Hamlets of Orangetown
(cupon pending)
WHO WE ARE
Our Roots
We are an all volunteer
non-profit community based organization
that was formed to orchestrate awareness of changes that adversely impact our diverse community.
To accomplish our mission, we interface with state, county and local governments and agencies, and first responders to identify unsustainable, unsafe, and/or unlawful proposed development, as well as illegal housing practices.
We retain lawyers and consultants to advise, prepare and take action, when necessary and appropriate, in furtherance of our mission.
We created our organization to help ensure that the Hamlets of Orangetown NY (Palisades, Tappan, Sparkill, Blauvelt, Orangeburg and Pearl River) will make more informed land use decisions, follow the law in making those decisions and properly enforce state and local codes before, during and after development. We hope our efforts to educate and advocate will lead to better decision-making that is more respectful of the environment and the concerns of all residents who have a vested interest in maintaining a sustainable and harmonious community.
OUR MISSION
~ safeguard the health and safety of all our citizens and first responders:
~ protect the environmental resources including air, water, flora, fauna, historic and scenic assets and community character;
~ ensure the laws as set forth by local, county, state and federal governments are followed;
~ educate residents on the importance of participating in land use reviews and how to communicate their concerns to municipal decision makers; and,
~ advocate against excessive land use variances and approvals that adversely affect our very diverse community.
OUR HISTORY
CUPON Hamlets of Orangetown is an affiliate of CUPON that was formed in 2014 by Hillcrest based volunteers to control inappropriate and unsustainable development in Hillcrest. Since that time, other neighborhood CUPON groups have formed, including ours.
We aim to combat any safety violations that endanger families and first-responders and threaten the environment. We need your help to strengthen and increase our impact.
We are an all-volunteer, non-profit, community based organization that was formed to educate and advocate. Please read our Mission Statement and join us if you agree.
We are part of a much larger movement to protect and preserve the environmental resources of our local neighborhoods including community character.
Here are some CUPON successes in Rockland County:
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Stopped conversion of single family houses into multi-family houses based on excessive variances
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Stopped development of multi-family housing project based on illegal use variance
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Stopped conversion of a single family house into a rooming house
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Prevented a church from being converted to a large school use without going through planning board review
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Reported 35+ illegal housing complaints
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Reported 60+ code violations
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Worked with State legislators and others on fighting blockbusting
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Conducted community educational events
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Keep Rockland Beautiful – Hillcrest clean up
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Charity – Food donations to People To People
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State, County, Town officials and Builders acknowledge our organization.
FOCUS AREAS
BEAUTIFICATION OF NEIGHBORHOODS
CUPON groups pro-actively look to engage with other citizens and host events that help communities create positive social and environmental change for their neighborhoods. We believe in fostering a better and healthier future through volunteerism and action. We are looking to partner with other environmental and social organizations that believe in the same, feel free to reach out if you have an idea for an event or would like to become a volunteer or partner organization.
BLOCKBUSTING
Blockbusting has become a pervasive issue all over our region. Some realtors and others are bombarding homeowners via door-knocking, mailing and flyers to sell their homes. Many of these solicitations have threatening and inappropriate undertones. We support no solicitation laws and local ordinances that require organizations and other residents to apply for permits prior to knocking residents’ doors.
CODE ENFORCEMENT
Environmental & Local Code Enforcement
Our purpose is to improve the neighborhood by getting rid of unsightly litter, junk, and unkempt property. Local code enforcers are either non-existent, part-time or overloaded. This organization attempts to subsidize code enforcers by informing them of code violations, and following-up to see that they were upheld. The main reason local codes are not adhered to is unawareness, so education is key!
ILLEGAL HOUSING
Illegally constructed housing and schools are destructive to neighborhoods. They diminish property values and endanger the occupants and first responders. We aim to identify unsafe, overcrowded, and illegal properties and report them to the appropriate authorities and building inspectors.
OVERDEVELOPMENT
We are not opposed to reasonable growth within our community. We are advocates of controlled growth. Growth that ensures new housing, schools and businesses that will enhance the quality of life in the Hamlets of Orangetown. We believe in development that complies with health, safety, environmental and zoning laws that will sustain the diversity, harmony and inclusiveness of all residents while protecting environmental resources.
We oppose development that fosters urbanization, stresses our infrastructure, segregates our community, and is not respectful of the environment.
ZONING ISSUES
Zoning issues can completely deteriorate a community. We will callout and hold accountable any illegal construction that does not comply with building and zoning codes. We monitor requests for variances submitted to our Planning and Zoning Boards and evaluate them to ensure they will not alter the character of our community in a negative way.
