Town Board presses applicant on Lawrence Street warehouse plan, seeks safety fixes ahead of July 22 hearing

The Town Board reviewed planning comments on a proposed warehouse project on Lawrence Street and asked the applicant to answer outstanding questions in writing ahead of a public hearing scheduled for July 22. Planning staff said their recommendation memo contained 23 items the town board should require the applicant to address, and staff noted an April 30 response from the applicant that the board should review.

Board members and staff expressed safety concerns about truck movements, turning radii and a culvert near River Town Square that limit opportunities to widen the road. "There's not a whole lot that can be done to ameliorate the traffic and traffic patterns that exist," one member said, urging the applicant to provide survey data and clear responses on truck access and turning radiuses.

The Town Supervisor urged the board to pursue a pedestrian bridge over the Saw Mill River Parkway to improve safety for bus riders and pedestrians who now walk on Lawrence Street, and suggested lobbying state and federal officials for funding and asking the developer to contribute. Staff and other members cautioned that a bridge is costly and that getting state transportation approval would be difficult; they recommended pursuing sidewalks and other mitigations in the near term. "I would not move forward on the project unless we get the pedestrian bridge," the Supervisor said.

Planning staff also alerted the board to an unusual soil proposal: the applicant plans to remove soil beneath an existing cap (a protective membrane covering contaminated soil) and bring in fill to achieve a net-zero balance. Staff and the town engineer called that approach unusual and flagged remediation and monitoring questions the applicant must answer.

Staff recommended collecting written questions from board members, routing them to the applicant, and posting written responses in advance so the public and board can review changes before or during the July 22 hearing.