CLOSE
Tags Posts tagged with "The Northwind Group"

The Northwind Group

by -
0 969
The Huntington Planning Board approved development on the property of the Indian Hills Country Club. File photo by Sara-Megan Walsh

On the evening of Wednesday, April 12, the Huntington Town Planning Board approved The Northwind Group’s development proposal at Indian Hills Country Club in Fort Salonga.

Throughout the meeting, a recording of which can be viewed at huntingtonny.gov/meetings, residents can be seen in the background holding up “Vote No” signs in a show of disapproval of the proposal. Signs also read, “Let Us Speak on Indian Hills,” since members of the public were not permitted to speak openly at this meeting.

At the outset, Anthony Aloisio, the town’s director of Planning & Environment, said,      “What I would want to do is just point out some of the improvements that we’ve made in the plan since the last plan that you approved was the preliminary plan.” 

“In the revised plan we’ve asked for some depressions to be built on the property,” he added. “This was to capture stormwater runoff from the proposed development areas as well as from the golf course.”

Board chairman Paul Ehrlich defended      the plan. “We’ve taken a long hard look at every aspect of this plan,” he said. “We’ve allowed the maximum amount of public input by having multiple public hearings, and even extending the comment period for months, well beyond those public hearings.” At this point  rumblings could be heard from the crowd.

Ehrlich said in the beginning of the process, the Planning Board passed a resolution directing The Northwind Group      and the planning staff to perform “a  broad and comprehensive environmental review. ”     

According to Ehrlich, at Northwind’s expense the town also brought in outside consultants to review their engineering study.

 “As a result of all of this, important aspects of the environmental conditions that currently exist are being significantly improved,” he said. “This application could have easily moved forward without any of these actions.” He also said that the “proposed resolution will ensure that the land of the golf course remains open space in perpetuity.”

Planning Board member Joseph Tantillo said that he has done extensive research on this project. “I would like the record
to note that I feel confident that I can make an objective decision on this plan,”
Tantillo said.

Judge Robert Lifson also said  he had done research into this project. “I feel no reason not to participate and vote, and I would vote to approve the project,” he said.

Judge Mara Manin Amendola addressed some of the residents present at the meeting.      “I see your signs,” Amendola said. “I understand how the neighbors feel.” She went on to say that “you have to agree it is an improvement” from the original proposal, adding, “Yes, we see you’re not happy, and we’re sorry for that.”

The proposal passed 4-0. The building then erupted in a chorus of boos. Chants of “shame on you” echoed throughout the room for several minutes. This then led to Ehrlich banging the gavel several times with requests for everyone to “clear the room” since the board still had more business to attend to.     

As the disturbances continued, Amendola said to a uniformed individual, “Can you make them leave? This is unacceptable.” While the yelling gradually quieted as the room was cleared, Amendola said to other members of the Planning Board: “I do feel bad for them, I do,” and then said, “This is bugging me,” in response to one individual shouting, “Corruption!”

Don McKay, who is running for a Town Board seat, attended the meeting and was not pleased with the way the approval was handled. In a phone interview, he said, “My primary objection is I think the entire application should have been a change of zone application.”

“Why this application did not go to the Town Board for full review and instead went to the Zoning Board of Appeals and the Planning Board, I believe was inappropriate. It should have gone to the Town Board as a change of zone application.”

“The way that this community was treated by the town was reprehensible,” McKay said. “They should have been given a lot more respect, courtesy, and they weren’t. That needs to change.”     

“I understand the fact that the developer does have a right to build some residential units on the property if he wants to,” McKay said. “But what he has proposed is too intense, too high of a density for this property.”

John Hayes, president of the Fort Salonga Property Owners Association, which was founded specifically for the project, was      also not pleased with how the Planning Board handled the situation.

“It was a so-called public hearing at which the public could not be heard,” Hayes said of the meeting in a phone interview.

“This hearing originally took place in February of 2022, and it was adjourned,” Hayes explained.      

“In the meantime, three new plans had been filed by the developer, considerably different in grading, drainage, tree preservation. And we were not allowed to speak on any of this. No public input allowed on it.”

Hayes also said that they are not completely opposed to development at this location, only that the proposed plans go “way too far” and that there have not been any concessions made that he would consider reasonable. “We’ve never ever said no development,” Hayes said. “But we are very passionate about the fact that it should be minimal, and the houses should be placed away from existing residents.”

