It was standing room only at a recent town hearing when residents voiced concern over lifting restrictions to build more homes at Stonebridge Estates in Smithtown. Local officials also spoke out against a plan to build 30 houses at the site abutting Blydenburgh County Park and the headwaters of the Nissequogue River.
When the development was approved more than 20 years ago, covenants were put in place to preserve the land adjoining the 588-acre park, including an 18-hole golf course. The area is not suitable for more homes because it’s prone to flooding, argued Suffolk Legislator Leslie Kennedy, who spoke against lifting the covenants. “Suffolk County has spent millions of dollars on stream bed remediation, creating water diversions, stream bed cleanings, etc., to protect the river, which eventually flows into the Long Island Sound,” Kennedy said. “This project would have significant environmental and community impacts. It should not be approved.”
Kennedy has sponsored legislation to purchase over 10 acres of environmentally sensitive land just south of the 105-unit Stonebridge subdivision, including smaller parcels at the headwaters of the river and around the perimeter of Blydenburgh Park. “Removing the protective covenants would be in direct opposition to county public policy,” Kennedy stated.
Another county official speaking against the project was Legislator Robert Trotta, who pointed out that the park’s campground would be near the new homes. “Would you want to be camping near someone’s backyard?” Trotta asked. “Or would you want bonfires and people in your backyard?” The legislator said he discussed the county preserving the property with Kennedy. “Monuments will be built for people who preserve land,” he said. “No one will care who builds houses.”
Kennedy went on to point out that many mature trees would have to be taken down for the new development in an area she described as “swampland.” The trees absorb about 20 gallons of water per foot per hour, she noted, reducing the amount of water in both the surrounding wetlands and in the basements of nearby homes. “Removal of these old-growth trees and replacing them with houses will not allow for any water absorption, thereby increasing flooding,” Kennedy said, adding that she would like to see a full environmental impact statement required for the project.
Trotta said the town should concentrate on land preservation and slow down on new developments. “Right next to the Nissequogue River is not the spot we should be building houses.”