Good evening, everyone, and welcome to this meeting of the Syracuse Planning Commission.

We'll begin our public hearing schedule in just a moment.

First, though, we have a couple of sets of minutes to act upon.

Um the last we met twice in February, and the earlier set of minutes were held so that we could review them at our uh most recent meeting.

I think they are ready for action now, and then we have a second set of meeting uh meeting minutes also from uh late February.

So with that in mind, I will first ask if there's a motion for action on the February 2nd, 2026 minutes that have been distributed to the commission members.

Is there a motion for action on those minutes?

Uh move to approve subject to corrections.

Second discussion on the motion before us.

If not, all in favor of that motion, please indicate by saying aye.

Aye.

Those opposed, please say nay.

Any abstentions?

The February second minutes are approved.

We have another set, short month, but we had two meetings.

Uh February 23rd.

Minutes have been distributed as well to the commission members.

Is there a motion for action on those minutes?

Move approval subject to corrections.

Uh yes, I'd like a second a motion with uh two additions or corrections to the minutes.

Uh those would occur on pages 19 and 20 with respect to R-25-65 and R-25-66.

Two resubs that are being undertaken by the land bank.

And the properties in question are being uh funded through the move in New York grant.

There's 52 units that are going to be funded with it, and so we're going to be continuing to see uh units that are being funded with this grant.

I think it's useful to have the name of the grant.

So if we could add that in an appropriate place.

Yes.

Accepting corrections.

Thank you.

Discussion on this motion for action on the February 23rd minutes.

If there's no discussion, all in favor of that motion, please indicate by saying aye.

Aye.

Aye.

Those opposed, please say nay.

Any abstentions?

Those minutes are also approved.

Uh let me say a word first about our process in case anyone is here for the first time.

As each application is called uh by a member of the staff, we ask that the applicant or the representative come forward to the podium in the front of the room, provide their name, address, and then their comments for the record.

Following any questions from the commission members, we will then issue an invitation to members of the public who wish to speak in favor of that application to come forward to do that, providing their name, address, and comments.

Similarly, we will extend an invitation to members of the public who might want to speak in opposition to the application.

We ask that all speakers contain their comments to approximately three minutes so that we can get through all of our public hearings, and that everyone who wishes to speak has an opportunity to do that.

Where comments are offered in opposition to an application, we'll encourage the applicant to return to the podium and address the comments made in opposition.

So with that, we are ready to start.

Uh, for any last minute changes.

Yes, uh, one announcement.

We have one uh item under old business, the first item that was postponed by the applicant.

So uh unfortunately anybody who's here for the 652 West on a Dogger Street renovation project, uh that has been postponed for the time being again by the applicant.

Um we'll see if it gets back on a future meeting uh agenda.

The applicant said they'd be uh back in touch with us soon.

Um so first on the agenda another old business item, uh the greenhouse manufacturing plant project.

This is at 2956, 2960, and 2964 East Gianese Street, uh, currently owned by the Greater Syracuse Property Development Corporation.

Uh this is in the MX2 zone district.

Uh, there are two projects, uh companion pieces, a special use permit SP-25-20, and a resubdivision R-25-34.

Um, we did hear, just to tee this up a little bit uh for both the applicant and the board.

Uh we did um hear this back uh last year.

And just to make sure I have all the information correctly, we did not perform seeker at the time either.

So the item is back before us.

Thank you.

So if the applicant is here, please come forward, provide your name and address and uh summary of the project that's involved here.

Yes.

My name is Ashok Bose, and my address is 327 Dickerson Drive North, Camelas, New York 13031.

And this is the third time I am presenting my case to the board.

And I thank you so much for your time.

Okay.

I'm the founder of sustainable energy and agriculture technology.

Today I am presenting our proposal to develop a 3700 square foot smart greenhouse manufacturing facility located as 2956, 2960, and 2964 East Genesis Street in Syracuse.

The facility will support the development and assembly of smart greenhouse systems, which basically that innovative structures designed to combine greenhouse engineering with sustainable energy technologies.

Our goal is to support local manufacturing and innovation in sustainable agriculture and clean technology.

The project aligns with several priorities of the city of Syracuse, including sustainability, economic development, and neighborhood revitalization.

By activating currently underutilized properties, this project aims to contribute to the local innovation ecosystem while maintaining compatibility with the surrounding community.

ACAT, which is the abbreviation of the sustainable energy technology, has also been engaged with the Inspire Innovation Hub at Center State CEO, where our work has focused on advancing clean tech and agriculture tech innovation.

We have received a formal letter of support, recognizing the potential of this project to contribute to the region's economic and environmental goals.

We believe this project represents a meaningful opportunity to introduce sustainable technology manufacturing into Syracuse while supporting the city's broader goals of innovation and community development.

Again, thank you so much for your time and consideration, and I hope the board will be able to vote on this today, and we can move forward to our project where we can help with hundreds of thousands of students and the community member to achieve the goals.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Are there any questions from the commission members for the applicant?

Sure.

So as we discussed before, this is a very interesting project, unique, and it meets the criteria for a special use permit in that particular site.

We've held it previously because there were concerns raised by the neighbors, and we wanted to give you some time to address those concerns to see if there are any additional issues, et cetera.

There were two issues, I think in particular that came up.

I mean, one had to do with a concerns that some of the residents on the other side of Meadowbrook about the visual landscape and whether screening would be adequate, et cetera.

The other type of concerns were was about its impact on traffic on East Genesee Street and its potential impact on Nottingham High School.

Now it's my understanding, I and I guess I'm asking you if you could just sort of review this in terms of the traffic issue.

You're basically looking to produce one unit a week, and the other traffic would be materials traffic that may come in once a week or twice a week at the most.

So I'm just wondering if you could speak to the traffic issue on East Genesee Street.

Yeah.

I can assure you one thing, sir, is that right now the traffic that I have seen during the peak time, as well as the non non-I mean, I have not lived there, but I've tried I I visited that many times.

I mean, I have not lived there, but I've tried I I visited that many times.

The stores and the gas stations, what they create the traffic, our traffic will be significantly less than that traffic caused by the um other businesses that are already operating what there.

Okay.

Having said that, the regarding the noise level, this is a completely indoor operation.

Right.

And we we can assure you that again, I have I, you know, we we we have a proposal and an action plan how to mitigate all the noise levels so that it doesn't impact the existing uh neighborhood and so forth.

Additional questions for the applicant.

Well, because it's been a few months since you were here.

Could you remind us how you're gonna have materials delivered, what time of day?

Because I know there was concern from the neighbors about the hours of the school nearby would be bringing kids to and from school.

Could you tell us about when your materials are delivered?

Yeah.

So again, I did have the opportunity to talk to the neighbors on uh November 15th uh in a coffee house, and which is very useful, and we shared our concern, their concern, and we addressed it, right?

Which is really very good suggestions from the board.

I really appreciate it.

Now our main materials will be woods and the glasses.

These are things, right?

Now, what we have done in the past, like when we are building construction on site, right?

They deliver all the woods in one lot, right?

In one, it's not the the continuously, right?

And we again, based on the data that we have in the past production, right?

We do not think that we'll have to have delivery of the woods or glasses every day.

It will be probably once a week.

And the our shipment that we would like to do it probably initially it will be probably once a week, as we but in the future, if again, if our production demand goes up, we'll be probably doing more, but not uh I I think that to address the concern about the the traffic and the safety of the school.

We we we treat to it very seriously because my own son is still attending a high school, right?

And I go every day to another you know, West Gen High School.

Is that we wanted to make sure that we can work with the school this schools and make sure that during the time when this actually the school starts and the end that we do not have any kind of interruption or any disturbance in the local.

That's the way we like to mitigate the issue.

Thank you.

Additional questions?

So I just have one or two last minute questions.

Sorry.

Can you I just want to confirm the operational hours are Monday through Friday, maximum 8 a.m.

to 5.30.

As maximum operating hours.

Is that correct?

Yes.

That that is exactly the operating hours that we we envision.

Okay.

No more.

Right.

And then the delivery of materials.

We had, I believe, at the last hearing discussed three deliveries per week.

Maximum.

And everybody coming and going from the site will turn right to go east rather than waiting to try to get out to go left.

Or five lanes of traffic.

Is that still in the plan?

Yeah, we we we can put a sign on the exit of the b of the building.

Yeah, yeah, right there normally.

Yes.

Right, yeah, right.

Okay.

Thank you.

Thank you very much.

Are there individuals who would like to speak in favor of this application?

If so, please come forward, provide your name, address, and comments.

Is there anyone wishing to speak in opposition to the application?

Ms.

Please come forward.

Uh give us your name, please, address and your comments.

Good evening.

Excuse me.

I'm Donna Stoner.

I live at 206 Hurlbert Road.

So looking out my window, I can pretty much see the property we're talking about.

Um these are all my notes, letters that I have sent you and Nate in the zoning office over the last several months.

So I don't want to get into the weeds about parking and left-hand turns and right hand turns.

I want to thank Mr.

Bose.

He's been entirely gracious.

But my our key point is this is a totally inappropriate application.

And were it to be applied for today, it wouldn't make it past Nate's office.

You guys, the city, excuse me, undertook a huge project to redo the zoning ordinance for the entire city, and then even amended that, which made the restrictions on this property even stricter.

I think just a few months ago.

So to my way of thinking, we should be supporting Mr.

Bose.

We hope he will be successful.

I don't think we should be talking to him about people can't come before eight o'clock or after five o'clock.

That's not realistic.

We want him to grow and thrive.

These are beautiful greenhouses.

They deserve his business deserves to be supported in a place where it belongs.

It does not belong in an area where you're making an exception.

And there are plenty of businesses right there in that strip that we're talking about that are vacant.

Um there's a lot of trash and traffic and kids that I'm very concerned about, but that's not my main concern.

My main concern is it never should, it never should have been entertained to begin with.

Um I I take exception with this statement that it's compatible.

I do not think it's compatible at all.

The businesses that are there now initially were established to serve that Bradford Hills neighborhood and people who are traveling east after work to stop and get gas or something at the convenience store.

We've made some exceptions that I think are unfortunate, and I think it would be really unfortunate to approve this.

I think you're gonna stifle Mr.

Bose.

His desert his business deserves to grow.

That place is not the right place.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Other individuals who wish to speak in opposition to the application, please come forward.

Just provide your name and address and then your comments, please.

My name is Louise Magnarelli.

I live at 204 Herbert Road.

Um, and I also have a site in my site, the site that's in question.

I'm basically just here to reiterate what I had said last year and to support Donna.

I don't think that we need to regurgitate everything all over again.

I am um very impressed with Mr.

Bose.

He is a very gracious man and took a lot of time to talk with us.

However, none of it really uh allayed the concerns that we had.

So I just I fall back on those concerns and also the um the fact that uh the zoning wouldn't take place or the the this application wouldn't even be entertained right now if it was today.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Other individuals who wish to speak in opposition to the application, please come forward.

I don't see anyone else rising to speak.

Um Mr.

Bose, where you you have the opportunity to address the comments made in opposition, as I indicated at the outset, uh, if you wish to do so.

Okay, thank you.

Then we'll close public comment on this.

Um turn our attention to the application.

We have two-part application, the resubdivision to act upon and the special use permit and the seeker.

Sorry, I got it here.

Here we go.

All right.

Has everyone on the board had an opportunity to review the EAF part one prepared by the applicant and contained in your packets?

Yes.

Has everyone on the board had an opportunity to review the EAF part two prepared by staff and contained in your packet?

Yes.

Does anyone on the board believe that the proposed action will have a moderate to large impact under CECRA?

No.

Having determined that the proposed action will not have a moderate to large impact.

I recommend that the commission make a negative declaration and prepare the EAF part three accordingly.

Thank you.

Is there a motion to that effect with regard to seeker?

I make a motion to issue a negative seeker declaration.

Second.

Thank you both.

Discussion on this motion for seeker action.

If there's no discussion on this, then all in favor of the seeker motion, please indicate by saying aye.

Aye.

Those opposed, please say nay.

Any abstentions.

Seeker motion carries, and we may now turn our attention to the uh substance of the two proposed actions before us, one the resubdivision, and two the special use permit, uh, which will take the form of a recommendation going to the common council.

First on the resubdivision, our 24, our 2534.

Is there a motion for action on this?

I do consider anything application, staff analysis, comments from neighbors and the discussion during this hearing and previous hearings.

I make a motion to approve application R 25-34 as presented with one condition.

One condition being that the applicant shall file the resubdivision map in the Ottawa County Clerk's office within 62 days of approval of the resubdivision.

Second.

Thank you both.

Discussion on this motion before us for the resubdivision.

This is our 2534.

Uh correction on that, it should be upon special use permit approval.

I'm sorry, the it should be stated that it would be upon special use permit approval just for the record.

The 62 days is upon special use permit approval.

Yeah, if that once that if and one that gets approved, that's the window.

Right.

Under understood, correct.

Thank you.

Second or good with that language.

Good with the motion.

Yes.

Okay.

This additional discussion.

If there is no further discussion, all in favor of that motion, please indicate by saying aye.

Aye.

Those opposed, please say nay.

Any abstentions?

That was the resubdivision.

Next comes the special use permit.

SP 2520.

The board's action on this either way will go in the form of a recommendation to the common council for final disposition with regard to that special use permit.

Is there a motion for action on this?

Uh yes, thank you.

In consideration of the applicants' application staff analysis, comments from the neighbors, and discussion during this hearing and previous hearings, I make a motion finding the application for SP-25-20 in compliance with the special use permit or uh criteria in section 5.4-b 7A through H and recommend approval by the Common Council.

Uh with uh the following eight conditions.

Uh the first condition is the applicant shall comply with general conditions for approval of special use permit applications.

And just reiterate uh that this is a recommendation to the common council for an affirmative action.

Uh so one, the application should comply with general conditions for approval of special use permits, and then uh seven additional uh conditions, two applicant the operations shall be conducted entirely indoors, no outdoor manufacturing, material processing or storage shall be permitted.

Three, landscaping shall be installed and maintained in good condition as shown in the site plan.

Four uh loading activities shall be limited and designated in in designated loading areas on the approved plan and shall not occur within the public right-of-way or adjacent street uh uh adjacent residential street.

The application, the applicant shall apply with the uh submitted landing, loading and unloading operation plan, air quality control plan and noise control plan as part of this approval.

Six, the special use permit is granted solely for the perposed greenhouse manufacturing operation classified as manufacturing general land use type.

Any changes to the a different manufacturing use or any condition, any modification that increases the intensity of operation shall be prohibited.

And seven, any uh modification to the approved manufacturing process, equipment, and operational uh intensity shall require additional zoning review and approval.

And eight, the proposed business shall strictly follow the operation hours which are deemed appropriate by the city planning commission and the common council.

And those uh last seven conditions are important because they all refer to uh concerns that have expressed about the uh about the property.

It's important to note that if the conditions are in violation uh are violated, then the special use permit may be revoked.

Thank you.

Is there a second?

Second.

Thank you.

Discussion on this motion before us.

Yes, go ahead.

No, go ahead.

No, you go ahead.

You have a seconder.

I actually had a question for staff about the the intensity of the use since we began reviewing this in October 2025.

Has there been a change in the permitted use in this location?

Yes.

So the prior round of amendments to the zoning code uh would no longer allow this uh at this location.

But this application was complete and submitted prior to those amendments taking effect.

So we have to go off the code at the time of that application when it was deemed complete.

Yes.

Okay, thank you.

But uh to point out uh to Commissioner Lenz's uh conditions that he just read in, I believe it's number six, which emphasizes that uh manufacturing general use for greenhouse manufacturing.

So it's it's basically locking it in for that use only.

Correct.

Nobody else could buy it and change it to do something more elaborate or bigger without additional approvals.

Right.

Thank you.

It is condition six, you're correct.

And then um staff is recommending that possibly some of the operating um hours and some of the other features mentioned are added as conditions.

Um and to note that uh in response to some of the comments, these things can be revised.

If hours needed to be expanded, he could always come back and ask for approval.

So I was gonna ask the maker and the secondary to consider what would essentially be a ninth commitment, which are the facility operation points from the staff report, which address the operational hours of Monday through Friday, 8 to 5 30, and the maximum number of deliveries and shipments per week.

Okay, so the hours is in condition eight.

It's already mentioned.

Uh the delivery issue is not, so that would be condition nine.

Okay.

Well, to clarify though, I think I believe it says uh at the discretion of the planning commission.

So you're we're adding the details that you're can you're either gonna add the explicit hours that were listed by the applicant or something different.

But um I think you need to detail that in the condition, the exact hours that you're approving.

Yeah.

Condition eight.

