The future of the

Albany Pine Bush

Lands still needing protection

Adirondack Northway at Thruway (1969)

(from Albany Archives on Flickr)

There are 3,273 acres of currently

Protected Albany Pine Bush.
This is unchanged in over 5 years (!)
Last major additions occurred in
2010 as part of landfill mitigation.

City

DEC
Municipal
Total
ity

Guilderland
(T)

TNC

includes
certain
landowner
agreements

Nature
Conservancy

includes
citymanaged
county
properties

AgreeColonie ment
(T)

State
Parks
OPRHP
park lands

includes
subagencies

Crossgates
set-aside,
rifle club
backstop,
developer
set-asides

includes
subagencies

Albany

1,212

615

91

453

47

Guilderland

1,184

511

227

43

237

100

23

41

Colonie

877

310

356

20

136

55

3,273

1,436

673

498

239

167

159

100

Total
Acres

Note:
This is the Pine Bush
Commissions
Rankings from their 2011 Preserve
Vision study. Save the Pine Bush
doesnt necessarily agree with all
conclusions.

Note:
This is the Pine Bush
Commissions
Rankings from their 2011 Preserve
Vision study. Save the Pine Bush
doesnt necessarily agree with all
their conclusions.

Northern
NorthernTrail
TrailSystem:
System:
Land
LandAcquisition
Acquisition
Needed
Needed

Significant
acquisition
needed

Southern
SouthernTrail
TrailSystem:
System:
Largely
LargelyDone
Done(!)
(!)

Loop exists
To be completed

2012 Trails
adjusted

To be completed

2030 (?) - After

Landfill closure,
rehabilitation
2014 Trail
completed
2013 Slight changes

Crossing - Missing link

Winter 2015 Minor

changes (closed
for work)

2011 Trails
adjusted

New Purple Trail

The Southern Connector

3.5 mile Hike from

Madison Avenue
Extension to DiCaprio Park
(Madison Avenue Barrens
Closed until spring)

Future View of Pine Bush from Trail Over Landfill ?

Fake Pitch Pine tree added

for illustration purposes by
Applied Ecological Services
and Albany DGS.

NYS Open Space Plan (2014 draft)

ALBANY PINE BUSH {46.}
This area of Albany County and a small portion of eastern
Schenectady County support a rare and endangered inland pine
barrens ecosystem. Protection guidelines for much of this area are
established by the Albany Pine Bush Preserve Commission in their
2010 management plan, with the overall objective of establishing
an ecologically viable and manageable preserve. The plan included
an expanded study area up to the Schenectady County border in
response to public feedback. While tremendous success has
been achieved with the protection of over 3,200 acres to date,
the commission currently estimates that an additional 2,180
acres must be secured to create a viable preserve of 5,380
acres. The Region 4 Advisory Committee supports the work of the
commission toward meeting its goals, and encourages
conservation efforts directed at areas of existing and restorable
Pine Bush habitat not included within the area designated.

NYS Open Space Plan (2014 draft)

WOODLAWN PINE BARRENS-WETLANDS COMPLEX {59.}
This area of Schenectady County is situated immediately
northwest of the Albany Pine Bush Preserve and includes several
remnant features of the Pine Bush, including sand plain and dune
formations, pitch pine-scrub oak barrens, and historic Karner blue
butterfly habitat which, while currently unoccupied, may be
restored as a future reintroduction site. The area also supports
several important wetlands forming a unique complex of pine
barrens and wetland habitats. Although this area is outside the
protection area designated by the Albany Pine Bush Commission,
its attributes have been recognized as complementary to the Pine
Bush Preserve and protection worthy. Owners of public lands in
this area are encouraged to cooperate with state and other
agencies to protect this habitat. Recent local efforts have included
creation of the 135-acre Woodlawn Preserve by the City of
Schenectady and 24 acres of parkland in the Town of Niskayuna.

Potential Funding Sources

P5 Landfill Mitigation
funds (part of the $18
million ?)
Federal funding - Land
and Water Conservation
Fund (LWCF), Urban
Park and Recreation
Recovery Program
State open space EPF
(part of $2 million ?),
Clean Water/Clean Air
Bond Act of 1996, etc.

Pittsman-Robertson
tax on guns, ammo to
purchase public land
for hunting purposes
Donations of
undevelopable land
(tax write-offs, etc.)

Our secret weapon:

Un-developable land
is an asset that looses value

Taxes: 3% of property value

per year

Maintenance (litter removal,

prevent timber theft,
regulatory compliance): 15%
5% a year, over 10 years is
a loss of 50% of value
Illegal dumping at 3 AM:
asbestos, hazardous
solvents, etc. Or kids getting
drunk on your land, drive
and killing a pedestrian
your liability.

