State's Highest Court Reverses Yorktown Zoning Ruling

The state's highest court has overturned a 2-year-old zoning decision which allowed Andrew Sabo to build a garage twice the size of his property on a residential street.

The decision was made earlier this month by a four-judge panel of the Appellate Division of Supreme Court of the State of New York. Justices Joseph Covello, Randall Eng, Cheryl Chambers and Robert Miller, of the Supreme Court of the State of New York Appellate Division, overturned the Zoning Board of Appeals' June 28, 2010, decision on May 17.

They also reversed a state Supreme Court decision which dismissed a challenge by Sabo's neighbor, dated August 19, 2010. The court has also revoked Sabo's building permit. 

"The determination of the ZBA (Zoning Board of Appeals) that the proposed garage constituted a permitted 'accessory' building, as defined by Town of Yorktown Zoning Ordinance § 300-3[B], is not rationally based," according to court documents. 

The proposed garage, designed to house at least eight or nine automobiles, would be twice the size of Sabo's residence, court papers said.

"There is insufficient evidence to support a finding that the use of structures of this size as garages is ‘customarily incidental' to residential homes in the subject neighborhood," according to the court ruling. "The ZBA lacked a rational evidentiary basis to support its finding that the proposed garage constitutes a permissible accessory building, within the meaning of the subject zoning ordinance."

In addition, according to court documents, the justices found the zoning board's ruling to be "arbitrary and capricious" and lacking supporting evidence. 

Sabo received a permit by the town's building inspector to construct a large garage. His next door neighbor, Nicholas Witkowich, said the garage could accommodate between 20 and 24 cars. In 2010 he filed Article 78 to review the zoning board's determination. 

Sabo declined to comment when reached at his residence on Tuesday. He is a sewer contractor whose business, Cheap Snake, is listed at the same address, 1920 Maple Court. 

Witkowich said he was relieved at the court's ruling and said it was something he and the rest of the neighbors told the town from the very beginning.

"We needed to get away from town politics to where they could not influence the decision," he said of filing the lawsuit. He said he had sent numerous documents to various town departments but nothing was done. 

"Every time we went to do something, we were blocked," he said. 

Supervisor Susan Siegel said if town board members decide to, they will review the court's decision.

"This was strictly the decision of the zoning board and the Town Board had nothing to do with it," she said of the Zoning Board of Appeals' determination.

The proposed garage would have been 7 feet away from his property, Witkowich said, and any water would have flooded his residence. The noise would also have affected his quality of life, he said. He has lived in his house for the past 33 years. 

The problem, he said, is that Sabo wanted to build a business in a residential area.

He spent nearly $20,000 in legal fees and said he would be seeking reimbursement for expenses and damages from the town. 

"Let us have our residential area," Witkowich said. "That's all we wanted."