DOT acquires village parcels to improve state roads

The village of Warwick, during its October 7 board of trustees meeting, agreed to accept the New York State Department of Transportation’s eminent domain acquisition of certain parcels located at Oakland Avenue, Main Street and Maple Avenue and has offered the village a settlement of $8,950 for this purpose. Mayor Michael Newhard explained that this is part of the DOT’s efforts to improve portions of state roads that run through the village and that these are small pieces of real estate that the state needs to control to proceed with their project. In a related matter, the board will be seeking bids for the relocation of the Maple Avenue Booster Station, which needs to be moved as part of the DOT’s planned highway improvements.

Housing

The village passed a resolution affirming its commitment to New York State housing goals. The resolution outlines the village’s plans to increase housing availability through such efforts as streamlining permitting for multifamily, affordable, accessible, and supportive housing and enacting policies that encourage a broad range of housing development.

Trustee Barry Cheney complimented the village on the work it has already done in this area, mentioning the almost 500 units of affordable senior housing available in the community. He said he believes the village already has the mechanisms in place to allow for multi-family housing and other affordable housing options.

Newhard agreed, saying, “I think some people don’t realize all the work that has been done. When you think of the senior housing in the village alone, it’s pretty incredible and it’s very supportive.” The mayor also acknowledged that young families are the ones that are in need at this time.

Newhard also commented on the timeframe by which the state is measuring housing progress in various municipalities, noting the pandemic when nobody was building anything. He added that because the village of Warwick is considered part of the Metropolitan Transit Authority Circle, the housing increase expected by the state is based on a downstate number.

Grants

The village board authorized the mayor to submit, on behalf of the village, the application for the NY Forward grant. During the meeting Newhard updated the public on the efforts undertaken to gauge how the village could best utilize the grant money, if received.

“It’s very exciting and a tremendous amount of work. It’s very awarding in terms of ideas and people being engaged in their community. I feel like we’re working very hard and we’re listening,” said Newhard.

Zoning

At the meeting, the board also acknowledged the receipt of two requests to change the zoning designation for certain areas within the village and to refer these requests to the village attorney and village engineer for review and comment. One request refers to premises located at the corner of Overlook Drive and Galloway Heights Road. Speaking on behalf of Brian Singer, owner of Warwick Commercial Properties, which owns the property located at 4 Overlook Drive and 1 Galloway Heights Road, attorney Robert Krahulik explained that the property on Overlook Drive has been historically used as an office space despite being zoned for residential purposes and that a change in zoning for commercial use would complement that use and allow them to maintain the existing parking lot. Krahulik further explained that because the corner lot on Galloway Heights Road is zoned for limited office use, his client can’t do more with the footprint of the building. He noted that there aren’t a lot of opportunities within the village for expansion of commercial uses and shared his opinion that a zoning change would fit the character of the neighborhood.

Krahulik also spoke on behalf of Warwick Car Wash, explaining that his client has agreed to buy the back end of the property located at 42 Orchard, conditioned upon the change in zoning from residential to light industrial. He explained that even though there was an agreement between the owner of the Orchard Street property and the car wash to allow traffic to pass through that property, because it is in a residential district, this is technically a violation of zoning code.

Political vs hate speech

During the meeting a concerned resident shared her request to remove a political sign located in front of the cemetery on Galloway Road right at the intersection Forester Avenue. The resident, who identified herself as an ally to the LGBTQ community, explained that the sign depicts mocking caricatures of two prominent trans and non-binary individuals with the words “Women for Harris.” Saying that this is clearly not a sign in support of Harris, the resident shared her belief that it was not appropriate for public space, should be considered as hate speech, and not classified as free speech.

Newhard informed the resident that the board had been notified about the sign and that he had seen it himself and agreed with her assessment of it. However, he noted that because it is a political sign the village must be careful about how it approaches this matter. He shared that the board has contacted the New York Conference of Mayors for guidance.

“I think [they] will give us very clear direction on how to handle it because it does have certain protections but because it’s hate speech, it shouldn’t, so that’s the kind of a gray area.”

Other business

Trustee Mary Collura highlighted the village’s upcoming Halloween festivities including the parade and costume contest on October 31, the “Scare the Mayor” contest for scariest decorated house in the village, and self-guided tour of Halloween-decorated homes. The village will impose a curfew for unaccompanied minors between 9 p.m. and 6 a.m. on the evenings of both October 30 and October 31. During this time all children under the age of 18 present on village streets, parks, and other public areas must be accompanied by a parent or guardian.