Public hearing set Feb. 26 regarding proposed apartment complex
By Russ Tarby
Contributing Writer
Municipal engineer Steve Calocerinos has been making presentations to the Village of Liverpool Planning Board and Board of Trustees for more than two years now while representing developer Cosimo Zavaglia in his effort to create Meyer Manor, a 108-apartment complex proposed at 1225 Tulip St.
If the project gets a green light from the village, Zavaglia plans to purchase Marvin Meyer’s eight-acre property just north of the Thruway and build the three-story apartment buildings.
On Jan. 22, Calocerinos made what he hopes will be one of his last presentations to the planning board, which scheduled another public hearing on the project for 7 p.m. Feb. 26. The board members are John Eallonardo, Michael LaMontagne, Peter Osborne, alternate James Taft and Chairman Joe Ostuni Jr.
“For reference,” he said, Calocerinos presented the board with photographs of several local three-story apartment complexes all situated alongside residential areas, including Harborside Manor, Old Liverpool Point Apartments and Covered Bridge Apartments.
In September, 18 people spoke at a public hearing convened by the village Board of Trustees about the proposed complex and most opposed it, including several residents of the adjacent Johnson Tract.
Ashley Hicks, for instance, summarized the neighbors’ opposition, citing increased noise and traffic, intrusive lighting, lack of privacy and destruction of greenspace.
“We’re against this development which infringes on our right to the quiet enjoyment of our homes,” said Peg Salvatore, president of the Johnson Tract Neighborhood Group.
On Dec. 18, the village board approved a zone-change from R-1 to R-3 — allowing for multiple family dwellings — for the development’s entryway, sending the project back before the planning board. The trustees approved the zone-change by a vote of 4-1, with Trustee Bradley Young dissenting because of traffic concerns.
The state Department of Transportation approved plans for the apartment complex last summer.
On Jan. 22, Calocerinos pointed to his architectural drawings to demonstrate “the substantial amount of space between the residential area and the proposed apartment,” he said. “Most are more than 95 feet away, one is about 45 feet away.” He also promised an “aesthetically pleasing buffer.”
A Jan. 19 letter from Town of Salina Engineer Douglas Wickman was received by the planning board. The Johnson Tract is located outside village limits but within the town of Salina.
Wickman recommended various improvements to the proposed project, such as moving two of the apartment buildings 10 feet south, installing an eight-foot solid fence to eliminate glare from vehicle headlights and suggested planting more evergreens in the buffer area.
After the Feb. 26 public hearing, it’s possible that the planning board could vote whether to approve the project or not, or it could continue the public hearing at a later date.
“It depends,” said Planning Board Chairman Joe Ostuni Jr. “We would open the public hearing at the February meeting. Based on the planning board’s direction, the public hearing may be closed or could be held open.”
