Clarkstown Prepares to Preserve

Around this time last year, Orangetown, the State Assembly, and the State Senate passed the Orangetown Community Preservation Act, a bill that would allow the town to create a fund to buy undeveloped land and historical sites for preservation. This year, Clarkstown has followed suit. Town Supervisor George Hoehmann, along with members of the town board, Assemblyman Pat Carroll, and Senator Bill Weber, held a press conference on June 18th to announce the passing of the Clarkstown Community Preservation Act through both the state assembly and the state senate. The bill would function almost identically to the one from Orangetown, creating a lock box fund for the town to use in order to preserve community spaces, historical sites, and the natural beauty of Clarkstown.

The fund would establish a one-time fee on all new property purchases in the town of Clarkstown. The fee would be less than 1% of the price of the property, equating to about $750 for every $100k spent on a property. The first $100k is exempt from this fee; for vacant land, the first $50k is exempt. The fee is one-time for new purchases and would not apply to any existing property owners in the town. The money collected from the fees would be put into a lock box fund, which would be used to purchase properties in Clarkstown worth preserving. 

Members of the Greenway Commission, a commission established to pass this legislation, alongside members of the Mountain View Preservation Group, stood with local leaders, who celebrated their activism and the hard work that made the bill possible. The town and the commission collaborated with the Orange County Land Trust, which merged with the West Branch Conservation Association, and now owns two properties for preservation in the town of Clarkstown, spread over 16 acres. 

The town of Clarkstown has designs on purchasing property with the fund money already, but Supervisor Hoehmann kept his cards close to his chest on which specific properties they’re looking at. He would also like Clarkstown residents to participate by nominating properties they believe to be worth preserving. 

The last step is for Governor Kathy Hochul to sign the bill into law. After the bill is signed, it will be put to a referendum in the town of Clarkstown. Supervisor Hoehmann expressed his hope to see the referendum on the ballot in November alongside the Orangetown referendum. Governor Hochul would need to sign the bill by the first week of August for it to appear on the ballot this coming November, a deadline that was missed last year regarding a similar bill from Orangetown. Supervisor Hoehmann praised Assemblyman Carroll and Senator Weber for the short time it took to pass the bill through both state legislative bodies. He expressed his hope that the trend would continue through the governor’s office, but only time will tell.