Buerger v. Town of Grafton, 235 A.D.2d 984 (N.Y. App. Div. 1997). · Go Syfert
Buerger v. Town of Grafton, 235 A.D.2d 984 (N.Y. App. Div. 1997). Cases Citing This Book View Copy Cite
26 citation events (23 in the last 25 years) across 2 distinct courts.
Strongest positive: Matter of Hohman v. Town of Poestenkill (nyappdiv, 2020-01-02)
Treatment trajectory · 1998 → 2026 · click a year to view as-of
1998 2012 2026
Top citers, strongest first. 11 distinct citers. How cited ↗
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Matter of Hohman v. Town of Poestenkill
N.Y. App. Div. · 2020 · confidence medium
Moreover, petitioners' asserted concerns fail to allege any unique or distinct injury that they will suffer as a result of the Town's proposed land acquisition that is not generally applicable to the public at large ( see Matter of Buerger v Town of Grafton , 235 AD2d 984, 985 [1997], lv denied 89 NY2d 816 [1997]).
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Matter of Village of Woodbury v. Seggos
N.Y. App. Div. · 2017 · confidence medium
Accepting those allegations at face value — and assuming that these petitioners either did, or did not need to, articulate grounds for organizational standing (see New York State Assn, of Nurse Anesthetists v Novello, 2 NY3d 207, 211 [2004]) — the harm is “no different in kind or degree from that suffered by the general public in the vicinity . . . and [does] not confer standing” (Matter of Powers v De Groodt, 43 AD3d at 513 ; see Matter of Save the Pine Bush, Inc. v Planning Bd. of Town of Clifton Park, 50 AD3d 1296, 1297-1298 [2008], lv denied 10 NY3d 716 [2008]; Matter of Buerger v …
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Clean Water Advocates of New York, Inc. v. New York State Department of Environmental Conservation
N.Y. App. Div. · 2013 · confidence medium
Matter of Gallaban v Planning Bd. of City of Ithaca, 307 AD2d 684, 685 [2003], lv denied 1 NY3d 501 [2003]; Matter of Oates v Village of Watkins Glen, 290 AD2d 758, 760-761 [2002]; Matter of Buerger v Town of Grafton, 235 AD2d 984, 985 [1997], lv denied 89 NY2d 816 [1997]; Matter of Burns Pharm. of Rensselaer v Conley, 146 AD2d 842, 844 [1989]).
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Clean Water Advocates of New York, Inc. v. New York State Department of Environmental Conservation
N.Y. App. Div. · 2013 · confidence medium
Matter of Gallaban v Planning Bd. of City of Ithaca, 307 AD2d 684, 685 [2003], lv denied 1 NY3d 501 [2003]; Matter of Oates v Village of Watkins Glen, 290 AD2d 758, 760-761 [2002]; Matter of Buerger v Town of Grafton, 235 AD2d 984, 985 [1997], lv denied 89 NY2d 816 [1997]; Matter of Burns Pharm. of Rensselaer v Conley, 146 AD2d 842, 844 [1989]).
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Finger Lakes Zero Waste Coalition, Inc. v. Martens
N.Y. App. Div. · 2012 · confidence medium
While a neighbor’s close proximity to the subject property may give rise to an inference of injury sufficient to confer standing upon that neighbor in the absence of proof of actual injury (see Matter of Cade v Stapf 91 AD3d 1229, 1231 [2012]; Matter of Mack v Board of Appeals, Town of Homer, 25 AD3d 977, 978 [2006]; Matter of Manupella v Troy City Zoning Bd. of Appeals, 272 AD2d 761, 762 [2000]), our precedents clearly guide us that, ordinarily, a distance of 4,000 feet from the proposed project is not close enough to give rise to the presumption that the neighbor is or will be adversely af…
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Finger Lakes Zero Waste Coalition, Inc. v. Martens