Condition eight is the hours approved by the planning commission and the common council.

Right.

Which are deemed appropriate.

We're saying, I'm saying can you we add eight to 530 as our deemed appropriate?

Okay.

Except there's a friendly amendment.

Okay.

Except as a friendly amendment, yes.

Further discussion on this motion.

If there's no further discussion, then all in favor of the motion, please indicate by saying aye.

Aye.

Those opposed, please say nay.

Any abstentions?

SP 2520 is approved as a recommendation going forward to the common council for final disposition.

Our next application, please.

All right, jumping into new business.

Uh first up is a resubdivision R-25-46 at 100 and 106 uh Gene Av, owner applicant Steven Swart.

This is an R1 zone district.

Good evening, my name is Steve Swart.

I live at 1016 Avenue, uh Sir Cucks New York 13210.

And the project is simple to combine the two lots that we own the adjacent properties.

We want to build an addition across the a lot existing lot line to add a first floor bathroom and um master uh bathroom, master bedroom bathroom for retirement years.

We don't have to worry.

We're about going to come downstairs for retirement years.

Simple as that.

No required external uh extra um public services, no extra buildings, just that questions for the applicant.

I don't have any questions.

I just curious.

There's a very small sliver at the end of your second thought.

I believe it's owned by the city.

Am I correct?

Okay, as far as I know, yes.

Yeah, okay.

Yes.

I just wanted to clarify that I had the right cut.

Thank you for your time.

Okay, thank you.

I I have a question I I guess for staff, just out of curiosity.

Uh just looking at the uh the the map that's on page 87 of our packet.

Uh I'm looking at uh property 98.

I'm just wondering, is that is that likely to become a uh an orphaned property?

Is that buildable?

Uh just out of curiosity looking at this particular block.

I think it is I had the whole no.

Yeah.

Um I I don't know if there's infrastructure there or why, but yeah, clearly it would have to meet the uh dimensional standards for a lot for anything to make it useful.

So uh it looks pretty small.

Yeah, I mean do you know anything about that lot?

Who owns it or what I think it's the cities as far as I know the city owns it?

I may buy it.

There's nothing there, just woods.

And it's kind of trees and it's wild.

Right.

Thank you.

Additional questions for the applicant or staff okay, thank you.

Are there individuals who would like to speak in favor of this application?

If so, please come forward, provide your name, address, and comments.

Anyone wishing to speak in opposition to the application, please come forward.

We have apparently no additional speakers for this application.

We'll close public comment, turn our attention to our seeker review.

Has everyone on the board had an opportunity to review the EAF part one prepared by the applicant and contained in your packet?

Yes, has everyone on the board had an opportunity to review the EAF part two prepared by staff and contained in your packet?

Yes, does anyone on the board believe that the proposed action will have a moderate to large impact under secret?

No.

Having determined that the proposed action will not have a moderate to large impact, I recommend that the commission make a negative declaration and prepare the EAF part three accordingly.

Thank you.

Is there a motion to that effect for seeker?

Make a motion to issue a negative secret declaration.

Second.

Thank you both.

Discussion on this secret motion before us.

If there's no discussion, all in favor, please indicate by saying aye.

Aye.

Those opposed, please say nay.

Any abstentions?

The seeker motion carries, and we may now consider action on the resubdivision itself.

That is our 2546 on Gene Avenue.

Is there a motion for action on this?

In consideration of the application staff analysis and a discussion during this hearing, I make a motion to approve application R-25-46 as presented with one condition.

One condition being that the uh map of the resubdivision needs to be filed in the on-drag county clerk's office within 62 days of approval in order to take effect.

Second.

Thank you both.

Discussion on this motion for the resubdivision.

If we have no discussion, then all in favor of this motion, please indicate by saying aye.

Aye.

Those opposed, please say nay.

Any abstentions?

R 2546 is approved.

We move to our next application.

Another resubdivision, R-25-69 at 1075 and 1079-81 West on a dog street, owner applicant, Greater Syracuse Property Development Corporation.

This is in the R5 zone district.

Here we're merging 1075 West Onondaga Street.

It's a vacant single family house that we're um going to be selling to its sale pending to an owner occupant.

Uh the adjacent vacant lot at 1079 is a 40 by 95 foot, so almost conforming but non-conforming vacant lot.

Uh we considered reserving that lot for our move in New York program, but it's steeply sloped from the street and require would require walls to get a driveway in there.

Um it becomes cost prohibitive for new construction.

Um and we thought that merging it with the vacant house would make it more attractive to for sale to an owner-occupant.

So and it did.

So you have a potential buyer, right, Terry?

What's the condition of the vacant house?

Of the vacant house, all of our houses are a mess.

Yeah, okay.

But they're gonna rehab them.

Okay.

Okay, thank you.

Are there individuals who would like to speak in favor of this application?

If so, please come forward.

Anyone wishing to speak in opposition to the application, please come forward, provide your name, address, and comments.

We have no additional speakers apparently.

We will close public comment and now turn our attention to the seeker review for this resubdivision.

Has everyone on the board had an opportunity to review the EAF part one prepared by the applicant and contained in your packet?

Yes.

Has everyone on the board had an opportunity to review the EAF part two prepared by staff and contained in your packet?

Yes.

Does anyone on the board believe that the proposed action will have a moderate to large impact under secret?

No.

No.

No.

Having determined that the proposed action will not have a moderate to large impact.

I recommend that the commission make a negative declaration and prepare the EAF part three accordingly.

Thank you.

Is there a motion to that effect for seeker?

Make a motion to issue a negative secret declaration.

Second.

Thank you both.

Discussion on the seeker motion.

If not, all in favor of this motion, please indicate by saying aye.

Aye.

Those opposed, please say nay.

Any abstentions?

Uh seeker motion carries for R 2569.

And we may now entertain a motion for action on the resubdivision itself.

Is there such a motion?

In uh consideration of the application staff analysis and the discussion during this hearing, I make a motion to approve application R-25-69 as presented with one condition.

The one condition being that the uh application for the resubdivision needs to be filed in attending Kirk's office within 62 days of approval in order to take effect.

Thank you.

Second.

Thank you.

Discussion on the motion before us now for the resubdivision of R 2569.

If we have no discussion, then all in favor of this motion, please indicate by saying aye.

Aye.

Aye.

Aye.

Those opposed, please say nay.

Any abstentions.

R 2569 is approved.

Our next application, please.

Next up is R-2026-5 at 346-N348 Elm Street.

Uh Seth Roth Pledge is the owner applicant.

This is in the R2 zone district.

Is the applicant here?

Okay.

Um we did make uh contact with uh the owner, so perhaps they're running late.

What I suggest is maybe we just move on from this if he gets here before we finish.

Um can revisit it.

Let's do something different.

Let's do another another resubdivision.

Uh one more resub.

Uh R-2026-6 at 205 West Kennedy Street.

This is in the R2 zone district.

Owner applicants, Eugene Aikens and Marilyn Aikens.

Who is the applicant here?

Great.

Good evening.

I'm Eugene Akins.

Uh live at 205 West Kennedy Street, 13205.

And the application is for the property at 205 West Kennedy, which has an adjoining lot next door.

And the request is for the division of that property so that the the home, the lot that the home is on can be sold separately from the lot that is uh adjacent and vacant.

That's it.

That's it.

Thank you.

Questions for the applicant.

I'm good.

Not then are there any individuals who would like to speak in favor of this application?

If so, please come to the podium providing your name, address, and comments.

Is there anyone who wishes to speak in opposition to the application?

Please come forward.

I don't see anyone rising to speak.

Uh we will close public comment on this application and turn our attention now to the seeker review.

Has everyone on the board had an opportunity to review the EAF part one prepared by the applicant and contained in your packet?

Yes.

Yes.

Has everyone on the board had an opportunity to review the EAF part two prepared by staff and contained in your packet?

Yes.

Yes.

Does anyone on the board believe that the proposed action will have a moderate to large impact under secret?

No.

No.

Having determined that the proposed action will not have a moderate to large impact, I recommend that the commission make a negative declaration and prepare the EAF part three accordingly.

Thank you.

Is there a motion to that effect for seeker?

Make a motion to issue a negative seeker declaration.

Second.

Thank you.

Discussion on the seeker motion for the West Kennedy Street resubdivision.

If there's no discussion, then all in favor of this motion, please indicate by saying aye.

Aye.

Aye.

Those opposed, please say nay.

Any abstentions?

Seeker motion carries.

And we may now consider the resubdivision itself.

This is our 2026-6 at 205 West Kennedy Street.

Is there a motion for action on this?

In due consideration of the application staff analysis and the discussion during this hearing, I make a motion to approve application R 2026-6 as presented with one condition.

The one question being that the applicant shall uh file the resubdivision map with the county clerk's office within 62 days of approval in order for it to take effect.

Thank you.

Is there a second?

Second.

Thank you.

Discussion on this motion for the resubdivision.

If there's no discussion, all in favor, please indicate by saying aye.

Aye.

Aye.

Those opposed, please say nay.

Any abstentions.

Excuse me, the resubdivision for our 2026-6 is approved.

We'll move to our next application.

Next up, we have another resubdivision, but it has a companion zoning map amendment.

This is at 900 and 910 Bellevue Av.

Uh again, the Syracuse Land Bank.

Um this is in the R2 and R3 zone district.

Uh 900 uh is an R2 and 90 is R3.

Hello again, Terry Luckett, Syracuse Land Bank, 1941 South Salina Street.

Um Gabriel Diaz owns the single family rental at 910 Bellevue.

Ave uh that property is zoned R3.

It's a single family.

The owner would like to purchase the adjacent vacant lot on the corner at 900 Bellevue, and that's zoned R2.

Mr.

Diaz would like to purchase the property to fence it in uh to prevent cut throughs from Malcolm Street and to install a driveway for his tenants.

So we're asking that um Mr.

Diaz's property be changed to R2, which is similar to other zones on that street.

Questions for the applicant on this the fence in question is is going to be where he's gonna fence in the property.

The whole property or yes, that Malcolm Street, when you look at the map, it looks like it comes through, but it doesn't.

It's all wooded there.

Yeah, it's weird that it shows that way on the street, and people are cutting through from Malcolm across that property.

Got it.

Thank you.

Additional questions for the applicant?

I'll set thank you.

Okay, thank you.

Are there individuals who would like to speak in favor of this application?

If so, please come forward.

And is there anyone wishing to speak in opposition to the application?

Please come forward and provide your name, address, and your comments.

We have no speakers apparently for this application, so we'll close public comment.

Turn our attention to the seeker review.

Similar, we'll do seeker for both and then individually go through the zoning map amendment first, followed by the resub for action.

Has everyone on the board had an opportunity to review the EAF part one prepared by the applicant and containing your packet?

Yes.

Has everyone on the board had an opportunity to review the EAF part two prepared by staff and containing your packet?

Yes.

Does anyone on the board believe that the proposed action will have a moderates large impact under secre?

No.

No.

No.

Having determined that the proposed action will not have a moderate to large impact.

I recommend that the commission make a negative declaration and prepare the EAF part three accordingly.

Thank you.

Is there a motion to that effect for seeker?

Make a motion to issue a negative seeker declaration.

Second.

Thank you both.

Discussion on the seeker motion.

If there is no discussion, then all in favor of this motion, please indicate by saying aye.

Aye.

Aye.

Those opposed, please say nay.

Any abstentions?

Seeker motion carries.

And then just for clarification as well on these two additional steps, um, the zoning amendment will ultimately be um uh decision for the common council.

So our action will take the form of a recommendation to be presented to the council.

Um and the resubdivision would be our normal action.

Yeah, and similar to a couple items ago, the resub would be contingent on the approval for the uh zoning map amendments of the 62-day window, similar okay, similar case.

So with that in mind, is there a motion for action on the zoning map amendment?

This is Z 2917.

Yeah, in consideration application staff analysis and the discussion during this hearing.

I make a motion to approve application Z-29 uh 17 as presented uh with a recommendation of the common council for affirmative action and one condition, that condition being the applicant shall successfully file the map at the county clerk's office of application Z 2917 within 62 days of approval by the common council.

Second.

Thank you both.

Discussion on the motion before us for the zoning map amendment.

If not, all in favor of this motion, please indicate by saying aye.

Aye.

Those opposed, please say nay.

Any abstentions.

That motion carries, and it will proceed to the common council now for final disposition.

And in related fashion, is there a motion for action upon the resubdivision?

This is R 25-67.

In consideration of the application staff analysis and discussion during this hearing, I make a motion to approve application R-25-uh 67 is presented with one condition.

That condition being the applicant shall successfully file the resubdivision map with the county clerk's office.

Uh uh within 60 days of approval of the common council's approval of Z-29-17.

What he said, second.

Thank you both.

Discussion on this motion.

If not, all in favor of the motion, please indicate by saying aye.

Aye.

Aye.

Those opposed, please say nay.

Any abstentions?

Our 2567 is also approved and contingent upon the zoning map amendment change.

Um we move on to another application.

Uh next up is a major site plan review.

Uh MASPR-25-37.

This was a originally a minor site plan application that was referred by myself as a zoning administrator to this governing body uh for further review and for public comment.

So uh this is at 5300-02 South Salina Street.

This is in the MX1 zone district.

Is the applicant here?

Oh, here you are.

Great.

Hello, how are you guys?

Good evening.

Good evening.

My name is Ahmed.

Um I'm uh the owner of uh 5300-2 South Salina.

Um I drive seven hours to meet you guys and meet everybody.

Um I'm in Vista.

I have a family on New York Syracuse.

I was um driving by and I found an old building sitting for four years.

Um very bad inside outside, grass everywhere.

So we found opportunity to make a move and do more investigation about it, and we found that building, it's been approved to be uh a tile uh shop, like a uh tiles um display, and they get the permanents, but they never get move on and do the business.

So we own it and we look for good tenants who will take care of the area and make the area look better.

Since this is my intention to have that building for.

So um the lease or the agreement, anyone who come to the building, we bit big notes like this, no tobacco, no cigarette, because we get we talk to the resident there, and they are there is a lot of kids and a lot of people there, and we decide no one will open tobacco or cigarette shop, and it's against my religion too.

And we decide no one will open tobacco or cigarette shop.

And it's against my religion, too.

So we decide to boast it there.

So one of the tenants, he came and we make an agreement and we shake hands and we do the contract.

We uh make the agreement to um make uh coffee and deli shop, and we get to the councils, we talk to a lot of people, we meet a lot of gentlemen here, and we agree for that.

It looked like on behind my back or behind our back, he was applying for cigarette shop.

Cigarette, cigarette shop, like a tobacco, tobacco.

Yes, okay.

Um the minute we the minute we know about it, we terminate the contract.

We lost the 20,000 to kick him out of the building right away.

We hire a lawyer, we have like six months between back and forth with this guy, no more.

Like we need you out.

So he refused because he said he has the right to be there, but on the lease, he don't have the right to open uh tobacco and cigarettes.

So we explain that to the court.

Finally, we get the building back.

So when we get the building back again, we spend money, make it better, um, clean everything, fix the gutter, fix the roofs, like clean everything, make it look amazing.

Like after four years of nobody there, of course, building will get like look sad, look like terrible need maintenance, you know.

I hire people from seven hours away to come and clean the building, cut the grass, maintain everything.

Uh we have eight parking lots in the back.

Um these all the time, shiny, look good.

Um Warner Roofing.

So it's the same same um same business, the tile.

It's a showroom.

So what those people they will do, they will come to your house and they will make agreements and they say, hey, you need a service, you roof bad, not bad, shake hand.

We write a contract with our salesmen, and they will ship the material to you.

So there is no storage, eight to five, uh, there is no traffic, no weekends, um, no weekends work like at all because it's a salesman's, so there is no actual uh people will do any any contractual job on the side.

Um we talk about make it look better and maintain like buying a concrete uh uh like a flower bed, you know, like put them in in front.

But at this time, we don't have anybody there to maintain that right now until hopefully we get approval and we move on.

And what I'm telling everybody, just give us a chance, you know, let's approve this building.

It's it's been it's been empty for almost eight years or six years, complete empty.

We pay tax, we are on maintenance, fix the heat, fix the water, all that stuff.

It's a lot of money, a lot of money.

And I try to pick the right people to not bring trouble to the community to the kids.

We have kids.

We have I have five kids.

So I try to be like, I try to be one of them, you know, and we got we met a lot of people.

Like when I win was there cleaning and stuff, people stop by and ask us what we're going to do, and we explain to them as much we can.

They say we are refusing to do uh tobacco and cigarette shop, you know.

I say I'm with you guys.

Maybe somebody will come here and ask, we refuse.

We refuse right away.