If you cant sell or

develop land, your only
choice is to sell for
preservation or donate
land for a tax-write off
Protected wetlands,
steep ravines,
endangered species,
etc.
e.g. 40 Karner Rd
abandoned in 2006 after
1993 SPB court decision

A Rant:

Albany County Tax Maps

State law REQUIRES

counties to post tax maps
and tax rolls online
Albany County ignored
state law, then complied
with locked-down PDFs
that cant be printed w/o
breaking encryption
Colonie ignored state law
on tax rolls until mid-2013

Properties should be
searchable online, parcel
data should be
downloadable like NY City,
Westchester County,
Commonwealth of Vermont
Albany County should not be
in the business of selling
data to non-profits like
SPB, especially when data
was collected for a public
purpose.

(a) Class I wetlands.

A wetland shall be a Class I wetland if it has any of the following seven enumerated characteristics:
Ecological associations
(1) it is a classic kettlehole bog (664.6(b)(2));*
(* The reference in parentheses after each characteristic is to description of that characteristic and its associated
benefits in section 664.6.)
Special features
(2) it is resident habitat of an endangered or threatened animal species (664.6(c)(2) and (4));
(3) it contains an endangered or threatened plant species (664.6(c)(4));
(4) it supports an animal species in abundance or diversity unusual for the state or for the major region of the state
in which it is found (664.6(c)(1) and (6));
Hydrological and pollution control features
(5) it is tributary to a body of water which could subject a substantially developed area to significant damage from
flooding or from additional flooding should the wetland be modified, filled, or drained (664.6(d)(1));
(6) it is adjacent or contiguous to a reservoir or other body of water that is used primarily for public water supply, or
it is hydraulically connected to an aquifer which is used for public water supply (664.6(d)(2),(3), and (4)); or
Other
(7) it contains four or more of the enumerated Class II characteristics. The department may, however, determine
that some of the characteristics are duplicativeof each other, therefore do not indicate enhanced benefits, and so
do not warrant Class I classification. Each species to which paragraphs 664.5(b)(6) through (8) apply shall be
considered a separate Class II characteristic for this purpose.

(b) Class II wetlands.

A wetland shall be a Class II wetland if it has any of the following seventeen enumerated characteristics:
Covertype
(1) it is an emergent marsh in which purple loosestrife and/or reed (phragmites) constitutes less than two-thirds of the covertype (664.6(a)(2));
Ecological association
(2) it contains two or more wetland structural groups (664.6(b)(1));
(3) it is contiguous to a tidal wetland (664.6(b)(3));
(4) it is associated with permanent open water outside the wetland (664.6(b)(4));
(5) it is adjacent or contiguous to streams classified C(t) or higher under article 15 of the environmental conservation law (664.6(b)(5));
Special features
(6) it is traditional migration habitat of an endangered or threatened animal species (664.6(c)(3) and (4));
(7) it is resident habitat of an animal species vulnerable in the state (664.6(c)(2) and (5));
(8) it contains a plant species vulnerable in the state (664.6(c)(5));
(9) it supports an animal species in abundance or diversity unusual for the county in which it is found (664.6(c)(7));
(10) it has demonstrable archaeological or paleontological significance as a wetland (664.6(c)(8));
(11) it contains, is part of, owes its existence to, or is ecologically associated with, an unusual geological feature which is an excellent representation of its type
(664.6(c)(9));
Hydrological and pollution control features
(12) it is tributary to a body of water which could subject a lightly developed area, an area used for growing crops for harvest, or an area planned for development
by a local planning authority, to significant damage from flooding or from additional flooding should the wetland be modified, filled, or drained (664.6(d)(1));
(13) it is hydraulically connected to an aquifer which has been identified by a government agency as a potentially useful water supply (664.6(d)(4));
(14) it acts in a tertiary treatment capacity for a sewage disposal system (664.6(d)(3));
Distribution and location
(15) it is within an urbanized area (664.6 (e) (1));
(16) it is one of the three largest wetlands within a city, town, or New York City borough (664.6(e)(3)); or
(17) it is within a publicly owned recreation area (664.6(e)(4)).

Class Zero Wetlands:

New York's freshwater wetlands maps only show
the approximate location of the actual wetland
boundary. They are not precise, regardless of how
closely you zoom in on the map. The "check
zone" is an area around the mapped wetland in
which the actual wetland may occur. If you are
proposing a project that may encroach into this
area, you should check with your regional DEC
office to make sure where the actual wetland
boundary is. If necessary, they may have a
biologist come out and perform a field delineation
for you to help you avoid impacts in the wetland or
the regulated 100-foot buffer zone.