N.Y. App. Div. · 2012 · confidence medium
While a neighbor’s close proximity to the subject property may give rise to an inference of injury sufficient to confer standing upon that neighbor in the absence of proof of actual injury (see Matter of Cade v Stapf 91 AD3d 1229, 1231 [2012]; Matter of Mack v Board of Appeals, Town of Homer, 25 AD3d 977, 978 [2006]; Matter of Manupella v Troy City Zoning Bd. of Appeals, 272 AD2d 761, 762 [2000]), our precedents clearly guide us that, ordinarily, a distance of 4,000 feet from the proposed project is not close enough to give rise to the presumption that the neighbor is or will be adversely af…
cited Cited as authority (rule) Save Pine Bush, Inc. v. Common Council
N.Y. App. Div. · 2008 · confidence medium
Pine Barrens Socy. v Town of Islip, 261 AD2d at 475 ; Matter of Buerger v Town of Grafton, 235 AD2d 984, 984-985 [1997], Iv denied 89 NY2d 816 [1997]).
discussed Cited "see" Bolton v. Town of South Bristol Planning Board (2×) also: Cited "see, e.g."
N.Y. App. Div. · 2007 · signal: see · confidence high
Petitioner lives one mile from the residential development, on the opposite side of the lake, and he did not demonstrate that he “will suffer an environmental impact in fact [as a result of the proposed expansion], i.e., one that is in some way different from that of the public at large” (Matter of Piela v Van Voris, 229 AD2d 94, 95 [1997]; see Matter of Buerger v Town of Grafton, 235 AD2d 984, 984-985 [1997], lv denied 89 NY2d 816 [1997]; Matter of Schulz v Warren County Bd. of Supervisors, 206 AD2d 672 , 674 [1994] , lv denied 85 NY2d 805 [1995]; see generally Matter of Gerdts v State of…
discussed Cited "see" Pheasant Pond Owners Ass'n v. Board of Trustees of Incorporated Village of Southampton
N.Y. App. Div. · 2002 · signal: see · confidence high
There is no basis for finding that the proposed plan is part of subsequent or simultaneous development of the park so as to give rise to a claim of improper segmentation under the State Environmental Quality Review Act (ECL art 8; see Matter of Buerger v Town of Grafton, 235 AD2d 984, 986 ; cf. Sun Co. v City of Syracuse Indus.
discussed Cited "see" Save Our Main Street Buildings v. Greene County Legislature
N.Y. App. Div. · 2002 · signal: see · confidence high
Moreover, standing cannot be based on the claim that “a project would ‘indirectly affect traffic patterns, noise levels, air quality and aesthetics throughout a wide area’ ” (Matter of Oates v Village of Watkins Glen, supra at 760-761, quoting Society of Plastics Indus, v County of Suffolk, supra at 775; see, Matter of Buerger v Town of Grafton, supra at 985).
discussed Cited "see" Oates v. Village of Watkins Glen
N.Y. App. Div. · 2002 · signal: see · confidence high
The test is whether the neighbor is close enough to suffer some harm other than that experienced by the public generally and “even where petitioner’s premises are physically close to the subject property, an ad hoc determination may be required as to whether a particular petitioner itself has a legally protectable interest so as to confer standing” (id., at 414; see, Matter of Buerger v Town of Grafton, 235 AD2d 984, 985 , lv denied 89 NY2d 816 ).
Retrieving the full opinion text from the archive…
In the Matter of Janet Buerger
v.
Town of Grafton
Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of the State of New York.
Jan 30, 1997.
235 A.D.2d 984
1997 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 756
White.
Cited by 21 opinions  |  Published
White, J. P.

