By David Tyler
Manlius residents will have the opportunity to voice their opinions on a proposed 10,000 sq. ft. dental office at 5538 N. Burdick Street.
After a review of the site plan in late June, the town of Manlius Planning Board scheduled a public hearing on the proposal for July 13 at 6:40 p.m.
The facility would be opposite the Resort Lifestyles Community, which sits above a retaining wall on the opposite side of the road. Currently there is a single-family residence on the south end of the property, but most of the property is undeveloped. The property is currently under contract by 5538 NBurdick St., LLC pending approvals for construction.
Planning board member Arnie Poltenson asked whether it would be visible from the canal and was told that the vegetation and the grade would make it impossible to see from the canal.
“That will answer some of the questions we’ve heard from canal walkers who don’t want to see their natural vistas changed,” Poltenson said. “They’re not even going to know the building is there.”
The parking lot has 98 spaces, which is large for a facility this size, but the developers said that many spaces is needed because of the way patients are scheduled at the practice. Lighting in the parking lot will be dark sky compliant, meaning light should not spill off the property.
Previously, the Manlius Town Board approved a zone change to RM on the property to allow for the proposal to move forward.
“When we designed this site plan, we took into account the purpose of what RM is, which is a transition from residential to commercial,” said Chris Danaher, an attorney representing the developers.
The public hearing will take place via Zoom and will also be available for viewing on the town’s Facebook page.
Planning board chairman Joseph Lupia said the board has already had several pieces of correspondence from residents concerned about the proposal.
