Welcome
to the fourth issue of The Open Space Advocate Newsletter, a new online
newsletter focusing on open space issues in North Castle and neighboring communities. Sincerely, Kerri A. Kazak, Editor ____________________________________________________________________________
Court to Decide Future of Dubos Property
Westchester
County Supreme Court will soon decide the future of a 30-acre property
located in North Castle known as the Dubos Property. The property
which is located on Baldwin Road between Route 22 and Byram Lake Road
drains directly into Byram Lake, the sole source of drinking water for
the 10,000 residents of Mount Kisco. The property is home to many
species of wildlife including bobcats.
In 1979 the property was bought by the Rene Dubos Center
for Human Environments, a non-profit organization, using money it
received from the Eugene and Agnes Meyer Foundation and the DeWitt
Wallace Fund (the Donors). In exchange for the money, the Dubos
Center signed an agreement with the Donors promising that the property
would remain as a nature preserve. However, in 2002 the Dubos Center
entered into a contract with Michael Cappelli, the brother of the
developer Louis Cappelli, to sell the property for $1 million.
Cappelli plans to develop homes on the property which passes directly
under Interstate 684. Because the New York State Attorney General
regulates the activities of non-profit organizations, the sale of the
property must be approved by the Attorney General and the Court. Dubos
has filed a petition in Westchester County Supreme Court requesting the
approval of the sale. The Petition will be decided by Judge W. Denis
Donovan this month.
Please fax a letter by this Friday
July 6th to Justice Donovan urging him to enforce the Donors' intent
that the property remain a nature preserve and to block the sale of the
property to Cappelli. Justice Donovan's fax # is 914-995-3427.
Below is a sample letter to Justice Donovan that you can use. ____________________________________________________________________________
Sample Letter to Justice Donovan
Honorable W. Denis Donovan Justice, Supreme Court 9th District 111 Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd. White Plains, NY 10601
Re: Rene Dubos Petition, Index No. 9403/07
Dear Justice Donovan:
I am writing to you as a Westchester County
resident concerned about the future of the Dubos Property in North
Castle. This property is vital to the drinking water of the 10,000
residents of Mount Kisco and is home to many species of wildlife that
are disappearing from our County.I urge you to enforce the donors' intent that this property remain in its natural state.
Sincerely,
Please sign and fax this letter to Justice Donovan at 914-995-3427 by no later than this Friday July 6th.
Please send a copy of this letter to:
Judith McCarthy Assistant Attorney General Westchester Region Office 101 East Post Road White Plains, NY 1060 ____________________________________________________________________________
NYS Legislature Passes Hudson Valley Community Preservation Act
Recently the NYS Legislature passed the Hudson Valley Community
Preservation Act. This Act enables individual towns and cities in
Westchester and Putnam Counties to create, at their option, community
preservation funds. The money for these funds would come from a
transfer tax paid by purchasers of real estate in a particular town.
The transfer tax could not exceed 2 % of the value of the property
being purchased and anyone buying a home at or below the median value
home price for the area would not be subject to the tax. Any town
interested in creating a community preservation fund would be required
to hold a voter referendum.
Assemblyman Adam Bradley (89th District) and Senator Vincent
Leibell (40th District) sponsored the bill, which received strong
support from environmental groups statewide.
Passage of the Community Preservation Act is a true victory for
open space because it provides individual towns with a tool for
creating a constant source of funds to purchase lands to protect water
supplies, forests, and wildlife habitat; create parks, nature preserves
and recreation areas; preserve wetlands; and purchase and protect
historic properties. ____________________________________________________________________________
The
Open Space Advocate Newsletter is written by Kerri A. Kazak, an
attorney and open space advocate. Ms. Kazak formerly served as
co-chair of the North Castle Open Space Committee. She is co-founder
of the North Castle Land Trust, a chapter of the Westchester Land
Trust. Ms. Kazak is also co-founder and co-chair of the Citizens'
Campaign to Save Seven Springs. This newsletter is an independent
publication with no affiliation with the North Castle town
government or any other community groups or organizations.
