Potsdam Still Muddles Health Care Zone Process;

Reluctantly-Done "Environmental Assessment" Worse Than Useless;

Neighbors to Work on Designating "Critical Environmental Area"

Behind Waverly Street Homes


Potsdam July 1, 2009 - The village board's 'working session' on June 19th stepped line-by-line through an Environmental Assessment Form (EAF) that had the form of truth but little of the content. It paves the way for a free pass to vote on the rezoning-and-construction plan on July 7th, unless huge pressure is applied.

Neighbors of the proposed zone around Waverly and Leroy Streets have expressed interest in opening a second front in the effort to protect the environment by pushing to designate a hidden wooded and meadow area behind the homes on the north side of Waverly a "Critical Environmental Area" under State Environmental Quality Review ("SEQR") rules section 617.14.

(That section allows the village or town to recognize "exceptional or unique character" including a special "natural setting", such as the beautiful forest and meadows constitute in the center of the community - providing animal habitat, fresh air and other environmental.)

But the present focus remains on the threatened imminent approval of the Health Care Zone. The village board and its professional staff on June 19th took a kid-glove approach to the analysis - which had been prepared at the behest Canton-Potsdam Hospital but signed off on by the Potsdam Village Planning Board - and let all the downplaying of environmental impacts stand.

We may be faulted for our insistence on looking at the "worst case" scenarios regarding the Health Care Zone, and the "best case" scenarios regarding alternate sites for the Zone, but responsible public policy seems to require that that kind of analysis precede major decisions such as this one. Too bad the village leaders choose the opposite path.

A further hearing - this time called a "community session", possibly for legal reasons - and likely vote is scheduled starting 7 PM Tuesday July 7th at the Potsdam Village Board conference room. This meeting is likely to produce a vote denying - however implausibly -- any "significant" environmental impact, and then one to approve the Health Care Zone that is likely to disastrously transform Potsdam's premier middle class neighborhood and create a major carbon footprint that could and should be.

As we have previously argued, the State Environmental Quality Review ("SEQR") rules require a "positive" finding of significant impact due to many elements that are wholly predictable with this rezoning-and-construction plan: "a substantial adverse change in…traffic"; "material conflict" with "smart growth" commitments in the village Comprehensive Plan; "impairment of …existing community or neighborhood character"; "substantial change in the use, or intensity of use of land"; among other issues (State Environmental Quality Review ("SEQR") rules Section 617.7).

But the environmental review process, which took a detour in the face of our criticism in May, remains farcical. The Full Environmental Assessment Form which the village was embarrassed into performing (or having performed, the process is unclear) makes a mockery of scientific analysis.

Key elements such as traffic estimates took the rosiest outlooks and presented them as the only likely scenario. And then they did not even disclose clear assumptions on which they were based, by their unnamed authors.

For example the asserted expectation of 16,000 new patients and employees per year is reported to generate no significant new traffic. But the assumption is traffic is evenly spaced over 8 hours per day, 260 weekdays per year. An example of the fallacy of averages.

In addition, the engineering firm O'Brien and Geer committed the most sophomoric errors of analysis by omitting all formal disclosure of assumptions, methods, and data in their presentation. The unsigned analysis presented to the board writes of the hospital's "proposed build-out and rezone of land" without specifying what it was, or what variations are possible. Incredible!

Furthermore the O'Brien and Gere analysis did not even disclose that it had been paid for by the hospital. By implication it was not -- because it was included in a form that listed the village as the sponsoring agency. But the village did not pay for it, according to a village official.

In fact the process of evaluating the rezoning proposal took another unannounced and un-voted on turn when the village became one c again both the sponsor and the lead-agency, where the hospital had previously been said to have been designated the sponsor after controversy arose in May.

Potsdam citizens have been deprived of accurate and complete media coverage as we have described in detail at PotsdamSmartGrowth.org. They have been deprived of good professional and political leadership in formulating options for the hugely important Health Care Zone, and then in evaluating its economic, social, and environmental impacts.

This lesson in inadequate public policy development should become legendary, because it has been well documented. But it should be a warning because so many decisions are not paid such close attention. This example - and its likely sad consequences - shows that those in a position to do so, should pay attention, and push for needed reforms.

Note: This document was provided as a press release to various local media on Wednesday afternon, 7/1/09.
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Originally prepared 7/1/09
by Richard Brummel, Organizer
Potsdam Smart Growth
(315) 265-2615
rb.1006@yahoo.com
PotsdamSmartGrowth.org