By JEFF LIPTON
A public hearing on the project was scheduled for Wednesday before the Town of Hempstead Board of Zoning Appeals, as the store¹s representatives seek a waiver of 176 off-street parking spots for the proposed extension. Kohl¹s requires 1,346 parking spaces, but can only provide 1,170 under its plan, according to town spokesman Mike Deery. The hearing was set for 2 p.m. in Hempstead Town Hall¹s Nathan L.H. Bennett Pavilion, at 1 Washington St. in Hempstead.
According to Bill Cohn, an attorney representing Kohl¹s, the expansion, which would be built on the north side of the building at 3600 Long Beach Rd., is needed mostly for additional storage as well as some retail space. ³It¹s basically to create a better shopping experience,² said Cohn.
³We¹re just asking for a waiver of parking,² he added. ³And this is only going to make Kohl¹s a little wider.²
But Raymond Montemurro, a 40-year resident of Harris Drive whose property abuts the store¹s parking lot, said the expansion would make neighbors¹ lives miserable. ³This means that over 100 cars will come and be parked on our block,² Montemurro said. ³I¹m trying to oppose this with our neighbors.²
He said he also feared that it would bring more truck traffic to the neighborhood, with Kohl¹s increasing deliveries to the store, ultimately diminishing the value of area homes. ³They are going to have refrigerator trucks [making deliveries] with two or three running their engines all night long, and that¹s going to be a horror show,² Montemurro said.
He said the proposed building would be constructed about 25 feet from his home, which would then face a 40-foot-high brick wall. ³It will be like a prison wall,² he said. ³I don¹t think it¹s OK to build this kind of building.²
Montemurro also complained about the timing of the public hearing, which was scheduled when many neighbors are at work and others are on vacation. He expressed concern that only a few residents would show up for the hearing, which would give the town board a skewed impression of the level of opposition to the project.
Deery explained that the board has a full schedule during the year, and that the hearing date for this project was not meant to reduce the number of neighbors who are able to attend. ³If it was held in February, they might then complain it was too cold,² he said. ³The board has a full calendar all year round.²
Montemurro said that he and his neighbors sent several letters to Councilman Anthony Santino (R-East Rockaway), Town Supervisor Kate Murray and County Executive Tom Suozzi seeking help, but have not received any response.
Ellen Silverstein, another Harris Drive resident who opposes the project, said, ³I think it will bring a lot more congestion to the area, and people [from Kohl¹s] will then park on Harris Drive. It¹s going to bring a lot more traffic, and truck traffic is bad enough as it is.²
But Cohn said he has recently met with some neighbors, including Montemurro, in an effort to negotiate some concessions. ³A lot of things have been offered to them in terms of mitigation,² said Cohn, pointing out that Kohl¹s has agreed to move two proposed trash compactors to make them less intrusive, including building a wall around one of them, and to reduce the number of trucks parked near the store. He added that concessions on store lighting would also be made, to make the addition more acceptable to neighbors.
Cohn said that the Nassau County Planning Commission had no objections to the proposed expansion, and stated that the project would pose ³a relatively minor parking deficiency for the entire shopping center.²
If the project is approved, Cohn said, county officials requested only that truck access to the store be directed to the westerly curb cut on Daly Boulevard.
In addition, a ³negative declaration² was issued under the State Environmental Quality Review Act), meaning that the proposed project would have no adverse impact on the environment.
Cohn called Kohl¹s ³a great store, the kind of store that you want.²
Comments about this story? JLipton@liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 287.
