Owera Vineyards is back before the town planning board seeking to build a new 6,300 square-foot “Promotion and Marketing Facility” to replace its three-season events tent for special winery functions. If approved, the new building would be larger and more functional than the current events tent — and would be built using state-of-the-art soundproofing materials in order to eliminate the noise issues and complaints the winery has been fighting against for more than a year.
This is the second time that Owera has applied for permission to construct a new special events building to replace the events tent. The first time occurred last October, although Owera owners Nancy Peter Muserlian later withdrew the application.
Joanne Gagliano, landscape architect for Owera Vineyards, appeared before the town planning board last week as part of continued discussions on the winery’s new proposal, which was submitted to the planning board in August.
According to planning board records, the proposal calls for the replacement of the winery’s 40-by-100-foot events tent with a 46-by-142-foot permanent building “with noise attenuating features,” as well as a 25-by-40-foot expansion of the existing adjoining patio and pergola. It also includes an expansion of the winery’s existing sanitary system, a new pump house and the expansion of the existing bio-retention area to accommodate storm water runoff from the building.
The proposed building floor plan shows the building to contain a 5,143 square-foot “wine promotion and group tasting area,” a 1,212 square-foot “wine education area,” a prep kitchen, storage area and restroom area. The total occupancy of the building is stated to be 430 people.
Owera is also asking permission for the proposed Promotion and Marketing Facility to be open seven days a week, 352 days a year — the same as its current tasting room — with hours of operation to begin at 8 a.m. every day and end at midnight of Fridays and Saturdays and 10 p.m. all other nights.
These hours would be an expansion of Owera’s currently allowed operating hours — which start at 10 a.m. and end at 5 p.m. on weekdays and 10 p.m. on weekends. Owera proposes that the extended hours will not cause any more controversy over excessive noise from its events because the building will not only be completely soundproofed, but it also has instituted new rules for amplified music at its events. The new rules state that all amplified music must run through the winery’s house system, which has pre-set level controls, and Owera staff constantly monitors event music and has the authority to stop the music at any time if necessary.
The sound proofing and sound monitoring is part of Owera’s efforts to address the numerous neighborhood — and town government — concerns about excessive noise from the winery’s weekend events, mainly weddings. Those concerns caused massive neighbor outrage and complaints in 2013, the issuance of violation citations by the town against the winery and even caused the State Liquor Authority last year to deny Owera’s application for a liquor license. It has also had a negative impact on the winery’s reputation.
In an effort to address all of these consequences and concerns, Owera in 2014 has been holding fewer wedding events and more low-impact events such as meetings, corporate functions, fundraisers, retirement parties, bridal showers, reunions, award ceremonies and educational wine tastings. According to a document filed with the Owera planning board records, the music for nearly two dozen events held so far in 2014 has been monitored and limited, and the winery has received no citations or violations from the town all year.
During the Oct. 2 planning board meeting with Owera, Gagliano brought with her a section of soundproofed wall to show board members exactly how the new promotions building will be constructed. The walls will be constructed with staggered 2-by-6 studs within; have 6 inches of sound insulation, wood siding on top of plywood, noise barriers on inside space with seven-eighths-inch resilient channels to insulate sound. The construction is expected to reduce noise levels by 55 decibels, according to planning board records.
Planning board members remained concerned about the winery’s proposed hours of operation and the amount of music intended to be played or heard outside of the new building.
Gagliano said the early morning hours are needed to accommodate the increased number of business and corporate functions that occur during business hours, while the extended Sunday hours are needed because Owera’s tasting room has been increasingly busy on that day.
Both the planning board and Owera officials have agreed to conduct a noise study as soon as possible to see how successful the proposed sound restrictions will be.
The board voted unanimously to continue discussions on the Owera application at its regular November meeting, with a public hearing expected to be scheduled in December. The board will vote on the winery’s application sometime after the public hearing occurs.
The lateness of the public hearing and board vote means that, even if the board votes in December to approve the application, Owera would not have time to construct the new building before the events season begins in May, Gagliano said. Owera’s intention, therefore, is to continue using the three-season tent throughout 2015 for winery events, she said.
Jason Emerson is editor of the Cazenovia Republican. He can be reached at [email protected].