Appeal from a judgment of the Supreme Court (Ceresia, Jr., J.), entered March 13, 1996 in Rensselaer County, which, inter alia, in a proceeding pursuant to CPLR article 78, dismissed the petition due to petitioner’s lack of standing.

In November 1994, respondent First Grafton Corporation filed with respondent Town of Grafton Planning Board (hereinafter the Board) a site plan application to subdivide a 626-acre parcel of undeveloped land located in the Towns of Grafton and Berlin, Rensselaer County, into 20 lots and construct approximately 7,400 feet of roadway. Accompanying the application was a full environmental assessment form. Thereafter, the Board classified the subdivision as an unlisted action under the State Environmental Quality Review Act (ECL art 8) (hereinafter SEQRA) and designated itself the lead agency. It also retained a professional engineering consultant to advise it regarding the SEQRA process. Following two public hearings, the Board issued a negative declaration, principally because the subdivision leaves 95% of the forest undisturbed and a month later granted preliminary approval of the application subject to certain conditions. Whereupon, petitioner commenced this CPLR article 78 proceeding challenging the Board’s action, contending that it failed to comply with SEQRA. Supreme Court, finding that petitioner lacked standing and that, in any event, the Board did comply with SEQRA, dismissed the petition. This appeal ensued.

Unless the SEQRA review was undertaken as part of a zoning enactment, standing will be conferred upon a party seeking to raise a SEQRA challenge only if it can demonstrate that it will suffer a specific environmental injury rather than one that is solely economic in nature (see, Matter of Gernatt [*985] Asphalt Prods. v Town of Sardinia, 87 NY2d 668, 687; Matter of Mobil Oil Corp. v Syracuse Indus. Dev. Agency, 76 NY2d 428, 433). We have applied this rule to grant standing where it was shown that the proposed action might affect the party’s water supply {see, Matter of Many v Village of Sharon Springs Bd. of Trustees, 218 AD2d 845; Chase v Board of Educ., 188 AD2d 192,199) but have denied standing where a party merely raised generalized concerns (see, Matter of Gerdts v State of New York, 210 AD2d 645, 647, lv denied 85 NY2d 810, appeal dismissed 85 NY2d 856; Matter of Schulz v Warren County Bd. of Supervisors, 206 AD2d 672, 674, lv denied 85 NY2d 805).

In this instance, the record shows that petitioner owns property on Taconic Lake which, while not abutting First Grafton’s property, is within 600 feet of the subdivision’s proposed access road. Petitioner is also a member of the Taconic Lake Association (hereinafter TLA), a not-for-profit corporation that owns approximately 400 acres of land contiguous to First Grafton’s. Petitioner claims that if the access road is built she can expect flood damage because the construction activity will interrupt the water flow. She further envisions forest habitat degradation since the construction of the road will create an "edge” that will result in "forest fragmentation”. She further points out that when there was construction activity in 1991 and 1994, the waters of Taconic Lake became murky. She also notes that TLA’s well is within ¼ mile of the road construction. While these are serious concerns, they are not specific to petitioner but are general concerns shared by all the residents of the area (see, Matter of Schulz v New York State Dept. of Envtl. Conservation, 186 AD2d 941, 942, lv denied 81 NY2d 704). Moreover, petitioner’s claims of environmental injury to TLA are unavailing as she has not shown that she has authority to represent its interests in this matter (see, Spanos v Boschen, 61 AD2d 837, 838). Accordingly, we agree with Supreme Court that petitioner lacked standing to maintain this proceeding.

Assuming that petitioner had standing, our inquiry would be limited to determining whether the Board " 'identified the relevant areas of environmental concern, took a "hard look” at them and made a "reasoned elaboration” of the basis for its determination’ ” (Matter of King v Saratoga County Bd. of Supervisors, 89 NY2d 341, 349-350, quoting Matter of Jackson v New York State Urban Dev. Corp., 67 NY2d 400, 417). The record evidence shows that the Board had the assistance of a professional engineer, solicited comments from interested governmental agencies and held two public hearings. Predicated upon the information generated by this process, the Board determined that the proposed subdivision would not[*986] have a significant adverse impact on the land, water quality, the State and Federally regulated wetlands existing on the property, the aesthetic resources including noise pollution, the flora and fauna and the community. As part of its determination it pointed out that it had induced First Grafton to undertake numerous mitigation measures that, in its view, would eliminate all of the potential threats to the environment associated with this project. While petitioner disagrees with the Board’s analysis and conclusions supporting its determination, it is clear to us that it fully performed its obligations under SEQRA and did not abuse its discretion in issuing a negative declaration for this project (see, Matter of Byer v Town of Poestenkill, 232 AD2d 851, 854-855; Matter of Save the Pine Bush v Planning Bd., 217 AD2d 767, 770, lv denied 87 NY2d 803; Matter of Balsam Lake Anglers Club v Department of Envtl. Conservation, 199 AD2d 852, 855; Matter of Heritage Co. v Belanger, 191 AD2d 790, 792).

Lastly, we reject petitioner’s argument that the Board improperly segmented the review process as there is no indication that the proposed subdivision is the first phase of a larger plan to further subdivide the property (compare, Matter of Teich v Buchheit, 221 AD2d 452, 454; Sun Co. v City of Syracuse Indus. Dev. Agency, 209 AD2d 34, 47, appeal dismissed 86 NY2d 776; Matter of Farrington Close Condominium Bd. of Mgrs. v Incorporated Vil. of Southampton, 205 AD2d 623, 626).

Casey, Peters, Spain and Carpinello, JJ., concur. Ordered that the judgment is affirmed, without costs.