A plan to develop the 105-acre Willow Lake Farm property in Fishkill into a luxury accommodations, event and recreation center is now being reviewed by officials in the Town of Fishkill. The developer of the estimated $40 million project is Willow Lake Partners Group LLC, which is based in Fishkill.
According to Zachary Kamm of the firm Dynamic Engineering Consultants, the property is located on the south side of Van Wyck Lake Road in Fishkill, approximately 0.6 mile east of its intersection with New York State Route 9.
“Willow Lake has a long history and tradition of outdoor recreation and hospitality, beginning with the creation of the man-made Willow Lake (then Van Wyck Lake) by Henry DuBois Van Wyck in the late 1800s, and the construction of the Knickerbocker Lodge in the 1890s, a rustic inn that welcomed guests seeking quiet, restorative experiences in nature, as well as meals, lodging, and outdoor enjoyment of the lake,” Kamm said. “The existing mansion on the lake was built in 1924 concurrently with the renaming of the lake to Willow Lake, continuing the tradition of entertaining guests for special occasions as well as restful enjoyment of the outdoors. In the 1950s, the property evolved for a time into a working Dude Ranch, offering horseback riding, lake recreation, hiking, lodging accommodations, and shared meals in a retreat-style setting.”
The property subsequently was used for hosting weddings, vacation cabin rentals, outdoor activities, and various celebrations and special occasions. The property was listed for sale last year with an asking price of $4,385,000.
The plan calls for the adaptive reuse of several existing structures and recreational amenities, and construction of new facilities. Hiking trails will provide year-round outdoor recreation. During spring, summer, and fall, the lake will be utilized for kayaking, paddle boarding, canoeing, swimming, and related lakeside activities. Additional outdoor recreational uses will include tennis and pickleball courts. There will be a spa and fitness center with views of Willow Lake and the mountains.
Overnight guest accommodations would include 32 semi-attached motel-like cabins with a total of 64 units, each approximately 600 square feet in size plus 16 fully detached motel structures each approximately 950 square feet in size. Each of the new cabins would include a patio, loft space and large glass windows providing views of the environment.
“Careful and thoughtful planning ensures that Willow Lake’s tranquil beauty will remain largely undisturbed, as the proposed redevelopment was intentionally confined to areas previously cleared by prior uses,” Kamm said. “Rather than proposing a vision to alter the land, we instead focused on a project that will be revealed by it.”
The developer points out that what they’ve proposed provides 274 parking spaces, which it says is adequate although not satisfying the village’s zoning requirements for 455 spaces. It explains that the parking requirement for the “motel use” on-site accommodations would be 94 spaces and that during on-site events approximately 167 vehicles are expected based upon the capacity of the dining and event hall.
The developer also says that a traffic study indicated the project would not adversely impact traffic in the area. It says that the project’s driveways and internal circulation have been designed to provide for safe and efficient movement of the anticipated vehicle mix and that the adjacent street system of the Town of Fishkill and New York State Department of Transportation will not experience any significant degradation in operating conditions with the redevelopment of the site.
