land use law

Assisting clients with zoning regulations, environmental laws, building codes, and navigating the legal requirements around land development and construction projects.

real estate law

Representing commercial and residential buyers and sellers in the buying, selling, and leasing of property (title issues, contracts, and closings.).

practice areas

Real estate and land use law share common themes related to property rights, zoning, development, and regulatory compliance. Through the combination of these practice areas, Tonya Lake Law assists clients at all stages of the real estate transaction process, including:

• Zoning and Development: Advising clients on zoning laws that affect a property before a real estate transaction

• Property Transactions with Land Use Considerations: Helping clients navigate legal requirements around land development or construction projects

• Regulatory Compliance: Ensuring that real estate transactions comply with local ordinances, environmental laws, and zoning restrictions.

Land use law can be highly localized, with different cities and counties having different codes. Located in Western New York, Tonya Lake Law is familiar with the local government processes, codes, and regulations and works with real estate developers, builders, municipalities, environmental groups, and individual property owners. Specifically, Tonya Lake Law provides services in the following areas:

1. Zoning and Land Use Regulations: Advising clients on zoning laws, which dictate how land can be used (e.g., residential, commercial, industrial). This might involve helping a client get approval for rezoning or variances if they want to develop land for a purpose not originally permitted by the zoning.

2. Development Agreements: Negotiating and drafting contracts related to land development projects, including agreements with local governments or other entities.

3. Permitting and Licensing: Assisting clients with obtaining the necessary permits for construction, land development, or use, which can involve complex regulations or environmental impact assessments.

4. Environmental Laws: Ensuring compliance with environmental regulations, including addressing issues like wetlands, brownfields or superfunds, stormwater management, air quality, and endangered species protections, which might affect how land can be developed.

5. Litigation and Disputes: If there are disputes with local governments, neighbors, or other stakeholders over land use, Tonya Lake Law may represent clients in court. This could include challenges to zoning decisions, land condemnation cases, or property rights issues.

about tonya lake law

Tonya Lake established her law firm in 2022 to help clients achieve their real estate and land use development goals. She assists individuals, businesses, and municipalities with a wide range of land use and real estate matters, from negotiating commercial leases to advising on land use planning and representing clients in litigation. Tonya’s background combines academic depth, government service, corporate experience, and client advocacy. Before founding her firm, she spent a decade in the corporate sector negotiating contracts and overseeing regulatory compliance, experience she now brings to help clients navigate complex real estate and development challenges.

An expert in land use law, Tonya earned both her law degree with a concentration in Environmental Law and her PhD in Environmental Studies from the University at Buffalo, where she was recognized as an Andrew W. Mellon Humanities NY Fellow and a National Endowment for the Humanities Public Scholar. Her research has been published in legal and scientific journals, presented at leading academic conferences, and cited by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. She also taught environmental courses at the University at Buffalo and DePaul University.

For more than two decades, Tonya has been an active member of the Western New York community. She has served on scientific advisory boards for local nonprofits, New York State’s Environmental Justice Committee under Governor Patterson, and the U.S. EPA’s Environmental Justice 2020 Committee. Professionally, her work has included solar farm development, an action that included Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, and regulatory policy development at the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, where she led initiatives on climate-related financial risks in banking.

Outside of her legal work, Tonya is a former competitive cyclist, an avid sailor, and a dedicated dog mom to her Golden Retriever, Benny.

Claire Lewis is a dedicated legal assistant at Tonya Lake Law, where she supports the Firm’s Land Use and Real Estate practice with precision and professionalism. With a strong understanding of legal procedures and regulatory frameworks, Claire assists in the preparation, review, and management of a wide range of legal documents, including contracts, permit applications, title reports, and zoning materials.

Claire completed her Bachelors of Science at SUNY Geneseo with a major in Business Administration and a minor in Human Resource Management. She was a member of the Business Excellence Program, a highly-competitive cohort of ten selected top-tier business students, providing enhanced educational and career opportunities. In this program, she attended numerous conferences and networking events in relation to a variety of topics such as sustainability and production operations management. Claire is currently working towards becoming a registered financial representative and has completed her Securities Industries Essentials and Life, Health, and Vision Insurance certifications. Up next are her Series 66 and Series 7 examinations.

Outside of the office, Claire enjoys challenging herself both athletically and personally. She served as captain of SUNY Geneseo’s women’s rugby team throughout her college career and once appeared on a live CNBC broadcast to discuss the economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.