Even in the lease, in the lease agreement, no tobacco, no liquor store at all.

Um what I'm asking everybody here, I'm asking, please give us a chance to approve that property has a lot of attention, it has a lot of nice review areas, customers going to be around our neighbors.

A lot of people having roofs replacements.

So this guy he's going to maintain and going to have salesman goes around and ask people and community, and of course, if you love in the same area, he's going to take care of you since you guys are the neighbor.

So thank you for everybody.

Please let me know if there is any questions.

Thank you.

Are there questions from the commission members?

Yes.

I have a question on uh page 207 of the packet.

Um there it shows the in interior design, and there's two tenant spaces.

Yes.

Uh so the showroom is going to be one of those, the other tenant space will be available.

So the first space, which is a thousand square foot, this is where it will be the shelves, a flooring shelf for the material.

The other uh side, it will be uh like a meeting room.

We will have a big large table with like uh 12 chairs.

We will go into meet with customers and other teams, like um sometime we have sidings and roofing.

Right.

We get together and we talk about jobs like this, so it will be a meeting room for the jobs.

Okay, good.

So all of the use of the space inside will be for the show, the showroom operation, right?

There's no other okay.

Yes.

Single tenant, and nothing.

There's just one single table.

Yes, one single tenant.

Yes, it looks like there's a lot of people.

Yeah, yeah, we're not, we're not doing he he have the whole use of the building.

So before it's a two location, but he decided he won it all.

He wanted to be one single business.

Okay, good.

Thank you very much.

Thank you.

Any other questions for you?

Questions?

All set, thank you.

Okay, thank you.

Thank you, guys.

Are there individuals who would like to speak in favor of this application?

If so, please come forward, provide your name, address, and then your comments.

Uh hello.

My name is uh Majal Muliti.

And uh I have a business downtown.

It's uh 341 South Salina Street, so it's not too far away from uh the property.

And uh I met uh with the dude with the business person who's gonna be putting his uh roofing company there, and he's he already has uh business in uh Watertown and another business in Utica, and he's just looking to expand.

And uh, you know, he was he's seen this spot and he really loved it how how spacious it is, and it's right in the center where kind of Utica and um not Utica, sorry, uh Watertown and his uh his other spot.

Sorry, I'm a little nervous.

And uh, you know, I I spoke with him multiple times, had multiple meetings with the neighbors too.

You know, they're very nice, they they always come uh we have conversations all the time.

A lot of the neighbors are misinformed and they they believe that something else is going to be there, and they're you know, they spread maybe misinformation when it's not uh that's not the case.

Um this person that's going to be coming the uh and putting his business there, he's very happy.

He literally said he wants to grow the community.

If anyone else, you know, needs roofing help, siding help, he'll he'll go give them quotes for free, he'll he'll uh give them everything at his cost.

Um he's he's you know, he said I want to work with the community because it's going to also bring me business in the center of you know, where he can have meetings with people for siding, have meetings for uh his roofing company.

So he's very excited for it.

And you know, as time goes on, he's he said some neighbors will come over and they're very uh they're they're angry with him and he doesn't know why.

And when he hears their side, uh they believe something else.

They believe that something else is gonna go there that's gonna damage the community.

It's not going to bring up the community, it's gonna damage the area around them.

Um, speaking when after he talks to them, they're like, oh, sorry, I didn't know that.

And they apologize, and they're very uh excited that he's he's going to open there.

So kind of I'm kind of here just saying just you know, give us a chance or give him a chance.

You know, he's uh he's looking to help the community, uh grow the community.

It's not it's he's not looking to damage it or affect it.

Um I also spoke with him multiple times, and uh, you know, he's very excited.

He's just you know, keeps getting delayed and um denied and stuff like that.

That's what he's telling me on his part, and he doesn't know why.

So um, I don't know, kind of uh my point is uh just I guess be patient with us or him.

Sorry.

Uh thank you very much.

Sorry.

Thank you, thank you.

Are there other individuals who wish to speak in favor of the application?

Please come forward, provide your name and address and then your comments.

Yes, hello, my name is Zayna Breeby.

Um I'm at 310, Eman Drive, Camlis, um 13031.

Um so yeah, I just want to make a comment saying I believe that it will bring value to this community, you know.

A roofing company, I see is a good thing to have in a neighborhood such as this one.

Um, you know, um, and like I heard that you know, he'll be like, you know, giving uh he's willing to work with uh surrounding neighbors and um, you know, um he's hoping to just make it look better, and that's in the vision of what that place is for just bringing you know um betterness to the community.

So I hope you give us a chance and thank you very much.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Other individuals who may wish to speak in favor of this application, please come forward.

Is there anyone wishing to speak in opposition to the application?

If so, please come to the podium, provide your name and address, and then your comments.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Good evening.

Lonnie Johnson of 5217 South Salina Street.

So it would be nice if the person that was going to rent the place was here.

That's number one.

I'm under the impression that it is going to be a ruse of a place, saying that they're going to put in a um roofing place or for materials or whatever, but then something else will come in after.

There are three entrances to the building.

What's the third gonna be used for?

Two of the doors in the space listed as tenant two on the screen lead into the same open area.

Okay.

And then the first one.

Yeah.

I mean, he can speak to it, but can I go on?

So this building here, it's have two spaces.

Number one, which is less out to here, it's about twelve hundred square foot all the way.

It has entered, has entered, they go to each other.

So from here to this side, there is an offices and store room.

So there is no other third building or third office there.

Those two, they bring you to that space.

Okay, to the area.

Like it's open area.

Huge, like the whole property, uh, it's a 3800 square foot.

That's about 2,800 here, 1,200 here.

So what I'm saying here, there is you see there is three doors in the front.

Right, but both doors they open for one skill.

He will be using space.

He will use all of it.

All of it.

There is no any heading in the back.

There is no like a roofing, then end up somebody's sell tobacco in the back.

There is nothing.

And of course, they're going to be, we're going to be monitored from the city.

They will monitor that.

Imagine people do secret job in the side, you know.

This is not bad, not good.

It would be bad for everybody.

Bad for me, bad for everybody.

The reason the reason we are bringing this business here, we talked to a lot of people, okay.

We we try to bring the something.

We get we get approved for Dilly and coffee shop.

We say, okay, we don't want to deal with raps.

We don't want to deal with people sitting there after midnight.

You know, we thought, okay, let's cancel that.

Let's bring somebody.

You know how many applications we have for multiple people, multiple businesses.

We pick the roofing company, it will have time in timeout.

Easy to clean.

There will, you know how many times this guy, the one we we talk about him.

I want to bring him here.

It sounds like sounds to me like I have to like present everything.

And I promise you, he's a nice guy.

He cleaned the property when it's snow, like in two feet.

Every week he goes and clean it.

Still he's not there, but he go clean the property.

He make it look good in the front, remove that snow in the back, remove the snow.

What I'm saying, if he if he would be there, only one business.

There is no confusing, there is no games behind, there is no sign will be in the back, we sell tobacco in the back.

That's a bet.

That's that's that's a city will be there, and they will shut it down.

I will shut it down at once.

Any other questions?

And operation hours would be eight to five.

Eight to five.

And there will be nice salesman people.

Like you will see back like in and out, nice people meeting with with a lot of homeowners.

Like homeowners, like what happened when when you have a badger, okay?

Hey, listen, we will do this if you like, come look at the material.

They have siding, they have shingle material, it's felt, they have they have a uh mitels, which is seamless.

So all these has a small sandals on the property.

There will be like floating shelves here.

They will show you this is what we're going to use.

This is the ice and water shield, this is the nails we're going to use.

If you sign an agreement with them, they will ship the material to your house.

With with respect.

Yes, please.

I'm not too worried about the aesthetics of the building.

I'm worried about the traffic.

I'm worried about the garbage.

Perfect.

I'm worried about you know the impact that it's gonna have on the area with this clad there's schools around there.

There's clad there's schools around there.

And there's children, plenty of children.

So we have eight parking space in the back.

So Salina will not see any traffic.

People will take the filter and it will go behind the building.

You guys have a picture of the city.

I'm familiar with the building.

Oh, yeah.

I'm familiar with people doesn't like I want to explain, maybe show them the parking lots.

So we have eight space, like huge eight space handicapped, and we have regular parking lots in the back.

So what I'm saying, if there is a traffic, it will be in the back.

You guys will never notice anything.

It's not like so.

You see all this?

This is a parking space.

It's eight spots, two of them handicapped.

So let's say if this guy, I drive by, I need a garbage outside.

This is my responsibility to coach him and say, hey, listen, I'm not allowed you to do that.

And I will charge him to clean the garbage.

But would you think a business owner, he invests a hundred thousand dollars in this building?

Will throw garbage outside?

I don't think so.

I don't think he will like if he comes to your side and replace your job and leave garbage behind.

That's he should not be in the business.

He should not be working there.

This guy, he should not have his, it's been almost it's been almost 15 years in this business.

I looked at his review, almost five five star reviews, which is very hard to get five star reviews because it's very hard to make everybody happy.

What I'm saying is this guy, if he come to your house and found garbage behind his job, why why you hire him again?

So we lose business.

Somebody will say this and the review, hey, sir, you left the garbage behind you, or you have a robbery half million dollar, you leave a garbage in the front.

But this is also the city.

City almost every day drive by.

If they see something, they will notify us.

They won't violate, they will put violation on this guy.

We skip one day cutting glass.

I have a contractor who will go cut the grass.

We skip almost one week.

Like they come every week.

I have a notification say, hey, you guys didn't cut the glass.

So what I'm saying, city drive every day, like give us a chance, and I promise you will approve, we'll approve the other way of handling business.

I promise you.

There is no hitting, there's nothing.

That's everything obvious.

City there to monitor.

Which would the city leave you?

Leave garbage in the front.

They will come after us.

That's why we said trust me, trust me, I will honestly.

We don't want that conversation.

We'll leave that alone.

I deal with my friendship.

So let's um have the current speaker finish his comments if you have additional comments, and then we'll uh invite you back after other speakers finish and kind of address all the comments that are.

My concern, as I was stating, is um the traffic, and that the roofing company is a ruse for something else to come in after.

I don't know the contract on how long this person is to occupy this place, and so what happened previous year where uh he rented the space out to someone and they started to put in a store with you know, whatever.

Nobody knew about that.

And I would have thought that the owner renting the place would have told the tenant, these are the stipulations, you can't have this, that, and the other.

That wasn't the case.

So we were under the impression at that time, the neighbors and I that the hours of operation would be well into the morning, and the traffic would be horrendous.

Since then, we have gone down to a school zone traffic where it's 20 miles an hour.

Right after what is it?

What's before Rosemont?

What's the street?

Warrington, the zone stops, and the traffic hits.

They gotta make up that 20 mile per hour.

So I'm worried about the traffic as well.

And there is what used to be uh Pursuities real estate used to be there.

They used to have parking in the front.

I don't know if that, and I'm not saying that they're going to do that, but I'm saying that is park, there is parking in the front of the building.

So I have concerns about the garbage, the traffic, the noise, and that it might be a ruse or something else to come in this place after the fact.

Thank you.

I've lived in the valley for over 50 years.

I own 24 properties down in the valley.

I own two properties directly behind this property.

Um the only question I have for you how long have you owned this property?

Uh four years.

Okay.

So four years.

Um the amount of grass there is not even 10 square feet.

It's barely cut.

The property has been we went through this with COVID.

We had the Zoom call for something else going in there.

This thing's been talked about putting a cat coalition in there.

It's talk about uh a um grocery store, a mini mart, um, a couple coffee shop.

Now these things kind of come through.

It's been turned down before.

But the biggest problem I have is we're trying to keep the mini mart situated.

There's seven mini marts type, whether it's Hesmart, Green Hills, Dollar General, gas stations.

There's seven in one square mile.

I know that's not what he's talking about, but they weren't talking about that before.

It was gonna be the coffee shop and a bookstore of some type.

Nothing ever happened with it.

It's not like any of us are paying attention every day to see what's going on.

All of a sudden there's construction going on.

I know the neighbors, we everybody called the city, they shut them down.

I feel like if we're not watching this, something's gonna go on there.

They had coolers in there, everything they were ready to roll up.

I don't know if it was him or his tenant or whatever.

I'm not hearing a roofing company name.

I don't know any reputable, it's very vague.

Um it's it just it's not had a great honest situation.

Out of state landlord originally, maybe I'm not I'm not sure, doesn't know the history.

Pizzuti real estate was in there for many, many years.

It was she's just gone about 20 years ago, not 50, 60, 80 years ago.

This this property was a meat market, it was a Zena TV store if you remember those days.

But um, I don't have a problem with something going in there.

I don't like it being a vacant property, so I don't want to just be a nothing can go in there type of person.

I I've been in construction my whole life, own a painting company for 36 years.

You need dumpsters.

I maybe they're not working out of there, maybe they are not getting clarity there.

Showroom.

I don't know.

Signs sounds kind of weird.

I would be digging deeper.

The property out front, I like what he says about okay, we're not gonna park out front.

Right now it's a parking lot.

It it is not a deep parking lot.

If you park there, I run down that street every single day, I should say.

Um, but it if I'm on the sidewalk, I'm gonna be pushed out into the road.

It should probably be ripped up, done something different.

So there's a sidewalk there and grass pavers, whatever where it's not a parking area.

But as a guy who owns a property on the side street, which is um Rosemont.

I'm not dying to see.

Is it is there gonna be dump trucks?

Is it gonna be construction trucks?

Is it gonna be a dumpster removal back there?

I I don't know.

Um, so this would be concerns for tenants of mine that are in the neighborhood.

I know it's concerns for others in the neighborhood.

Um so I just transparency is everything.

If you're you know, I get it.

He he bought a property.

Sounds like you know, I wouldn't have bought.

I looked at buying that property after Pazuti.

I did not because it was very vague on kind of what could go in there.

Not sure exactly what it currently sits with, whether it's just residential or it's you know, like Pazuti, when she was selling it, she snuck two apartments in there and she got shut down.

So I know it's an oddball deal, but it's kind of gotta be the right thing.

Coffee shop would have been great, bookstore would have been great.

Maybe a lawyer's office, something quiet like that.

If it's a showroom, I personally don't have a problem with it, but is it really gonna be a show?

I I don't see a lot of roofing companies or any other construction companies dying to go into a very quiet residential neighborhood at the end of the city.

Uh I know a lot of guys in that business, they're gonna be on Erie Boulevard, they're gonna be in kind of more industrial type settings.

Not say it couldn't happen, and I I know he wants to rent it out, and I don't blame him.

I feel bad for you know, if he's invested this money is not getting rented out, but that's where you gotta do your due diligence and make sure you're going to buy something that uh that works for that property.

That's all.

Thank you.

Other individuals wishing to speak in opposition, please.

How do I have everybody starting lining up?

Yeah, maybe lighting up and one afternoon.

My name is George Matthews.

I live at 7-Eleven and West on a conpike.

I'm a 45-year resident of the South Valley neighborhood.

And I'm here to say that a showroom for a roofing business does not belong and does not benefit the South Valley neighborhood.

Uh it would be more suitably located in a strip mall in a commercial neighborhood.

The South Valley neighborhood is a quiet residential area, which is composed of mostly single family homes.

If you look in the map, you'll see this is a pimple in the middle of the residential neighborhood.

Um realign two lots, 5300 to 5308.

But the uh map was not filed.

So it led to a little sliver you'll see there next to the building.

Umest variances were approved for the site in 1970, 1982, 2013, and 2014.

A 2013 report by the TNP for Planning Committee, which was made part of the city's comprehensive plan, contrary to the statement by staff.

It is in the con in the comprehensive plan.

It sought to reduce non-conforming uses on South Salina Street south of Seneca Turnpike and to maintain the residential character and visual quality of the corridor by restricting commercial encroachments.

Now the MX1 zoning classification assigned to this property, uh was which was intended to be a single lot, amounts in fact to illegal spot zoning.

You cannot do that for a single lot in an otherwise different neighborhood.

So although a small general retail is allowed in uh this property, the particular application for a roofing showroom would not serve the local neighborhood and would disrupt the quiet enjoyment for the neighborhood residents.

I thank you.

Thank you.

Well let's hold your comments in the question.

Well, what do you think it should be there?

Like if it's not left from somebody and the problem every time we are there, they call the city on the whole.

Even when we lose more men.

Okay.

So we're gonna proceed with the hearing and invite other speakers.

And then when this group of speakers finishes, there'll be an opportunity for you to real quick.

Sorry to interrupt.

Just as a reminder, we are gonna time this since it seems we have a number of people that want to speak.

Uh politely, if you hear the timer go off, please wrap up your comments uh quickly.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Hi.

