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A major renovation of the North Mall will not go forward as proposed, the Westhampton Beach Village Zoning Board of Appeals unanimously decided last Thursday, October 15.
The Winhaven Realty Group, the Great Neck-based company that owns the strip mall on Old Riverhead Road in the village, proposed to add second stories on the two buildings that make up the North Mall, an addition totaling 13,946 square feet that would have been connected by a pedestrian bridge.
The company sought a variance from the village to reduce the number of parking spaces required from 220 to 185. The zoning board denied the application because the proposed number of parking spaces may not be sufficient in the future, according to the board’s written decision.
The project was just too big, said Chris Bean, the Zoning Board of Appeals chairman.
“The variance was too much,” he said. “There was inadequate parking. It would have caused congestion.”
The zoning board found other problems with the application, too.
“In addition, the board finds that the proposed variance may have a potential impact on parking, traffic flow and the conditions of the neighborhood, raising environmental concerns as well,” the decision read. “The size of the proposed addition would visually impact on the residential parcels to the east, and the substantially increased amount of parking and its associated activity would also impact on them as well.”
The Winhaven Group can reduce the proposed size of the second floor of the additions, a change that would reduce the number of parking spaces required. The village code states that commercial buildings need one parking space for every 200 square feet, said Paul Houlihan, the Westhampton Beach building and zoning administrator.
“It is a huge building. It would be the biggest commercial building in the village,” he said of the current application. “I’ve never seen the [zoning board] give a variance that large before.”
The Winhaven Group is still weighing its options, including whether it should submit another application for a smaller addition or do nothing, according to Jim Hulme, the Westhampton Beach lawyer representing the group.
The proposed second story renovations to the North Mall and the bridge that would connect the two buildings would increase the strip mall’s square footage to 43,000 square feet. The mall currently sits on 3 acres of property. The proposal also included a face-lift to the exterior, matching the buildings to the rest of Westhampton Beach.
North Mall has not been renovated since its construction at least 18 years ago.
The Winhaven Group first proposed the project about a year ago. The company originally hoped to break ground in February and be done with construction by December 2009.
The original proposal called for more medical offices, but the group was not able to get Suffolk County Department of Health Services approval. The space would be able to host dry retail and office space, according to Mr. Houlihan.
Frank S. Costanza on Oct 21, 2009