Sure, He May Be Flounder. But He's OUR Flounder!
John
J. Tormey III, PLLC
1636
Third Avenue, PMB 188
New
York, New York 10128 USA
(212)
410-4142 (phone)
(212)
410-2380 (fax)
jtormey@optonline.net
https://www.tormey.org
REQUEST
UNDER THE NEW YORK STATE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION LAW (“FOIL”)
Sunday,
May 4, 2025
VIA
FAX: 1-518-402-9021, and E-MAIL:
cscgrants@dec.ny.gov
climatesmart@dec.ny.gov
Myra
Fedyniak - Climate Policy Analyst, Office of Climate Change
New York State Department of Environmental
Conservation (NYSDEC)
Climate
Smart Communities (CSC) Grant Program
625
Broadway, 10th Floor
Albany,
New York 12233-5028 USA
VIA
FAX: 1-518-402-9023, and E-MAIL:
Mwbe@dec.ny.gov
helpdesk@sfs.ny.gov
Katie
Calogero, Director - Budget, Accounting, Procurement, and Contracting
New
York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC)
Bureau
of Contract and Grant Development/MWBE Program
625
Broadway, 10th Floor
Albany,
New York 12233-5028 USA
VIA
FAX: 1-518-402-9023, and E-MAIL:
SDVOB@dec.ny.gov
Katie
Calogero, Director - Budget, Accounting, Procurement, and Contracting
New
York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC)
DEC
SDVOB Compliance Unit
Bureau
of Contract and Grant Development/SDVOB Program
625
Broadway, 10th Floor
Albany,
New York 12233-5028 USA
VIA
U.S. MAIL and E-MAIL:
heather.gierloff@dec.ny.gov
Heather
Gierloff
Hudson
River Estuary Coordinator, Hudson River Programs Supervisor
New
York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC)
21
South Putt Corners Road
New
Paltz, New York 12561 USA
VIA
FAX: 1-518-402-9016, U.S. MAIL and E-MAIL:
access.records@dec.ny.gov
Thomas
Stanley (Tom) Berkman, Esq. - Deputy Commissioner and General Counsel
Records
Access Office, Office of General Counsel
New
York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC)
625
Broadway, 10th Floor
Albany,
New York 12233 USA
VIA
FAX: 1-518-402-9016, U.S. MAIL and E-MAIL:
PressOffice@dec.ny.gov
Maureen
Wren - Deputy Commissioner, Public Affairs
Office
of Communication Services, Press Office, and Constituent Relations
New
York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC)
625
Broadway, 10th Floor
Albany,
New York 12233-0001 USA
Re:
FOIL Request - The Village of Piermont, New York – All Comprehensive Plan
Grant Documentation
Dear
Ms. Fedyniak, Ms. Calogero, Ms. Gierloff, Ms. Wren, Attorney Berkman, and NYSDEC
Colleagues:
Without
limitation to the further specificity of my itemized queries hereinbelow, this
FOIL request seeks all Records relating to the Village of Piermont, New York’s
Comprehensive Municipal Plan alias “Comprehensive Plan” or “Comp Plan”,
including without limitation all grants sought or obtained in connection
therewith and all applications and entreaties therefor since January 1, 2018.
The
background on this FOIL request is as follows. As you may already be aware, the
Village of Piermont and its finances have recently been under New York State
Comptroller “Risk Assessment” scrutiny. Additionally, the Village of Piermont
just rammed-through a rushed draft uncorrected Comprehensive Plan by a unanimous
5-0 Board of Trustees vote this past Tuesday evening, April 29, 2025 at
Piermont Village Hall in Piermont, New York. Yet the Piermont Comprehensive
Plan appears to have been kicking around with minimal activity for years prior
to that. The so-called Piermont “Comprehensive Plan Committee” or “CPC”
continued to kick that proverbial can down the road until the more recent
fervor of activity over the past several months. The reasons that lame-duck
Mayor Bruce Tucker and his Village Hall cronies rammed-through the Piermont Comprehensive
Plan on Tuesday night were: (1) to seek to bootstrap-in a harmful real estate
development at 447-77 Piermont Avenue to be built over the site of a former
Sunoco gasoline station that had underground gasoline tanks, as well as (2) to
avoid the requirement of generating an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) in
favor of a Negative Declaration (“Neg Dec”) instead.
Yet,
a third reason for the bum’s-rush that Piermont residents suffered on Tuesday
night, is the most alarming and the most directly relevant to you and your
agency. Videos of April’s Board of Trustees meetings on April 15, 2025 and
April 29, 2025 at Piermont Village Hall are linked here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HPRpiePQSEA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zYpJIEuOb5w
At
these meetings, Piermont’s publicist-planner Max Stach of the Nelson, Pope,
Voorhis firm spoke to the public and the Village Board of Trustees, on behalf
of the Village and Village Board. Mr. Stach admitted that the Village of
Piermont was in jeopardy with respect to Comprehensive Plan grant monies. Mr.