Hayes went on to explain that some residents that own homes by the golf course would now have several more houses adjacent to their properties. Some of these residents obtained professional appraisals to investigate what the potential effects of these new houses would be, and they were told their property values could decrease by as much as 10%. 

In a phone interview, Jim Tsunis, CEO of The Northwind Group, disagreed with this claim. “The homes in the area will actually go up [in value] as a result of this community being built,” he said.

Tsunis, who has been in the real estate business for over 30 years, explained that “being in real estate for as long as I have and building communities in other areas, the homes in the area will benefit from this community being built.”

Tsunis said The Northwind Group has “met every single condition imposed by the Town of Huntington” and has “spent years studying and analyzing the site.” He also said that he has met multiple times with a different group, the Fort Salonga Association, a Fort Salonga-based civic association. “They helped me shape the community and they were able to endorse the community when the plans were completed,” he said.     

“The Fort Salonga Association has approved every iteration of the plan since it came into being,” Hayes countered. “We can understand why the Fort Salonga Association was not opposed to the principle of developing on the golf course. What we do not understand is how they could endorse the fact that these houses were right next door to existing properties rather than in the interior of the course.”

Additionally, when asked about the Fort Salonga Property Owners Association, Tsunis said that members have not been in contact for over four years to discuss the proposal to come to some sort of compromise. He indicated he would be more than willing to meet with the organization to discuss the situation.

Hayes said the association had negotiated with Tsunis years ago, adding, “We mutually agreed that we were too far apart. Since then, we haven’t had any contact, but he hasn’t had any contact with us either.” Hayes said that when they talked “there was really no attempt to reduce the number [of houses] that had already agreed on with the town.”

The Fort Salonga Property Owners Association is undergoing the process of filing lawsuits against both the town’s Zoning Board of Appeals and the Planning Board. “This is not a frivolous filing by any means,” Hayes said. “We would not be doing that if we didn’t think we had a very good chance of winning.”

by -
0 284
Rob Gitto. Photo by Julianne Mosher

With the revitalization of Upper Port along with the changes downtown, people are choosing to downsize in Port Jefferson or start up their lives in the new Port Jefferson apartments.

Rob Gitto, vice president of The Gitto Group, said that his sites — and other places developed by Tritec Real Estate (The Shipyard), Conifer Realty (Port Jefferson Crossing) and The Northwind Group (Overbay) — are here to help people.

“That’s one of the big things,” he said. “That we’re trying to keep people here instead of moving off of Long Island.”

The Gitto Group currently has three locations between Upper and Lower Port: The Hills at Port Jefferson, The Barnum House and the recent The Brookport.

In September, The Brookport officially opened at 52 Barnum Ave. — the former Cappy’s Carpets — featuring 44 apartments that were 100% leased. The building is mixed-use and will soon be home to Southdown Coffee on the lower level.  

“By having these walkable apartment complexes, we’re helping the stores and the restaurants by bringing more people into the village without a strain on the parking,” Gitto said. “To me, that seems like a win-win.”

Photo from The Gitto Group

He said he knows the concern about parking, but his buildings — and those of other developers — have created their own spaces on premise that don’t interfere with the traffic within the village. In fact, he said, he knows many of his tenants are taking advantage of all Port Jeff village has to offer. 

“I know that I have at least two tenants here that are taking tennis lessons at the country club,” he said. “They’ve already been here a couple months and are trying to become part of the community.”

Many of those tenants — across all three of his locations — either chose Port Jefferson to establish their roots or had a home in the area and decided to stay but downsize as empty nesters.

“I can’t tell you how many tenants we’ve had, especially in The Barnum House, that moved here with a significant other or met someone while they were here, got married and had a child or children,” he said. “As they got older, they grew out of the apartment, but they fell in love with the community and became part of the community, so they ended up buying a condo, a townhouse or a home here.”

Gitto said they are filling a need that was never met in the community — giving people the opportunity to start up or slow down. 

The Barnum House, which opened 20 years ago this year, still has tenants who moved in originally in August 2001. A mixed building, he said many are young working professionals but quite a few empty nesters as well. 

“You’re checking a lot of boxes,” he said. “It’s easy living.”

A benefit his older tenants mention often is that they don’t have to worry about upkeep — if an appliance breaks or there’s an issue, they don’t have to worry about fixing it. They don’t have to landscape outside, and they are creating a home base for snowbirds who split their time between here and the South.

