Foxwood Village residents turned out in force last night to object to proposed variances from the town’s “dark skies” code sought by the Costco site developers.
Already angered by the clear-cutting of the site, neighbors said they were fearful of the impacts bright lights on taller poles will have on life in their wooded residential community, which is now exposed to the lights and sounds of Route 58 and is buffeted by winds coming off the wide-open field in their backyards.
“This has been a devastation to us,” said Foxwood resident Jan Mastropaolo, wife of Foxwood Village principal Peter Mastropaolo. Their own home is situated on the border with the new shopping center.
While neighbors said they understood the ZBA had no say in the clear-cutting or approving what they believe inadequate landscaped buffer between the 271,000-square-foot shopping center and their community, they asked the ZBA to take those two factors into account when considering the applicant’s variance requests.
Heritage-Riverhead Retail Developers LLC is asking permission from the Zoning Board of Appeals to erect 25-foot-high outdoor light poles instead of the 16-foot height allowed by code and to install gas station under-canopy lighting fixtures exceeding the allowed illumination levels.
The developer’s lawyer, Peter Danowski, assured ZBA members that the high-pressure sodium light fixtures on the taller poles, which will be situated within curbed landscaped islands in the parking lot, would be “fully shielded” and otherwise compliant with the town’s outdoor lighting code.
Taller poles will allow the lights to shine over the trees planted in the islands, he said. Taller poles will also allow for a far fewer number of lights, Danowski said: 61 poles versus 165 poles.
“It’s aesthetics as well as safety,” Danowski said. “Costco has experience with folks backing into poles in their lots.”
He pointed out that no building on the currently approved site plan would be closer than 400 feet to the residences on the north. The taller poles would not create more light 400 feet away.
Danowski said the applicant is not at this time seeking variances for the potential “phase two” of development, which would be be built on the northern portion of the site, closer to the homes in Foxwood Village.
“Let us not forget phase 2,” Foxwood resident Robert Hall said. “That’s why they cut down all the property. If that happens we’re going to have buildings and parking lots very close to us.”
Resident Alice Hasselbach said the approved landscaped buffer won’t screen her home from the lights, especially on taller poles. She said she expects to look out over the cleared field to the Costco parking lot and “see these lights out there like mini flying saucers every night.”
She also asked if the gas station canopy lighting would be “toned down” after business hours, which Danowski said would end at 9:30 or 10 p.m. He said he wasn’t sure it could be done.
“I’m sure a switch will do it,” Hasselbach replied.
Barbara Ross, whose home borders the site, said the landscaped buffer was inadequate and the “popsicle stick fence” erected by the developer was a joke. “It provides no privacy, no security, anyone can climb it,” Ross said.
“The winds created by the removal of those woods,” Ross said, “it’s dramatic. The few trees that are left are going to blow down on our houses if we get any kind of storm.”
Danowski said the town’s outdoor lighting code was created in 2003 and amended in 2008.
“We’ve owned this for a long time,” Danowski said. Heritage-Riverhead Retail Developers LLC purchased the 42-acres site in May 2006 from Rte 58 Riverhead LLC for $31.2 million, according to county land records.
Danowski pointed to “the height of other poles within the town — 40 feet on the old WalMart, 41 and a half in Tanger I, 42 feet at Home Depot, 37.8 feet at Sports Authority, and 22 feet at Lowe’s” to support his request as reasonable. “Costco wanted 35 feet,” he said.
“Aesthetically if you said I’d have to put 104 more poles up, that would be less pleasing,” Danowksi said.
Cliff Baldwin of Aquebogue, who was a member of the dark skies committee that crafted the code, urged the board not to grant the variance. “The pole height was set at 16 feet for a reason,” Baldwin said. “If you jack the lights up there’s more bleed from the light.”
Baldwin said the high-pressure sodium lights create “orange sky glow.” LED lights, he said are much better.
“Aesthetics? I quake when I think of the aesthetics some of these people have brought to our town,” Baldwin said.
George Buckingham, manager of the Millbrook mobile home park to the east of the shopping center said the lights are going to have major impacts on his community, especially because the development is concentrated to the south, away from Foxwood.
“We’re going to have a lot of light in the park,” Buckingham said.
“It’s a nightmare for us, too. We’re closer,” Buckingham said. “I just want a fair shake in this too.”
“I think we’ve been screwed around enough already by this project I hope you reject it,” Foxwood resident Mike Cuomo told the board.
Lyn Tyler of Foxwood Village said the developer was just trying to cut corners to save money. “Let’s not have the town board and everybody else change everything to suit the money people,” Tyler said.
ZBA members adjourned the proceeding for two weeks, asking the applicant for pictures of the fixtures proposed to be installed as well as a sketch showing the line of sight from the adjoining properties.
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