My name's Steve Shapello.

I live at 200 Brampton Road.

I've been in the president for 28 years.

Um I guess my biggest concern with the property has been the trash around the place.

And I also have a question for you.

What's this?

On the building.

No bottom.

What's this on the building?

That's what we do.

What is it?

What is it?

What is this?

No, this right here.

This is a sign, empty sign.

No, if you've got approval to put that sign up, sir, just if you didn't commission, please.

Okay.

Now, does he have permission to put this sign up?

Can we see what you have?

Yeah, please.

So I can speak to the existing okay.

Jake can answer you about that.

The existing uh sign frame has been there.

Any property sign?

That's not there.

Uh I didn't see that today.

You're saying that's there right now on the site?

There's a picture of the place.

See it, yes.

Did you see it?

No.

There's a white sign.

All right.

We have to have a record.

And so if you could just go to the microphone and describe the sign.

We can't tell the world what the picture says, so please tell us what's in the picture.

It's advertising a roofing company.

You want a roofing.

Um has a phone number on it.

It says we don't just sell roofs, we sell proof.

Thank you.

Showroom 315-486-5702.

Now it can do to stop what's going to stop them from doing anything else they want to do.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Next speaker.

Good evening.

Good evening.

My name is Khadijah Osborne.

I'm a homeowner at 165 Brampton Road.

I have lived in that area for 15 years.

My concern is that a roofing company, if you just if you're not going to sell supplies in there just to talk to someone, you wouldn't need that much space to do that.

Also, the only things that he said they would not uh sell is tobacco and alcohol.

I'm worried that there may be a distillery for marijuana or vapor or other things that we don't want in the area.

Um there has been, and someone else spoke in favor of him having the business.

I will wonder, I'm wondering how their business on Northern Salina, what it looks like.

Um also the person that wants to open a business should be here to give us details of the signage of what he's going to display in there.

We want to maintain our community in South Valley.

We want to keep it clean, and we don't want a lot of traffic.

Um, other businesses that just don't sit with most of the residents in that area.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Next speaker.

Uh Taylor Bursavoy, I live at 11 Harding, which is like right across the street from the site.

Um we've been there for about eight years.

My husband, my son, and I concerns are yeah, noise.

Um trash is already blown from the property into my front yard.

I have tons of pictures.

Um, yeah, and right now there's so much traffic that still pulls through there.

I don't know if it's specifically in regards to him, um, but the neighboring house, and there's always tons of kids that are sitting out front um to catch the bus in the morning, and it's just it's a quiet neighborhood.

And the last several months, you know, since we found out that you know things have flopped exactly what's going on there.

Um, and yeah, my biggest concern is you know, something that's not going to disrupt the neighborhood, the community.

Um, there's a school, you know, hundreds of feet away.

Um, and yeah, we're I don't know, we're quiet community, we don't bug each other.

So that's that's my biggest concern.

It's trash, traffic, um noise.

So thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you.

My name is Margaret O'Hara, 5209 South Salina Street.

I go by Peg.

Um, my mom and dad bought the house at 5209 in summer of 1974.

I bought the house from my mom's estate back in 2007, 2008.

So someone in the O'Hara family has lived in the house since 1974.

In fact, my brother Kevin worked for the city from God until he had to retire seven years ago.

Um, my concern is more of the safety of the neighborhood because when Miss Minor was the mayor here in Syracuse, she put in bike lanes.

So that Salina Street instead of being four lanes wide in that particular area, is three lanes wide with bike lanes on each side.

There's a bike lane in front of this particular building.

The bike lanes are used by kids on bikes, people on in wheelchairs and stuff that are coming from some of the handicapped housing in the blocks closer to Salina Street or from the Valley Vista to go back and forth to Green Hills or to the stores down that way.

Um, and then they come back up our way.

The road hasn't always is not always able to be well maintained.

We have benefited a little bit from the weather being not typical Syracuse weather this winter because instead of having all the traffic that would have been on 81 be coming down through Route 11, which is Salina Street, it's been staying on Route 81.

So we haven't had the massive traffic jams from construction vehicles, interstate traffic that we normally have.

That it happens quite frequently though, and it's not something that's gonna go away when an F-81 is completed in the next two or three years.

There are kids walking on the neighborhoods because there's Clary Junior High and there's the Elms School, just three blocks, maybe it's four blocks from that particular.

There's Meacham School, where I know most of the kids are bust, but some of them are um walkers.

There's a lot of older people walking in the neighborhood, um, usually on the sidewalk.

Sometimes we have to use the side streets and stuff.

I'm just I might more concern is is the safety up because of the traffic, foot traffic, bike traffic, um, and when things get really, really crazy.

The back parking lot in that particular how many parking spaces are in that?

How many employees are going to be in that building at any point in time?

Are they going to exceed the number of parking spaces that are in the back?

If someone is coming down there to for an appointment to see what the tiling and stuff looks like, how many spaces are they gonna take up?

Um that's going to add to the confusion.

Are they going to be able to figure out are they gonna park in that front parking lot or are they gonna park in the back?

Um, you know, I just I want somebody to realize that this is affecting a lot of people.

Thank you for your time.

Thank you.

Good evening.

My name's Greg Halleck.

I grew up in the valley my whole life, 65 years, born and raised down there.

Uh, there's some fine points brought up tonight.

Um, nothing against you.

I'm sure all of us would like to see small businesses work, and everybody started out as a small business and wants to try.

Obviously, there are some problems with the building that you have purchased and tried to have a couple of tenants in there.

People have addressed that tonight, and I'm sure there's gonna be more things addressed.

And there's been some fine points brought up by good and bad in this room.

Uh, one of them that I learned that this gentleman brought up is that this building sits in a corridor.

It's the only building from Seneca Turnpike to the city line of a commercial type structure.

And he's brought up that evidently this building shouldn't even be built.

And Mr.

Dunford brought up that it's been some wacky uh zoning or whatever, even what he tried to do.

Uh, my concern is that the woman that just brought up is Salina Street, as you see with properties like this.

It's supposed to be one lane on each side.

At one time it was a four-lane road, which was crazy.

The city helped out on that.

Now, if I can approach the sign real quick, the picture.

This uh parcel in front here is wide open to the street.

The whole time it's been there.

There's no sidewalk, which is evidently required in the city now.

There's no curbing on this at all.

Now, the gentleman here says, you know, everybody's gonna park in bed, but this is a wide open lottery now.

And cars have been using it for years.

So if you get a couple cars in the front of this, then they want to pull out.

You get people here on the Salina Street, uh, the same principle.

Once again, we're going back to safety on Celina Street.

And I felt over the years, maybe the city should have helped out here and foot curving and so it doesn't look like people could park in the front and cause more trouble.

There was evidently years ago, which Mr.

Dunford brought up, a proposal to create housing out of this building, which would free everybody probably from this room because then it wouldn't be a commercial property anymore.

And I don't know why.

Uh this maybe could be alleviated tonight.

It maybe I could talk to the codes commissioner or the somebody in City Hall that why didn't years ago this somehow property become residential, ask a developer to make it into two apartments, not apartments, rental property, make them condos so they would be owner occupied and then in tax roles and not have to deal with a re uh rental property in a valley section or in a uh residential section like that.

Thank you.

Thank you.

My time is up, I'm sure there's more, and everybody can probably thank you very much.

Thank you.

Thank you guys for your time.

Good luck.

I live small.

I'm sorry, I only live three blocks up the street from here.

Next speaker, please.

Hi, my name is Margaret Johnson.

I live at 5226 South Salina Street, directly on the corner, directly across the street from the building he is talking about.

I've been there for over 20 years, and in the time that I've been there, I've seen prostitution in that building, drugs has been in that building, and he's saying there's two doors in the front.

There's also three two doors in the back.

One of those doors in the back leads to a small apartment.

How do I know?

I've been in there when Fasuti was there, and I've been in there several times.

So in that apartment, like I said, we've had prostitution, we've had drugs.

We've had um not only in that building, house behind that building has also had drugs and prostitution in there.

So in the time that I've been there, I've seen a lot in that area and in that building.

He said that the yard is constantly cleaned from snow and grass.

That's not true.

That is not true.

It's done every so often, it's done.

There's garbage constantly thrown around that building.

It's done become a dumping yard.

At one point, there was a bunch of car tires where everybody was dropping stuff back there.

Kids catch the bus right there on that corner.

My granddaughter, along with some other kids, do catch the bus right there on that corner at that building.

I'm concerned about the safety, the traffic, the activity, and what exactly is going to be going on in that building because I keep eyes on that building.

I constantly call downtown to find out what's going on.

At one point, there was a studio in the building.

Nobody knew what was going on.

I found out about that because one of my grandsons went over this and I said, What are you doing over there?

There's a studio in there, and we're learning how to play music and all.

Well, nobody knew about that.

I didn't know about it.

And like the other young man said, there was freezers and different types of store garments going in there, freezers and shelving and all kinds of stuff going in there.

I need to know what's going on in there, and that my house and home is safe and not gonna be bombarded with a whole lot of stuff that's unnecessary.

I want to feel comfortable in my home.

And I'm asking you guys to please not allow this to happen.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Hi, I'm Teresa Hoffman.

I live at 119 Harding.

Um, I have more questions than comments.

Most of my um comments have been expressed by other people.

I'm grateful that you want to make the place a nice place for our neighborhood.

Um, I'm aware that uh Scott Warner has other business ventures that he's operated out of his other roofing sites, um, a smash smash house and uh bins, uh bins store.

So I am concerned about whether or not if he rents this, will he be allowed to use that property for those other uh ventures?

Um the um the thing that I'm concerned about is that the front of the property is just paved, and I'm wondering what the plan is to turn that into a curbed area with a sidewalk so that there won't be parking on it.

I've been there for three years.

I'm a mostly lifelong Syracuse resident.

I moved back into the valley three years ago, and there's been parking on that um front of that building since I've lived there.

People just pull up there, whether it's been vacant or not.

So I want to know what the plan is to create a curb, maybe a curb lawn in a sidewalk.

Um, and if the rental is for a year's lease, my understanding is if there's um work that needs to be done on it, it gets there's a year period that they can accomplish that.

If that's wrong, please tell me that is.

I'm not, you know, I'm not used to reading city briefs like this.

Um, but is the lease only a year?

I would wonder if if that's the case because he could lease it to someone for a year, never make those modifications, and then lease it to somebody else for a year, never make those modifications.

Um, I'm very concerned about keeping our neighborhood uh safe.

So thank you for your time.

Thank you.

Next speaker, please.

Hi, my name is Elizabeth Wingert, and I live at 116 Harding Place, which is just off the map.

It's where the R should be.

Oh, sorry.

You can pull it down.

Okay, thanks.

Okay.

Um, and we also want you to be able to find a tenant that is compatible with the neighborhood.

We understand it's a very unique situation.

We don't want you to lose business.

That's not our intention.

And um, I feel like I can speak our just a little bit of clarification and context.

The last um people that were in the building, and Mr.

DeShaw will attest to this.

Um, they were in there without having any permits to build or to do anything.

Um, the only way that that was um attended to was that the residents one, we had to go around the neighborhood and have a petition signed by everyone and submit that to our common counselor, which is um uh Patrona Rouser, and she has those documents, and then um we had to constantly call the um zoning and permits office to have them come down, and we were in charge of determining for them when those occupants were in the building so they could come down and see.

Additionally, those occupants put paper all over the front of the building, which are glass windows, so that they could not be seen.

So I know you said we want to give you give us a chance.

There's a history here that it has been problematic.

Um, in regards to this current proposal, there are three variances in the application that are significant.

Um you can see those.

I'm not gonna review them.

You can look at them.

They're very significant.

Um in regards to the size of the property and how it can be used.

Additionally, uh, as the previous woman said, Um, Scott Warner does have other businesses, which is wonderful.

Those businesses are located either in a mall or an industrial setting.

And um, he also has options.

He he has a bins business.

Um, and those things are happening outside of work hours.

So my question would be will there be activity allowed after 5 p.m.

and before 8 a.m.

Okay.

Additionally, just so that it's a point of clarification.

The applicant, not yourself, the business owner, has been advertising on Facebook that building with his signage since December saying this is our next location.

Which is problematic.

It tells me that he's not going to adhere to policies and procedures.

And that is of concern.

Sorry.

Would like some clarification in regards to will there be tractor trailer deliveries?

Will the deliveries be limited to proposed business hours?

Will there be outdoor storage of roofing materials?

Will there be overnight parking for contractors?

Will there be permanent curbing?

And I apologize.

This is a um, I'm gonna leave it there.

Thank you very much.

And we do want to support you.

Are there other individuals who wish to speak in opposition to the application?

If so, please come to the podium.

Write your name and address and your comments.

I see no one else rising to speak.

Uh as noted at the outset, uh, the applicant has an opportunity to address some of the comments made in opposition.

So uh the microphone is yours if you choose to do so.

Thank you, everybody.

Thank you very much.

So in the best, we know there is history, but moving from tile showroom to unknowing business, it wasn't on our control.

So we write agreements with somebody who promised to use the building for coffee and delishumph.

We have everything set up with him.

So we know the process to go through and apply and all that stuff.

During that time, yes, there is paper on the window where he go and clean and buy equipment.

So we know we talk to the city and we make sure his business are going to be approved.

They say everything good.

It looks like he has the right to be there with uh coffee and dolly shop.

So we agree for that.

Behind the scene, I don't know what he's doing.

There is no secret room for prosecuting.

There is nothing like that.

Also, we have the city, all the city uh employee, they walk there and they do um they do phone, like they take a phone pictures for all the constructions there.

There is nothing, there is nothing happened behind anybody back.

The city knows everything happened.

We have a visit from all the inspections, they come and take a picture.

There is no hidden room there.

It's uh Mr.

Bill, um, he came to the building, and also uh we met Mr.

Um John, yeah.

We met him inside.

We met everybody inside, and we showed them everything, the property inside.

Since four years ago, we did not have one modification, nothing, nothing at all.

So there is no any business hitting there.

So when we figure out he's going off the record and he's doing something behind our back, we terminate the contract.

We lost a lot of money.

So we kick him out.

So there is that that guy he was there, he allowed to be there with the contract.

He called the cops.

We call the cops on him.

The cop he showed the contract to the cops.

He said I have the right to be there.

So he still have the right to be there.

I have to go five to six months on court system to kick him out because he violates the contract.

And we approve that we kick him out.

Now, the roofing company, the roofing company, whatever he has, whatever he owned, he's going only to do that business we agree on the leasing.

So if there is a problem with that, I will be the first guy to step up and tell him no, you cannot do that.

So he's if he have six businesses, why he's mixing this business here.

He's a very successful man.

Like there is he's not going to build roof and other business with him, like auction.

Like who will do that, you know?

And also, I will monitor that.

If something happened, I will be stopping him from doing auction or prosecuting with his roofing company.

In the front, when we bought the building, we make sure all the permits everything are right.

So, yes, there is there is a barking spot in the front.

There is beeble bark on the front.

There is people from this neighbor bark on the front.

We bought a sign, we don't need anybody to bark on the front.

We remove those paper walls, we remove everything.

We remove everything.

We open, even I've been almost five years or four years having electric in my name just to make light inside.

So to make people seeing what's inside.

Again, there is no hitting anything.

City will be there.

Like a lot of people from the city, they thrive every day.

They call me.

The grass, the grass.

I hire a company.

I have a contract.

They cut the class.

But if I'm not there, how I can clean the property.

If there is a paper coming, baby, the the building, it's empty.

It's empty complete.

Where is that trash coming from?

So you think I will go and have a trash coming outside to the neighbor?

This is and like it doesn't, it doesn't, and I didn't understand where is that trash coming from.

It's not from me, it's not from my building.

Building it's closed.

It shut down for 45 years, four years.

And also the people before me also, they don't have anything inside.

It's empty walls.

We have pictures, we have a lot of pictures there.

It's empty walls.

There is nothing.

There is no trash.

So where is the trash coming from?

I'm sure from somebody there who either sabotage this business or do something to throw the trash and come to somewhere else.

If there is no business, where is the trash coming from?

This is we need to we need to step together and see where is the trash coming from.

It's not coming from this building.

So again, when we bought this, it's a commercial use.

It has a 1,000 square footage of commercial.

I this is the only reason we bought it because it's a commercial.

We don't want to deal with apartments.

We don't want how what's business need to be there to make everybody happy.

They shut down that guy when he opened the daily and and uh coffee shop, they call the cops on him every night.

Every night when a bit when when he started and doing the business, he literally he called me.

Why the cops is here?

Why people call the zoning on him?

They shut down and they shut him down during his cleaning, during his painting.

