1970-02-19

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POWKU, HOUSK 1700 FARMINGDALE OBSERVER
WHERE THE HISTORY OF YOUR COMMUNITY IS RECORDED WEEKLY
An Official Newspaper <> f The incorporated Village of Farmingdale - Serving Greater Farmingdale, BethpaRi* and Melville
Vol. 7 No. 26 Second Class Postage* has been paid at Farmingdale, N. Y. I 17.' Jf> Thursday, February 19, 1970
COMMUNITY GROUPS JOIN
IN BROTHERHOOD PROGRAM Farmingdale will participate in Brotherhood Week beginning -
Sunday at 3 p. m. at Farmingdale Senior High School with a well -
rounded program supported by a broad cross section of religious and
organizational groups who will provide top talent for an afternoon of
entertainment.
The program will be climaxed by the naming of the man- of- the- year
award.
A co- ordinating committee made up of members of Rotary, Kiwanis
and Lions, stated this week that performers have been heard at
rehearsal under the professional guidance of dance choreographer
Grace Leone, musical director Gene Gilroy and producers Ed
Lamberti and Norma Mulgreen.
As part of Brotherhood Week, a group of youngsters will make door-to-
door solicitations for CARE, according to Mrs. Pat Schriro.
chairman of the project ' World Children's Day'
Ronald Shircore will act as Master of Ceremonies for the 3 p. m
program, which will begin the official observance of Brotherhood -
Week and so proclaimed officially.
Residents Protest Added Traffic To Residential Area
About 20 residents from
Prospect Street protested
Monday . night at Village Hall, the
application by the firm of
certified public accountants,
Albrecht. Marmaro, and
Viggiano and builder Ed Henn on
their application to resone a 140
foot front on Prospect Street from
Residence B' to Business ' D' in
order to provide the parking area
for a proposed two- story office
building fronting on Pulton Street
and on the southeast corner or
West and Prospect Streets.
George Schriro, of 121 Prospect
Street reminded the Board that
any rezoning from Residence ' B'
to Business ' D' is " opening up the
floodgates for similar requests."
He said. " Our area is zoned
residential and we seek to
safeguard it". Schriro and others
present went on to say that
" traffic was a very re il
problem" They cited the use that
Bankers Trust customers have
made of the driveway to the
Lutheran Church bringing more
traffic onto Prospect. They also
mentioned the theatre and the
post office as bringing additional
traffic to Prospect Street and
charged that Brune Motors
servicemen were using the road
as a road test for cars.
Charles Cronin, attorney for
the petitioner, explained that the
continuous land was zoned
" Business D" where office use
was permitted. He said that the
proposal was to use the northeast
corner as a drive- in banking
facility for Franklin National
Bank
Although the village parking
ordinance specified the need for
46 parking spaces for the square
tootage ot the building, the
architectural plans provided for
: V2 parking stalls plus 14 drive- up
spaces.
Cronin explained that the plans
called for routing traffic to the
north side of the building and only
a small curb cut on Prospect of 12
feet would restrict it to one way
traffic. On Fulton Street plans
calls for a 25 foot curb cut and on
West Street, a 22 foot curb cut.
Cronin characterized the
neighborhood on Fulton as zoned
business and admitted that
Prospect was a residential street.
He said that a Paul H. Boone at 30
Prospect Street, who was an
abutting neighbor, was interested
in a 10 foot fence or someother
screening device. He also quoted
a James J. Farrell, whose main
objection was the traffic but said
that right hand turn from
Raising funds for Farmingdale next Sunday's World Children's Day, are three members of Wei don
E. Howitt Junior High School's new club for Ninth grade girls. The Freshmanettes. Regina Morabito.
( I) Rose Sunonelli ( r), President and Kathy Smith are looking over their material going from class
room to classroom with their collection envelopes. Not pictured is Mrs. Edith Brodofsky, advisor
Prospect was agreeable to him.
Cronin said that the petitioner
was also asking for a variance on
the parking requirements.
A Harry Hose from the
Franklin National Bank
addressed the Board and
explained that the proposed
drive- in windows would be used
in conjunction with their branch
at Conklin and Main. The
proposed ' annex' would have two
windows they would probably
wish to be open from 8 a. m. to 4
p. m. and on Friday nights from 6
p. m. to 8 p. m.
Trustee Willis B. Carman Jr.
asked how many transactions
were anticipated on a Friday
evening. Hose answered about
eighty'.
Pat Romanelli, of Romanelli
Fuel, of 274 Fulton Street, spoke
in favor of the petitioner. He said
that West Street as a wooded area
was a blind spot and that an office
building would be a big
improvement to the business
area.
Robert E. Johnson of 125
Prospect Street said he believed
that Prospect was one of the
more desirable residential
streets He cited the Bankers
Trust traffic and the Brune
Motors traffic and said that the
office building and Franklin bank
windows would be adding to the
commercial traffic. He said that
he was violently opposed to any
further commercializing of
Prospect Street".
A Charles Collier of 26 Cobb
Place, queried the petitioner
about the number of windows
that would be in his back yard. He
expressed fear that it would be
" like a peep show" and of his loss
of privacy Cronin assured him
that the occupants would
probably be out by 5 p. m. Collier
said that he often used his
backyard in the daytime
The public accounting firm,
would take one third to one half of
the building and they would seek
another tenant for the remainder
A Wilbur Buck, of 177. Prospoct
Street, said that he was in
agreement with his neighbors
that they did not want
downzoning and they were
against the additional traffic the
facility would bring.
Elizabeth Delaney of 148
Prospect Street cited the traffic
problem since she lived opposite
the St. Luke Lutheran Driveway
where the Bankers Trust traffic
added to commercial traffic.
Nicholas Ez/. o of 141 Prospect
Street said that Prospect couldn't
stand any more traffic from
another bank. " It's like a regular
parade. It's a shame."
Mrs. Elaine Ezzo of the same
address expressed alarm at the
amount of traffic the banking
windows would bring.
Village Attorney Joseph Stern
asked Sebastian Albrecht whether
it would be possible to build a
smaller building. Albrecht an­swered
that with the cost of the
land and the building it would
make it uneconomical.
Stern also asked whether the
eliminationof the drive- in banking
facility would be possible.
Albrecht explained that he had
been in Farmingdale for L! U years
beginning on the second floor of
his father- in- law's building, the
C, U. Schmidt building with one
desk. Now he has 19 people
altogether and two people at one
desk. He said that he had looked
on Route 111) tor a suitable place,
but his roots were in the Village.
He said that his architect. Joseph
DeMarco had considered putting
the building on stilts with parking
underneath, but that an elevator
would make it prohibitive in cost
The building would be a split
level so that only one halt a flight
would have to be walked and also
that the building would be lower
tor aesthetic reasons. He said
that the people in the oil ice
building would not onr> probabl>
shop in town but the laeih(>
would add t<> the assessed
valuation ul the Village and die
School district
Acling . Mayor. John T
Hallahan closed Hie public
hearing and said thai decision
would be reserved