Proposed change would have allowed construction of office building
Town of Clay residents Linda Caiella and Denise Murray pose last month in front of sign they erected at the corner of Waxwood Circle and Buckley Road to show their displeasure with a proposed zoning change and to alert residents to a town board meeting. The developer withdrew the proposal for the change Monday night at another meeting.Clay, NY - Dozens of Clay residents showed up to tonight's Town Board meeting to continue to try and halt a proposed zone change that would allow construction of an office building in their Buckley Road neighborhood.
They never got a chance to speak, but that was fine with them.
Bill Camperlino, managing partner for Red Barn LLC, which owns a 3.5-acre parcel on Buckley Road just south of Waxwood Circle, said he would "save everybody the aggravation" and withdraw his petition for the zone change.
The neighbors applauded, and even called other neighbors to let them know what had just happened.
"I think it shows what a community can do when it comes together for a just cause," said Eric Shaffer, of Waxwood Circle.
Linda Caiella, who lives at 7352 Buckley Road, across the street from the site of the proposed zone change, said she was planning to turn in 30 more signatures for a petition that more than 200 neighbors had already signed opposing the proposed zone change.
Red Barn was asking the town board to approve a zone change so two office buildings could be built on the Buckley Road property once farmed by Gary Hafner's family. Hafner sold the lot to Red Barn about a year and a half ago, but he continues to have an interest in the property and accompanies Camperlino to board meetings.
The current zoning allows three to four single-family homes to be built on the property, but Camperlino said he thought it would be in the town's interest to have office buildings there instead.
Residents had voiced concern about traffic congestion, drainage problems and lighting. Town board members last month asked Camperlino to return with a traffic study.
Tonight, he told the board the most recent data available shows 11,136 vehicles used this section of Buckley Road each day in 2005.
Reading from his traffic study, Camperlino said less than 20 vehicles would enter or exit the office buildings during peek hours resulting in negligible increases in traffic volume in the area and will have no noticeable impact.
Camperlino also said information gathered by the Department of Transportation and others showed approximately one vehicle drives by the site every three minutes during peak hours. Camperlino said the findings were updated within the last month when Hafner counted vehicles, and that information was given to traffic engineers.
When Town Supervisor Damian Ulatowski questioned the professionalism of the vehicle count and traffic study, Camperlino said, "You don't need a PhD in trafficology to count cars. You can hire anybody who can actually count."
Councilor Joseph Bick asked Camperlino if anyone who can count could do what Hafner did, then why not get someone who doesnt have a stake in the issue?
Last month, Caiella told the board that she counted 35 cars in one minute at 8:35 a.m., just after rush hour. Tonight, she and other neighbors said they felt Camperlino's traffic study underestimated the traffic.
"I drive out of Waxwood Circle at eight in the morning and 5:30 at night and the traffic is backed up from Bear Road down past our street," Shaffer said. "It's like playing Russian roulette. You have to punch it and go."
Camperlino told the board that Red Barn did not have a tenant or buyer for the property so he did not know exactly what would be built, but it would have been easier to market if the zone change was approved.
Some councilors expressed concerns. Councilor Robert Edick asked Camperlino to come back to the board after he had a tenant or buyer.
"I feel like it's a waste of time on the residents behalf and on your behalf because you're not sure what you're going to do," Edick said. "You're asking for a zone change that were not sure what you're trying to do."
"We cannot find a user if we don't have the proper zoning. No one will even look at this site," Camperlino said.
Camperlino said he thought office buildings rather than a few single-family homes would be in the best interest of the town, but he had no problem withdrawing his request for the zone change.