At the Oct. 1 Town of Oyster Bay board meeting, the board voted unanimously on a resolution to approve the Jericho Fire Department's site plan for a new firehouse, which would be located 240 feet north of Birchwood Park Drive in Jericho.

The Jericho Fire District, which is currently headquartered on Route 106/107 across from the CVS Shopping Center, submitted a site plan in October 2001 to the Town of Oyster Bay Department of Planning and Development to construct a new fire department across the street from the current location.

After being looked at by the Department of Planning and Development, the plans were returned to the Jericho Fire District and some changes were made. The revised plans were then reviewed by the Department of Planning and Development and a town consultant. The board's vote to approve the plans means that the fire district can now apply for a building permit and start competitive bidding. "The review that the town board made is really not extensive," said Joseph Frank, attorney for the Jericho Fire District. "The town's role is very limited in this process."

The fire department is considered a quasi-governmental agency and is therefore exempt from complying with town codes regarding the height of the building and the number of parking spaces, the two major concerns brought up by local residents.

According to Frank, this process started several months ago when the board of fire commissioners reached out to some local residents that live near the proposed new location to give them an idea of what to expect over the next several months. As a result, Frank said the residents asked the board to meet with several representatives of the civic associations to review the project. "We all met and showed them what was involved in the project and listened to comments," said Frank. "After this meeting, the board proposed to make some changes to the project to make it a little more neighborhood friendly so the neighbors would have a better view."

This recent vote raised some concerns for community members. Howard Avrutine, attorney for Jericho's Birchwood Civic Association, was present at the town board meeting and requested, on behalf of the homeowners, that the resolution be adjourned to a night meeting so more people were available to voice their concerns.

Town of Oyster Bay Supervisor John Venditto explained that because the fire district is a quasi-governmental body and the town does not have complete oversight, the resolution would not be adjourned. He explained that although the fire district doesn't have to comply with town codes, they do have to conform to building and safety codes.

Although he denied the request to move the resolution to a later date, the supervisor suggested that the fire district set up a meeting with the community to attempt to work out some of the concerns that the community has about the building.

According to Frank, there has been some interest generated in the community and the board of fire commissioners wants to meet with the community and hear what their thoughts are.

Those interested were encouraged to attend the board of fire commissioners meeting on Thursday, Oct. 10. The results of this meeting were not available at press time.