They shut him down and they say, Hey, there is a big violation on the wood door, you're not allowed to be there.

We fixed the heat, the heat damaged my damage my water, damaged my bike, damage everything because we cannot send someone there to clean the property and fix the heat and fix the coolants.

Four years I spent over 120,000 on this building.

Nothing came back, nothing came back.

What I should do, like I need I need somebody like grocery, they protest against it, which is okay.

I say no more grocery.

Cigarette shop, he allowed to open cigarette shop.

He had the right to open cigarette shop, but I say I am not going to open a cigarette shop or tobacco at all until we found a guy, Warner.

Warner, he came three months ago, December last year.

When we look at the rules and spectation, we found there is no problem with this business.

We call the city councils, we call everybody.

He's good.

So we start doing the process, and we almost get approved for him.

Literally, with the city, do we get approved?

And we say, hey, he get approved.

We just we hear something from the neighbor now.

Now we need to shut down everything.

So this guy, he had the approved or complete, done, everything done, but because now somebody figured it out, now we have to escalate it.

So literally, uh two weeks ago, they told me, they told me we have to bring it to the public hearing.

Other than before that, before that, he was completely approved.

And we have all the paper, all the things, some meat, no instructions, nothing need to be done.

There is no trash in the back, no dumpster in the back.

This guy, he delivered the material, he has a dumpster by the owner of the house.

So if you could sort of uh ramp up with a mine and eye toward uh addressing any of the comments that you heard in the previous speakers.

Uh yes, that would be.

But I cannot keep up with all that.

Can you remind me what's a question they ask?

And I will be happy to answer.

Like there is a bunch of stuff like there is no prosecution.

There, there is no prosecution.

It's a it's a it's a nice city.

You think cops will leave this?

Like, how many phone calls from the city cops?

This is one of the major things.

There is no hidden room in the bank.

Trash, I promise you, this building it's been empty for four years.

There is no trash.

I come up 12 days in Syracuse here.

I have a hotel here just to clean and bolish the floor and everything was amazing.

I have a uh I have after I verified with the city.

I told him I want to fix the heat and coolant.

They told me if you're not changing the unit, you don't need any permit.

So the the exhaust was broken.

We fixed the exhaust, we have the fan was broken, we changed the fan.

So there is no nothing, no constructions done to this building since five years or four years ago.

Nothing at all.

We have approved with the city, they come and do twice inspection.

They have a pictures, even when I was here and they called the city on me.

Mr.

Bell, he came and Mr.

Mike, they came and take a picture from outside.

They say nothing changed.

Nothing changed.

I have a light light complete on the 3,800 square foot, the light complete on.

It's obvious to everybody to see if there is any anything change.

So again, trash.

I get approved like that.

I I didn't, I don't, I didn't do any modification.

I did not literally any any instructions, any modification.

It's been like this.

I bought it like this.

We're going to rent it like this.

So understood.

Understood.

Um so if you could summarize if there's anything additional you would like to say at this point in the meeting that I'm asking, I'm asking everybody here.

If roofing company and Delhi and Coffee Shop, it's not allowed.

What do we should do?

Like what like sell it?

Why, why?

Like this is.

So if it's if it's a million dollar here, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait.

Yeah, this is insulting.

Why do you want me to sell it?

Just a minute.

So the purpose of this exchange is to help inform the commission.

Uh so we've heard from members of the public who had concerns.

We heard from some members of the public who were in favor.

And this is your opportunity to address any of the comments made in opposition to help inform the commission so that when we get to the point where there's a decision to be made, yes, we're working with information from the community.

So it's not would not be appropriate to poll the audience uh tonight.

So just share your comments with us, your insights.

But if you could do that in the next few minutes to kind of wrap up so we can we still have some additional items to deal with tonight uh beyond this application.

Well, what I'm saying to everybody, thank you very much again.

I'm sorry, I apologize if um I this is the first time for me.

I wasn't expecting like a different thought here.

So that Warner Company, we have a lease, five years, five years lease agreement.

It's not one year, it's not two, five years.

Uh this guy he signed agreement with almost 200,000 agreement to keep the property, maintain it, and make the property look good.

Um if he do something else, I will be monitored that.

I will be my nephew, my family live 13 minutes away from him.

His store lives two minutes away from him.

So every day we are here, every day we drive around and we see if the property is good.

We came, we cleaned the gutter, we cleaned the roof, we cleaned a lot.

There is a lot of trash, people in the neighbor because it's it's empty property, they dump trash.

I hire a company, they came and collect all the trash in the eighth parking spot, eight parking spots.

So if there is any employee, three and max, he told me three, two salesmen is the owner, too.

And there is five barking spots empty.

If there is another two, three customers, there is another two, three empty barking spot.

So it's he's having very nice barking spot, enough for everybody if he has a full business day.

There is no material going to be inside, it's everything shipped to the building need to be done, like from home due from Laws, ship direct.

There is no garbage coming back, there is no dumpster sitting.

He has warehouse full of big equipment, dumpsters, all those.

He have an own warehouse, a cheaper to keep them on that warehouse to do his business.

He has a schedule, like a very high lift.

He cannot keep it on the property.

Right.

He have he has a storage unit.

So all this we talking to him about it.

We agree.

Um in the back, there is a small, like like literally four inch by 50 grass.

We hire a company, but he says, if I am there full time, I will maintain.

He will be maintaining the tenant, it's his responsibility to maintain inside and outside, landscaping and also take care of the building.

He will be maintaining that, but without anybody there, he cannot cut the grass.

He cannot go, I cannot come eight hours.

I hire a company to cut the grass when when we are there.

One week we left it.

I found a note from the city.

Hey, we need to cut it.

I was like, okay, we'll do it.

So all this, it's been done.

The the school buses, I don't know if the school buses should be there or not there.

I cannot control that.

If you if everybody sends the school kids there and say, hey, go there and have a school bus.

I cannot make this decision if the kids should be having a barking spot there for the kids' schooling.

Again, this is not me or not anybody can make the decision.

It's the family could make decision.

The family who sent the kids to school, they could say, hey, this is not zoning for bicaband dropping.

We need some other zone to send.

There is no tobacco, there is no at all.

Marijuana.

Like marijuana is illegal.

They cannot sell it.

So that's why we're saying there's nothing like that.

Okay.

So any question?

Yeah, I have a question.

Yes, please.

So you mentioned have a five-year lease.

Yes.

Does it lease stipulate the business that can operate there?

Yeah.

It's roofing, siding only.

That's all that is stipulated.

So anything other than that would be a violation of the lease.

Exactly.

The tenant would be hundred percent, sir.

I'd like to propose a couple of things.

Yes, please.

Might help everybody be clarified.

Um I think that we would like, or I personally I'll speak for myself.

I would like to, if it's possible, have the owner and operator of the roofing company appear before us at our next.

Can I say something?

You can.

So but your sh feet in my shoes.

If I bring the owner here with all this hitting, like would you think he will have, he will have the commitment to be there and help the community if everybody against him.

This is the only reason I didn't bring him here.

Because again, whatever happened, let's say I bring X Men and the X-Men he wanna.

I understand what you're saying.

But let me say this.

Yes, you're making a commitment for him that he will maintain the property for the neighbors.

There is a contract.

I understand.

For the neighbors.

Yes.

The neighbors have in the past had some experience that it didn't work out even with the contract, the way that they thought it would work out.

Therefore, I think having Mr.

Warner here to assure everybody, this is my business, this is my business model.

I don't plan to operate any other business here.

I don't intend to sell or truck in material on the weekends, etc.

Whatever the discussion centered.

It's a good thank you very much.

It's a good question.

I will just hear me out.

Let me just finish.

And then you don't have to answer tonight if you aren't prepared.

If you don't, if you want to think about it.

I think also that we should you should meet with the staff and work on a site plan for the property.

And the site plan will include the parking spaces, some detail, some comments are there are eight spaces in the back, some seven, some there are six.

But there's comments in the staff report that those spaces are not properly striped or marked.

Can we have a picture?

They with some.

If I can add to that, you know, please.

Um, in addition to what uh Commissioner Murphy is is pointing out, you know we have presently there are um 11 conditions on this particular application, conditions that are related to your site plan and things that are permissible and not permissible.

So far as I can tell, most of the negative comments that have been brought up tonight are in fact addressed in the conditions.

And it's important for people to understand that if the conditions are violated, then the approval can be uh revoked.

Now, my concern at this point is you know, we have all of this testimony that's been provided.

I I can't tell right now whether all of the conditions that we have cover what's in here.

I have a sense that they in fact do.

I would like people to see that if that is in fact the case, uh, but I can't tell that sitting here right now.

So Commissioner Murphy's suggesting that perhaps we should hold this for the next meeting if we can get the uh the Warner Company to be here, and if we can address the conditions to make sure we are covering all the things that are being brought up as as points.

No, I understand part of the issue here is that there's a long history that has nothing to do with you, and people are reacting to that long history, and so we need to do something to break it out.

Would you have evidence for these?

Like uh everybody say he say she said, like there is no evidence.

I understand what I'm saying, but the one one minute, please.

I will explain to you.

So it's minor side plan.

Like we escalate it for something huge and big.

So every time, every time I'm hearing, and this is not the first time, people say sell it, or people say it's not supposed to be commercial.

But if you guys not give me a chance to do that, like this is this is only he say she say the building, but no, no, you're not you, I'm sorry, not you.

But the building, but the building, it's what it is.

I just think you guys, you guys need to you guys need to see the truth.

I understand.

We guys you guys need to see what you guys, what you guys in your hand, why I have that roofing company.

You think if I have a lawyer here standing here and uh get approved for a tobacco shop, you know he will get approved.

Even even if take him a year, he will get abroad.

Maybe, but you don't know too close to a school.

But what I'm saying, uh but there is two two minutes away, there is a tobacco shop.

There is two minutes away a tobacco shop.

So if there is a beeble sitting at night there, what I should do to them to kick them out.

Call the cops, all the hey, there is a kid sitting there.

Where is the mom and dad?

Why the mom and dad doesn't call those kids to go back home and instead sitting on the corner.

What I'm saying, I need a chance.

I I'm losing a time.

I hear that.

One one thing.

I'm losing a time.

The cum the roofing company, if it didn't start now, if it didn't start now, he's going to leave.

He's going to leave, and I'm going to start.

I'm not give up.

I'm not give up.

I swear to God, I'm not giving up on this building.

I I I my kids' money, everybody's money.

I took it, and I bought it in this building.

I'm not going to sell it.

I'm not going to sell it.

I'm not going to sell it.

I'm going to go keep trying, give on trying, trying.

Maybe maybe one day I'll get somebody else.

But what I'm saying, it's a business.

It's a business owner.

If he violates the rules, there is there's people work for this.

They will go and catch him.

They'll come to me.

They will shut him down.

Give us a chance.

I'm begging you guys.

Like it's minor side.

It's not, it's not huge, different people say it's not clean.

If it's not clean, I will get violation.

I'll have to pay money to clean it if it's not clean.

But there are conditions that are outlined in the staff report that you have to agree to.

I will agree to it.

And I will do it.

100% on the front in terms of curbing, sidewalking, lighting, etc.

Imagine if you give me those tasks and I didn't do them.

It's on me.

Like imagine of all this stuff, like the eleven, the eleven items.

If I didn't do them, that would be on me.

That would be bad, bad and shame.

I didn't get a chance to do what the city wants me to do.

So I failed.

If you give me those and I need another six months to do them or one month to do them, and I failed, it's on me, not on you guys.

You guys already approve it.

You guys give me those tasks, I have to do it.

And I if I failed, just I will fail.

And I don't want to fail.

Nobody wanna fail.

I have a very young people work with me, and they wanna they want to support me and they want to move on with this.

And the tenor also says he wants to invest in put curving and fix everything up and no fencing.

So we have to have a fencing also according to the city between me and and he have he have everything to do that.

So we already we already have agreement to do the we talk about the fencing.

We have to do the fencing between it's uh it's I have a quote, I have a code for the fencing.

So as Commissioner Lent said, there have been a lot of comments this evening.

There are conditions that have been proposed through the staff report, and the commission members need to evaluate what we've heard this evening in conjunction with the conditions that have been suggested through the staff report and way to see whether one addresses the one set of concerns addresses the um are addressed by the conditions that might be imposed on this application.

We're not gonna be able to read through what we've been given tonight.

Um uh much less all the comments that were made tonight and evaluate those.

So I'm suggesting that we bring this item to a close this evening.

Um we've heard comments for and against, and you've been able to uh had an opportunity to rebut some of the comments in opposition to your application.

That's fair.

The commission now needs time to um digest what it heard tonight as well from the speakers on either side, as well as the staff report that's been provided, as well as additional written comments provided tonight, which we have a stack we haven't looked at yet.

So all that to say that I heard a comment earlier about holding on this item.

I think I'm in agreement with that.

I'd like to know if my colleagues um uh join in that consensus for holding this to evaluate the material that we heard tonight and resume uh presumably at our very next meeting, which would be in April.

Um so I'd like to close public comment on this application this evening, review what has been entered into the record, what has been presented to us this evening, and evaluate your application in light of all those comments.

So, question, thank you very much.

I understand all that.

So until Abrail, you're not seeing it as too too much, like for Abrail.

So if I lost that contract with this guy and he came to me and he said, Hey, I don't want to do roofing anymore with you, bye-bye.

But he has the right to do that because that's a termination of the contract.

He cannot occupy the building.

So what we should do, like what are you telling me to do, seriously?

Like, tell me get an like I we're we're not in the position to advise you.

All I can say is that the commission, I'm speaking for my colleagues here.

Seem to have expressed a view that they are not in the position to take action on this tonight.

I can't go beyond that and advise you on what you should do in light of this, but I'm just saying that's where the commission is in terms of all the information that's come in tonight.

And it's been considerable.

We need to evaluate that and come to some conclusion.

I don't know what to tell you.

Do you have any questions from those comments like I can answer now?

Like well, the problem at least we haven't even read yet.

Yeah, see that just the problem is.

Well, from what you hear from your here.

I can't digest everything that we've heard and everything that's writing to compare it to the 11 conditions we have.

That's just not a task that we can complete tonight on the fly at the at the moment.

That's my concern.

I would like to see the project go forward if it's possible.

I would like to find a way forward if we can, but we can't do that tonight, right now, in reacting to all of the testimony and evaluating the conditions that we have and whether they cover the issues.

One of the things I would like to ask the folks who made testimony tonight, please look at the material that is online for this site and look at the conditions and see if they apply to all of your concerns, because it appears to me that many of the concerns that have been raised are covered there, but I can't tell for sure.

So we don't have time to evaluate.

So by by the law and rules, as as uh as that building.

So it's not qualified to be uh roofing company, like there is that is a qualification, yeah.

And there is something called hey, this business could be here, but end of the day, somebody say he throw trash is going to stop this from happening.

This is it looked like to me the commission looks at a lot of factors in the proving an application for any business in any location in the city.

Um it's not quite so black and white.

Things need to be taken into context and what the impact is on the surrounding uh neighborhood.

That's what we're trying to do.

That's why we held hold these public hearings so that people can come forward.

People who live in the neighborhood can come forward and express those concerns.

That's why the applicants can speak, and that's why the applicant can respond to the comments.

But we are gonna need to move on.

We do have additional um applications this evening.

We've heard a lot of speakers.

I would underscore my colleagues' um uh advice or recommendation to look at the website and and uh conditions that have been suggested in the staff report may very well address some of the comments and concerns that have been expressed here this evening.

So thank you very much, everybody.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Um with that, we will move to our next application.

Yes, excuse me.

Next up is uh uh another site plan review, uh MASPR-25-36 at 4100-06 South Salina Street.

Owner Lawrence Davis, uh applicant is Shaquila Brown.

This is in the CM Zone District.

Hello, how are you?

Good evening.

Good evening.

Good evening.

I think I remember how my name, address, and then an overview of your application.

Okay, gotcha.

My name is Shaquila Brown.

Uh I live at 4100.

No, I don't live at 4100.

I live at 4174 Tommy's Trail, Liverpool, New York.

Okay, and then my business endeavors is I'm going to do an event center.

My thing is I could have been a product of my environment.

I'm not a part of my environment.

I actually gotten out of it.

So my thing is.

Oh, sorry.

My thing is, um, I want to be able to get back to my community.

The same way that I got where I am today, which was nonprofit organizations.

I went through demolition.

I don't know, the same nonprofit companies that I went through, stood in the same very spot.

If you know Melvin Baker or Walt Dixie, or you know, all of the programs that I've done here started at nonprofit organizations.

Um, I'm not gonna make it long because I am supernovered and it's been a long process for me.