Stach further indicated, by admission, that Piermont needed to rush its
Comprehensive Plan - not simply to obtain future prospective grant money, but in
order to not be forced to refund Comprehensive Plan grant money back to the
original grantor.
This
was an astounding admission against interests for Stach and Piermont to make in
an open tribunal.
Why
would a New York State agency such as yours confer Comp Plan grant money to a
village, but only if subject to a naked promise of a full or partial
after-occurring “rebate” or “refund’ if the Comp Plan was later unapproved or
otherwise failed? A condition subsequent? Unless Piermont failed to match and
then lied to you about it, that confounds logic and makes no sense. I am
therefore concerned that the Village of Piermont may have already made off with
grant money previously paid over to the Village of Piermont by one or more
other government entities - perhaps yours – and perhaps predicated upon a prior
written Village misrepresentation that the Piermont Comp Plan had already been
approved, or was somehow already in effect.
Well,
it hadn’t.
Therefore,
this letter is not just a FOIL request. It is also a demand for an
investigation of the Village of Piermont by your agency.
The
Village of Piermont appears to have been less-than-transparent with its
residents as to the amount of Comprehensive Plan grant money it has applied for
and obtained over past years. To my knowledge, the Village of Piermont never
posted its Comp Plan grant applications themselves to the Internet or social
media. Therefore, I am back-tracking through the list of agencies that the
Village of Piermont “credited” in the textual acknowledgments of Piermont’s
latest draft Comp Plan, and I am serving this FOIL request (or FOIA request, in
the case of federal agencies) upon all of you. When I obtain the Records in
response, I will publish them for all Piermont residents to review in the
interests of the First Amendment and investigative journalism. I will also
likely forward copies to a few friends in a few other “agencies”.
I
am an attorney in New York, and a citizen and resident of the Town of
Orangetown and the County of Rockland. Under the New York State Freedom of
Information Law:
http://www.dos.ny.gov/coog/foil2.html
and,
as may be applicable, its state, federal, and other counterparts, including
without limitation New York Public Officers Law, Article 6, Sections 84-90, and
Title 5 of the United States Code, Section 552 (collectively herein referred to
as “FOIL”), request is hereby made that each of you provide to this, my law
office, full and complete copies of each and every document and other item of
material dated, generated, or otherwise materializing from January 1, 2018
forward to the present day (collectively, “Records”) which may be at all
responsive to the following requests:
1.
Grant Solicitations. All Records constituting, reflecting, or
otherwise referencing requests, solicitations, applications, amendments, bids,
or other inquiries seeking grants, awards, loans, commendations, funds, matching
funds, or other things of value in connection with the Village of Piermont,
New York or its Comprehensive Plan.
2.
Grant Monies. All Records constituting, reflecting or otherwise
referencing payments, grants, awards, loans, funds, matching funds, commendations,
recognitions, other things of value, or rebates, refunds, economic penalties,
or fines, in connection with the Village of Piermont, New York or its
Comprehensive Plan.
3.
Grant Conditions. All Records constituting, reflecting, or
otherwise referencing “ground rules” or other pre-conditions for payments,
grants, awards, loans, funds, matching funds, commendations, recognitions,
or other things of value in connection with the Village of Piermont, New York
or its Comprehensive Plan.
4.
Audits. All Records constituting, reflecting, or otherwise
referencing any audits or other follow-up on payments, grants, awards, loans,
funds, matching funds, commendations, recognitions, or other things of
value in connection with the Village of Piermont, New York or its Comprehensive
Plan.
5.
Piermont Entities. All Records reflecting or otherwise
referencing any Piermont, New York non-profits, commissions, societies,
alliances, associations, boards, or other associated entities including the
following, and including without limitation all e-mails and other
communications to or from these entities, in
connection with the Village of Piermont, New York or its Comprehensive Plan:
-Piermont Comprehensive Plan Committee (alias
the “CPC”).
-Piermont Civic Association.
-Piermont Historical Society.
-Sparkill Creek Watershed Alliance.
-Village of Piermont Planning Board.
-Village Of Piermont Zoning Board Of Appeal (ZBA).
-Village of Piermont Waterfront Resiliency Commission.
-Nelson Pope Voorhis and “Planner” Max Stach.
6.
Piermont People. All Records reflecting or otherwise referencing any
of the following individuals in connection with the Village of Piermont, New
York or its Comprehensive Plan:
-Mayor Bruce Edward Tucker alias “Bruce
Tucker”.
