Maple Road rezoning may need six votes
Assessor reviewing petition
by JESSICA L. FINCH Associate Editor

A petition filed by homeowners neighboring 218 and 330 Maple Road could require a Town Board super majority of six votes to approve the requested rezoning of the parcels.

Amherst Assessor Harry Williams was reviewing the petition to verify residency of the names listed. At press time it was unknown if the petition was valid.

If the petition is valid, it would require a super majority - six of the seven board members - to approve the rezoning request of Benderson Development Corp.

While a vote isn't expected for at least six weeks, according to Eric Recoon, vice president of leasing development for Benderson, one board member has already voiced opposition to the project.

On July 16, Council Member Dan Ward submitted a resolution, calling for the denial of the rezoning request. The item was tabled.

Two no votes and the request fails. Under a regular vote, rezoning requests can pass 4-3.

The public hearing on the parcels was held on Sept. 4 during the Town Board meeting, in which the developer, along with lead architect, Cleveland-based, Dorsky, Hodgson, Parrish and Yue, presented the proposed development, Amherst Town Centre.

The multi-use plan includes shops, restaurants, office space, housing, a hotel, theater and other amenities.

The request is to rezone the land at 218 and 330 Maple Road. If approved, 28 acres would change from CF-Community Facilities to GB-General Business and 5 acres from CF and R-3-Residential to MFR-6-Multi-Family Residential.

The soil on the property, which is the site of the former Buffalo Gun Club, has been tested and found to have a level of lead that makes the tract a hazardous waste site. Remediation will have to take place prior to construction.

"There is no danger currently, unless someone eats the dirt," said attorney Craig Slater of Harter, Secrest and Emery LLP.

The company has been hired by Benderson to explore the environmental concerns associated with the land.

Slater said the lead from the bullets is not migrating and can't become airborne. But samplings show some areas of the parcel are highly contaminated.

According to the Department of Conservation, the brownfield cleanup is necessary, and there are options when approaching the issue. Slater said it is too early to know exactly how the developer would go about such action.

Slater said excavation is an option, which would include removing all the tainted soil and replacing it with new topsoil.

With only 5 acres of the tract considered clean - that portion wasn't part of the gun club - Slater said the estimates for remediation exceed $2 million.

Based on the samplings analyzed, Slater said he doesn't believe any cleanup was done during the 60 years the land was used as a shooting range.

Part of Benderson's presentation included the proposal for a decorative median down the middle of Maple Road. The design, similar to Main Street near the University at Buffalo's South Campus, would eliminate the existing turning lane.

Recoon said the Erie County Highway Department has reviewed the plan and is in favor of a median. He said it would be an aesthetic improvement to a drab stretch of Maple Road and also improve traffic flow.

Following the public hearing, Recoon said Benderson is waiting to review the transcripts from the public hearing to address the concerns. He said the company would address the questions presented.

During the public hearing, speakers from both sides of the issue spoke. While some residents seemed to be in favor of a multi-use development they had questions about how it would affect access to their driveways.

Recoon said that should the median be installed - at a cost paid by the developer - some residents on the south side of Maple might have to pull out and make a U-turn at a median break to head west.

"There might be some small impositions," he said, adding that the median would stretch the length of the proposed development by 2,200 feet.

A resident for more than 40 years, Ann Eisenlord of Ava Lane lives on the opposite side of Maple Road from the parcel.

She said she thought the proposal was exciting but questioned how she and her neighbors would cross Maple Road to get to it.

"I have two large concerns: they claim one was taken care of - the environmental issue," she said. "The other is traffic; I am really concerned about increasing traffic; it's heavy."

Eisenlord said that stretch of Maple Road should be rebuilt, seeing how the same repair sections continue to crack and rise.

"It's been repaired numerous times. It's paved and it just raises again," she said, adding that the traffic would be too much for the roadway.

Recoon also addressed pedestrian concerns, saying that two lights are part of the proposal, making Maple Road safer.

Speaking on behalf of the Amherst Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors, Colleen Dipirro, president and chief executive officer of the Chamber, said the board was in favor of the project.

"The Amherst Chamber of Commerce ... strongly supports the liveable, walkable lifestyle community being proposed by Benderson Development," her statement read.

She also highlighted the annual $1.5 million tax benefits expected for the town and the Sweet Home School District.

Dipirro said hours were spent reviewing the project and meeting with the developer before the decision to support it was made.

During the public hearing, comments were often followed by applause. The speakers appeared to be evenly divided between supporters and opponents.

Several times, Supervisor Satish Mohan asked residents with similar statements to select a spokesman. None appeared to take that option and held their place in line, with the hearing lasting about two hours.

That was not the first time Mohan has attempted to reduce the number of speakers.

Council Member Bill Kindel said he has not yet decided on how he will vote for the rezoning. He added that residents brought forth many good questions that need to be answered.

On the other hand, Council Member Shelly Schratz said she is in favor of the proposal and the site selected.

"If it's done correctly, with UB and the golf course, it would become like a center," she said, adding that it would be a great development not just for Amherst but the region.

The public comment period remains open through Sept. 14. Comments can be sent to Planning Director Rick Gillert, egillert@ amherst. ny. us.

The Planning Board's recommendation is to approve the rezoning requests.