It's been about two years since I've been working on this.

I'm gonna let my community speak.

Um, what I'm offering is to be the glue to my community.

Where I grew up at is 305 West Pleasant F right in the heart of the South Side.

I do not understand why.

Um when I submitted my floor plan, it turned into I was opening this bar, and there's murders across the street, and there's this and there's that, and that's not my thing.

That's not what I want to do.

I am coming to bring back to my community.

So with me being labeled as a bar, that's actually like um limiting my options of what I wanted to be able to do for my community.

Um, I don't know who I speak to about that, but that's something that is very personal to me.

This project went from a way to get money to a way to actually revive my community.

That being said, I'll let my community speak.

Can I just ask you a couple of questions?

Yes.

Um what are you envisioning as hours of operation for the event?

Oh the hours that I envisioned actually couldn't happen due to the fact that in 19, I don't know where the tongue is because I've never seen them in person, but I believe like 1970 or 1917, something like that.

Um, the gas station was opened and all of these other things.

So my time limit has been dwelled down to 6 p.m.

to 1 a.m.

And surfing alcohol?

No, absolutely not.

I won't I don't want to serve alcohol to my community that I'm trying to help rebuild.

Growing up, like we had neighbors I can go to that actually helped, you know, raise me.

My community actually raised me.

I mean, PNC, they're thinking about putting something over there.

Well, guess what?

Like I said, I was a product of my, I could have been a product of my environment.

I got caught stealing candy in there before, you know.

So my thing is I just want to be able to give the opportunity to the people that look like me.

The people that don't give up on their community.

When's the last time you drove through that area and seen a just a cookout?

I mean, I'm in that bracket.

I probably should cook out more for my family and stuff like that.

But if us as a community get together, I believe we can make it work.

Oh, so I believe that's the reason why they uh entitled me as a club owner.

Because when I submitted my floor plan, I had a stage.

Okay, and then I have a bar.

It's not a bar.

Now wait, let me just back up.

Did you submit something that was then rejected?

Absolutely not.

It was rejected?

No.

What was rejected?

Your floor plan.

Um, no, it wasn't rejected.

Um, what I said, what I stated was um once they seen my floor plan and they seen that there was a stage and that there was a bar, they assumed that I wanted to open a bar.

And I do not want to open a bar.

So are you you're talking about uh the code staff that are making that assumption?

I don't know who's making that assumption because there's nothing in any materials that we have in this.

When I Google it, when I Google my business name, which is Good Vibes Entertainment, it pops up as a club.

I mean, it has nothing to do with okay.

So I don't know.

All right.

That's just something that I want to, you know, take off of the table because uh for two years now I've been being judged upon bringing a bar to my community.

That's not what I want.

Okay.

So back to the music.

Are you contemplating having music?

Um if I do an event to give back, then you know I would.

And then in that state, I will let my community know, you know, what's coming forward, but it will be something for the community, not you know, for alcoholism and you know, the things that we're trying to stay away from in that area per se.

Okay.

And the six to one two nights a week, what three days a week, four days ago.

So it's upon booking, so it's an event center.

So if you your mom has a birthday party and you want to do your mom a birthday party, you're then contact me, and then we'll go ahead and we'll create, you know, something as far as that.

But um, I don't have an everyday schedule.

So it will be based off of my community's needs.

Why six to one?

I mean, if for example you want to have a kid's birthday party, that might be something you want to have.

During the day.

So that's my argument.

You know, I've been forced because there's not a lot of parking in that area.

I feel like that's why I've been working with zoning for so long.

Um, due to the parking, but we finally strayed over that.

And um, as I said, even with the parking, I'm gonna have valet parking, so people will not be able to have direct access to be able to even back out onto the street.

Um, as I said, I'll grow up in that area.

So there's been a barber shop that has been there for decades.

There used to be a bowling alley upstairs.

I want to create those unique memories and bring it back to Syracuse.

Like I look at the pictures that's in here.

I've been looking at them, and it's like we have so many abandoned buildings and everything around.

Why not all as a community come up?

Okay, well, if neighbors are complaining about it, let's buy it.

Let's let's have unity.

Let's what why is there no unity nowadays?

Not a big job for me to take on.

My only thing is I want to be able to provide that opportunity.

I'm Lawrence Davis, my name, the owner of the property.

Um I want to read first the person I bought it from.

He sent a letter of support for this the space.

He's an attorney, he's been there for long standing.

His name is Jim Wallace.

Um, so he said, to whom it may concern, as owner of the adjoining property at 4110 South Salina Street.

I submit this email in support of application.

He gave the application number relating to a special use permit.

I don't know if that's the same the latest use of 41006 South Salinas Street.

Thank you.

The commercial space in question at 4106 South Salinas Street has been vacant since rent a center moved its store to the town of Onondaga in August of 2023.

The property that is subject of this applicant application sits directly across the street from Valley Plaza, which itself has been dominated by the vacant and boarded tops supermarket store, and I will add the dollar store now for several years, vacant boarded up building, do nothing to improve living and or working condition, and only contribute to the overall blight in the neighborhood.

I submit that anyone attempting to establish permissible business in this area should be afforded the opportunity to do so.

Thank you.

And he signed Jim Wallace.

I'm Lawrence Davis again.

I'm the owner of the property.

I bought this property, seeing it vacant.

I was gonna use it for my own personal use.

Um I'm 64-year-old, and I've been planning about what can I do for my community?

How can I help them move along?

There's so much roadblocks for young, particularly black children, um, youth to be able to be integrated into the community.

I have a few properties, about 36 property in the city of Syracuse, and I drive down Avery Avenue sometime, and I see a church and a bar.

There will be absolutely no one in this room would allow a bar across from the church, but it does in other communities.

So does community have outlets?

If the community doesn't have an outlet, I think I even hear the mayor speaks to this, or uh some commercial on the TV talks about this.

If the young people in the city don't have um investment, we have nothing to give them to pass on, then they are they are destroyed.

They are gonna abandon the city.

This is becoming, it looks like there's a lot of opportunity, a lot of possibility, but in my eyes, I drive by, I see a lot of decay.

And it has to stop.

We can't have people say they want to do something, want to try something new.

And we as elders stop by and try to slow them down to stop.

So that's why I've been working patiently and been slowly going through the city, working with the city to make sure they get everything that they need so they can put this in there.

Now, I for one, if there's I've I've seen uh bars across the street where someone actually died, I would have opened this myself, but I don't want to see anyone die.

I don't want to see somebody um pass on.

So I rather give them because it's a lack of it.

When somebody gets something that they never had, they're so excited by it, they don't know how to use it.

The reason why there's a bar across the church is because our community is already accepted that this is what they do.

This is a place that they could go for after a wedding party.

They could have a suite 16, they could have events, they could do what they need for the community.

The black community, you don't want it downtown, so you don't give them the opportunity to have it.

So when they are trying to do something for themselves, please give them a hand up, don't put them push them down.

I don't know if I want that's what I want to say.

But I'm here, and I think that we should support our young people and trying to do something different and stop trying to block them, try to try to stop them in their process of development.

The development we want is sitting right in our own hands.

They're trying to, and we can't stand in their way.

Give thanks.

Thank you.

Well, let's check.

Uh, just have sort of a technical matter that I want to uh make for the record in the description of the project and the application, it refers to uh an event center, which is permissible in CM in table 3.1.

However, throughout the rest of the document, that's the only place the term event center uh appears.

Throughout the rest of the document, it's referred to as event space.

So I want to make sure we all understand what we're talking to because table three probably 3.1 should probably say event space.

And just so there's no question, the definition of event space is a building or related facilities, not generally open to the public for use by third parties to host events such as banquets, weddings, receptions, private parties, which may have catered events or an on-site commercial kitchen.

If alcoholic beasures will be served, all requisite license shall be obtained.

So it's my understanding that is what in fact what we're talking about here.

Okay, absolutely.

And so I I guess I get just again, I have a question about your six to one as the hours that you're proposing.

If that reports, I wish I could open longer, but the only thing that I was given was those times.

The reasoning being those times by who uh by Syracuse zoning.

Sorry.

Okay.

Um Syracuse zoning.

Um, I tried to get in contact with the community, and I spoke with uh the owners of the gas station that's over there, and they had no problem with me utilizing their parking spaces, but I guess per code, I can't share parking or whatever.

So my exact question was well, what do you want me to do?

Open up an event center from one o'clock at night to I could get so emotional.

I don't I don't want to do that.

So it's it's been a journey.

I can say that.

Can I I'm sorry, Barry?

No, that's I understand.

I'm just trying to clarify where that comes from.

Can we talk about the parking for a minute?

Absolutely.

So I'm having my mother's birthday, and I have you have capacity, I think 150, right?

I did not even get that far yet.

I don't know where that number came from.

Um, I from my beliefs the fire department should come out after it's approved, and that's where I am with this whole thing.

So I don't want to give you a number of how many.

If I do that math, there's 50 cars at six o'clock at night for the birthday party.

And they're most likely on DOS, right?

And the party ends at one o'clock, and now everybody's going out to their cars.

And the people that are sleeping on DAWs are now saying, huh, what's going on out there?

Absolutely.

What's that noise?

Again, like I said, I am trying to be able to open up jobs here as well.

I have a nice security team.

I have some from out of town, and I have some in town, which they are actually back and watching.

Um, however, it makes me really nervous at the fact that for me to open an event center in my community, I have to hire security.

Like if you take a second, you just think about all that's all of these questions that are being asked.

It shouldn't be asked if we were all still together like they were in the 80s and 90s.

But however, it's not like that anymore.

I just want to be able to give back to my community.

Yep.

You've been at this for over a year, and I've been trying to stand by and support.

Um with the city, giving them everything that they needed.

This building was built, it was allowed to be built.

It's on a commercial strip.

Um, yes, DOS Avenue is almost a dead-end street, quite frankly.

And it's adequate parking.

There's a lot of quite a parking on dinner.

Yes, there's some noise issue, but you have a pizza shop.

You have other you have the big uh mall across the street.

So there's other places that people would figure it out what they want to do.

So, yes, I I do hear you.

There's some concern, but we have actually satisfied what the city required from us.

We have given them they should be trying to give them everything that they need.

So the building is there.

We didn't allow the building to be built, just like the other man, the building was built.

So now we have to figure out what to do with it.

We want to see development, and do young people send they want to see development.

We have to support.

Can I keep saying no?

Did I hear you talking about valet parking?

Somebody myself.

That is one of the things that um she mentioned to me that she wanted to have the parking because it's such a limited parking.

We want to be able to have valet parking in and out so that we can move it on.

I also have other business that doesn't have um parking business here.

I do have other businesses as well.

I do have party bus access.

Um, I do have my class A CDLs, in which I also went through and got with a grant loans.

This is also things that I want to be able to help my community with.

The same things that I endeavor, just like I wake up pit boots on the ground and fight for Syracuse on the IAD1 project.

I will do that for my community.

Um again, like I said, yeah, I will have um valet parking, but again, this is not an everyday thing.

This is not something that I'm opening up at six o'clock in the morning, renting and raving and partying and encouraging those type of things.

No, I'm asking all of you guys, everybody in this room for your help.

Like, I feel like the whole Syracuse was stacked against me.

You know what I got?

Well, maybe you should go downtown.

I don't want to go downtown.

I want my community to be so safe where they are.

Why can't they have that?

You know, nope, respectfully, no offense.

I've been so nervous for this day.

Like it's judgment day.

And it's not, you know, God didn't come back yet.

We just gotta keep working.

The same way I work on those highways, and I do everything that I've done from my truck, the tongue.

I don't know if you're here, I never seen them.

He knows I everything that you guys get in front put in front of me, I tackled.

No problem.

I tackled every question, every everything.

It's it's coming off as aggression now.

Because I know my blue pit, I know my blueprints, I know how to read them.

I can tell you everything by the back of my hand.

What I can't tell you is how many people I can have in there, how many lives I'm gonna save.

I can't do that by myself.

I need a community.

And that's my that's my argument.

And if you guys can tell me how to change that, even if you guys deny me, please tell me how to change that because I'll be back in front of you.

I'm not gonna give up on my community.

Further questions for the applicant from the commission members.

No.

Okay.

Okay.

Thank you both very much.

Thank you.

Sorry.

Sorry, guys.

Are there individuals?

Are there individuals who would like to speak in favor of this application?

If so, come to the podium, provide your name, your address, and then your comments.

And if there are more than one person interested, uh, you can line up.

Good evening, commissioners.

My name is Jacqueline Lassan.

I live on South Salina Street, South 3001 South Salina.

I run an organization for the last nine years.

The Greater Syracuse South Side Neighborhood Association.

And I too have seen the blight in the area.

And it seems like when we get something good for that particular community in that space, downtown is just downtown.

It's not really accessible to people without cars or people who just want to be in their own neighborhood, myself included.

I run one of the larger food pantries there, as well as civic and outgoing engagement.

We feel some of my other persons are here and could have other ones could have came, but the rain and all that.

We feel that it would be a great asset.

Yes, there are.

Yes, there is Doors Avenue, which, you know, it's called a good neighbor program.

If you just make sure that neighbors know that these events will be happening, and oh, they're not gonna park in their driveway or across their driveway.

I don't see the issue.

I see more of an issue with that gas station, with that liquor store, which with those things that when people get drunk or the vagrancy, they just hang out.

We want to stop seeing this hangout issue and see more of the people getting together and doing positive things.

While I'm not raised here, I'm from somewhere.

I've been here nine years, and I'm very invested in this community in terms of home ownership as well as the pantry and other things.

And yes, I have to be the one who drives people other places when they have to go to these birthday parties and all of this.

I'm not a taxi service.

And so I prefer that in our area, you know, downtown is downtown.

They do what downtown do.

Spend and hang out and get drunk and all the other um ridiculous things.

We're not asking for that.

I'm in agreement that yes, there should be security because of times we're living in.

And and she's willing to do security.

As a retired law enforcement myself, I appreciate that because any events we give in the community, we pay for our own security just to make sure, just to have the extra piece of safety.

So, as far as a community member, I stand in um in side to side with the young lady that great.

We're not handling the entertainment, when I say entertainment, birthday parties and all of that part of it.

Why can't someone else do it and we can support it?

And we'd like to be able to support it in our neighborhoods.

So this is the second time, maybe this has been come up for just discussion and has been postponed.

I ask that we try to move forward on it because it's better than seeing boards up on windows and unused spaces, which gives us no sense of people wanting to invest in this area at all.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Good evening.

My name is Anthony Guido.

Um, good name, my address.

303 Dickerson Drive, North, uh Camillas, New York.

Um, I was born and raised in the valley my whole life.

Um, moved out to Camillas recently.

Uh, I'm an engineer with Norfolk Southern Railway Company.

Um, a paving superintendent for Steve Tay Paving.

I'm also a licensed security guard.

I've lived in the valley my whole life.

And we used to have a grocery store, sneaker stores, barbershops, bowling alleys, diners, we had everything in the valley.

We have nothing now.

And there's nothing positive coming to the neighborhood.

You know, that uh you try to get a grocery store, they fight that.

You know, there's bars.

That's a whole nother story.

But for somebody to try to do something positive in a neighborhood that has nothing, there's schools everywhere in the, you know, proximity of this location.

So even if the hours of operation are, you know, six to one, obviously one's kind of crazy for school school students.

But if there's a program that they can go to after school in an area where there's nothing, that's a plus for the neighborhood.

If you wanted to do, you know, a job fare for people in the neighborhood instead of having to go all the way downtown, because not everybody in a poor neighborhood has a vehicle.

You know, it costs what, $3 for a bus, it could take somebody all day to try to get $3.

I mean, I know it's hard to believe for a lot of people, but that is the reality of the world that we live in.

So to have something right there on a main strip, and you know, as far as parking, you have a largely abandoned strip mall right across the street.

I'm sure there's gotta be some way to be able to work something out where there's a thousand parking spaces there at least.

Twenty of them can't be allotted.

I mean, I know you guys.

Well, and it's understandable because there is a an establishment across the street that has had a history, and you know, that's again, that's not the establishment's problem, that's a community problem.

But it's a community problem because there's no outlet for people to do anything, and everything starts as children.

So if the children see that there is nothing for them to do but play state play PlayStation and sit in the house all day long, you can't go out and be active with people of your age, or there's no place for the children to go where there's adults that can offer them a way out.

Like we all, you know, she does construction.

I'm a paving superintendent, I'm a locomotive engineer.

I come from this neighborhood.

So if there's places for kids to go and learn and have examples and role models of people who you don't have to do this.

You can do this.

I look like you.

It's possible for you to do it as well.

But there's nothing in that neighborhood.

