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Record of Proceedings

North Salem Zoning Board of Appeals Hearing - May 8, 2025

Town Board & Boards — Thursday, May 8, 2025
BodyNorth Salem, New York
SessionTown Board & Boards
DateThursday, May 8, 2025
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 22:40

Original source
Transcript — VerbatimClick a timed line to jump · ⧉ to share it

Speaker numbers apply only to this recording.

Speaker 1

0:36

So we will call this meeting of the town of North Salem Zoning Board of Appeals to order.

0:42

Any um members of the public with green cards, please turn them in to the secretary.

0:50

Let's see.

0:51

We will have uh the minutes for April 10th.

0:58

Can we get a motion on that?

Speaker 2

1:00

Some second.

Speaker 1

1:02

Rick.

1:04

Um Zinga.

1:06

Aye.

1:06

And Emily.

1:07

Aye.

1:08

And the chair votes aye.

1:10

And the um set the next meeting date for uh June 12th.

Unassigned speaker

1:21

Um

Speaker 1

1:21

and the other announcement is that BA 2503 wheelhouse group, excuse me, wheelhouse group LLC at 577 Grant Road, uh has been adjourned on the uh request of the applicant.

1:38

Okay.

1:39

So we'll start with BA25-10 uh Z Ranch New York LLC 212 Hunt Lane, a special permit, uh change of ownership on BA 19-37 for the keeping of up to two horses for personal use in an R1 zoning district consisting of approximately two acres per Article 13, Section 250-72.

Speaker 2

2:08

Oh yes,

Speaker 1

2:09

you're the applicant.

Speaker 3

2:10

Hi, well, I'm uh Rebecca Fagan, I'm the assistant and power of attorney for the applicant.

2:14

Okay, also uh co-manager of the LLC.

Speaker 1

2:17

Okay.

2:17

So just give us a quick synopsis of uh of your application.

Speaker 3

2:21

Uh we're just looking to have a permit to keep two horses for personal use at the applicant's home.

Speaker 1

2:28

Okay.

2:28

So no change in the existing special permit.

Speaker 3

2:32

No change, no.

2:33

Okay.

Unassigned speaker

2:35

Oh

Speaker 3

2:35

let's see.

Speaker 1

2:40

All right.

2:40

Um I don't have any questions on this, so I'm gonna open it up to members of the board for questions.

2:45

It's a simple uh changeover from a previously uh approved special permit, no changes, no new construction, nothing uh nothing at all, just an ownership change.

2:59

Any questions from members of the board?

Speaker 4

3:06

It's just over two acres total property.

3:10

Yes, yeah.

Speaker 1

3:16

Yeah, I mean t you know, typically if it was an R4 zone, then they wouldn't even need a permit, but it's a it's a smaller zone, so for two horses.

Unassigned speaker

3:25

It

Speaker 5

3:25

seems

Unassigned speaker

3:25

reasonable.

Speaker 1

3:26

Yeah,

Speaker 5

3:27

yeah.

Speaker 1

3:27

Um I know the farm it's well kept and assume it'll be uh continued that way.

3:35

Yes.

3:35

Um all right, so we'll open it up to uh members of the public.

3:39

Any questions or comments from members of the public?

3:42

Yes, ma'am.

3:43

If you can just come up to the yeah, and just uh tell us for the record your name and address.

Unassigned speaker

3:48

Sure.

Unassigned speaker

3:50

My

Speaker 6

3:50

name is Carol Hughes.

3:52

I live at 216 Hunt Lane, and I've been a resident there since 2001.

3:56

Um my question is regarding we had a um I'll call it owner number one when we moved in.

4:02

It was beautiful, the horses were there.

4:04

Um cared for fine.

4:07

We had owner number two, um, who unfortunately didn't realize they needed to get a horse permit.

4:12

Um and I came to that hearing.

4:15

Um, and it's not the horses.

4:17

You know what it is, it's the manure.

Speaker 2

4:19

So

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Equestrian Facilities█████████████████████████████████████████████45%
Zoning And Land Use███████████████████████████████████35%
Energy Management████████████12%
Procedural████4%
Fire Safety████4%
Summary of Proceedings

North Salem Zoning Board of Appeals Hearing - May 8, 2025

The Town of North Salem Zoning Board of Appeals met on May 8, 2025 at 7:30 PM to hear three applications: two special permit ownership transfers and one area variance. All applications were approved with conditions.

Consent Calendar

  • Minutes from the April 10, 2025 meeting were approved by unanimous vote.
  • The next meeting date was set for June 12, 2025.

