The Huntington Town Board reserved a decision Oct. 30 on a request to legalize an oversized retaining wall, sports court and covered patio at 427 Wolf Hill Road in Dix Hills, after a neighbor detailed years of flooding and construction problems and asked the board to deny the application.
Robert Levigna, who lives at 424 Wolf Hill Road, told the board that construction at the property caused years of flooding and mud, blocked driveways, sidewalk damage and construction vibration. "You don't construct first and then seek approval afterwards," he said.
"Take this room, for example. If this is the maximum you're allowed to build, they build it three times greater," he said.
A board member told Levigna that the board has no authority over drainage, flooding or code enforcement, saying those issues belong to the building and highway departments. "I just wanted to be clear to you that this zoning board has absolutely nothing to do with any of those things that you've complained about, and that is the history," the board member said. The board then closed the hearing and reserved its decision.
The board also heard a request for a special permit to legalize a motorsports service and parts facility with outdoor storage of personal watercraft and ATVs at a vacant former dealership at 950 East Jericho Turnpike. Attorney Tara Visconti, representing applicant Motorrad Realty, said the request also includes parking, setback, landscaping and sign variances.
Traffic engineer Wayne Muller testified the use would generate minimal activity and that five on-site parking spaces would be adequate even though code calls for eight, citing a similar approval for a motorcycle dealership at the same site in 2006. A real estate expert, Michael Lynch, testified the surrounding stretch of the turnpike is entirely motor-vehicle-related commercial use and that the requested variances are minor.
Neil Riccio, speaking on behalf of his fiancée who lives behind the dealership, disputed the traffic study's conclusions, saying trucks regularly load, unload and park in travel lanes on the turnpike. "That to me is just a circumstance that's waiting for something unfortunate to happen either to a driver or to one of the people who are working on these trucks," he said.
Visconti later said storage would be limited to recreational vehicles and personal watercraft being serviced, that repairs would be done indoors to contain noise, and that no motorcycles would be stored on site. The board went on to grant the special permit and variances for the facility, which still requires Planning Board site plan review before construction.
Earlier in the meeting, the board approved several uncontested residential variance requests, including applications for 9 Montana Street, 56 Wintercrest Lane, 169 West Pulaski Road and 10 Jameson Court, as well as a lot width variance for an application heard at the start of the session.