Orange County, NY – Monroe Town Board Finds In Favor Of Kiryas Joel Annexation Request

Orange County, NY – A joint petition filed in May by developer Zigmond Brach and the Village of Kiryas Joel to annex approximately 14 acres in the Village of Woodbury has been approved 5-0 by the Monroe Town Board, according to the Times Herald-Record (http://bit.ly/QHRT7n). Much of the land is undeveloped and belongs to Mr. Brach. A half-acre tract is home to two water storage tanks owned by Kiryas Joel.

In approving the petition, the Monroe Town Board said it was evident that “the property owners appear to face outright hostility” in Woodbury, citing one comment at an earlier public hearing where an opponent was quoted as saying, “Our friendly bearded neighbors who seek to reshape our village borders.” Harley Doles, a Monroe Councilman, said the board approved the annexation request because “we have a duty to make sure everybody is able to play on the same playing field.”

However, concerns over potential zoning violations and overdevelopment led to the rejection of the request by both the Town of Woodbury and the Village of Woodbury. Woodbury Councilman James Skoufis explained that the opposition to the annexation request was so great because the ruling will set a legal precedent for future annexation petitions. Skoufis denied that anti-Chassidic feelings played a role in deciding to reject the request, saying that approving such a move must “be in the overall public interest, and I haven’t heard any argument, compelling or otherwise, why this would be in Woodbury’s interest.”