Announcements

  • BA25-03 (Wheelhouse Group, LLC, 577 Grant Road) was adjourned at the applicant's request.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • BA25-10 – 212 Hunt Lane: Neighbor Carol Hughes (216 Hunt Lane) expressed concern about manure management based on prior negative experiences with the previous owner. She requested a clear plan for regular manure removal to prevent odor and fly problems.

Discussion Items

  • BA25-10 – Z Ranch NY, LLC (212 Hunt Lane): Applicant Rebecca Fagan (assistant and power of attorney) requested a special permit to transfer ownership of an existing permit (BA19-37) for keeping up to two horses for personal use on approximately 2 acres in an R-1 district. No changes to the prior permit were proposed. Ms. Fagan stated they would use a 4-yard lidded dumpster, emptied every other week, and employ fly predators. Board member Rick recommended installing smoke detectors in the barn. The board discussed the location of the dumpster and the applicant confirmed a survey showing it set back from the property line. The public hearing was closed and a resolution was prepared.
  • BA25-11 – Paul & Kayla D'Agostino (2 Orchard Drive): The applicants requested area variances of 49 ft (rear yard) for a 17kW generator and 46 ft for a 120-gallon propane tank on a non-conforming corner lot in the Peach Gardens Cooperative. The required rear yard setback is 50 ft. They explained that the proposed location (between the house and shed) minimizes noise impact on neighbors and is approved by the cooperative. Board members found no feasible less-intrusive alternative and noted the property predates the zoning code. A suggestion was made to set generator self-tests between 11:00 AM and 4:00 PM on weekdays to avoid disturbing neighbors.
  • BA25-12 – Cedar Fox, LLC (1 Lost Pond Lane): Representative Lance Cothman requested a special permit to transfer ownership of BA22-25 for keeping up to eight horses for personal use on approximately 15.4 acres in an R-4 district. Two fewer horses than previously permitted would be kept. The board noted that three full-time staff reside on-site and horses are present only in summer. No adverse neighborhood effects were identified.

Key Outcomes

  • BA25-10: Motion to grant the special permit with the condition that smoke detectors be installed in the barn. Unanimously approved (Rick, Emily, Zinga, Chair).
  • BA25-11: Motion to grant the area variances. Unanimously approved (Emily, Zinga, Rick, Chair). The board recommended scheduling generator self-tests on weekdays between 11:00 AM and 4:00 PM.
  • BA25-12: Motion to grant the special permit. Unanimously approved (Rick, Emily, Zinga, Chair).

Meeting Transcript

So we will call this meeting of the town of North Salem Zoning Board of Appeals to order. Any um members of the public with green cards, please turn them in to the secretary. Let's see. We will have uh the minutes for April 10th. Can we get a motion on that? Some second. Rick. Um Zinga. Aye. And Emily. Aye. And the chair votes aye. And the um set the next meeting date for uh June 12th. Um and the other announcement is that BA 2503 wheelhouse group, excuse me, wheelhouse group LLC at 577 Grant Road, uh has been adjourned on the uh request of the applicant. Okay. So we'll start with BA25-10 uh Z Ranch New York LLC 212 Hunt Lane, a special permit, uh change of ownership on BA 19-37 for the keeping of up to two horses for personal use in an R1 zoning district consisting of approximately two acres per Article 13, Section 250-72. Oh yes, you're the applicant. Hi, well, I'm uh Rebecca Fagan, I'm the assistant and power of attorney for the applicant. Okay, also uh co-manager of the LLC. Okay. So just give us a quick synopsis of uh of your application. Uh we're just looking to have a permit to keep two horses for personal use at the applicant's home. Okay. So no change in the existing special permit. No change, no. Okay. Oh let's see. All right. Um I don't have any questions on this, so I'm gonna open it up to members of the board for questions. It's a simple uh changeover from a previously uh approved special permit, no changes, no new construction, nothing uh nothing at all, just an ownership change. Any questions from members of the board? It's just over two acres total property. Yes, yeah. Yeah, I mean t you know, typically if it was an R4 zone, then they wouldn't even need a permit, but it's a it's a smaller zone, so for two horses. It seems reasonable. Yeah, yeah. Um I know the farm it's well kept and assume it'll be uh continued that way. Yes. Um all right, so we'll open it up to uh members of the public. Any questions or comments from members of the public? Yes, ma'am. If you can just come up to the yeah, and just uh tell us for the record your name and address. Sure. My

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