ELDRED — After nearly two and half years in front of the Highland Planning Board, Camp FIMFO is moving through its environmental review.

Planning board chair Jeff Spitz said the project is currently “up to step 6 in the process”: The applicant has submitted its Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS), which has been posted on the town website for the public to read (https://tinyurl.com/5b5fm6kr).

Northgate Resorts in 2021 launched Camp FIMFO resorts in Texas, with one in Waco and one in New Braunfels, and first proposed its expansion into Highland in February 2022. Camp FIMFO representatives returned to the planning board on June 26, their first appearance this year.

If the project is approved, Northgate will invest $40-plus million in transforming the Kittatinny Campground in Barryville into a resort with hundreds of RV park models—small mobile units with bathrooms and kitchens that are not weatherized for winter. Each park model will have its own sewer and water hookup and will stay put.

The process has been rocky for Camp FIMFO. The National Park Service (NPS), the Delaware Riverkeeper Network and many community activists object to the project, especially its use of park-model RVs, as well as the effect of the project’s size on the overall environment and community character. The NPS said the project is not in compliance with the River Management Plan (RMP), which distinguishes between RV campgrounds, in which people tow their personal RVs in and out; and RV parks, where RVs remain permanently or semi-permanently in place. The NPS further said the park model bathrooms are non-compliant with the water and land use guidelines, which do not recommend sewer and water hook-ups at individual campsites.

The State Environmental Quality Review (SEQR) includes 10 steps that are not conducted for every project. The planning board last year triggered the SEQR process when, in a 3-2 vote, it gave the Camp FIMFO application a “positive declaration,” which means the project could have a significant adverse effect on the environment. Camp FIMFO was then obliged to prepare an environmental impact statement.

Spitz said the Camp FIMFO application “is very much continuing,” and wasn’t going to end at that meeting or the next one. In this extended process, he said, residents have “plenty of time, a few times after this, to give your public comment.”

He told the public, “We’ve been very transparent, and we will continue to be very transparent.”

However, he read a statement outlining the code of conduct planning board members must follow. It prohibits members from speaking to the press, even though the planning board does not vote as a body, and its members, who sometimes disagree, vote individually.

“As the town and planning board are going through significant changes, I want to remind all that...we should conduct ourselves professionally and respectfully at all times, both in the meeting and in public,” he said, reading the statement. “We should be familiar with open meeting laws which include not discussing an open application outside of an official meeting. Not giving our interpretation of the code outside of meetings, making any promises, striking any deals, or becoming involved in any heated debates. If approached by the media or community members, we do not answer questions as representatives of the planning board. If you want to share your personal opinion about an application I would advise against it but if done you could be asked to recuse yourself from said application depending on the nature of the statement. As planning board members be reminded that we are appointed by the town board and serve at their pleasure....Any conversations or statements that negatively impact the functioning of this planning board will be addressed accordingly.”

Spitz told the River Reporter that he will answer questions by email on behalf of the board.

Read Spitz’s full statement by following the link in the online article at riverreporter.com.

What’s next?

The planning board has 45 days to determine if a DEIS is adequate for public review, both in scope and content. 

If the DEIS doesn’t measure up, it goes back to the applicant. After the applicant submits a revised DEIS, the planning board has another 30 days to determine whether it is complete. 

Upon approving a DEIS, the planning board issues a notice of completion and publishes the final draft on the town website for public review. The board can then schedule a public hearing. 

At the June 26 meeting, the planning board agreed to review the DEIS and submit questions or requests for additional information from the applicant by Friday, July 19, before Camp FIMFO representatives are scheduled to appear before the planning board on July 25. 

If there are no delays, the public will be able to comment on the final draft at the August 28 planning board meeting. 

What’s different?

What’s different since the last time the planning board reviewed Camp FIMFO’s application? The planning board has changed dramatically:

Spitz, the current chair, was appointed by the town board that took office in January, with a new supervisor and three other new members. The former chair, Norm Sutherland, oversaw the CAMP Fimfo application until February, when the town board chose not to reappoint him.

Frank Monteleone is the vice chair. The previous vice chair, John Thomas Vogt, remains on the planning board.

Helene Hoffmann is the planning board secretary. The former planning board secretary, Monica McGill, who served since 2017, resigned earlier this year. Town supervisor John Pizzolato said McGill resigned because of health reasons, but McGill told the River Reporter that she left due to a “lack of communication.” She also resigned from her employment in the code enforcement office.

Also, David Pietkiewicz and Teddy Knuetter were appointed as alternates to the planning board since the last time Camp FIMFO was before the board.