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Town Board members listen to speakers at Dec.17 meetingThe proposed Whisper Landing Assisted Living Facility on 25A in Smithtown moved one step closer to fruition Tuesday. Smithtown’s Town Board voted unanimously (4-0, Supervisor Vecchio was absent) to approve the environmental review (State Environmental Quality Review Act or SEQRA) and to grant a conditional special exception. The approval is conditioned on the BZA (Board of Zoning Appeals) approving variances.
The application will now go to the BZA in early January. If the variances are approved, the application will go back to the Town Board when it sits as the Board of Site Plan Review.
The vote taken today (Tuesday, Dec. 17) was not without controversy. At the November 21 work session, board members debated the possibility of holding a public hearing to inform the community about changes made in the proposal. In June of this year residents showed up en masse at a BZA hearing asking that the application be rejected. Since that hearing the application has been tweaked and according to Councilman McCarthy (at the November work session) the concerns of the residents have been addressed.
The changes to the original application are extensive and include:
1. Altering the building height originally 49 ft.reduced to 35 ft. (still requires a variance)
2. Lowering the top of the building from 112 ft above sea level to 99 ft.
3. Two 6 ft. high retaining walls replaces the proposed 12 ft. wall
4. Front porch 8 ft. deep originally 12 ft. deep
5. Bldg. will be located 205 ft. from the rear residential lot originally 185 ft.
6. Bldg. will be 105 ft. from Rte. 25A originally 125 ft.
7. Approximately 2,000 sq. ft. more steep slopes will be preserved.
On November 21 the board in a 3-2 vote opted not to hold another hearing.
The planned 136 bed facility will be located on approximately 13 acres on 25A and River Heights Drive. An onsite sewage treatment plant is part of the application.
There were two speakers at today’s meeting Glenn Gruder and Attorney Valerie Manzo representing resident Bill Kearney. Both Gruder and Kearney live near the proposed site. Both speakers expressed frustration with the Board’s unwillingness to allow the public to review and comment on the environmental review. Both speakers questioned the Board’s rush to vote.
Mr. Gruder, is an attorney who specializes in land use and zoning, he emphasized the inappropriateness of the Board voting for the special exception prior to the BZA’s vote on the variances.
Earlier in the day Gruder hand delivered a letter to Town Attorney John Zollo delineating the reasons why a vote by the Town Board was not only wrong but possibly a violation of the Town Code.In his letter Gruder states, “In any event, it would not only be illogical, but also legally premature, for the Town Board to vote on the Special Exception Application before the ZBA determines its pending variance application for the same project. The Town Board application for a special exception is based upon Section 322-99 of the Town Code. Section 322-99(B) of the Town Code states (with emphasis added); Before approving such a special exception, the Town Board shall determine that the following minimum conditions are provided.”
Gruder promises to continue his challenge in the courts if necessary and Zollo emphatically supports the legality of Board’s decision to vote on the applicant’s special exception application.