High level of opposition to Lowe's proposal in Massapequa

by Kate Mayberry

About 800 residents of Massapequa and Amityville turned out at an Oyster Bay Town Board meeting Nov. 19 at the Massapequa High school to hear three applications for developing vacant parcels of South Oaks/Long Island Homes property between Carmans Rd., East Massapequa and County Line Rd., Amityville.

Two applications by WSNCHS East, Inc. for housing were heard prior to a hearing on a application by Lowe's Home Improvement Center, the nationwide company which wants to open a 160,000 square foot retail store on the site.

In one application, Broadlawn LLC. is seeking change of zone from residential to Golden Age Housing (now RSC-25). Proposed, are 308 cooperative units of affordable and tax-abated senior housing to be built on 22.5 acres of heavily wooded South Oaks property on the north side of Sunrise Highway, west of County Line Road in Massapequa.

Attorney for the developers, Peter Mineo, said that since the first 100 feet west of County Line Road falls under the jurisdiction of the Town of Babylon, a variance for accessory parking will be sought in that town at a separate hearing.

With ingress and egress planned only for County Line Road, the fully self-contained housing units met with much support at the hearing. The one exception was a concern for traffic since the area, said residents, is highly congested and set along a primary south shore artery.

"It looks as though this project is the culmination of all our prior projects and experiences on this issue," said Oyster Bay Town Supervisor John Venditto.

The same applicant, doing business as Long Island Home, is seeking a change of zone from residential to general business, site plan approval, a special exception permit for its use, and a variance for a setback greater than 50 feet. The applicant is proposing to build a 120-unit assisted living facility on 3.32 acres on the southwest corner of Louden Avenue, and Sunrise Highway. That plan too, met with little public opposition.

Lowe's proposes a store, warehouse and garden center and is seeking a change of zone from R1-7 residential to GB general business. Lowe's, as contract vendee, is proposing to construct a 160,658 square-foot building on a 16.62 acre parcel of South Oaks property east of Carmans Rd., north of Louden Ave., and on the northwesterly side of Sunrise Highway.

But the proposal for Lowe's met with significant opposition from residents who attended the meeting. While the company has been meeting with residents and civic groups for months and has made significant changes to its initial proposal to meet many concerns raised, the public told the Town Board they just didn¹t want to see the store open there. They point out that the new store would be close to the Sunrise Mall, which is already heavily trafficked.

"If you have ever tried to travel that road during the holidays you would understand," said resident Pamela Wickham of Louden Avenue. Lowe's officials argue that the peak season for their stores is the springtime while the mall's heaviest season is during November and December.

Many senior citizens who attended the meeting to support the first hearing for an application to build golden age housing at County Line Road said the store was not compatible with residential housing.

"We already have an application in for senior housing (at the site)," said Anne Krolikowski of Massapequa Park. "My husband and I have a four-bedroom home that we want to sell and we have a contract for one of these co-ops, but not if they approve that Lowe's behind it," said Krolikowski.

That was the sentiment of many of the seniors in the audience.

"Lowe's isn't going to work out near senior citizen housing," said John Maher, who admitted to the Board that he came from "the rowdy side of the auditorium," where opponents of the Lowe's project made their presence well-known.

Others supported the plan, however. Some residents from East Massapequa and Amityville whose homes are close to the site, said the project was something that will bring much-needed tax revenue and jobs to the area.

"We need something at that corridor of East Massapequa that will benefit our school district, our local economy and our residents," said Bill Odol of the Carmans Road Civic Association.

Odol said the applicant has demonstrated a willingness to be a good neighbor, noting the changes they have made in their site plans over the three years they worked with the community. And he added, Lowes is willing to invest millions of dollars in the area, to mitigate the traffic conditions that already exist in the area.

Oyster Bay Town Board Supervisor John Venditto said, however, that his sense was that the public was "overwhelmingly unsupportive of such a high-impact commercial use for the site," especially combined with the well-supported proposals for a Golden Age Housing and an assisted living facility.

"Lowe's is committed to the site," said attorney Paul Bloom who stated that the company is willing to do whatever is necesary to reduce traffic problems in the area. But the company was disappointed by a recent decision by the New York State Department of Transportation which denied the company¹s request to install a light on Sunrise Highway at the entrance to the proposed store. That refusal contained no explanation or suggestions so Bloom said Lowe's has re-submitted its requests and is awaiting a new response, which he said he believes will be favorable.

But Venditto was emphatic that the DOT has not approved the applicant's plans for entering and exiting the site, somethat that is key to the entire project.

"It appears that the application is fatally flawed," he said. "Our experts have been saying for a long time that there is a problem with their plan. If the New York State Department of Transportation (DOT) doesn't approve the access plan, the Town Board would have an obligation to turn the application down."

Venditto said the town offered the attorney the opportunity to withdraw the application and resubmit it once the approvals were received "but he chose to move forward," said Venditto.

"There is no one else but Lowe's who will invest in these improvements and make next year's holiday season along this portion of Sunrise Highway easier to tolerate," said Bloom. "Our plans include off-site roadway and traffic remediation paid for by Lowe's that will actually improve the situation as it is now, as well as how it will be in the future. "

Arguing, Venditto said, "This property is swimming in a sea of residential zoning."

"We have changed our site plans more than ten times because we are listening to your residents of the Town of Oyster Bay," countered Bloom.

Site engineer Justin Baker of Bohler Engineering said Lowe's has reduced the size of the building¹s footprint, moved away from the wetlands, increased the open space in the plans, increased its landscaping, and will stringently restrict the routes of its Lowe's controlled trucks.

"All of these things demonstrate Lowe's commitment to the site and we have a legitimate cause to pursue this application before the Board," said Bloom.

"We are the people of that area and we know best what we need in that corridor and how it will affect us," said Odol supporting the plan and pointing out that many of those who spoke at the meeting to object to the project don¹t live in the area. "They just don't want it because it won't benefit them as much as it will us," he said.

Gary Slavin, a Massapequa civic leader disagreed. "We already have a Home Depot, Ace Hardware, and Sears. Do we need a Lowe's? And if Lowe's is as good as they say it is, are they going to put the others out of business while they praise themselves for creating 270 jobs?"

"They are completely separate entities. One doesn't draw on the other," said Bloom.

The Town Board has allowed the record to remain open for 30 days during which the Board will accept residents' communication on the issue and enter it into the record. The Board will make a decision on the issue within the next 60 to 90 days.