New Homes Slated for Napoli Development

By Sharon Turano, The Post-Journal

NAPOLI – Four to five new homes per year are expected to be built in the next two years around Enchanted Lake in the town of Napoli.

The housing plan is part of the Napoli Development Corp.'s purchase of 450 lots and 35 acres of vacant land around the lake site.

The 1,100 acre Enchanted Lake Development site was owned by James Zaepfel, who presented it as a gift to the Cattaraugus Local Development Corp. in 1999.

The Cattaraugus Development Corp. sold the lots to the Napoli Development Corp. in a transaction that was completed on Friday and announced Monday.

"This land transfer, to the corporation formed by the 14 existing homeowners (at Enchanted Lake) is intended to rectify some of the major problems that have plagued the community for over 25 years," said Rick LeFeber, Cattaraugus Local Development Corp. executive director.

He said the homeowners now have sufficient land to create 5 -acre minimum sites that meet county Health Department requirements for septic systems and wells.

The Cattaraugus Local Development Corp. will maintain ownership of the 900 acres remaining at the Enchanted Lake site. The group is pursuing a federal conservation easement on 500 to 700 acres of wetlands and habitat.

"This would be the basin for creating the James A. Zaepfel Preserve," LeFeber said.

The remaining land is being reviewed for potential recreational, residential or commercial development.

"We are looking at every opportunity that will best serve the region for community and economic development," LeFeber said.

The Cattaraugus Development Corp. officials thanked Zaepfel, town officials and residents who worked on the plan to have the Napoli group take over some of the properties for residential development.

"They all worked very hard to create a logical solution to a three-decade old problem," he said. the coordinated efforts allowed the CLDC, residents, town and county to "make this a winning situation for everyone."