John C. Cappello

PARTNER

Mr. Cappello is a partner and has been with the firm since 1988.  His primary areas of practice are land use and municipal law. Mr. Cappello  represents private developers in multi-phase and large-scale commercial, residential, educational and mixed-use land use applications. He serves as attorney for planning boards and zoning boards of appeals throughout the Hudson Valley. John is the lead partner in Jacobowitz and Gubits’ “Green Team,” which focuses on advising a wide array of clients (municipalities, developers, manufacturers and businesses both small and large) on the opportunities available in this emerging field of law. John has made a number of presentations on a variety of zoning and land use issues throughout the state, focusing on providing diverse and equitable housing opportunities, encouraging sustainable development, navigating the land use approval process, and promoting and regulating solar energy and other alternative energy systems.

John serves as Co-Chair of New York State Bar Association Local and Government Law Section Committee on Land Use and Environmental Law.

Active in several charitable and civic organizations, John is former President of Orange County’s Regional Economic Community Action Program, Inc. (RECAP), Trustee for the Josephine Louise Public Library and O+ Festival Board Member. John also has served as vice-president of Mid-Hudson Habitat for Humanity. John also completed a marathon for the Leukemia Society Team. John also serves on the Pattern for Progress Affordable Housing Committee.  John is a recipient of a 2015 Orange County Human Rights Commission Award.

Visit our Going Green Page here.

Visit our Housing the Hudson Valley Page here.

BAR ADMISSIONS

• New York, 1987
• California, 1986

EDUCATION

• Golden Gate University School of Law, San Francisco, California
  • J.D. – 1985
• State University of New York at Buffalo, New York
  • B.A. – 1981

PRESENTATIONS, LECTURES, AND PUBLISHED WORK

• Nuts and Bolts and Recent Developments in Solar, Cannabis and Residential Development for the Mid-Hudson Chapter Appraisal Institute, October, 2021
• Simple Hints To Help Navigate Local Land Use Process for the NYSCAR Hudson Valley Chapter Meeting, October, 2017
• Update on the Latest, Greatest Land Use Cases and Statutes, PACE Land Use Law Center’s Eleventh Annual Land Use and Sustainable Development Conference, 2012
• Addressing Workforce Housing, NYS Bar-Municipal & NYS Assoc. of Towns, 2004
• Prospering in a Green Economy, Orange County Citizens Foundation, 2009PACEing Ourselves Using the Property Assessed Clean Energy Program to Fund Energy Efficiency, 2010
• Integrating Green Provisions into Comprehensive Plans and Zoning Laws in New York State. New York State Bar Association Environmental Law and Municipal Law Section Joint Fall Meeting: October 2009
• Integrating Green Provisions into Comprehensive Plans and Zoning Laws in New York State, The Kheel Center on the Resolution of Environmental Interest Disputes, Pace University School of Law. Changing Times-Changing Practices Effective Legal Strategies to Resolve New Environmental Disputes, November 2009
• Best Local Planning Practices and Tool Available For Reducing Sprawl by Developing Walkable Communities around Transportation Hub, Climate Change and Land Use Conference, 2008
• Addressing Affordable Housing-Cases & Practical Solutions, 2006
• Pitfalls in Planning and Zoning Administration, Orange County Association of Towns, Villages & Cities, 2002

Our Green Team has recently researched and made these presentations.  They can be downloaded from our Green Page under Resources.

• “Promote Renewable Energy and Agricultural Uses:  A Perfect Match” – Pace-NRDC Food Law Initiative, November, 2019
• “Shining Light on Solar Development in New York” – Pace Land Use & Sustainable Development Conference, December, 2016
• “Solar Land Leases 101”, Presented by John Cappello and Borrego Solar, June 2016
• “Planning and Zoning for Solar“, Presented by John Cappello, Orange County Partnership/Alliance for Balanced Growth, May 2016
• “Integrating Green Provisions into Zoning Law in New York State,” Presented by John Cappello, New York State Bar Association Municipal and Environmental Section Joint Fall Meeting
• “How Do We Plan for, Compete and Prosper in a Green Economy: Economical and Environmental Benefits of Green Development,” Presented by John Cappello, April 2009
• “Best Local Planning Practices and Tools Available for Reducing Sprawl by Developing Walkable Communities Around Transportation Hub,” Presented by John Cappello, May 2008
• “Addressing Workforce Affordable Housing & Inclusionary Zoning”, Presented by John Cappello, Pace Land Use Conference, 2018
• Court Strikes Blow for Affordable Housing, Municipal Lawyer, Spring, 2009
• Removing Legal Barriers to Create Creative , Diverse and Sustainable Communities. Click here to view John’s TedX Long Dock presentation.
• My View article published 3/28/17 on nonprofit organizations in jeopardy of losing funding including RECAP

PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS AND MEMBERSHIPS

• New York State Municipal Bar Association
• Hudson Valley Pattern for Progress, The Fellows Program, Class of 2009 – 2010

PRO BONO ACTIVITIES

• Josephine-Louise Public Library Board of Trustees, 2009 – Present
• Regional Economic Community Action Program (RECAP), President, 2014 – 2019
• Regional Economic Community Action Program, Board of Directors, 2007 – 2020
• O+, Board of Directors, 2007-Present
• Patterns for Progress, Affordable Housing Committee