Village planning board tables apartments

Village planning board tables apartments

PENN YAN--The Penn Yan Planning Board voted Monday, Nov. 7 to table action on a site plan for Keuka Gardens, a proposed 42-unit apartment complex - but not before taking a straw vote and rejecting the plans.
"Based on the site plan that I have seen and the facts that have been presented here tonight, I would not vote to pass," board member Brent Bodine said, reflecting a sentiment shared by other members of the board.
The approximately 18,715-square-foot multi-story apartment building would be built on a 3.6-acre site at 199 Brown St. Ext. in the village.
Chairman Clifford Orr said the board is opposed to anything that does not address safe "walkability" of the village by the people living on that property. "This is true of any future project we're looking at," he said.
Factors influencing a community's walkability include sidewalks or other pedestrian rights-of-way, traffic, road conditions, land use, building accessibility and safety.
Orr said he would also like to see a rendering of what the project is going to look like as a gateway to the village traveling north on Route 14A.
A potential sidewalk would be a big issue because it would involve the state Department of Transportation and would have to be Americans with Disabilities Act compliant, he said.
Board members said they would also like to see the possibility explored of some fencing around the perimeter to provide a measure of safety and security, an issue brought up by several audience members during a more than hour-long public hearing that preceded the vote.
A concern expressed by a number of audience members involved drainage and water runoff from the project. They spoke of worries over basement flooding. Several commenters said they didn't have an issue with new or affordable housing, but they objected to this project's location. Others pointed to the displacement of wildlife.
J. Lincoln Swedrock, engineering department manager for BME Associates Engineers, Surveyors and Landscape Architects in Fairport, said retention ponds to collect water at the site were engineered to release water more slowly than the current rate of runoff.
At the beginning of the meeting, Swedrock made a presentation on the project. The structure will be two stories on its left side and three stories on its right to move with the site's grade, he said.
Plans include 51 spaces for parking, exceeding the village code minimum of 42, or one per unit, he said. There are 36 one-bedroom and six two-bedroom units proposed, and 11 units will be for assisted living, he said.
Changes to the plan since it was presented to the Yates County planning board included removal of a controversial walking path and removal of a walking trail. Board members said that even though community members spoke against those features, their removal impacts the walkability of the project.
Board members will vote on a revised Keuka Gardens site plan when they next meet Monday, Dec. 5 at 7 p.m. in the village hall's legislative chambers. Because the Yates County planning board voted against recommending the project, a supermajority is needed for the village planning board to accept the project's site plan.