Liverpool — Eight people spoke at a Feb. 29 Liverpool Village Board public hearing, and all but one opposed issuing a special permit to waive Liverpool’s prohibition of restaurant drive-thrus.
One of them was former Liverpool Mayor Jim Farrell.
Another was the current village Zoning Board Chairman Mike Romano.
The village board of trustees is considering a modification of the village code, Chapter 380-41, to issue special permits to allow restaurants to provide drive-thru services. Right now, the code prohibits restaurant drive-thrus, but architect Robert Abbot, Jr., told trustees on Jan. 19 that without permission for a drive-thru, the proposed Dunkin’ Donuts franchisee would abandon the project here.
Abbott, who also attended hearing, represents ESW Realty, LLC which has a purchase option on the property at 105-113 Second St., the former locations of Seneca Savings Bank and Venesky Appliances.
Farrell pointed to the village Comprehensive Plan that was adopted in 2007, which envisioned a pedestrian-friendly village.
“We have very few opportunities to enhance the uniqueness of the village,” Farrell said. “But this is an opportunity that should be taken. Dunkin’ Donuts would do nothing to enhance our village. This would be a poor decision to allow a drive-thru there.”
Farrell was Liverpool mayor from 1997 to 2001 and later served on the Onondaga County Legislature.
Romano would welcome a Dunkin’ Donuts but is strongly opposed to a drive-thru.
“I think Dunkin’ Donuts would be a terrific asset to the village,” he said. “It’d be a good business and an opportunity to increase the tax base. However, I’m not in favor of a drive-thru, which creates more traffic congestion on an already too congested street and is not pedestrian friendly.”
Romano was heavily involved with the establishment of the Comprehensive Plan. “The entire theme of that Comprehensive Plan was to make the village a destination, not a drive-thru. Dunkin’ Donuts’ drive-thru would be a complete contradiction to this destination concept.”
continued — Liverpool resident Alison Bentley urged the trustees to “look long and hard and look again, especially how this will affect traffic in the village.” The building of a Dunkin’ Donuts shop on Second Street “is less than the village deserves,” Bentley said. “Please save the quality of our life.”
Balsam Street resident Barbara Crousey was the hearing’s sole supporter of the drive-thru. Allowing the shop to be built there, she said, would be better than leaving the locations vacant.
Mayor Gary White said he has observed traffic back-ups all the way out into the streets at three nearby Dunkin’ Donut shops, two on Route 57 and one of West Taft Road.
“At the proposed location Second Street has only two lanes in each direction,” White said. “And there’s a traffic light right there at the corner of Cypress Street. I would be concerned about the traffic aspect.”
Village Planning Board Chairman Joe Ostuni Jr. said a traffic study will be conducted. The New York State Department of Transportation will eventually have to approve the plan if it moves forward.
Meanwhile, the City-County Planning Board examined initial plans and advised the trustees to consider how a Dunkin’ Donuts would affect villages pedestrians and impact vehicular traffic.
The trustees tabled a vote on the code modification because two of its five members were absent on Feb. 29. Trustee Nick Kochan, who chaired the committee that formulated the Comprehensive Plan, was unable to attend, as was Trustee Dennis Hebert.
Future public hearings will be scheduled by the Planning Board, Ostuni said.
“This is not a done deal,” Ostuni said. “We’ve still got a long way to go.”
The next village board meeting is 7 p.m. Monday, March 21, while the next planning board meeting will be 7 p.m. Monday, March 28.
