By Ashley M. Casey
Staff Writer
The village of Baldwinsville is looking to return a number of its planned development districts to their original zoning.
After researching the 1990 local law that established the Phillips Street PDD, village attorney Bob Baldwin realized the law did not mention a timetable for site plans, so there are no guidelines for potential developers.
“You can’t just hold onto [the property] forever,” Mayor Dick Clarke told the Messenger of the PDD’s lack of guidelines. “Maybe our best bet is to turn it back into a regular zoning district.”
At the Aug. 18 Village Board of Trustees meeting, the board voted to repeal the Phillips Street PDD law so they can restore R-1 residential zoning. A public hearing will be held at 7:30 p.m. Sept. 1.
Once the Phillips Street PDD is resolved, the village is looking to restore three other PDDs to their original zoning: the Downer Street PDD, the Meigs/Canton Street PDD and the Smokey Hollow PDD, where the North West Fire District had sought to build a new fire station last year.
Updates from the mayor
Before the board voted to eliminate the Phillips Street PDD, Mayor Clarke updated the board and residents on a few topics:
• Fewer concerts: Clarke dispelled rumors that the village’s decibel limit was to blame for the dip in concerts at Paper Mill Island. He said the village board has not voted to change the sound restriction as long as he has been on the board.
Clarke said Central New Yorkers may be more likely to see big-name acts at the Lakeview Amphitheater in Geddes, so promoters may not book as many shows at PMI.
• Lights on the bridge: Clarke said he has received several inquiries as to why the village no longer lights up the Syracuse Street bridge and dam.
“When you look at a budget that has no room for a tax increase because of the tax cap … that’s hard to prioritize [the lights] at the top of the list,” Clarke said.
The village is looking into an alternate revenue source to bring back the lights, but Clarke said the village cannot solicit donations. However, Baldwinsville can accept unsolicited donations.
Clarke noted that the village sometimes received complaints about the lights from drivers who mistook them for traffic lights, but now that they are gone, some residents are asking, “Where are those lights we loved so much?”
• Landings at Meadowood: Clarke reported that developers of the Landings at Meadowood, the luxury apartments at the former Tri-County Mall, have secured permits for Phase I of their project and had hoped to begin renting to tenants in October.
However, Morgan Management has run into a delay with National Grid, so they may not be able to welcome tenants to the Landings at Meadowood until January 2017.
