Fox Chase Estates? The name of this proposed 365-home development should cause us to raise an eyebrow. What does such a development have to do with the historic nature of small-town Easton? Sounds like a suburban subdivision to me, especially located separately at the north end of town and not connected to any other Easton neighborhoods.
And why do we need 365 additional dwelling units, with 1200 units currently under construction or approved and waiting to start right now? One of the major issues cited by citizens during the election for Easton Town Council president was too much residential growth and the unacceptable traffic it causes. What will these 1200 units plus 365 in this proposal do to traffic, already excessive now, in the near future?
Besides the location being basically separate from residential Easton, the plan requires rezoning the property from Commercial to Residential designation. Commercial businesses pay more taxes to the Town. So why would we not save that property for such businesses that would increase Easton’s revenue and also provide jobs?
An important additional concern is proximity to the airport runways where it creates a potentially dangerous situation. This is a location where there was a recent plane crash. Proximity to the airport will also create noise levels that would be unacceptable to homeowners CC.
Finally, and really most important, the Easton Comprehensive Plan is now under review. This huge development should be considered when the Comprehensive Plan is completed, so it will fit with Easton’s vision of the future. There is no compelling reason for approval at this time. Now is not the time for the Planning Commission to approve this development.
The Planning Commission will consider this proposal on Thursday, July 17th, at 1:00 PM in the Easton Town Hall. Attendance is encouraged, as are letters sent to: [email protected].
Joan Bollman
Easton
Deirdre LaMotte says
The names of mass developments, as “Fox Chase”, seem to be related to the depletion of the land as it once was.
LOL, I’m not so sure these people living in their suburban houses want to see fox being chased by those on horseback through their lawns🤣!
Patricia Bradley says
Excellent letter, fully explained. Thank you. I’m sending my letter to the Planning Commission right now.
Margot MIller says
Wny is there no map?
Hal De Bona says
The saddest part about most of the council meetings are they are held during “business” hours whereby the working class really have no say whatsoever. Under the cloak of darkness during the day! We the people deserve better!
Glenn Baker says
Separate development location like the Easton Club and the Easton Village developments delivered by earlier versions of Planning and Zoning and Town Council?
Lawrence Myers says
The rezoning/development application might have been filed for financing and or construction reasons, but it might also have been greatly influenced by the desire to get ahead of the comp plan revision and commensurate citizen input. Such things often happen; it’s part of the developer game.
The Planning Commission should wait until the comp plan has full public input before ruling on such a significant part of it. There is no reason for not waiting.
If the PC members think the time is now, they should defend their reasoning in detail at this meeting, to create a record for the Town Commission to consider in public.
Patricia Foss-Bennie says
Thank you, JANE, for calling attention to this. We concur. This is not why we moved to Easton and love it here. We would hate to see it developed like much of the state across the bridge.
Maury Schlesinger says
The owner sought to do an end-run around zoning by creating a PUD (Planned Unit Development) – a process which requires approval by the Town Council. Thankfully the Planning Commission voted to NOT RECOMMEND approval to the Town Council. As the Planning Commission Chair Philip Toussaint noted at the July meeting, there are opportunities to build more housing within the core of the town, and that projects such as Fox Chase Estates rarely create enough tax income to pay for the town’s costs to maintain the required infrastructure in the future.
Regardless of the Town Council’s action, this project shows the pressure being put on the northern edge of Easton as a result of the new hospital’s location there. Thought must be given to amending the new Comprehensive Plan (still in draft) or the creation of a new sector plan to address the likely emergence of a borough of “North Easton” over the next several years.