GOVERNOR SPITZER ANNOUNCES AGREEMENT ON MAJOR CATSKILLS RESORT
Substantial Environmental Safeguards Built into Agreement on $400 Million Project

Governor Eliot Spitzer today announced an agreement on a major new resort complex in the Catskills – the largest and most environmentally advanced development project in the region in generations – and the protection of over 1,400 acres of land. The agreement between Crossroads Ventures LLC, environmental groups, New York State and New York City will end a seven-year legal and regulatory battle and allow the project to move forward while at the same time assuring strict environmental protections and land preservation.

“This project will simultaneously revitalize the region’s economy by creating hundreds of new jobs and protect the environment through green buildings, watershed protection and land preservation,” said Governor Spitzer. “I thank all the parties who came to the table and accomplished great things for the Catskills. Their hard work illustrates that environmental protection and sustainable economic development can go hand in hand.”

The new resort will be built on the border of Ulster and Delaware counties in the towns of Shandaken and Middletown. It is located in an environmentally sensitive area of the New York City watershed in the central Catskill Mountains. The project includes two hotels, 259 lodging units, a conference center, spa and organic golf course. The land is adjacent to the state-owned Belleayre Mountain Ski Center and will feature ski-in/ski-out recreational opportunities. The projected cost of the project is $400 million. It is expected to create 450 full time permanent jobs, 150 part-time jobs as well as 1,800 construction jobs over an estimated eight-year construction period.

With nine million New Yorkers relying on the Catskill-Delaware watershed to provide a safe and reliable source of drinking water, and this area being home to prized trout streams, protecting water quality was a guiding principle of this agreement. Crossroads Ventures has agreed to scale back the size of the development and to shift all proposed development out of the highly sensitive and impaired Ashokan Reservoir basin.

Key components of the agreement include:

• State acquisition of 1,216 acres of land on the Big Indian Plateau to be added to the State Forest Preserve through a purchase negotiated by the Trust for Public Land. The Big Indian Wilderness Area and the adjoining Slide Mountain Wilderness Area, together make up the largest contiguous tract of wilderness in the Catskill Park;
• State acquisition of 78 acres at the former Highmount Ski Center to be integrated into a westward expansion of the state-owned Belleayre Mountain Ski Center, and a NYC Watershed conservation easement on 200 acres of nearby lands;
• Clustered development approach that reduces the total number of acres to be disturbed from 573 acres to 273 acres – a 52% reduction;
• Construction of environmentally sound green buildings that meet specifications set forth by the US Green Building Council. The buildings will obtain certification under the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) program;
• Elimination of one golf course and redesign of the remaining golf course to minimize pollution impacts, including a commitment to organic golf course management;
• Substantial redesign of the resort to eliminate the placement of most buildings on steep slopes, while buffering wetlands and streams. The physical disturbance of the land by the proposed resort is reduced by half;
• Reduced visibility of the resort from wilderness areas of the Forest Preserve, design and materials alterations to help the resort better fit its surroundings, and the use of lighting designed to avoid potential effects on “night skies;”
• Comprehensive and heightened storm water management design to control and manage runoff;
• Elimination of two proposed sewage treatment plants. Instead, the resort will utilize an existing New York City-owned, state-of-the-art sewage treatment plant in Pine Hill;
• Reduction of the total number of the resort’s hotel and lodging units thereby reducing resort related traffic and demands on local water resources;
• Half a million dollars in state funds for local smart growth projects through a new Central Catskills Smart Growth Initiative. Funding is from the State's Environmental Protection Fund and will be administered by the Department of Environmental Conservation. Separate from this agreement, the state will begin a public collaborative process to explore scenic by-way designation for the Route 28 corridor;
• Protection of Birch Creek and its aquatic habitat through elimination of the Big Indian Plateau development and a rigorous permit condition which limits use of the existing water supply wells in drought conditions.

Annual property tax revenue of over $2 million is expected to be paid to the Town of Shandaken and Town of Middletown, local school districts and Ulster and Delaware counties. Annual sales tax revenue to the state and Ulster and Delaware counties is expected to be over $2 million.

Congressmember Maurice Hinchey said: “I applaud Governor Spitzer for his leadership in developing a solution for the Belleayre Resort project that will help to create new jobs and spur economic growth while minimizing negative impacts to the surrounding environment and protecting the integrity of the New York City watershed. When I introduced the lower build alternative for this plan as a starting point for these negotiations almost two years ago, I envisioned a final project that greatly resembled what was agreed to today. In particular, I applaud the state’s purchase of more than 1,200 acres of wilderness to be included in the Catskill Forest Preserve as well as the developer’s commitment to environmental safeguards such as the organic golf course and the incorporation of Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification in all of his buildings. While this project represents a dramatic improvement from what was originally proposed, I still intend to follow the subsequent review process carefully, particularly with regard to its size and potential impacts on the hamlet of Pine Hill.”

