The Town of Lancaster Planning Board (PB) heard a petition from the Eastport Commerce Center property owners to rezone 63.03 acres of land (north side of the 120 acres of property) located at 4106 Walden Avenue from LI (Light Industrial) to MFR3 (Multiple Family Residential) for the purpose of building 73 Single Family and 98 Patio Homes.

The rezone application was filed before the Rezone Moratorium Ordinance went into effect and is open for consideration before the PB.

The petitioner representatives made the following comments on why the rezone petition should be granted:

• A traffic study has been added to the application since the last meeting

• Developers (here (Uniland) make more money developing commercial vs. residential

• Uniland in the past 15 years has not been able to attract one tenant on the site – not because of land price, more so because of Thruway acquisition. Nothing on planning board to indicate the building of a corridor to gain closer access to Thruway.

• Utilities, infrastructure and roads already in to accommodate zoning change

• All residential development traffic would only access to Pleasant View Drive – road blocked off to Walden venue from residential development. If developed as zoned truck traffic could go onto Pleasant View Drive.

• There are approximately 1,100 acres of LI property left in Lancaster to develop and Uniland is but 120 of that. There would still be approximately 1,000 acres of LI property to develop. With the way Lancaster is developing LI zoned property it would take a 1,000 years to develop that 1,000 acres.

• Tax generation –If developed over 12 years as rezoned residential, the estimated revenue generated to the town would be approximately $9 million in taxes. If developed in the same 12 years as LI, the generated taxes would be near $2 million; $7 million less. “We make money when we develop commercially.”

• When board voiced concerns about buffering between commercial and residential development, applicant said the same condition would exist if they developed the property LI to Pleasant View Drive and across from the Cross Creek residential development.


Planning Board comments/Concerns

• 2002 property purchased with anticipation of Gunville Road access to Thruway

• Failure to sell property for a National Veterans Memorial Cemetery

• Concern of truck traffic backed up to residential back lots

• Concept still has unanswered questions brought up at January Planning Board meeting

• New School Board bus garage (immediately to the west) will have buses idling next to the proposed development

• Concerns raised on buffering between residential and commercial properties to eliminate potential quality of life impacts on residents

• Several board members expressed not in favor of giving up LI zoned property and are not in favor of the rezone application

Despite several board members expressing their distaste and opposition to the concept proposal and reasons for rezone approval the board tabled the matter to allow the petitioner to regroup and come back with a concept plan that better served the best interests of the community.