The Hills at Port Jefferson, however, has some more turnover, Gitto said, due to the type of clientele the apartments attract. 

Located in Upper Port, the Hills was one of the first projects as part of Port Jefferson’s master plan. 

“I do see there being a nice community uptown,” he said. “That connection to Stony Brook University and the two hospitals right there, there’s no reason why that can’t be a secondary community.” 

And in that 74-unit building, Gitto said the majority of tenants are young, working professionals — many of whom work at Mather Hospital, Northwell Health, St. Charles Hospital and Stony Brook University — a 10-minute train ride from the LIRR station across the street to campus. 

That being said, Gitto noted that “a couple of units will turnover” because of the residency programs at these places. 

“I would say 80 to 85% of the people that live there are affiliated with Stony Brook,” he said. 

A fourth project with The Gitto Group is currently underway on the corner of Main Street and North Country Road, where the PJ Lobster House used to stand before relocating. Gitto said that building will be smaller — roughly 36 to 38 units — and planning should be finalized by March. 

Gitto mentioned that there is often concern or comment about the IDA benefits developers receive to build these properties but noted that neighbors need to look at it long term. 

“Although our property taxes might be lower to start out, eventually, when the IDA program is over, we’ll be paying a lot more than this property would have ever given in terms of taxes if it had remained a boatyard, or the carpet store that it was,” he said. “It’s important to people to look at the long term — this is really going to help the school districts to have these tax bases being thrown into the mix.”

While he can’t talk about the other developers’ properties, he said that the addition of families and people into the community isn’t causing a strain on the school district at all. 

“In the Hills uptown, in the 74 units, I believe we have one child who goes to Comsewogue,” he said. 

Overbay

The Overbay apartment complex, which finally opened in September, had been in the process of being built shortly after The Northwind Group purchased the former Islander Boat Center building in 2013 for $1.8 million.

James Tsunis, managing member of Northwind, said that his family was “really excited” to bring a new complex to the village. 

Photo from The Northwind Group0

“The Northwind Group has been in the family business and we’ve lived in Port Jeff our whole life,” he said. “We were really happy to bring a boutique luxury apartment community here for Port Jefferson.”

Tsunis added that the complex also was planned to bring more positive traffic to the downtown retail shops and restaurants — especially since many struggled throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.  

“It’s a win for the village in general,” he said. 

Located at 217 W. Broadway, the 54,000-square-foot “nautical style” apartment building consists of 52 rentals, with one-bedroom units ranging between $2,500 to $2,800 and two bedrooms starting at $3,500. 

Each apartment features walk-in closets, custom built-ins, zero-entry showers with rain heads, a fireplace and a flat-screen TV. Other amenities include an 800-square-foot common room and a fitness facility. 

The complex also contains an office area, concierge service and in-building parking with over 80 parking stalls for residents and their guests. 

Leasing, Tsunis said, opened up in fall of last year, and sold out almost immediately. 

“There was definitely a high demand for it,” he said. “We get calls about this every day and we have a long list of people waiting to get in here, which is good —it’s good for us and it’s also good for the village, because it means that people want to live here and that’s a very good sign.”

Jake Biro, Overbay’s property manager, said that like the other developments around the village, there is a good mix of different types of people living at Overbay.

“Honestly, it’s really diverse,” he said. “We have people all the way down to the undergrad at 19 or 20 years old to I think our oldest resident is about 94.”

Biro said the proximity to Stony Brook University and the hospitals helps.

“We get a lot of doctors and nurses,” he said. “But then we also have a bunch of empty nesters — people that are taking advantage of the real estate market and selling their houses right now, then renting for a year or two and reassessing.”

“Port Jefferson has been our home and we want our residents to call it their home,” Tsunis said. “We want to help them try to transition that process as hard as possible and as best as possible.”

Tritec and Conifer did not respond to requests for interviews by press time. 

by -
0 2956
Rev. Demetrios Calogredes, a Greek Orthodox priest, above, blessed the lot during the ceremony as Supervisor Ed Wehrheim and Vincent Puleo, town clerk, look on. Photo by Julianne Mosher

A new 55-and-older rental apartment project has been in the works in Nesconset, and as of last week, ground has officially been broken with plans full speed ahead.

Town officials joined developers from Hauppauge-based The Northwind Group Oct. 15 to show their support for The Preserve at Smithtown. Alongside the recently cleared lot off of Smithtown Boulevard in Nesconset near Chestnut Street, several members from the We Are Smithtown civic group protested against the development. 

