Pre-existing non-conforming

There was a time before building codes, and building codes change. Therefore, existing structures are allowed to exist, and in catastrophic events, are allowed to be rebuilt despite those aspects that do not conform to the code. So when my neighbor complains that my house in closer to the lake than hers, it is irrelevant to the plan on the table. Her house is closer to the road and too close to the sideline, and this plan will increase those existing non-conformities. There could be objections to enlarging the non-conformities, but the original non-conformities exist and would not be changed.

Most of us in Lake Peekskill are pre-existing, non-conforming.

I am not sure why the attorney to the town did not feel compelled to clarify those remarks, and stop what was irrelevant in that case. I can conjecture.

Someone brought up the size of the structure and said that there were other buildings as large. That was what the zoning board said. I did not think it was what the planning board said. That is kind of irrelevant. Building the 3rd largest single family house on the lakefront is not the goal for the community. Those 2 larger structures were built quite awhile back. A lot of mistakes were made in the past, and the goal of code and planning is that we not continue to make those same mistakes. This one is worse than most, and sadly, will impact the lake’s future.

It is interesting that when someone gets so ensconced in their anger (and I acknowledge that this process facilitates that response), they cannot really hear what is being said. At the zoning board public hearing, I suggested that the parking pad that is being built, include some permeable surface, because they both have electric cars. You would want impervious paving with traditional cars because they can leak toxic fluids. Electric cars have sealed systems, so they will only leak in catastrophic events. But the anger overpowered what I said.

I had asked about lot size at the first Planning Board public hearing. There are different numbers everywhere, and the calculations for all of this depend on what number you start with. By some miracle, there was a certificate that this unusually shaped parcel is a perfect .25 acres. I don’t remember enough calculus from college physics to calculate the curves, but I do remember enough statistics to know how long the odds are.