By Russ Tarby

Contributing Writer

The proposed Meyer Manor apartment complex stands one step closer to becoming reality. On Monday, Dec. 18, the village of Liverpool Board of Trustees approved a zone-change from R-1 to R-3 for the development’s entryway at 1225 Tulip St.

The board approved the zone-change by a vote of 4-1, with Trustee Bradley Young dissenting. Because the development’s entrance would be located just north of the Thruway bridge, Young expressed concern for traffic safety.

“That bridge freezes before the road does,” he said. “I’m worried about the possibility of a fatal accident there.”

Young and Trustee Christina Fadden Fitch also discussed how the planned elimination of the wooded area could impact wildlife.

More than 30 residents of the Johnson Tract, which abuts the planned development, attended the Dec. 18 meeting at Village Hall. Many of them had spoken out against the Meyer Manor plan at a Sept. 18 public hearing. Several cited increased noise and traffic, intrusive lighting, lack of privacy and destruction of greenspace as reasons to deny the zone change. Others complained that the 108 apartments would draw “transient” residents.

Peg Salvatore, president of the Johnson Tract Neighborhood Group, said in September, “We’re against this development which infringes on our right to the quiet enjoyment of our homes.”

Because the eight-acre property is within the village, the trustees were asked to grant a zone change from R-1 to R-3 for the entryway. Some 90 percent of the property owned by Marvin Meyer is already zoned R-3, allowing for multiple-family dwellings.

Local developer Cosimo Zavaglia plans to purchase Meyer’s property to construct a 108-apartment complex called Meyer Manor Apartments just south Donald Place.  

At the December meeting, Fadden Fitch said the addition of multiple-family dwellings to the neighborhood would certainly be a change but could be “a positive thing.”

Mayor Gary White, who supported the zone change, said, “Our process has been open, and we held two public hearings… I think we’ve done our job. Now it goes back to the planning board.”

Meyer and Zavaglia have been seeking approval from the village for more than two years.

LPD stats for November

At the trustees’ Dec. 18 meeting, in a memo delivered by Trustee Matt Devendorf, Liverpool Police Chief Donald Morris reported his department’s activity during the previous month.

In November, LPD officers made 299 traffic stops and issued 226 citations for violations of the state’s vehicle and traffic laws. They also made four arrests for driving while intoxicated, investigated 10 accidents and issued 42 parking tickets.

Officers made 157 residential property checks last month while responding a total of 581 incidents and calls for service.

The department made 39 arrests that month on a total of 58 criminal charges.