Environmental Protection Agency Regional Administrator Alan J. Steinberg said: “The environmentally sensitive plan for a smaller development of Belleayre demonstrates that when government and the private sector are willing to take creative approaches, economic growth need not preclude environmental protection. The new plan, with its focus on land preservation, conservation, and sustainable practices, allows for the continued rigorous protection of the New York City watershed, the source of drinking water for millions of New Yorkers.”

NYC Department of Environmental Protection Commissioner Emily Lloyd said: “We are pleased with the resolution, and believe that it strikes just the balance between protecting the watershed and developing the local economy that the Watershed Memorandum of Agreement seeks to establish. The stormwater management protocols developed for this agreement reflect state-of-the-art thinking and represents a comprehensive approach towards addressing stormwater and erosion control. Most importantly, because there will be no development on the Big Indian Plateau, this Agreement protects New York City’s drinking water from potential erosion that could be caused by construction and land use changes in the geologically sensitive Ashokan Reservoir basin.”

Pat Foye, Chairman, Empire State Development Corporation/Downstate said: “This agreement should serve as a model of how private-public cooperation can advance a region’s economic development. This is truly a win-win-win situation; skiers will have a new, world-class resort, an environmentally crucial part of the Catskill region will be preserved, and Ulster and Delaware Counties will get an infusion of capital and new jobs.”

Judith Enck, Deputy Secretary for the Environment said: “The Catskills are an extraordinary part of the state where thousands of people live, work and raise families while exercising a level of environmental stewardship ensuring that 9 million of their downstate neighbors can have clean, safe drinking water. This agreement demonstrates that we can have jobs and environmental protection and strikes the right balance between economic development and environmental sustainability.”

Dean Gitter, Managing Member of the project sponsor, Crossroads Ventures, LLC said: “Today’s announcement is an important achievement, illustrating how government, the private sector and environmental advocates can work together to achieve a cooperative project that can greatly contribute to the economy, the environment and the community. It will also provide the benefits of significant and responsible development. We intend to move forward in a spirit of total commitment to the details of this Agreement in Principle. We will welcome the continued cooperation of all the parties in bringing the Belleayre Resort Project to fruition and advancing the long-sought economic revitalization of the central Catskills, surely one of the most beautiful areas of New York State. My thanks and admiration go out to Governor Spitzer, Deputy Secretary of the Environment Judith Enck, General Counsel of Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation Glen Bruening, and all of the folks representing the several parties to this Agreement who have worked so hard and so long to reach mutual understanding and accommodation.”

Eric A. Goldstein, New York Urban Program Director of the Natural Resources Defense Council, said: “Safeguarding the downstate drinking water supply, protecting the Catskill Park and providing economic vitality for Catskills residents present difficult challenges. Today’s agreement, when carefully implemented, will significantly advance all three of these worthy goals. We especially want to thank Governor Spitzer and Congressmember Maurice Hinchey and their talented staffs for their vision and leadership in bringing about this remarkable accord.”

Tom Alworth, Executive Director of the Catskill Center said: “This is a historic day in the Catskills. Faced with an unacceptable development project, we came together, fought for and achieved an alternative that protects water supplies and adds over 1200 acres of land to the Forest Preserve, while allowing for a more environmentally sound development to occur in the area. We could not have gotten to this point without Governor Spitzer’s commitment and leadership.”

Rose Harvey, Senior Vice President of The Trust for Public Land said: “Trust for Public Land is pleased to be part of Governor Spitzer’s efforts to conserve 1,294 acres of wilderness and watershed while allowing for appropriate economic development. The future of the Catskills depends on a symbiotic relationship between conservation and development where both support rather than destroy one another.”

State Senator Bonacic said: “Balancing the environment with the economy in the watershed has always been a challenge. The agreement announced today however, does just that. Today is a day to applaud the long term vision of the investors in the Belleayre project, their willingness to compromise, and the advocacy of Governor Spitzer and his team who finally brought this to conclusion.”

Assemblymember Kevin Cahill said: “I applaud Governor Spitzer’s leadership and his willingness to intervene in this matter. The inclusion of Big Indian in the Catskill Forest Preserve and long overdue land acquisition in Highmount are admirable provisions that will go a long way towards protecting the character of our region. I look forward to the opportunity for a full and public airing of the proposal’s environmental, public safety, social and economic impacts on our communities.”

Assemblymember Clifford Crouch said: “I am pleased this project will come to fruition. I want to thank the governor for taking an active role in reaching a positive decision to move this project forward. The agreement embodies some very progressive ideas that should satisfy environmental concerns while allowing the economic development of this area for the benefit of Delaware and Ulster counties.”

All the parties signed an “Agreement in Principle” which lays out the agreement in detail. A Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement will be prepared for public review. All existing laws and regulations and opportunities for public participation will govern the review of the project.

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