Protesters from the civic group We Are Smithtown, below, included James Bouklas and Phyllis Hart, president and vice president of the civic group. Photo by Julianne Mosher

“We saw data from the town about what people wanted in a master plan,” James Bouklas, president of the group said. “And it isn’t this project. The residents overwhelmingly want less development, not more, lower density, not higher, they want walkable communities and amenities, like a community center.”

“The town is interested in development for the sake of development,” he added. “Their mantra is, build, baby, build.”

The project is planned to cost about $47 million and should be completed within the next two years. But according to Town of Smithtown planning director, Peter Hans, there has been approval for the site since 1988, initially with another developer. That project called for 192 units, and now, under The Northwind Group development, there will be 180 units built on 20 vacant acres.

“It won’t be heavily visible from Smithtown Boulevard,” he said. “A lot of the wood will be preserved.”

And at last Thursday’s groundbreaking, the elected officials all agreed this new development, despite what the naysayers might think, will have a positive impact.

“Everything we’re doing here is to help our economy,” town Supervisor Ed Wehrheim (R) said at the groundbreaking. “Because of the high taxes, people are leaving. We want to keep our community thriving.”

Vincent Puleo, the town clerk and president of the Nesconset Chamber of Commerce, said residents of the project will bring $11 million in disposable income to the area. “Smithtown Boulevard will become downtown driven,” he said. “The positives outweigh the negatives 100%.”

“Smithtown Boulevard will become downtown driven. The positives outweigh the negatives 100%.”

—Vincent Puleo

Jim Tsunis, managing member of Northwind, said he and his team are looking forward to bringing the project to provide new housing for Smithtown seniors.

“They will move out of their houses, get an apartment here and spend their money downtown,” he said. 

“Turning that property into a senior-living development opens the door for Nesconset, which is a game changer,” town spokesperson Nicole Garguilo said. “Nesconset never had that centralized business district, but now Smithtown Boulevard will have that.”

But the peaceful protesters stood their ground.

“We are not against housing for seniors,” Bouklas said. “We are against density in our already dense neighborhoods, traffic on our congested roads and, most importantly, tax breaks for developers while the rest of us pay full price.”

by -
0 995
Long Island started its reopening process Wednesday, May 27, with construction projects like Overbay getting back to work immediately. Photo by Kyle Barr

With construction sites in Port Jeff put on pause due to the pandemic, Main Street has seen and heard a significant lack of hammers and power tools. But as Long Island begins the reopening process, with Phase 1 allowing for construction to start again, local projects are planning their restarts, though this time with additional precautions.

With its skeleton left exposed for the past two months, the Overbay Apartment Complex is now once again set for continued construction. Located along West Broadway next to the Shipyard complex, Overbay started its construction again Wednesday morning.

Overbay LLC, a subsidiary of Hauppauge-based The Northwind Group, has been in front of the project since the land was first purchased in 2013 for $1.8 million. 

Jim Tsunis, managing member of Northwind, said there are no site plan changes from what was finalized several months ago, though it will be some time before he can relate the new timeline for when construction will finish and for people to start moving in.

“It feels great to be back up and running — I’m hoping all other businesses will reopen soon,” Tsunis said. “It’s been an extremely tough time for all residents over the last couple of months.”

Otherwise, in terms of safety, he said his office has received reopening affirmation from the state and workers would adhere to the New York COVID-19 construction safety guidelines, where construction workers try to maintain some distance during operations.

The 54,000-square-foot “nautical style” apartment building will be on the now-vacant site of the former Islander Boat Center building, which was demolished in 2017. 

The complex is set to consist of 52 rentals with each expected to be 1,000 square feet each. Amenities include an 800-square-foot common room and a fitness facility. The complex will also contain an office area. 

Parking will consist of 83 parking stalls for residents of Overbay and their guests. Parking is expected to be located on the exterior of the facility to the side and rear. The property borders a small creek on its southern end.

Another site, the Brookport apartments, is going where once sat Cappy’s Carpets. The area has remained cleared for weeks despite the original building being demolished and pilings already installed. 

Brooks Partners LLC, the company name attached to the project, is a subsidiary of Port Jefferson-based The Gitto Group. Rob Gitto, vice president of the group, did not respond to email and phone requests for comment by press time.