City of
Albany

365 Wash Ave Extension

5 acre P5 Landfill
Expansion

96 Broderick Rd
Landfill Mitigation
Rehabilitation Area

Thruway Parcel

40 Karner Road
Arlene Kehoe
Prospect Hill Cemetery
Guilderland Schools

Albany Tax Map 40.00

40 Karner Road
(aka Pine Bush Love Canal, formerly proposed Karner Office Park)

In city of Albany, County Tax

Foreclosed

(90: Pinewoods Office

Proposal, SPB stopped
rezoning), ID 40.00-3-13
$674,400 FAV, $10,047
FAV/acre

County is looking for a party to

transfer this land, for
conservation purposes
County Study: $2 million in
remediation costs from
historical waste dumping
solvents, ash, solid waste

16.4 acres 40R

Karner (90: Developer wants
to add to Preserve ?), ID 40.00-314, missing from city tax rolls in
2014?

Headwaters to Guilderland
Municipal Wells
Zoining: Residential w/ SPB
Injunction on Pinewoods Office
Proposal (1993)

6.3 acres 40 Karner

APBC, SPB agree clean

up, give to preserve

40 Karner Road

Appropriate location
for a Pitch Pine

Discovery Center

Ch Form
an e
ne r C
l B l ea
ui r
ld
in
g

365 Washington
Avenue

Greater Albany
Closed landfill

Albany Tax Map 41.00

365 Washington Avenue Extension

8.6 acres

$600,000 FAV

$69,766 FAV/acre

Albany 41.00-2-99

Owned by PThreeOrion LP,

owner of building next door

Previously owned by 365

Wash Ave LLC

Zoning: Commerical

Separated from rest of

preserve
Burned in 1996 when a
controlled burn jumped
the Thruway
Small, but looks like good
Pine Bush
SPB thinks deserves full
protection vs APBC wants
partial protection

View from Front Road (Washington Ave Extension)

(East Barrens)

View from New Karner Road (NY 155)

(The real thing)

This is 365 Karner Road as seen from

the Thruway. Notice the Pitch Pines.
This parcel burned in 1996 during a
controlled burn at the East Barrens that
jumped the Thruway.

These 5
acres are
now P5
landfill

Former trailer park,

Now farming Pine Bush species
And undergoing rehabilitation

2012: Almost to final height of landfill,

Final elevation: 440 feet
Altamont village: 430 feet
Overlook Dune: 372 feet
Trailer park elevation: 288 feet

P5 Landfill now open, will cover 5 acres of

Pine Bush until it reaches this sand berm,
and go up over 150 feet to summit
of landfill (closure: 2021)

FAKE: This pitch pine tree is not

actually located on the landfill

Rapp Road Landfill - Final elevation, 440. Ten feet

higher then Altamont. Expected Operation 19922021.

Greater Albany Landfill (here,

operated 1969-1992) elevation is
404 feet above sea level
Apollo Rd Dune 383 elev
Overlook Dune 372 elev
Thruway 299 elev
Trailer Park 288 elev

One of 3-6 five acre

Test plots on the GAL

Village of Colonie

SPB wants full, not partial

protection !!!
Unmapped
wetlands

50 ft high
Sand dune remains

Former Trailer Park

Landfill Mitigation
Rehabilitations

96 Broderick Street
Village of Colonie 41-7-98

100 Broderick Street (Village of Colonie 41.11-2-1.1)

43.7 acres

$321,168 FAV

$7,349 FAV/acre

Owned by Bianchine
Declaration of Trust of
Maryland
50 ft sand dune remains,
as do significant
unmapped wetlands

Large parcel, but

separated by railroad
tracks from trailer
park rehabilitation
SPB thinks deserves
full protection vs
APBC wants partial
protection

96 Broedeck Place
Electric lines climb
over remains of
sand dune at end
of Patria Lane

96 Brodeck Lane
View from
End of Patria Lane
Dumping appears
to end beyond
road

View from
End of
Broedeck
Lane
Notice sand
dune in
distance

Town of
Guilderland

Undeveloped
portion of
Guilderland
High School

Undeveloped
portion of
Prospect Hill
Cemetery

Kiakout Kill splits Kehoe

property with a deep
ravine.

Dirt path Old Karner Road

Visiting Nurses
Property steep
Sand dune behind it

Kehoe Property (Guilderland 40.00-2-18)

50.0 acres owned by

Arlene and Martin
Kehoe

$281,550 FAV

$5,621 FAV/acre

Kehoe Property divided

by a 70-foot deep
ravine where the
Kiakout Kill runs.

Abuts preserve and

approximately 50 acres
of wild land that belong to
Prospect Hill Cemetery
and Guilderland Schools
SPB, APBC agree that
wild portions of these
properties should be
restored to Pine Bush
habitat

Old Road
Leading Into
Kehoe Parcel
50.0 acres
Divided in half
By the Hunger Kill

40 Karner Road

Charles Industrial Park

And Traffic Light

Electric Substation

New Karner Road

NY Route 155
Looking North

Kehoe Parcel

New Karner Road

At Western Ave
Mile

Town of
Colonie
Editorial Note:
Insert roughly 2,000 acres
of these here.

