Cornwall community opposes warehouses

“We will fight this with every ounce of our being and make their application process a living hell.”

So said Senator James Skoufis Wednesday night as he asked the Cornwall Planning Board to stop the building of warehouses in the Town of Cornwall.  Skoufis, who lives in the Town of Cornwall, was referring to Treetop Development’s proposal to build five warehouses on nearly 200 acres along Rt. 9W in the town.  Several hundred Cornwall residents cheered his remarks at a public hearing at Cornwall Central High School.

Skoufis said the proposal would “change the face of Cornwall.”  He said Treetop had failed to engage the Cornwall community, leaders and residents, regarding its plan.  He contrasted the New Jersey firm’s lack of engagement with its sponsorship of the Orange County Partnership, an economic development organization.

Many residents also spoke.  Nancy Bryan who lives on Quaker Avenue is angry that the proposal would take part of her front yard. 

Residents spoke about air, water, noise and light pollution and the loss of property values.  They cited horrendous traffic problems and water polluting the adjacent Moodna Creek They said Treetops’ Draft Environmental Impact Statement was not user friendly, and downplayed some impacts and failed to mitigate others.

The planning board voted to keep the public hearing open for further comment.