The apartment complex will include 46 units and a set of retail shops underneath. Designs intend it to fit in amongst surrounding stores including the neighboring CVS, whose property is also owned by The Gitto Group. The project is set to have 78 spaces of parking for its residents and for those working in the retail stores. 

Both apartment complexes have received a payment in lieu of tax agreement from the Brookhaven Industrial Development Agency. 

by -
0 104
Barbara Ransome and Mary Joy Pipe of the Port Jeff chamber of commerce stand with Jim Tsunis and family at the groundbreaking ceremony for the developing Overbay Apartment complex. Photo by Kyle Barr

Developers planted a golden shovel in the ground at 217 W. Broadway. On its shaft, it read one word, “Overbay.”

Hauppauge-based The Northwind Group, owners of the Overbay Apartment Complex, hosted a groundbreaking ceremony Sept. 30. Jim Tsunis, CEO of Northwind, was joined by several members of the Tsunis clan in celebrating the start of construction. The CEO said construction should take about a year.

Pilings are already in the ground, Tsunis said. These had been screw-in pilings, which took around two weeks to put into the ground, compared to the several months of loud hammering for the neighboring Shipyard apartment complex.

Overbay LLC, a subsidiary of Northwind, has been in front of the project since the land was first purchased in 2013 for $1.8 million. 

The 54,000-square-foot “nautical style” apartment building will be on the now-vacant site of the former Islander Boat Center building, which was demolished in 2017. 

The complex is set to consist of 52 rentals with each expected to be 1,000 square feet each. Amenities include an 800-square-foot common room and a fitness facility. The complex will also contain an office area. 

Parking will consist of 83 parking stalls for residents of Overbay and their guests, Tsunis said in an email. Parking is expected to be located on the exterior of the facility to the side and rear. The property borders a small creek on its southern end.

The project is just the latest apartment complex in Port Jefferson, sitting alongside the Shipyard complex and down the hill from The Hills at Port Jefferson in Upper Port. At the same time construction begins at Overbay, demolition started and is expected to be finished shortly at the now-vacant Cappy’s Carpets building. Local developer The Gitto Group is planning for a 46-unit complex called The Brookport.

Alison LaPointe, the special village attorney for the Building & Planning department, said the planning board granted final approval for the Gitto project Sept. 12 and the department has already supplied a demolition permit. The developer has applied for a building permit, but LaPointe said it has not yet been granted as it is going out to an engineering firm for additional review. There is no current timeline on when a building permit will be granted for the project.

A representative of The Gitto Group was not immediately available for comment.

by -
1 104
A rendering of the Overbay apartment complex. Image from The Northwind Group

By Kevin Redding

A new, 52-unit apartment complex being built in Port Jefferson Village this spring just got a financial boost from the town.

The $10.8 million project, which will be called Overbay, was recently approved for a package of economic incentives that includes sales tax exemption and payments in lieu of taxes, or PILOTs, by the Town of Brookhaven Industrial Development Agency.

During a Jan. 10 meeting, members of the IDA board announced the approval for the Hauppauge-based development company, The Northwind Group, to construct the 54,000-square-foot “nautical-style” apartment building on the now-vacant site of the former Islander Boat Center building on West Broadway, which was demolished by the company in February. The IDA received Northwind’s application in 2015.

Overbay would stand as the third new apartment complex built in the village in recent years. With the IDA’s assistance, it is expected to have considerably lower rent costs than the others in the area, according to Lisa Mulligan, IDA chief executive officer.

Prices for the units have not been established yet. When Northwind managing member Jim Tsunis received approval by the village building and planning department for the apartments in 2015, he estimated rents would range between $1,800 and $2,200 a month, Mulligan said.

“Just in general, the need for affordable rental housing in the Town of Brookhaven is well documented and significant, so our IDA board of directors felt this was a project that would help fill that need,” Mulligan said, adding Overbay will be especially helpful for college students and seniors. “The clientele is anybody who is looking to move out of their home and into something that’s a little easier to upkeep. There aren’t enough legal rentals that are [affordable]. A development like this one provides that option.”

Frederick Braun, chairman of the IDA, spoke of Overbay’s benefits in a press release.

“This project will bring much-needed rental housing to an area near to Stony Brook University and Port Jefferson’s Mather and St. Charles hospitals and spur additional spending in the village and the town,” he said.

The complex is also expected to create two permanent jobs — Mulligan speculated perhaps a rental agent and a building superintendent — and 150 construction jobs over a two-year period. IDA financial incentive agreements typically require the creation of jobs, both permanent and construction related.