There's nothing on the south side at all for anything positive.

You know, there's not even a grocery store on the south side of Syracuse.

You have one on the far southwest side, you have Green Hills and Nedro.

All you have is corner stores.

Like the I've watched this whole neighborhood fall apart my whole life.

And it's like somebody's finally trying to do something positive for the neighborhood.

It's not a bar, it's a space.

You know, even if you hooked up video games inside there for kids to come play for the day, it's somewhere positive for the children or people to go have a gathering with their family.

It's it's necessary.

It is as a necessary thing in a neighborhood that has nothing.

You know, you're the building the highway, you know, it's gonna be more traffic down to line the street.

Who knows what type of what type of uh possibilities somebody could be driving by and see that event space and be like, you know what?

Maybe I can hold an event here.

Or it's just the possibilities are endless, but in order for these things to be possible, it has to be possible.

If if that makes any sense.

Like everybody sees it.

We all come, we all live in the city, obviously, or around the city, and there's too much.

You know, we're building an aquarium for 80 something million dollars.

Imagine if you took one million dollars and put it into 80 abandoned places in the city, what you could do.

That makes far more sense than a fish tank.

You know, and I'm not trying to put it off on that.

It's just there's we everybody this is a citywide problem.

You know, there is nothing for the youth to do.

There is nothing for people to come together without it being something else.

You know, and I just feel like you gotta give her a chance.

Like I've watched my neighborhood fall apart.

There's nothing there.

You know, the valley is one of the last actually nice places in the city.

So you can either try to do something with it before it becomes too late, or deal with the problem later on when it's too far gone.

You know, if somebody's got a building that it's it's not being used, and somebody's trying to get in and do something positive with it, that seems like it makes more sense to me to let them do that, at least try to do that versus let it sit abandoned for another 10 years and then the land bank tanks are over and then they tear it down and now it's another empty lot.

You know, we gotta be proactive with the things that we do in the city as far as people trying to help.

You know, you gotta be open-minded.

I mean, you gotta give people the chance.

And now I'm not gonna take up too much time, but I just feel like we gotta support the things that make sense.

And that's the only way the city's gonna grow.

You know, if we keep, oh, what if this and what if that, you know.

What if?

What if don't work just the negative ways?

What if works in positive ways too?

And we can't just look at everything as, oh, well, what if they're gonna do this?

Well, what if they're not?

You know, what if it works?

You know, you could inspire a whole generation of people if you got a space where kids can go and get away from whatever the hell they got going on at home and use their brains.

You never know what type of person they could grow to be, but they have to have the opportunity and space to be able to do that.

Not everybody has that at home, you know, and that's my piece.

Thank you.

Thank you so much.

Hello, I'd like to speak in favor of the project.

Um my name is Peter Holy Carpanko.

I live at 1515 South State Street.

Um, and one three two five, which is not far when I've grown up on that in that area, and uh we used to frequent Valley Plaza quite a bit for uh top market, P and C markets.

I think there's an imperial market that's soon to open there, which is uh like a local market based out of Buffalo, but it'll be small, but at least it'll help revitalize what things have left, like for example, uh right aid was there, excuse me, across the street, and uh it's still a lot of good um businesses, helpful businesses, uh including um phone places, bargain stores around the corner.

But I think uh project like this would benefit because we as a rule have had to go out of uh the city to you use bank facilities that you had to drive drive to pretty far, and I don't know what they charge, but uh it sounds like the young lady and uh owner have a good plan for a decent um alcohol-free event space, and I'm in support of it.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Hi, uh my name is uh David Trotman Wilkins.

Um I was a former resident here, born and raised, and I moved away for the exact same reasons that she's talking about.

I was gone for 40 years, and the reason I left was because there was no opportunity here.

This young lady has an idea for an event space.

She's not gonna be in Armory Square because she can't get there, she doesn't have that kind of money.

I heard you talk about the other guy who wanted to build his greenhouse, and you said, Oh, my gosh.

It starts with you guys.

You're the you're the planners of the city, and look at the shape it's in.

I've lived in Milwaukee, I've lived in Chicago, I've lived in New York, I've lived in Philadelphia, and this is abysmal coming back here to see the condition that the city is in.

We have a double standard in the city.

We give people who want to be in Armory Square or up in Eastwood, lots and lots of conditions so long as they meet them.

I don't see any parking up there, but I do see public parking that was built just to make sure that there was parking for the businesses that wanted to go in.

Are you gonna do the same for her?

Are you gonna put the vacant lots and make it park public parking?

You gotta stop, you gotta stop this.

This city is about to go into the future with Micron coming, all the subsidiaries that Micron will need, the university is gonna expand, you're gonna get more housing that they want.

You want people to come back to the city and be able to prosper, and be entrepreneurs and be small businesses.

The gentleman that was trying to be on Salina Street, he's in a no-win situation.

No win.

Because that used to be a commercial area.

He can't open a business now.

Because he has people that are afraid of the businesses that will come that could decimate the neighborhood.

You guys have to fix this.

This is on you.

You are the planners.

If the business doesn't fit the neighborhood, then say it can't come in here.

But Salina Street is a commercial street.

Whether it's it's Route 11.

It's a state highway.

It runs through the heart of the city.

Give the commercial people what they need to prosper.

If they need parking, make sure they have parking.

If they need permits, make sure they have permits.

But give them what they need.

You're the problem with a lot of these urban centers.

That will help keep their city going.

That's why they're running to the suburbs.

We don't want them to run to the suburbs.

We want them to come back to the city.

We don't want to go down south to Atlanta.

We want to stay here.

If I could have stayed here and done well, I would have.

But I couldn't.

And in the 40 years that I've been, the city's going downhill.

Downhill.

And it's up to you to bring it up.

Bring it back.

Get an idea of what you want to do.

That greenhouse, I went to Nottingham.

Nottingham High School.

That greenhouse manufacturing should not be on Genesee Street.

It should not.

But I sat here and listened to you, and you approved it.

It's a manufacturing place.

It should be on Yuri Boulevard.

The roofing should not be on Salina Street.

But what build what businesses is he going to put in this building?

You have to help him make that decision.

And then give him the tools to do it.

This is on you.

Thank you.

Hi, my name is Sadia.

I just have a bit 108 McAllister.

I think this would be a great opportunity for children.

I'm a teen, I'm a teen mom, and I have teen children, and I also foster children as well.

And there is nothing out there for these children.

But to follow somebody else and get in trouble.

And if she's willing to look out for these children and make a change in the town and bring Syracuse back to life, like everybody else is saying, I think you guys should give her that opportunity.

Thank you.

Are there other individuals who wish to speak in favor of this application?

If so, please come forward.

Yes, hi.

My name is Titus Nickens.

I live at 154 St.

Louis.

I've on behalf of Shakila, which is my best friend, co-worker.

We do construction work together.

Great woman.

And I and I stand here today and I know she wants change.

I know she's not trying to do something to do something else.

I know she wants to help the community.

Um make it stronger.

Like she said, for people like us, we don't have it.

And y'all the only ones that can give us the opportunity.

And I'm saying she's about to do something great and I'll fill it.

Give her the opportunity.

Let her get a chance to win or fail.

Well, give her that chance.

So like I say, thank you.

I'd like to always say one more thing.

She wants a liquor-free space.

But even if she didn't want liquor-free space, why couldn't she get the business?

If she qualifies to have a liquor liquor license, then she should have that business and have the opportunity to run that business.

Until urban renewal came and took it away.

And you saw that it has never been replaced.

Those lots are still vacant.

Are there other individuals who wish to speak in favor of this application?

If so, come to the podium, provide your name, your address, and your comments.

Provide your name, address, and comments for the record.

Again, uh, Derek Dunford.

Um I had I own a property two doors over at 4114 South Salina Street.

I don't have a problem with what she wants to do per se.

Don't think it's the right property.

This property, it was a billiards that was upstairs, not bowling alley for what that's worth, a little history there.

Um there was a bar on the end for a long time.

It was called Glippers, which operated in probably one-fifth of space at the time.

That's going back some years now.

I've been on, I've been in my property for 30 years now.

I plowed that lot that's behind her her property, his property, I should say.

Um, there's arguably four, five spots, even if Jim, the lawyer next door gives them two or three more.

As a person in the middle of the block, I have concern with the park parking for sure.

It is tight.

I mean, I'm telling you, you can look at their site map, I would guess it's probably 20 feet deep there, uh, between where the end of the old mo used to be a motel at the end, probably 60 years ago, maybe more.

Um, you're gonna have a hell of a time getting in and out of there.

There was no, as a guy who plows snow, there is nowhere to plow snow.

There's an empty lot out back if they want to buy that, then I would be like, okay, then you got room for so and they so I I like what she's doing, but Aaron's rental would be a better building for that.

The plaza I know is very difficult, that would be a better spot for mostly just the situation with the parking is absolutely dreadful there.

I have cars coming through there.

I'll tell you when it was rent a center, it was absolutely a nightmare.

As the tractor travelers would come through there constantly, they cut through all the back properties.

Everybody in the neighborhood cuts through, they skip the light at the corner of Dawes and Salina, and it's like a highway going to the liquor store, which is craft liquors, which is just right behind there.

We've got the car wash there with a ton of traffic.

There's no parking.

I mean, if you got a 150-person parking spot and you're talking 50 cars, I could see it if she could make a deal with Alcott Development, who is enormously difficult to deal with, as I've done work for them over the years, they're not gonna allow it, no way in hell.

Um, you know, again, I'm not here to bash her business.

I I get it, I get support in the community.

I've been there 56 years, I've seen it change and things like that.

Unfortunately, I I my my opinion is I mean, that's it, it's a tough location for what she's trying to do.

I'm I'm not really seeing the business plan for whatever that's worth of okay.

I'm I don't know how many children are up to 1 a.m.

I don't know what the age groups we're talking about here, but a lot of old saying that nothing good goes after midnight and on after midnight, but and I get it, but if it's a bar or whatever, you know, so I I don't kind of see the business plan.

I know that building well, the roof's a shit show.

Sorry, I shouldn't have said that.

But uh it's there's there's a serious amount of work that needs to be put into that property.

As a city resident who owns a lot of property, I go in with a plan, I present the plan.

I there's financing that should be in order so that you know you guys have not personally, you guys maybe, but over the years the city has let projects go on without proper financing.

They just ripped two houses down on Slime Street because the land bank gave up two properties to redevelop.

You sold them to the wrong guy, and he took a 400,000 loan, took the money, left.

Properties just got ripped down.

Like I would think we'd be want to cross our T's and dot our I's on this.

That's all.

Thank you.

Other individuals who may wish to speak in opposition to the application, please come forward.

North Valley resident for 40 years.

Um listening to this event center idea.

Uh the question I have is this a teen center.

I'll okay.

I'll address what it sounds like.

It's confusing what exactly what it's gonna do, what it's gonna be.

Um, we've had two establishments there that have caused extreme issues with parking in the neighborhoods late at night, and in other properties.

So it's like from the from the Aaron's Renaissance place in Dunkin' Donuts and all over the Burger King and all that.

This one, when it was operating before previously, the same thing was going on in another part of the neighborhood.

Now, the Valley Plaza doesn't want to have anything to do with these kind of things because of all the incidents that have happened there.

And the injuries and the deaths and whatever.

So the buildings could be used for a roofing and sighting company.

I mean, it could be used for many, many things.

But the problem is the parking and DAW.

I provided that image to you.

Um in my in my paper.

Um it's an undeveloped or unimproved street, small houses, close together.

Um, and when this parking goes in there after hours, now if she wanted to operate to 10 o'clock at night or something, I mean weeknights, I can't see anybody operating in a one, because that neighborhood's gonna be totally disturbed.

Um on the weekends, what would happen is they would park up and down the streets, fill more, Walruth, all the other streets on the other end, and then when they disperse, they go out into the cars, and then there's loud music playing out in the cars in the neighborhood.

So this goes on and on and on.

It's not the closure time, it goes on two, three hours after that.

So, and I have tapes of it actually.

Not her not her development, but other other similar kinds of things.

So I don't see how you get around that.

So I agree with um Derek about that.

Um the other I I have a lot of questions about the hours of operation.

I just can't understand why on week nights you would be open to one in the morning with work and school, um, and those houses on Dawes and Anderson, it could bleed over into Anderson.

They they need to sleep, and this these places disturb people's sleep.

I know for sure that that happens because I've been told by neighbors.

Um so anyway, um I am a member of Fond.

Um Ronda's here over there.

Um we've been trying to track a grocery store back in the plaza.

We're getting something sometime, getting something small, and we have a storefront, we host a market, um, community bankers come in and um Keerleaf has improved the front of the plaza.

I think they're trying to get the plaza back, and we're trying to get that area back.

We're not abandoning it, we're working on it.

Um, but the neighborhoods are vulnerable.

They're lower income, moderate income.

I mean, you just heard the South Valley scream.

I mean, and they got a lot more going on down, a lot more benefits going on down there than we do.

These are these are vulnerable neighborhoods, and when you have something going on on Salina Street that erodes into those neighborhoods, then you're gonna lose them.

So you you gotta be very careful.

So I agree, there's gotta be opportunity, but it's gotta be appropriate.

So, and yeah, I I don't I there's actually spaces in the plaza where you could have well I'm I don't know try the over because they've okay.

Well that and that's a problem.

That's the problem.

So, and and it's undefined in your application, so I'm that's a problem.

Thank you.

All right, thank you.

Are there other individuals who wish to speak?

One second, hang on one second.

We're still on the not in favor.

Oh no, just just hang on a minute.

Okay.

We've all been here a little while.

Thank you.

So are there other individuals who wish to speak in the opposition?

Uh please come to the podium and provide your name and address.

Oh man, y'all let that guy talk hour.

I won't distrag him.

Yeah, well, I get what she's saying, but the problem is the parking.

Because you know we don't have curves and um there's been some after-hour activity last summer.

Could could you give your name and address for those?

Cemetery 136 dolls.

And dug up my yard, so I had to $850 out of my pocket to repair my yard.

Then I'm on the way out of town, grandkids called me saying, Granddad, oh, we can't sleep, it's loud music.

This three o'clock in the morning.

Okay.

Another time.

Get on my camera.

Looking at the camera footage.

I think it was about four in the morning.

Coming from that location.

Squat down in my yard, took a dump, wipe the butt, left the tissue, drove off.

So the thing is, argue what she said, good idea, but the parking.

You gotta do something about that in the late hours.

Can't sleep, waking up the grandkids, waking up me.

Gotta work in the morning.

Up to five, six, seven o'clock in the morning.

So, but it's a good idea, but uh that's a bad street because you know it's a small street, private street, quiet street, a lot of kids.

So that's what I gotta say.

Good idea, but bad parking uh situation there.

So what I want to say.

Other individuals wishing to speak in the opposition, please come to the podium.

Hi, my name is Ron DeVisi, uh 117 Seneca Drive in the Valley.

Um it's hard to envision um having a space where there's no parking.

Um the opportunities that need to happen for the event space, like Harlem Knights that just lost their space, or even um the Taste of Brooklyn because of adequate, appropriate space.

So I've been in the community since the pen during the pandemic with Kathy mentioned, um, an organization that I started, Food Access Healthy Neighborhoods now.

Um the community um right there in the valley is the highest percentage of impoverishment in the nation without a grocery store.

Um there is no access to fresh food.

So what my organization has done was created a farmers market.

Uh we started on the Valley Plaza, um, and we now since have space in the Valley Plaza.

Um working hard um to acquire a store, which the gentleman mentioned um from the food expansion grant that Governor Hockel gave, 1.7 million dollars is bringing a grocery store into the Valley Plaza.

Um not only that, because of the article that ran um with me, uh it made it to an it.

This is this will be public uh knowledge uh March 24th.

Uh the article ran to Cincinnati, Ohio, to the desk of McKesson Pharmaceuticals.

Um they were looking um for space which they call Project Oasis with pharmacy deserts.

Well, lo and behold, we're also a pharmacy desert.

And as of um last week, we sealed the deal.

We will now also have a pharmacy coming into the Valley Plaza as well.

So dealing with a private property owner, it has had its share of struggle, uh, but I have maintained my position to work diligently, like um the young lady said, to work for the sake of the community.

Um we're not there yet.

Um, but continued um perseverance, I won't stop either.

Um we're gonna get the things that we need.

It's it's sad that we don't have with all the empty spaces that we do have, space where someone who wants to open an event space that has parking on site.

Um I often think about the huge space um down Nedro where Kmart used to be.

I'm not sure if that's acquired by anyone right now, but that's a huge open space.

Um, but there must be, especially with all the abandoned houses that somebody else has mentioned.

