Proposed changes to Muttontown code rapped

A public hearing on proposed changes to the Muttontown village code, including a redefinition of freshwater wetlands, descended into shouting, name-calling and threats of lawsuits Tuesday before the board continued the meeting until next month.

The arguments centered around a proposed law that would:

Set a minimum size -- 2,000 square feet -- for what can be considered a wetland.

Require that subdivisions include a 50-foot natural buffer.

Remove slope lands -- those with grades of more than 15 percent -- and wetlands as factors in the calculation of lot size in a subdivision.

Transfer authority to waive a requirement that land be set aside for recreation to the board of trustees from the planning board.

Restrictions on what property owners could build would remain as they are in the village code, Mayor Julianne W. Beckerman said, adding that the changes clarify definitions and preserve Muttontown's natural attributes. "This is part of looking toward the future of the village and developing a smart plan," she said.

Opponents said they feared the proposal broadens the definitions of protected lands and thus further limits what they can do on their land.

"We'll be in court" if the measure was immediately adopted, Alfred L. Amato, a lawyer for the Woodside Acres Country Club, told trustees. The country club would be affected by the change in wetlands designation, according to opponents to the law.

"We have homes in this village and lots that are worth millions and millions of dollars," Amato said. "What this public is owed is an environmental-impact statement."

Village officials said a study is not necessary because the law would not have a widespread effect.

Tuesday's hearing lasted for nearly two hours and would have continued past midnight had the stenographer not run out of space on her computer's memory card.

The hearing will be continued at the March 6 meeting.