Tsunis said the incentives will help Northwind offset the Islander Boat Center building’s $200,000 demolition costs.

“It’s going to enable me to spend more money on the building, so the end result is there will be a better product for the residents of Port Jefferson,” Tsunis said. “It’ll definitely bring people into the downtown area that will spend money at the local shops.”

Community response has long been mixed on the project, even within the village board.

Overbay’s eastern neighbor, The Shipyard apartment complex, which was constructed by Tritec Development Group, opened in January. That project secured a financial assistance package from the Suffolk County IDA and will make PILOT payments to the village for 15 years in lieu of property taxes.

The influx of new village residents without the benefit of increased property tax revenue has been a point of contention for property owners.

“I think it’s a real disaster for the village that they were able to get this financial assistance,” 30-year village resident Molly Mason said in a previous interview, referring to The Shipyard. “It’s like we’re giving away the store.”

Village Mayor Margot Garant and the board of trustees previously opposed the financial assistance granted to Tritec.

by -
0 83
A rendering of the Overbay apartment complex. Image from The Northwind Group

By Alex Petroski

Construction of a third set of apartments is slated to begin in the spring in Port Jefferson Village after demolition of the vacant Islander Boat Center building on West Broadway began last week. This comes after ground was broken in June 2016 on a 112-unit apartment complex by TRITEC Real Estate Company adjacent to the Islander Boat Center property called The Shipyard luxury apartments, as well as the opening of the 38-unit complex by Rail Realty called The Hills at Port Jefferson in upper Port, which will grow by 36 units upon completion later this year.

Demolition of the Islander Boat Center building is nearing completion. Photo by Alex Petroski

Hauppauge-based building company The Northwind Group owns the site of the new project, which will be called Overbay apartments. A Conditional Site Plan and Conditional Use approval were granted for the property by the village building and planning department in May 2015 for the construction of 52 apartment units, according to Special Village Attorney for the department Alison LaPointe, and Northwind managing member Jim Tsunis confirmed in a phone interview that is still the plan. LaPointe said in an email several other conditions laid out by the department need to be met by the property owner prior to the issuance of a Final Site Plan and a building permit. Tsunis declined to give a reason why demolition began nearly two years after receiving board approval.

Demolition of the original structure began Feb. 10 but was not complete as of the morning of Feb. 13. The new building will overlook Port Jefferson Harbor.

“It’s a cute little nautical style building — I’m looking forward to building it,” Tsunis said. He added he’s excited to be a part of the expansion and beautification process going on in the village.

“Hopefully within the week that building will be down, which is good news,” village Mayor Margot Garant said during a board meeting Feb. 8 after the demolition permit was issued.

Another board member shared his positive outlook on the future of the site.

“It’ll improve the western entrance to the downtown area,” Trustee Bruce D’Abramo said during the meeting.

At least one trustee is concerned about the impact all of the changes in the village will have for long-time residents.

“This is a Victorian village but we’re turning it into hodgepodge lodge here,” Bruce Miller said. “There’s just no cohesion here.”

Garant added the village board has no jurisdiction over the building and planning department, and the new apartment buildings all meet standards set in the village code. According to the village code, structures are not permitted to exceed 35-feet at their highest point.

Demolition of the vacant Islander Boat Center building is nearing completion. Photo by Alex Petroski

A member of the community who lives on Beach Street shared similar concerns to Miller, and voiced her displeasure during the public comment period of the meeting.

“I’m sick to my stomach when I look at it,” the resident said of The Shipyard building, which is under construction, adding she’s not looking forward to another building going up next to it. “I’m sick to my stomach when I drive down the hill. I feel bad for every other resident in the area who’s going to be looking at this massive structure.”

Barbara Sabatino, a village resident and business owner, as well as a member of the building and planning department, was at the meeting and expressed regret over approving the building of the large structure.

“We had a lot of discussion about this at planning board, we’re restricted to what they can build by code,” she said. “If the code says you can build ‘x’ amount of floors with ‘x’ amount of square footage, we’re kind of stuck. We can’t say ‘no you can’t build something,’ if legally in the code they can. What we can do is learn from this is that this looks a lot bigger than we had anticipated.”

TBR News Media is your local news and entertainment website.
We provide you with the latest breaking news and information for your community.
Contact us: [email protected]

Most Viewed

©