Yertle Neuhaus

Dear Nieces and Nephews, if you recall, on Thursday, your Auntie said (in regard to the County seeking authority to be Lead Agency in “large” annexations):

“It basically provides more control to a County Government that is out of control.”

The County Executive released his 2015 State Legislative Program and on page 14, he lays out his proposal regarding annexation: http://www.orangecountygov.com/filestorage/1140/19013/Legislative_Program_2015.pdf

Planning

Proposal: Grant counties “Lead Agency” authority whenever there is a large annexation which would expand a municipal border by 10 percent or more.

Law Amended: New York State General Municipal Law

Purpose: This proposal would grant counties more control over matters that directly impact the lives of its citizens, including environmental reviews, zoning, and land use.

Justification: There is a proposal to annex over 500 acres of land from the Town of Monroe into the Village of Kiryas Joel. Recently, the DEC designated the Village of Kiryas the “Lead Agency” during this process. This gives the village the power to conduct an environmental review of the proposal. By giving the county the status of “Lead Agency” it would make this case, and other similar cases, subject to a fair and open process.

And there you have it: control

Note to Stevie, you would have to amend more than General Municipal Law to make this change. (And Auntie and the team are not telling.) Either you are not consulting any decent lawyer before you put out this tripe or Dain is just writing what he wants to happen and doesn’t care about the actual legal mechanism for achieving these dreams.

Second note to Stevie: When you say  "By giving the county the status of “Lead Agency” it would make this case, and other similar cases, subject to a fair and open process."

do you realize that you are saying that the process will NOT be fair and open when the lead agency responsibility belongs to Kiryas Joel? 

Third note to Stevie: When you say “matters that directly impact the lives of its citizens” are you limiting that just to “annexation matters” or do you want to be responsible for our newspaper deliveries, phone service and baby diapers (for all of the cr@p)?

If it is specifically in regard to annexation matters, ALL annexations impact the lives of (its) citizens.

Just admit it: you want CONTROL 

In your proposal, the language is sloppy, the perspective is faulty, and the legal research is nonexistent. It is almost as if your County Attorney is AWOL or has one foot out the door…

Auntie has a prediction about him and a few others. Coming soon.  

  

A nice little pond.  It was clean.  It was neat.
The water was warm.  There was plenty to eat.
The turtles had everything turtles might need.
And they were all happy.  Quite happy indeed.

They were... untill Yertle, the king of them all,
Decided the kingdom he ruled was too small.
"I'm ruler", said Yertle, "of all that I see.
But I don't see enough.  That's the trouble with me.
With this stone for a throne, I look down on my pond
But I cannot look down on the places beyond.
This throne that I sit on is too, too low down.
It ought to be higher!" he said with a frown.
"If I could sit high, how much greater I'd be!
What a king! I'd be ruler of all that I see!"

Excerpted from “Yertle the Turtle” by Dr. Seuss