A lawsuit brought by Park Lane condo residents against Uniland's Gates Circle condo project has been dismissed.
Neighbors had sought to block construction of the 23-story luxury condominium project on environmental and technical grounds. Judge Kevin Dillon's decision was announced today.
Business First's James Fink has the news:
A potential legal hurdle that stood in the way of Uniland Development Co.'s efforts to construct a 23-story condominium tower along Gates Circle has been removed.
State Supreme Court Justice Kevin Dillon dismissed a series of motions brought before him last fall by neighbors of the $55 million project. Dillon's ruling means that Uniland can now focus on filing the necessary paperwork with the state Attorney General's office as a prelude to selling the 68 condos in the proposed building.
Construction is likely to start later this year.
"It was a very thorough decision," said Richard Moore, a partner in Magavern Magavern & Grimm LLP, Uniland's attorney. "The record clearly reflects the determinations that were made."
The Park Lane Condominiums owners' association had filed the lawsuit alleging that the Buffalo officials violated several environment review and impact mandates when the project was approved last fall.
"The review of these concerns was thorough, complete and consistent with the requirements set forth in SEQRA (a state environmental quality review)," Dillon wrote in his decision. "The court concludes that the determination of the lead agency was not made in violation of SEQRA nor was it arbitrary and capricious, nor an abuse of discretion."
It is unknown whether the decision will be appealed.
