New Castle, Property Owner Embroiled in Eminent Domain Dispute
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A dispute between the Town of New Castle and a Chappaqua property owner has surfaced as the town is restarting an eminent domain proceeding in hopes of acquiring land to site a larger DPW facility.
Officials opened a public hearing last week in their latest attempt to obtain 220-230 Joan Corwin Way (formerly Hunts Lane), which consists of 1.23 acres. In mid-2021, the town had launched the state Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQRA) process to take possession of the property but did not pursue action.
Town Attorney Lino Sciarretta said because the three-year window to complete the proceedings had expired without resolution, the town was relaunching its efforts.
“Basically, your current DPW facilities are inadequate for storage and maintenance of DPW vehicles, which are out in the elements, and when these vehicles are out there for a certain period of time, they do have wear and tear, and that is expensive machinery that is out there in the elements,” Sciarretta said.
Sciarretta said the town has had discussions with the property owner’s legal counsel to acquire the land without using eminent domain. He did not say why the proceeding that started in 2021 wasn’t concluded.
The dispute between the town and the attorney for the Estate of Grace Mazzuchelli, the owner of record for the property, was aired during last week’s opening of the public hearing. Attorney Katherine Zalantis accused the town of “an egregious misuse of municipal power” by failing to take action and restarting the process.
Zalantis said during the three years while the estate was waiting to see what the town was going to do, it was unable to utilize the land.
“So between that period of time, from June 2021 until June 2024, my client was precluded from selling the property, my client was precluded from entering into any long-term leases for the property, and even after the proceeding was deemed legally abandoned, the town interfered with my client’s attempt to sell the property and advised potential buyers that the town intended to recommence eminent domain proceedings,” Zalantis said.
According to Zalantis, the town offered $862,600 for the property, but her client rejected the offer, saying it was “not even close to just compensation” because it is commercially zoned and of higher value. She explained that the estate was not required to accept the eminent domain offer, but the municipality was required to pay that initial offer and didn’t. Therefore, her client should have had that money in their possession for at least the past two years.
Other arguments raised by Zalantis included the town wrongly referring to the land as two separate parcels, one consisting of .64 acres and the other .59 acres, and questioning whether a new DPW facility is a legitimate use of eminent domain.
“Really, the game is you want to chop up the property, take a portion of it now, wait a few years and then come back and take the rest of it,” Zalantis said. “By that purpose, you will have effectively devalued the property.”
But Sciarretta took issue with Zalantis’s characterization of key elements of the issue, saying the town offered “significantly more” than the appraised value of the land. He also said the town never filed a notice of pendency, which signals to potential buyers the property is a subject of litigation, and never saw any communication from the estate accepting the offer, rejecting it or accepting a partial payment.
“To say that we’re devaluing the property, again, this is for the appraisers to determine, and we as a municipality can only acquire what we need, no more, no less.” Sciarretta said. “And what was prepared back then and now is exactly what we are requiring for what we need for DPW.”
He also defended the use for a DPW facility as a legitimate reason for a town to start eminent domain proceedings.
The town needs a larger facility because the current site at 280 Joan Corwin Way is not large enough for modern DPW vehicles to fit inside, said Bart Carey, the town’s DPW commissioner. Being left outside in the cold in winter requires a longer time for them to warm up and shortens their lifespan by about two to three years.
The trucks now cost about $315,000 each, he said.
“The trucks are very expensive and leaving them outside definitely impacts our response times and it leads to rapid deterioration of the equipment and definitely contributes to higher maintenance costs,” Carey said.
For many years, the town ordered custom-made vehicles that the current facility could accommodate, but that is no longer an option, Carey added.
The Town Board adjourned the public hearing on the eminent domain proceedings until Jan. 14.
Martin has more than 30 years experience covering local news in Westchester and Putnam counties, including a frequent focus on zoning and planning issues. He has been editor-in-chief of The Examiner since its inception in 2007. Read more from Martin’s editor-author bio here. Read Martin’s archived work here: https://www.theexaminernews.com/author/martin-wilbur2007/