Lisha Kill

Lisha Kill Horse Farm

71 Morris Rd (Colonie 16.4-4-14)

13.8 acres

$284,672 FAV

$20,628 FAV/acre

Zoning: Single family

household zoning,
Conservation
Subdivsion Overlay

Former riding stable

barns, horse track
remains, Lisha Kill and
Class 1 wetlands runs
along the back
Likely to be redeveloped
into housing
APBC wants partial
protection, SPB wants
full protection

Lisha Kill and

Wetlands
Behind the
Horse Farm

Colonie Town 16.01

1093 Kings Rd (Colonie Town 16.3-1-29)

27.7 acres, mostly flat

sand, deciduous woods
with mapped wetlands

$223,504 FAV

$8,086 FAV/acre

Owned by Benjamin
Valentine of
Schenectady

For sale signs on

property.
Zoning: Industrial,
Conservation
Subdivision Overlay
Bordered by preserve
parcels 16.3-1-30 NYS DEC & 16.3-1-27
Latham Water District

APBC & SPB wants full

protection

221 Morris Rd (Colonie Town 16.3-2-6.2)

10.7 acres, mostly flat

sand, deciduous,
mostly young woods,
unmapped wetlands (?)

$52,555 FAV

$5,255 FAV/acre

Owned by Sophie M
Michalicki (LE) of
Schenectady

Bordered by preserve
parcels 16.3-2-4 NYS DEC & 16.3-4-3
Town of Colonie

Zoning: Single-Family
Residential,
Conservation
Subdivsion Overlay
APBC & SPB wants
full protection

Kings Highway
at Morris Road
Totally
undeveloped in
this section.
1093 Kings
Road (on left)
is for sale.
On the right is
221 Morris Rd.

For sale sign

at 1093 Kings Road

(Hint, hint: If you have a

quarter million sitting
around in your back pocket,
please buy and dedicate to
the preserve.)

Granted its
pretty flat here
But some
Nice woods
South of
Kings Road
At Morris Road

221 Morris Road

This is close to
the road.
Further back
the fairly young
woods is
undeveloped.

Note: Class 0 Wetlands are

lands the DEC think are
possible unmapped
wetlands

A poorly sliced together version of

Colonie 16-1, 16-2, 16-4 (which shows 8 Lupe Way)

8 Lupe Way (Colonie 16.1-1-47.1)

Owner: Lupe Owen

Dev Co of Albany

56.4 acres

$278,832 FAV

$4,983 FAV/acre

Zoning: Industrial,
Conservation
Subdivision Overlay

Needs zoning change

for SFR, SEQRA review
Parcel moderately
sloped, heavily covered
with White Pines.
Unmapped wetlands (?)
APBC & SPB Want Full
Protection

8 Lupe Way from end of Morocco Lane

8 Lupe Way from end of Lupe Way

1010 Kings Road

1014 Kings Road

1014 Kings Rd (Colonie 16.1-1-36.1)

38.6 acres

Owner: Joseph
Yankovich
Zoning: Industrial,
conservation
subdivison overlay

Just east of 1010

Kings Road, this
parcel is thinned out
forest, about 50% is
Class 1 wetlands

Borders preserve

$219,182 FAV

$5,678 FAV/acre

1012 Kings Road

mile northeast is
Woodlawn Preserve

1010 Kings Rd (Colonie 16.1-1-36.1)

32.7 acres
Owner: Palma F
Realty Co Inc
Zoning: Single Family
Residential,
Conservation
Subdivsion Overlay

$279,854 FAV

$8,532 FAV/acre

Just east of Michaels

Drive, 80% Class 1
Wetlands

1010 Kings Road

4512 Albany St (Colonie 28.2-2-6)

108.7 acres
Owner: SVP
Properties, LLC
Zoning: Single Family
Residential,
Conservation
Subdivsion Overlay

$411,679 FAV

$3,787 FAV/acre

Minor slopes,
hardwoods wetland
80% of parcel is DEC
Class 1 Wetlands,
feeds Lisha Kill

124A Morris Rd (Colonie 28.2-1-1)

29.0 acres
Owner: Walter Riddel
of Latham
Zoning: Single Family
Residential,
Conservation
Subdivsion Overlay

$84,672 FAV

$2,919 FAV/acre

Minor slopes,
hardwoods wetland
50% of parcel is DEC
Class 1 Wetlands,
feeds Lisha Kill

4512
Albany St
As seen
from
end of
Thelma
Street

Pull-off along Albany Street,

old woods road back to
4512 Albany Street

4512
Albany St
Further
East on
Albany
Street

And finally, the end ...

Your questions?