-Sylvia Welch – “Grant Writer”, “Commissioner
For Funding And Development”, and Member, “Comprehensive Plan Committee”.
-Maximilian (“Max”) Stach of the Nelson Pope Voorhis firm.
-Barbara Scheulen - Member, “Comprehensive Plan Committee”, and President, Piermont
Historical Society.
-Rod Johnson - Member, “Comprehensive Plan
Committee”.
-Klaus Jacob - Member, “Comprehensive Plan
Committee”.
-Paul Kadin - Member, “Comprehensive Plan
Committee”.
-Chris Sanders - Member, “Comprehensive Plan
Committee”.
-Lino Sciarretta, Esq. - Member, “Comprehensive
Plan Committee”.
-Mark William Blomquist - Deputy Mayor and
Piermont NY Village Trustee.
-“Richard Owen Burns” alias “Rob Burns” alias
“Dick Burns” - Ex-Piermont NY Village Trustee
-Christine McAndrews - Piermont NY Village
Trustee.
-Rondi Marie Casey alias “Rondi Casey” -
Ex-Piermont NY Village Trustee.
-Nathan (Nate) Mitchell - Piermont NY Village
Trustee and current Mayoral Candidate.
-Michael Emerson Wright alias “Michael
Wright” - Piermont NY Village Trustee.
-Jennifer DeYorgi Maher - Piermont NY “Chief
Fiscal Officer”, “Treasurer”, “Village Clerk”, and “Registrar of Vital
Statistics”
-Michele Marzo, Piermont NY Deputy Clerk,
Treasurer.
-Sylvia Carbonell, Piermont NY Village Clerk.
-Maggie Cavanaugh - Clerk, Piermont NY Building
Department.
-Charles (Charlie) Schaub, Piermont NY Building
Inspector and “Flood Plain Manager”.
-Joe Knizeski, Assistant Piermont NY Building
Inspector.
-Christian (Chris) Catania, alias “Christian
Charles”, Piermont NY “Clerk to the Boards”, “Administrative Assistant Building
Clerk”, and “Secretary of the Planning and Zoning Boards”.
-David Levy, Piermont NY Planning Board “Chairman”.
-Daniel Spitzer, Ex-Piermont NY Planning Board
Chair
-Ed Nelson – Ex-Member, Piermont NY Planning
Board.
-Jerry Warshaw – Member, Piermont NY Planning
Board.
-Kim Stiefel - Member, Piermont NY Planning
Board.
-Don Guyton – Member, Piermont NY Planning
Board.
-Mary Kirby – Member, Piermont NY Planning
Board.
-Jacey Raimondo – Alternate Member, Piermont NY
Planning Board.
-David Kristiansen - Alternate Member, Piermont
NY Planning Board.
-Adra Bubesi Mounier – Ex-Alternate Member,
Piermont NY Planning Board.
-Usha Wright – “Chairman”, Piermont NY Zoning
Board of Appeal (ZBA).
-Walter Cain – Member, Piermont NY Zoning Board
of Appeal (ZBA).
-Kevin Timoney - Member, Piermont NY Zoning
Board of Appeal (ZBA).
-Peter T. Metzler – Ex-Member, Piermont NY
Zoning Board of Appeal (ZBA).
-Dr. Philip Tierno – Member, Piermont NY Zoning
Board of Appeal (ZBA).
-Gregg Manzione – Member, Piermont NY Zoning
Board of Appeal (ZBA).
-Rochelle Spooner - Alternate Member, Piermont
NY Zoning Board of Appeal (ZBA).
-Molly MacQueen - Alternate Member, Piermont NY
Zoning Board of Appeal (ZBA).
-Joanne Ottaviano - President, “Piermont Civic
Association”.
-Margaret Grace - President Emeritus, “Piermont
Civic Association”.
-Mary Lukens - Vice-President, “Piermont Civic
Association”.
-Greg Barrett - Treasurer, “Piermont Civic
Association”.
-Dan Sherman - Vice President, “Piermont
Historical Society”.
-Steve Kulovits - Secretary, “Piermont
Historical Society”.
-Betsy Franco Feeney - Board Member, “Piermont
Historical Society”.
-Lola Esnard - Board Member, “Piermont
Historical Society”.
7.
Other Grantor Agencies. All Records reflecting or otherwise
referencing any other governmental entity grantors including those
below-listed, in connection with the Village of Piermont, New York or its
Comprehensive Plan – and including without limitation all e-mails and other
communications to or from these agencies.
-New York State Department of State (NYSDOS).
-New York State Department of State (NYSDOS) “Smart
Growth Community Planning Program”.
