Recommendation to the Planning Board of the Town of Cochecton
Regarding the Proposed Clustered Subdivision on New Turnpike Road

Discussions regarding the scope of inquiry for the development proposed on New Turnpike Road should include an evaluation of the impact on the native wildlife. This is the first application of this kind in our town and it will not be the last. As a community it is our responsibility to advance carefully. The decisions made by this board will have an immense and long lasting impact on the future of our town.

I have been a full time resident of the town of Cochecton since 1999. I came here because I was drawn to the profound rural beauty and diverse flora and fauna of the Upper Delaware Valley. There are many threatened species here and now Cochecton itself is in danger.

We need to make measured decisions to insure the beautiful rural landscape that we share with a diverse wildlife population is not transformed into suburbia. The decisions facing the community today affect not only this subdivision, but the future of the town of Cochecton. I implore the planning board to carefully consider the long term impact of this application for a clustered subdivision.

In the Environmental Assessment Form presented to the Planning Board at the July 29th meeting, the developer declared that 62 acres of "vegetation (trees, shrubs, groundcovers) will be removed from site."

I am gravely concerned for the threat this type of clearing will pose to the welfare of our native species.

Myself and my neighbors have identified the following species in the area:

American Woodcock
Black-billed cuckoo
Bobolink
Blue-spotted salamander
Cricket Frog
Peregrine Falcon
Ruffed Grouse
Scarlet Tanager
Snapping Turtle
Timber Rattlesnake

Each of these is on the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation's Species of Greatest Conservation Need for the Delaware Basin. To say nothing of the countless species that live here so far unthreatened.

As a concerned resident of Cochecton I encourage the board to insure the following steps are taken to preserve the natural wildlife habitats, migratory patterns and biological diversity our rural community currently supports:

• Identify and describe the wetlands on the site including relevant information on wetland hydrology and vegetation as well as whether wetlands qualify as NYSDEC and/or US Army Core of Engineers regulated wetlands.
• Conduct a review of the NYSDEC Natural Heritage Program files and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services database.
• Complete a field assessment to determine baseline information on ecology and potential ecological impacts to biodiversity. The site should also be evaluated as a potential habitat for bog turtles, cricket frogs and any other rare, threatened, or endangered species.
• Provide a detailed discussion of the vegetative communities as food sources (both wetland and upland) on the site, including location, extent, dominant species and maturity of the vegetation in the ecosystem.
• Provide a report detailing potential impacts associated with a reduction of existing vegetative cover and existing habitats. Impacts should be assessed from the perspective of soil erosion, migration of deer to off-site areas, migration of wildlife from wetland areas to upland areas, and provision of food and cover for wildlife.

Jeffrey Rose, Cochecton, New York