Um but the work that we have done uh in over the five years, um, including Wednesdays, we have a wellness Wednesday in helping the community.

Um I've partnered with University Hospital, Food Bank of Central New York, Onadaga County, Syracuse Community Health, Syracuse University, ESF, and the list goes on because I can't do it on my own.

Um I've had to find backing and community involvement from folks right in the community, um, working with city, local, state officials to help get things done.

Where is there space for good parking to have in event space where we won't see what we saw over the last I guess two years that as um Kathy mentioned, what had happened with the spill out after um which wasn't supposed to be a a night place, an even nighttime space happened um on Fillmore, or even I think this establishment and around the corner um had some issues at the same time um that the other place inside the the Valley Plaza had issues.

Where is their adequate space and the kind of assistance that's needed to open up um a space for folks at a birthday parties for kids or space for adults?

Uh that won't cause havoc for a residential community on a commercial main drive.

Uh that's what I want to say.

So I am working hard to help prevent what we've gone through and help build up what we don't have, and that's what I want to say.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Other individuals who may wish to speak in opposition to the application, please come forward.

I don't see any additional speakers as noted at the beginning.

Uh the applicant has the opportunity to address um comments made in that position.

So to shortly answer everybody's questions because it is late.

Um the best thing that I can do is work with you guys individually, but with a community as a community.

Um I'm happy to know that we do have another grocery store and another, you know, another business coming.

But my question is, do they look like you?

You said well or do?

Well, is great.

Because that's what we want to do.

We wanna be able to build into our our community.

Okay.

Sorry.

It's okay.

Just talk to us.

We understand.

It's always tempting to talk about it.

Okay, sorry, I'm so sorry.

It's all right.

It's okay.

Aside from that, as I said before, um, it's not ideal the times that I've been given.

These are the times that I'm forced to have.

And I'm not letting that stop me, you know.

So whatever I have to do, I will do to accommodate um every question that has been formed from the Syracuse zoning.

I have put my teeth on the side of the I-81 project, jumped over this bridge building it.

I'm a part of the change of the community already as is, and I just want to continue to do that.

If I'm wrong, please deny me.

Maybe this might be too much.

I'm asking for any other questions for me.

Okay, I did you have watching.

Okay.

So when is the last time you talked to the folks over here at the city planning and zoning office?

When's the last time you actually talked to them?

Yes.

Okay.

And they're they have been of help.

Okay, and that's what we want.

We want them to be of help.

What is it that they are still asking you to do in your mind?

What else do you have to do?

Nothing.

That's why I'm here.

It's been two years, correction.

I'm hoping it's on the one.

Correction.

Because so first they had me fill out a long-term site plan, which took out a duration of a year, and then they gave me a court date to come here, and I don't know if you guys remember I came and I still said to watch the process to see how everything works because I'm super nervous.

Um, but this is my second time here, so clearly I hope I'm hoping I answered all of their questions with that.

Go ahead.

Excuse me.

Have you had any a meeting, a neighborhood meeting with the DOS?

And we have not neighborhoods.

Have not, because I don't, I don't, I I am aware of the things that has happened before me.

The only thing that I was semi, because I can't say I will control or can control, I'm not Jesus Christ.

But I will my hardest make sure that when I do do things for, you know, our college kids, I want them to be able to have a reward, something to look forward to.

I myself, I am a walk-in testimony.

I have been through everything that they're going through.

I just had enough resources that stood by my side and told me to use my resources.

And that's why I'm here.

The city says a parking space is what is required for this business going.

Okay.

Thanks for hearing you.

Well, I thought I thought I talk loud all the time, so I'm practicing.

I was saying that the city has asked us that they only needed eight parking space for this business.

I try to buy the lot, there's two lots across from the property.

There's a um uh pizza place right there, and there's a lot next to it.

I mean, discussion to buy it, but in my conversation with the city, that is not allowed to turn to a parking space.

There's another big lot under right next to the back of the property, and the city try to buy it.

I've reached out to the owners, I have not yet kind of kind of um contact them.

I'm trying my best to buy it, but I also spoke with the city and the city is not allowed.

We have a commercial property that you have allowed to build that have satisfied its zoning requirement for over a year, and she says two years that we've been at this.

It needs to go by and pass and give her because there's nothing else holding the back.

Everything you ask for has been given to you.

There's absolutely no reason other than hear what the young lady the young lady's saying that she's some of the concern, two people have said that they're concerned.

The other gentleman drives through the property to go to his property.

He drives through the property to get to his property.

We then the the the attorney that I brought that right the letter to, he has a right away to go to that property, and those are different hours of operation.

There's nothing else in that community other than what we are trying to do.

The community itself is trying to build from itself for a very long time.

We've been trying to talk to the governor, we've been talking to the mayor, and they have not invested in our community.

We have to invest into our community, and we don't have to like the way that it looks.

But we do have to invest, and the people are finally moving in, and everyone should lend a hand, not pull it back.

Very, very briefly.

I'll tell you.

People are complaining about parking.

I feel like that's a very small issue.

But as the um the lady said, there's a very poor neighborhood.

But did these same people come and have any objection to there being a marijuana dispensary across the street?

Across the street.

I'm sure there was no objection to that.

But she's trying to have a space for children.

And as far as the traffic is as far as far as the traffic on the side street, I'm sure that the people who live on DOS know that that traffic came from an illegal after hour spot in the barbershop, not the building that she's speaking of that they're trying to do something in.

They know that.

But it's it's just it boggles my mind.

Somebody's trying to do something good for the community, and there's pushback about parking.

But there is a marijuana dispensary across the street in the same impoverished neighborhood that everyone is okay with.

And that is what's wrong with not just the city, but everywhere.

So you're saying it's okay to leave your house and go buy an ounce of weed from this establishment right here.

But it's not okay to walk from your house to the spot right in between your house and that marijuana dispensary to go in here and possibly look up avenues to do something else with your life.

I just, it doesn't make sense to me to push back about parking.

When there's a much bigger problem across the street, there's a marijuana dispensary right here, and 200 feet across the street, there's a liquor store.

But that's okay.

But you have something somebody's trying to do something for the people, and your problem is parking.

Put that same energy into helping her secure parking.

You got that park that the ventilator across the street.

If everybody has an issue with parking, then help.

If the biggest issue is parking, then fix it.

Parking lot.

Well, there's not really much space to put a parking lot, but there is a massive parking lot across the street that is used, probably 20% of its capacity.

There's gotta be a way.

They do it downtown.

There has to be a way.

It's just it boggles my mind when people can complain about or have pushback on something that's good, but they're quiet about uh a dispensary of something that was illegal two years ago.

But it's okay now because there's money to be made, but it's a drug still, and there's another drug selling place across the street.

And there's another drug selling place across the street.

This is it right.

It's okay to destroy your community and destroy your young minds and your young brains, but it's not okay to exercise them.

And that's all I gotta say.

That just to me is just crazy.

There's pushback about a community center or an event space for our people, but there's no problem or pushback against a marijuana dispensary across the street, or the illegal after hour spots.

That has nothing to do with this spot.

That's all I have to say.

Thank you for you.

Thank you.

Thank you.

I think we've heard from those wishing to speak in favor, those wishing to speak in opposition.

And uh response from the applicant to those in opposition.

So we will close public comment on this application.

Um I look to my colleagues to see if there is interest in formulating the motion for action on this, or if there's a desire to uh digest what was presented tonight, both spoken and written.

So maybe while we think about it, I have a question for staff.

What's left in terms of your request of the applicant?

There's no uh uh outstanding uh requirements or needs on our end.

There's listed conditions based on reviews and based on uh the site and the constraints around some of the impacts that you've heard mentioned tonight that are a part of all land use approvals, things like noise, traffic, parking that that goes into every land use project that you hear.

Um it really comes down to the conditions and um you know a commitment uh for the site improvements.

Some of this is maybe on more on the landlord or the building owner.

There are some open violations uh as well.

Um there have been illegal events held in this space.

Uh I do know that I'm not saying it was associated to this uh pro this tenant uh before us today, but certainly the owner owned the building at the time.

Um outside of those items, we don't have any outstanding items, and I do want to uh give a comment on some clarity around the the time constraint.

Previously there was a potential parking agreement with the Sitco gas station to the south, which is governed by a special use permit.

So we couldn't allow parking there outside of the approved times that govern that business.

So that that may be where she's saying the six to one came from, but we're not dictating, nobody on the zoning staff is dictating the hours.

Like she needs to propose hours to this board, and that needs to be approved as part of you know an approval process.

Um so there's nothing prohibiting that, but I that's where that came from.

Okay.

But all the conditions that are in our information have been relayed to the tenant, and we need a commitment from the tenant and the landlord for these conditions and for requested improvements.

Correct.

Okay.

Yeah, so I we have the conditions, the nine conditions, and many of the nine conditions address some of the issues that have been raised.

Uh the parking problem does seem to me to still be a substantial problem.

And I can't I don't really understand what to do about that.

Uh because the spaces that are available would not cover an event that holds a hundred people.

Uh and so what do we do about that?

Does that mean that in this event space the number of people that can participate in a given point in time is restricted by parking, or do we say the parking issue doesn't matter?

I mean, it seems all the parking spaces that I see on paper that are available would not cover a large event.

Um so what do we do with that?

I guess is my question.

Yeah, I mean, so again, we have parking minimums, and you know, there's reductions that can be met with uh, you know, is it on a bus line, bike parking, uh things of that nature.

Uh I mean, we don't want a sea of asphalt parking citywide.

Um, but you know, you make a valid point.

Um, what types of events are gonna be happening here?

How many people, what kind of crowds is it gonna draw?

Like, I mean, size of crowds is what I mean.

Um, how many people are gonna be actually showing up here?

How are they getting here?

Like, yeah, if a hundred, if if a hundred and fifty person event uh was being held here and there are 50 cars, I I think it's something to consider as far as how does it impact Dawes and all the side streets over there.

Um yeah, I don't I don't know.

I wish I had a magic wand to wave for a solution to it.

But it is on a major bus line, and it will be part of the BRT system.

Uh so over time, there certainly will be accessibility to the site through mass transit, but that's years away, and we're still stuck with the problem of either we have to re seems we either have to restrict the number of people that may be able to participate or figure out some other way to deal with the parking situation.

I I just want to say on the parking though, the application meets the code's requirements for parking.

Is that correct?

It meets the code minimums, yes.

Or the for the building.

For the event center.

Yeah.

For the use.

For the use.

I guess that's the problem with the definition of an event space.

Right.

Because I mean, there could be a thousand people in the event space.

I mean, we have nothing on paper about how many people could be involved in this, and there could be a number of people that could create a problem.

So how do we deal with that?

And it's not just parking, but it's primarily parking.

And just to be clear, every time we review any property, we get the comments about the after hours.

Dunkin' donuts.

We reviewed that four times.

The speaker was too loud, the light was too bright, and then the neighbor said when the restaurant closed, people congregated.

So this isn't just a this particular venue.

This is a all across the city, north, south, east, and west.

Somebody says to us, you know, when the business is closed, Mr.

Chairman, these other people come in and they're at the gas station, they're at the restaurant, and sadly, across the street from this proposed venue, we lend loss of life.

And it's a private property owner across the street.

As big as that parking lot is, the private property owner decides if they want at least 10 spaces, 50 spaces, which they started to do once, and then they stopped.

We had restaurants who tried to help and made arrangements to release spaces.

So this is a repeat recurring problem.

It's not just this venue tonight, and it's gonna come up again.

Um my sense is we try to go ahead with this.

We bring up a motion.

So is that the is that the nine conditions?

Well, yeah.

Uh uh, but the nine conditions don't address the fundamental parking problem of if you have a hundred people there and you have 50 cars, what's that gonna do to the neighborhood?

I hate like heck to not approve a project because of a parking issue, but it's not an insubstantial problem.

Now, if we can figure out a way that uh the owner can work with code to solve that problem, then great.

I mean, I I think we should try and go ahead with it if we can, but this is an issue.

And we can't make the issue go away, right?

Simply pretend it's not an issue.

But similar to other applications that we Dunkin' Donuts being a good example down the street, you know, one of the things that we asked we can't obviously make everybody do it, but we seen it, we have seen it work, is for the applicants and operators to meet with the neighbors and just sort of say, okay, here's what I'm thinking about.

Do you want us to notify you?

Do you how do you how could we notify you?

Is there email?

Is there something so that everybody's on the same page and on surprise?

Because the surprises seem to them be more upsetting than prior knowledge, right?

So I think if we could um if you everybody's agreeable, or the applicant and the owner is agreeable to that, that that is a start of you know, good neighbor policy, etc.

For the center or the space.

I I don't think we can really make it, you know.

If they don't do it, what are we gonna do?

Nothing.

But you know, I don't know how to make people talk to each other.

I'm just suggesting it would go right.

Well it would go a long way towards the start.

Yeah, we what actually did happen fairly well with the Dunkin' Donuts situation is we did over successive meetings.

I think it was at three meetings that we held it, and we required conversations with the neighbors, and Ms.

Diddley was involved and had other neighbors from the area, and that eventually got us to a place where we could approve it because there was a uh consensus that it emerged.

If we can come up with something like this in this situation, that that might be the way forward.

Yeah, so the floor is yours, Walter.

Well, he do we have he'd like to say something else with the property owner.

No, yeah.

The microphone, please.

Oh, yeah.

I just wanted to contribute that that we saw who came out.

That the neighbors, it was posted.

So they were given the opportunity.

The young lady put it on our website, uh Facebook marketplace so everyone could be alerted to come out and negative or positive.

So we could hear what is the concern of the community.

So we can satisfy it.

I feel it's only a year.

She feels longer.

But we have trying, we have tried to be umicable to what's going on in the community.

We do we we hope that they use our space.

That's our success.

That's what we want.

We want them to we need to have money to make it viable for for the young lady to succeed.

So please understand.

Thank you.

I'm I'm gonna hold off an additional comment.

So we're gonna see.

So meeting with the neighborhood before we vote on this.

It can be a condition.

Okay.

However, you want to do it.

Well, I uh it's probably it seems to me it's pretty problematic as a condition.

Uh I mean, I don't know how we'd enforce that.

What exactly how that would work.

So this is this is what we're calling homework.

We would like we would like them to talk to the neighbors and come back with something with letters with something that show that the neighbors understand what's going to happen.

Is the gentleman who lives on Dawes still here?

Can you get your information?

Can you exchange information with them?

And you and your neighbors can meet with them.

I know right.

Just saying after the meeting, not right now, I'm sorry.

Just saying after the meeting, exchange the information.

Yeah.

Okay.

So we're thinking of holding us to the next meeting in April.

We are whatever you and then if we can have the feedback that the neighbors now at least they they've had a chance to talk to you.

Better understanding.

Right.

Okay.

He's saying they've met the rich American.

Okay.

So we're understanding is there's a bigger issue.

Even though we're saying it meets the minimum for the operation of the business, we're realistically, once they have an event, if it's 10 people.

I think we're hearing that there's a potentially large impact on the neighborhood, and we're trying to navigate that.

Well, part of the problem is the event space lacks criteria, and we have nothing about the number of participants in any given event.

So it'd be great as a as an event space if there's 20 or 30 people there at events regularly, but then if you're gonna have events that have larger numbers, then that's when it becomes a problem.

So how do we deal with it?

Do we restrict the numbers, or we just hope that nothing's gonna happen that we're gonna have not gonna have a problem with parking?

You could do that.

Um again, it's as detailed in that uh design drawing.

I think a proposed occupancy based on that layout was you know 157, if I saw it correctly, but not saying that that's what how many people she would have in there, but um yeah, yes, sir, sure.

So 150 people show up.

Yeah, I think it's it's something that should be worked out where you know where do all those cars go.

Unless I hear a motion, I think we're on hold and with a recommendation that there be some dialogue uh with the applicant and neighbors to see if there might be some meeting of the mind or some accommodations.

Well, and perhaps additional dialogue with uh uh the code the planning staff about the sure parking problem because we part of the problem is we we we can't approve a discussion, and that's part of what was happening here.

Uh so uh I I just I'm uncomfortable not seeing the numbers worked out in a way that that isn't gonna create a problem.

And we're just kicking the can down the road if we if we pretend that it's not gonna happen.

Um the only reason why it's hard to come up with a number is because we haven't been given a number.

And by law, we can't give it a number.

And I as much as I want to tell you guys I'm God and and I'm a proud, and I could bring you all together and and I can change everything.

I can.

I'm gonna meet the community help.

You guys are supposed to, well, there's supposed to be the last thing I understand.

But um, like seriously.

This is something that's gonna give back.

And to be a part of that, you guys should be honored.