-New York State Department of State (NYSDOS) “NYS
Smart Growth Program”.
-New York State Division of Homeland Security and
Emergency Services.
-New York State Environmental Protection Fund.
-Empire State Development (ESD).
-New York State Department of Environmental
Conservation (NYSDEC).
-New York State Water Resources Institute – Cornell
University.
-Cornell Cooperative Extension of Rockland County.
-Climate Resilience Partnership.
-Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).
-Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), Building
Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) Program.
-U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
-New York State Homes and Community Renewal (HCR)
-All New York State Regional Economic Development
Councils (REDCs).
-The Town of Orangetown, New York.
-Rockland County, New York.
-The Rockland County Department of Planning.
8.
Title 11. All Records reflecting or otherwise referencing Title
11 of the “Environmental Protection Fund” in
connection with the Village of Piermont, New York or its Comprehensive Plan.
9.
Downtown Revitalization Initiative. All Records reflecting or
otherwise referencing the “Downtown Revitalization Initiative” in connection
with the Village of Piermont, New York or its Comprehensive Plan.
10.
NY Forward Program. All Records reflecting or otherwise
referencing the “NY Forward Program” in
connection with the Village of Piermont, New York or its Comprehensive Plan.
11.
Brownfield Opportunity Area. All Records reflecting or otherwise
referencing the “Brownfield Opportunity Area” in connection with the Village of
Piermont, New York or its Comprehensive Plan.
12.
Local Waterfront Revitalization Program. All Records reflecting
or otherwise referencing the “Local Waterfront Revitalization Program” in
connection with the Village of Piermont, New York or its Comprehensive Plan.
13.
Federal Funding CFDA #97.047. All Records reflecting or otherwise
referencing “Federal Funding CFDA #97.047” in connection with the Village of
Piermont, New York or its Comprehensive Plan.
14.
Buzzwords. All Records reflecting, or otherwise referencing the
following in connection with the Village of Piermont, New York or its
Comprehensive Plan:
adaptation
adoption
budgeting
citizen input
climate change
community development
community facilities
economic development
elevation
environmental development
flood plain
flooding
goals
implementation recommendations
infrastructure
land use
mitigation
outreach
parking
planning
revitalization
SEQR
SEQRA
strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats
(“SWOT”) reports and analyses
sustainability
transportation
workshops
zoning
15.
E-Mails And Correspondence. Specifically, I am seeking all
Records of any e-mails, memos, notes, correspondence, documents, or other
writings to, from, referencing, or otherwise relating to the Village of
Piermont, New York or its Comprehensive Plan.
16.
All Other Records. Specifically, I am seeking all other Records
of any other kind or nature relating to the Village of Piermont, New York or
its Comprehensive Plan.
17.
Definition Of “Records”. “Records” should be construed in the
broadest sense and manner possible and should include “any information kept,
held, filed, produced or reproduced by, with or for (your agency or office)...
in any physical form whatsoever...” (FOIL,§86[4]) including without limitation
all audio recordings, blog posts, correspondence, data maintained
electronically, data, e-mails, executive summaries, extracts, faxes, instant
messages, Internet posts, letters, log-book entries, memos, paper records,
personal messages, social media communications, spreadsheets, summaries,
synopses, telephone records, test-reports, visual recordings, and any other
materials:
http://www.dos.ny.gov/coog/foil2.html#s86
18.
Headings And Subheadings. The headings and subheadings used in
this letter are for convenience of reference purposes only, and should not be
construed to be words of limitation or otherwise of any substantive
significance relative to this FOIL request.
19.
Costs. If there are any copying or other fees for this, please
let me know what they are and how they are calculated, before filling the
request and forwarding the Records to me. As this FOIL should be considered a
matter of public importance, and as its results will be shared with the general
public and published, I am asking that any otherwise-applicable fees be waived
for this document-production. I am also asking that all documents be provided
to me electronically to the full extent possible, so as to obviate the need for
any photocopying expense.
20.
Denials And Appeals. In the event that any portion of my request
is denied, please inform me of each of the specific reasons for any such denial
in writing - and provide me with the name, address, and other contact
information of the person or entity to whom an appeal should be directed.
21.
Additional Requests. This FOIL request is not intended to be
exhaustive, and I may make additional and follow-up requests.
I
will appreciate a response from you and your office as soon as possible. I look
forward to hearing from you. Thank you.
Respectfully,
and with thanks,
John
J. Tormey III, Esq.
cc:
VIA
FAX: 1-518-474-1927, U.S. MAIL, and E-MAIL:
coog@dos.ny.gov
NYS
Committee on Open Government (COOG)
Department
of State
One
Commerce Plaza, 99 Washington Avenue, Suite 650
Albany,
New York 12231 USA
