Environmental extras

Being located on Central New York’s Finger Lakes comes with some extra regulatory red tape, as local and state environmental agencies work to maintain the sparkling blue-green waters. At Fingerlakes Landscape & Design, this means getting approvals through the Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC). While there are no special licenses required to apply for DEC operations, president Fred Squires says, there are a number of permits.

 

“I handle all of the local, municipal, Army Corps, engineering and DEC permits,” Squires says of ensuring that none of the paperwork slips through the cracks. All of these applications and approvals go directly through him. And, he can assure property owners that he is working with these agencies to get necessary documentation to go forward with their projects.

 

The paperwork isn’t difficult, he says. But it is required.

 

“It’s fairly easy and obtainable electronically,” Squires says. Job information is entered online, then applications are printed and filed.

 

While high-end residential clients may give Squires the creative license to design lakefront entries or other landscaping features right up on the water, he always has to keep in mind the fact that Skaneateles Lake supplies all of the drinking water for Syracuse, N.Y. “Sometimes, the DEC allows you to do some extra stuff, and sometimes they don’t,” he says of gaining approvals, though this paperwork has never been a real problem.

 

It goes back to keeping plans simple and communicating clearly. “If you are doing everything you say you are going to do, you shouldn’t have to worry about it,” Squires says.