WAWARSING - Packing the second floor courtroom beyond capacity, concerned residents made their voices heard at this past Tuesday night's planning board meeting, during a public hearing about a proposed selective timber harvest on the Nevele property. The public reaction was unfavorable, to say the least.

Most of the issues raised by residents regarded the potential negative impact to the area's environment and scenic beauty, as well as possible damages the timber harvest could cause to neighbors' properties because of a disrupted water table and increased runoff. Some residents cited the potential negative impact to the Shawangunk Mountains Scenic Byway, as well as the local rail trail, a portion of which runs through the Nevele property and is currently owned by Joel Hoffman's Stratford Business Corporation.

"Everything that goes on in the forest, if you're a responsible forester, you're aware that everything that happens is for a good reason," commented one resident. "A fallen tree is home to small animals and insects that give back to the earth. What is the Nevele giving back to this community but trouble and heartache?"

Also on hand were representatives from neighboring resort Honor's Haven, who said that an ongoing boundary dispute between the two resorts could provide complications should the logging permit be issued by the board. The Honor's Haven property was once known as the Fallsview, and was a part of the Nevele property until it was sold to the Lee family (Honor's Haven's current owners) a few years ago. The Honor's Haven representatives also said that the logging operations could hurt their business with disruptive noise that could bother their guests.

While trying to address the residents' concerns, Evan Nichols, the forester from BG Quality Logging, appealed to the fact that everyone in the room used wood products every day, the direct result of timber harvests such as the one proposed. However, when Nichols mentioned that the survey map the logging company was using was created in 2000, and that Mr. Hoffman had told him that nothing had changed (omitting the sale of the Fallsview after 2000), he elicited laughter from the crowd, some of whom commented that such an omission was par for the course when dealing with the Nevele owner.

In fact, some comments of scorn were directed at Hoffman himself. One current Honor's Haven employee and former Nevele employee said that Hoffman had only brought "sadness and bitterness" to the community. Sue Nibe, Sales Manager with Honor's Haven, former Nevele employee, and village trustee current candidate, had particularly harsh words for Hoffman's effect on the area.

"We have to look at a person who has more or less raped this whole area," she said, excusing herself for using such unforgiving terms before continuing. "But Joel Hoffman was not paying employees, not doing this, not paying taxes….I think the Town of Wawarsing needs to try and go positive and sell this place…the way it is right now, in the hope that we can get a positive owner and get it back on the tax rolls for the town of Wawarsing."

Nichols mentioned that he'd "never met Mr. Hoffman myself," to which an audience-member responded, "Of course — he's going to take the money and run, like he always does."

As to specifics, the representatives from BG Quality explained that the harvest would take place on two parcels on the property, comprised of 80 acres and 65 acres, respectively, totaling 145 acres, with the operation harvesting six trees per acre on one parcel, and eight trees per acre on the other. However, a board member pointed out that, of the 520 acres on the Nevele grounds, 280 acres were forest. Another board member took issue with the aforementioned estimate of total trees to be harvested, saying that it was inaccurate and didn't actually reflect the total amount of wood the company planned to get from the site. Including the uncounted wood sources, such as dead trees, it was estimated that about 1,325 would be logged in the harvest. When asked by Wawarsing Deputy Supervisor Terry Houck about what percentage of the property's forest would be logged, however, Nichols couldn't provide a clear figure. Figures ranging from 20 to 60 percent were discussed, but it was not explicitly clear whether the figures were percentages of forest land versus the property as a whole.

Because the permit application wouldn't be assessed by the Ulster County Planning Board until November, the public hearing was adjourned until the November 24 Wawarsing Planning Board meeting. However, Planning Board Attorney Marylou Christiana noted that the planning board could issue a positive or negative declaration of environmental impact in accordance with New York's State Environmental Quality Review Act, or SEQRA, at October's meeting — provided the board is supplied with more information they requested of the logging company by that time. The board requested that the loggers provide a current survey map with updated boundary lines, proof of the property's ownership, better loading information for ingress and egress to and from the property, and topographic information. The board also requested that Wawarsing Highway Superintendent Gil Davis examine the bridge on nearby Benedict Road to ascertain whether it could support the large trucks that will be used in the operation.

The next planning board meeting will be on October 27 at 7 p.m.