Planning Board discusses Eastern Front Brewing Co., Vineyard View
During a Planning Board work session on Monday, assistant planner Mark Terry said the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation decided the applicant for Vineyard View will use the 2005 wetland boundary as opposed to the 2018 Board of Trustees wetland boundary.
It results in .13 acres of difference in area and a stormwater reconfiguration, however Allen Handelman, vice president of Conifer Realty, LLC, which is heading the project, said that the change shouldn’t affect much.
“The change in developed area really only affects some of the storm water containment,” he said. “My understanding is that we have excess capacity within the design as it is, so the functional change to the project at this point would be less disturbance of the woodlands if we increase the buffer.”
The proposed Vineyard View project features seven buildings containing 14 one-bedroom, 22 two-bedroom and 14 three-bedroom apartments on a 17.2-acre site on County Road 48 in Greenport. A community center is proposed for the center of the property along with picnic tables and a playground. The project was first unveiled in December.
Mr. Handelman added that this buffer change does not affect any buildings, infrastructure or amenities of the project. He also said they are under time pressure because according to the Local Waterfront Revitalization Program report, any necessary clearing of the land must be completed before April 1.
“We need certainty to move forward,” Mr. Handelman said.
The planning board agreed that the 2005 wetland boundary was acceptable in order to avoid problems with the timeline and state requirements.
According to Mr. Handelman, the project’s current funding sources from New York State and Suffolk require them to maintain affordable housing for 50 years, at 50 and 60 percent of the area median income.
In May, Vineyard View was awarded $5.7 million in funding from New York State.
EASTERN FRONT BREWING
Eastern Front Brewing Co. was before the Southold Town Planning Board again Monday evening during a work session, to discuss the status of its site plan.
The proposed tasting space is 1,900 square feet on the ground level, in front of a building where two apartments already exist. There are no changes proposed to the footprint.
The applicant, Douglas Pearsall, said that he does not want limos and busses at his establishment.
“There’s just not the room for it, and with the proximity to the dreaded Love Lane intersection, that would be nothing but trouble,” he said.
Planning board member Mary Eisenstein asked if he had considered operating hours, and he said that he would follow what wineries in the area are doing.
“We’re looking to fall in line with what the vineyards are doing,” Mr. Pearsall said. “Some of them vary, but at the latest 9 o’clock in the summer. Pretty much when the sun goes down, it’s time to go home.”
Martin Sidor, planning board member, said that he was happy to hear there would be no limos or busses in the area due to the traffic problems that already exist.
“It’s good to know it won’t be that kind of traffic,” Mr. Sidor said.
Twelve parking stalls are proposed, although only eight are required by town code. There are two driveway access points, one to the west, primarily for retail customers, and one to the east for the apartment residents.
Planning staff recommended that the site plan be found complete. At the Aug. 6 public meeting, the public hearing for the tasting room will be set for Sept. 10.
