Letter: Reject Application for Zone Change From ‘Residence’ to ‘Parking’

Friday, 29 July 2011 00:00

(Editors Note: This letter was sent to Town Supervisor Jon Kaiman, Councilwoman Maria-Christina Poons and to the Manhasset Press for publication.)

I am writing on behalf of the Strathmore Village Civic Association to urge the town board to deny the application for a change of zoning from “Residence A” to “Parking” of the property located directly behind the current parking lot for the Apple/Daffy’s Shopping Center, in Manhasset. As evidenced by the strong turnout at the board meeting on July 19 and the unanimous objection to this proposal by residents, we urge you to deny this application. We believe that this proposal is not in the best interest of the community and that this change would be detrimental to our residents, bringing increased traffic and noise to an already congested and overburdened traffic area and increasing the amount of refuse and misuse of the surrounding area.

Zoning is put in place to protect the character of our communities and the property values of our homeowners. Under current conditions, the traffic at this location, which is one of the few ingress/egress points for the Strathmores, is unmanageable, particularly during the hours of 3 to 7 p.m.. The influx of people frequenting the current tenants in that immediate area has resulted in littering and customers waiting on line as early as 8 a.m. Moreover, it is our understanding that the creation of additional parking on the site would allow the landlord to increase the square footage of retail space at the shopping center, which would bring even more traffic, congestion, patrons and noise to the area.  

The situation as it currently exists has had a detrimental impact on the quality of life of the immediate neighbors and the residents of the surrounding neighborhoods. Clearly, granting the applicants’ request would be detrimental to the community. We urge the town board to reject this request. Thank you for your consideration in this matter.

Pat McDonnell Samela
President, SVCA