR 617.2 [t]). Hence, as merely an "interested” agency (see, 6 NYCRR 617.2 [u]), the Commissioner determined that the Town could neither serve as the lead agency nor invoke the SEQRA agency dispute resolution procedures to challenge the designation of another agency.

Prior to the Commissioner’s determination of lead agency status, the Town enacted Local Laws, 1992, No. 1 (eff Jan. 29, 1992; hereinafter the Local Law) which prescribed numerous technical standards for landfills which were more stringent than those required by DEC. The Local Law provided that the Town was to be designated as the "lead agency” whenever a landfill was proposed for development within its borders, together with a prohibition against the importation of any solid waste from outside the borders of the Town.

In April 1992, the DEIS was released for public review. Thereafter, Saratoga County announced its plans to site a County landfill upon the same parcel of land. SCIDA therefore required the partnership to prepare a supplemental DEIS (hereinafter SDEIS) to examine the potential cumulative impact of two landfills on adjoining sites. Following release of the SDEIS in July and August 1992, three public hearings were held by SCIDA which were attended by approximately 600 people. Pursuant to SEQRA procedure, engineering consultants and counsel summarized the public comments and provided draft responses thereto. After various revisions, on February 9, 1993 SCIDA adopted the FEIS and approved its issuance in March 1993. The three-volume FEIS included analysis of potential alternatives to the project which included the feasibility of a recycling and reuse facility, extending the life of the partnership’s existing unlined landfill in Warren County or siting the project on alternate sites. The FEIS concluded that none of the possible alternatives to the project was feasible. In addition to the various environmental issues required to be addressed pursuant to 6 NYCRR 617.14 (f), the [199]*199FEIS further concluded that the Local Law was an attempt to prohibit the construction of landfills through its promulgation of an array of unachievable standards. According to the various engineering consultants, the Local Law would serve to preclude landfilling at the proposed project site and other likely sites which might comply with State DEC standards.

In April 1993, SCIDA approved the project.

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Bluebook (online)
208 A.D.2d 194, 622 N.Y.S.2d 339, 1995 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 577, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/king-v-county-of-saratoga-industrial-development-agency-nyappdiv-1995.