By Jason Klaiber

Staff Writer

During a meeting that lasted more than three hours, the Town of Manlius Planning Board opened two separate public hearings on planned Fayetteville developments on July 22.

In the community room of the fire station on Cazenovia Road, the board heard from about two dozen area residents over the course of the evening.

The first public hearing concerned a two-lot subdivision and site plan designed to accommodate a Chase Bank building in Fayetteville’s Towne Center.

Owned by COR Development Company, LLC, the 1.88-acre parcel on the corner of North Burdick Street and Route 5 would retain its gazebo, planters, flower beds, flagpole and brick bases, according to the proposal.

The clock tower in the private park would be relocated, and the bank would be built in the place of green space and a stretch of sidewalk.

The site plan includes two vehicle entrances, 35 parking spaces and an ATM structure.

The project would involve construction on a floodplain, but the property would continue to comply with town flood codes according to developers.

After the board went through the state environmental quality review (SEQR) determination, members of the public began stepping up to the podium.

Concerns voiced about the Towne Center development pertained to such issues as water runoff and the potential danger stemming from sidewalk removal.

Some residents said that without a sidewalk pedestrians and bicyclists would face a greater risk in the face of speeding cars.

One community member said the planned reduction of green space rejects the commitment to the environment that has earned both Fayetteville and Manlius Tree City USA designations.

Wilson Simmons, a Fayetteville resident, said the proposed Chase Bank would be an “eyesore.”

She said the construction would likely be disruptive toward birds and bees in the area as well.

“As citizens, we don’t have anyone watching out for our environment,” Simmons said.

The planning board decided to take the application under advisement and make a resolution at its Aug. 12 meeting.

The second public hearing dealt with the proposed development of 21 new homes near Shiraz and Hoag lanes.

Representing the applicant, attorney Tom Blair said the housing development would not affect any flora, fauna or northern long-eared bat habitats.

A 10-foot-deep retention basin, measuring about 100 by 200 feet, would also be constructed to combat the water that drains down onto Hoag Lane after rainfall and floods the road as well as the yards of several homes.

During the public hearing on the Hoag Lane development, Matt Mulcahy, a Fayetteville resident and local news anchor, said water would not easily funnel into the retention pond.

Mulcahy said there needs to be more transparency regarding how long the Woodland Hills Subdivision project will take to be completed.

He also questioned the need for 21 more homes when there are about 90 homes on the market in the area.

Other members of the public said increased traffic flow would result from trucks on construction duty and homeowners moving into the cluster development.

Some residents said the retention pond would breed mosquitoes.

The development plan did have a few supporters, one of whom said the new homes would possibly liven up the community by bringing in young families.

The board planned for the public hearing to be reopened at the Aug. 26 meeting.