Oneonta may disallow campgrounds in most of town

Apr. 10—The Oneonta Town Board is considering amending zoning rules in two districts that cover a majority of the town that would affect development proposals that include campgrounds.

The board held a public hearing at its Wednesday, April 10 meeting, but didn't introduce or vote on any changes to the zoning regulations.

Campgrounds currently are a by-right use in the town's RA-40 and RA-80 districts. Under the proposed changes, applications in RA-40 and RA-80 that include campgrounds would require a special permit, in addition to site plan review or sketch plan review.

The board also is considering minimum lot size requirements of 43,560 square feet for a one- or two-family house, 10 acres for agricultural use, 50 acres for a camp, campground or day camp and 80,000 square feet for all other uses.

The minimum frontage for a campground would be 200 feet, with minimum front, side and rear yards of 50 feet each.

During the meeting, 15 attendees spoke to the board about the proposed changes, and several brought up a site plan that is currently before the town Planning Board from Fred and Dana Clapper, owners of Clapper's Maple Ridge Ranch at 184 Lower Reservoir Road.

The Clappers bought the property last June and want to build a seven-site campground on their property, aimed at attracting people seeking an agritourism destination through a farm stay.

They face opposition from neighbors who say the increased activity would bring lights, noise and traffic that would be highly disruptive to residential life in the rural area.

Fred Clapper said Wednesday that he was concerned that adding a special use permit requirement wouldn't be fair, since he believed a permit could be revoked by the town if even a couple of people complained.

Town Attorney Rob Panasci said that complaints alone would not be grounds for permit revocation.

"Grounds for revocation are not complying with the terms [of the special permit]," he said. "That means a setback, noise — things that you're not doing, that you have due process rights."

A special use permit allows the Planning Board a higher degree of scrutiny than a site plan, he said.

"A site plan is just, you meet you meet design conditions and you get your approval," he said, "but a special use permit requires further review, and that's really what it's intended to do, not to be a sword for revocation."

Attendees also expressed varying opinions on the proposed campground development, with some emphasizing the importance of considering all parties' views and addressing potential impacts on traffic, noise and natural resources.

The Clappers' property would meet the minimum acreage requirement since it's roughly 133 combined acres — the northern parcel is 87.74 acres and the southern parcel is 44.76 acres.