By Jason Klaiber

Staff Writer

During the Village of East Syracuse’s monthly meeting, the board opened a public hearing concerning a zone change, which the board ultimately voted to approve.

The public hearing concerned the rezoning of the property at 108 Silver St., the address of a building formerly used as a Masonic lodge, from a residential district to a general commercial district classification.

Custom embroidery business LOGOS Plus operated out of the building on a use variance to make and sell items like shirts from 1999 to 2017 before moving to 6167 Eastern Ave.

The property was then sold to Chad Tolhurst and Raymond White, the current owners.

Dick Robb, an East Syracuse resident, was the only community member to speak in front of the village board during the public hearing.

Robb said the proposed zoning would be “inadvisable,” recommending the board members table the application until after they consulted with the village’s zoning board.

“Rezoning this property is not something, in my opinion, that should be done,” he said.

According to Robb, potential uses for the property after the zone change would include food shops, parking lots, hotels, hospitals, bars, fueling stations, vehicle repair shops and zoos.

He said the zone change would also introduce commercial business onto Ellis Street, which remains mostly residential.

“We should be asking ourselves, ‘Who will benefit from the rezoning?’” Robb said. “Will the benefits flow to the owner, the neighbors and the community as a whole?”

Chris Shields, the code enforcement officer for the village, said the now-vacant, three-story building had been designed to be a lodge hall, not a residential space.

“Once you look at the place inside, you’re going to realize this is never going to be a house,” Shields said. “It’s impossible. It was never meant to be a house. It’s going to sit empty until who knows when.”

Shields said architects who examined the building said hundreds of thousands of dollars would be required to remodel the one-time lodge, built in 1911, and turn it into a single-family or two-family home.

One indicator of its past as a lodge, Shields said, is that the first floor contains a wide open area that leads to a mezzanine.

“I’ve been inside the building, and there is no way that building will ever be residential,” Deputy Mayor Kimberly Liedka said.

After closing the public hearing, the village board approved the rezoning of 108 Silver St. to a general commercial district.

Meeting Notes

The board also approved a resolution detailing a hazard mitigation program around the village.

Mayor Robert Tackman said this program would deal with issues like damage caused by trees, storms and flooding in the area.

Additionally, the Village of East Syracuse will be holding a fall festival at 230 Kinne St. on Saturday, Oct. 19 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.

A planning board meeting will take place at the village hall located at 204 North Center St. at 4:30 p.m. on Oct. 21, regarding plans for a new Byrne Diary store to be built in East Syracuse.

These plans could either be approved or denied by the village board at its regular 7 p.m. meeting on Nov. 4.