ABG Event Speakers Highlighted Possible Environmental, SEQRA Regulation Changes
From left to right: Kelly Turturro, NYSDEC; Steve Gagnon, Orange County Department of Health; Julianne Fuda, NYSDOT; & Conor Eckert, Orange County Partnership
By John Jordan
MONTGOMERY—If there was just one word that could best describe the recent program of the Alliance for Balanced Growth it would have to be “timely.” As Albany lawmakers debate possible changes to the State Environmental Quality Review Act requirements and state environmental officials gage the impact of a court ruling that annulled recently imposed regulation changes, the ABG program on April 15 at the City Winery here covered all the bases.
The ABG’s Spring Meeting panel included: Kelly R. Turturro, Regional Director (Region 3) for the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation; Julianne M. Fuda, Regional Director (Region 8) for the New York State Department of Transportation; and Steven Gagnon, Principal Public Engineer for the Orange County Department of Health. The panel, which was moderated by Conor Eckert, President and CEO of the Orange County Partnership, discussed how their respective agencies interact with project developers and best practices that should be used to avoid costly project delays.
NYSDEC Regional Director Turturro said that the state is currently reviewing the decision reached earlier this month by a New York State Supreme Court Judge which annulled the Environmental Conservation definition of “fresh water wetland” as well as its amended wetland regulations that went into effect in January 2025 that prompted a host of lawsuits from the development and business sectors. At press time the state has not appealed the court ruling and is currently reviewing “next steps,” she said.
Turturro said that in response to the court ruling, NYSDEC’s Region 3 is reviewing pending applications on a case-by-case basis to determine possible impacts.
Eckert, who a day earlier attended a rally in Albany in support of proposed changes to SEQRA as part of Gov. Katht Hochul’s “Let Them Build” agenda, asked the panelists how their agencies oversee their roles in complying with the current SEQRA regulations. Among the host of SEQRA recommendations under consideration by state lawmakers in the state budget process, Eckert highlighted the governor’s intent to impose a two-year maximum deadline for completion of a SEQRA environmental impact statement from a positive declaration to the issuance of the final agency decision. Most of the SEQRA reforms under discussion are focused on major infrastructure, housing and clean water and clean energy-related projects.
Turturro noted that whatever changes to SEQRA are eventually agreed to in Albany, developers will still be required to secure DEC permits. “The SEQRA reforms will not change DEC permitting, but they will help create an expedited and streamlined process to move through the SEQRA process,” she said.
Turturro, along with NYSDOT Region 8 Director Fuda and Orange County Department of Health’s Gagnon stressed the importance of contacting their respective agencies early in the process so that applicants can provide all the information necessary. Turturro noted that NYSDEC holds pre-application meetings with developers so that they can avoid costly project delays. All three panelists recommended developers contact their agencies early and also review information available on their websites.
All three panelists noted the significant growth taking place in Orange County that has resulted in marked increases in applications to their respective agencies. Orange County Department of Health’s Gagnon noted that in the past two to three years applications to the department have doubled.
NYSDOT’s Fuda noted that in 2025 Region 8, which covers most of the Hudson Valley) issued 1,993 permits, including more than 200 in Orange County and also conducted 707 safety investigations regionwide.
She said that NYSDOT’s decisions are based on not only determining a project’s impact on the state’s road infrastructure now, but also 10 years into the future.
The possible environmental regulation changes and reforms to SEQRA come at a critical time for Orange County. ABG Co-Chair Dan Depew and OCP’s Eckert both informed the more than 130 attendees of the ABG breakfast gathering that Orange County currently has a potential $2-billion development pipeline that covers a wide spectrum of industries.
The event sponsors were Ulster County Savings Bank and Brown & Weinraub.
