HomeMy WebLinkAboutZBA-12/01/2016 Hearing
TOWN OF SOUTHOLD ZONING BOARD OF APPEALS
COUNTY OF SUFFOLK: STATE OF NEW YORK
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TOWN OF SOUTHOLD
ZONING BOARD OF APPEALS
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Southold Town Hall
Southold, New York
December 1, 2016
9:38 A.M.
Board Members Present:
LESLIE KANES WEISMAN - Chairperson/Member
ERIC DANTES – Member
GERARD GOEHRINGER – Member
GEORGE HORNING – Member
KENNETH SCHNEIDER – Member
KIM FUENTES – Board Assistant
WILLIAM DUFFY – Town Attorney
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December 1, 2016 Regular Meeting
INDEX OF HEARINGS
Hearing Page
Doug Gerowski #6973 3 – 5
Donna and Fred Fragola #7004 6 - 12
Frank Zagarino #7008 12 - 23
Philip Wasilausky #7001 24 - 29
Adam Suprenant #7002 29 - 43
Jeff and Jaime Abrams #7003 43 - 52
John and Catherine Boyle #7005 52 - 58
Revco Lighting & Electrical Supply/Stodien Development #7006 58 - 61
Frank and Denise Dellaquilla #7007 61 - 66
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December 1, 2016 Regular Meeting
HEARING # 6973 – DOUG GEROWSKI
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : The first application before the Board is for Doug Gerowski #6973.
There is no need for me to read the Notice of Disapproval because it was adjourned from
October 6 th and there was a prior adjournment as well so where are we with this it’s a just for
the record 24.2% proposed lot coverage where the code permits a maximum 20% and we were
looking at Trustees approving wetland line and so on so where are we with that?
PAT MOORE : Yes well we had the hearing with the Trustees and the Trustees approved the
application as it’s been proposed as far as the structure goes. They did ask us and I’ll give you a
photograph to create an easier delineation of where the wetland the setbacks would be with
respect to setbacks of the wetland and they suggested putting in a post and rail fence as a
means of blocking off activity within the wetland area. Ultimately we’re going we’re preparing a
landscape plan Pete Kasteo is in the process of preparing a landscape plan to revegetate the
buffer area. That buffer area had been encroached by prior owners and while it was planted
there is some vegetation that is non-native turf. In addition there was a small shed that was
placed there again by prior owners that was removed from the buffer area so all of the prior
permit conditions have been cleaned up here. All obviously occurring by prior owners and Mr.
Gerowski and his family when they bought the house since there were no covenants these
weren’t noted as violations. The Trustees did not issue a violation they just asked us to clean it
up so we have cleaned up all of the existing conditions and I’m awaiting the decision of the
Trustees because they want to see the landscape plan so we will incorporate the landscape
plan I believe in the Trustees decision. I’m not sure how they are doing it since I haven’t seen it.
The only thing being that we’re going to use my memory is we’re using the pool and patio as
the area limit of clearing behind the house and then the Trustees asked if we could put the split
rail fence on the sides of the property just to control some the access coming around the side of
the house from the corners. So we’ll once I get the decision I’ll know exactly how they’ve
interpreted or stated what they want. We’ll also file covenants of the wetland regulations so for
the most part everything is being cleaned up. I have photographs of and I don’t know that I
gave them to you the Trustees just wanted to make sure that before we put it back on their
agenda that we had the fifty foot limit of clearing line established with a fence. This is a
temporary fence. It was fencing he had available and it was put up. Ultimately the final
structure the patio and you know will replace this area so it just shows the shed that was
removed and where the wetland the fifty foot wetland line clearing area was established. Yea
there was some confusion I guess at the last hearing exactly what the cross section or what the
patio would look like and so I had the cross section done.
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December 1, 2016 Regular Meeting
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : So it’s about a four foot elevation of (inaudible) up against it.
MEMBER SCHNEIDER : Yea but because of the contour of the land at that point nictitates a in
other words they couldn’t do a pool with a patio at grade which would reduce lot coverage.
PAT MOORE : Correct yes.
MEMBER SCHNEIDER : Am I correct in that.
BOARD MEMBERS : Agreed.
PAT MOORE : As you can see the existing patio because again the grade of the property drops
towards the creek in the photograph I just showed you the patio is a little bit of a step up and
that’s not even at grade so the pool if we were starting we would dig into the ground you might
end up hitting water and being affected by that.
MEMBER DANTES : How are you going to handle storm, rain drainage?
PAT MOORE : Dry wells are actually being proposed but those are landward. They’re I believe
on the survey it’s being shown on the side more about I would say like 75 feet from the edge of
wetlands.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Well Pat where do we go from here? We don’t have any official final
documentation about the flagging the wetland, the landscape plan or whatever. I don’t know
that we need more testimony particularly.
PAT MOORE : No I would say why don’t we just leave the hearing
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Let the Trustees go first and we’ll leave the hearing open
PAT MOORE : Or you give us we need the variance for the lot coverage so that in the sense is
independent of the Trustees determination. Any conditions the Trustees impose we’ll place on
a covenant so there’s really no need for you to incorporate the Trustees you know your lot
coverage variance is somewhat independent so you could close it and give me a determination
so that I can kind of move this process along or we leave it open and then you wait till the
Trustees write the decision. It should be imminent Pete Kasteo was away during Thanksgiving
and we actually have an email to him today saying hey, have you done the drawings yet? It
should be this week we should get the drawings from him to give to the Trustees. It’s very it’s
really wrapping up right?
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Well why don’t we just adjourn to the Special Meeting and then
maybe we’ll have all the paperwork that’s two weeks.
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December 1, 2016 Regular Meeting
PAT MOORE : That’s fine we’re running them concurrently so that’s fine.
CHAIRPERSON WIESMAN : I mean you need both you know to move ahead.
PAT MOORE : It’s not necessary for me to come back
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Given all the conversation about something from the Trustees that
shows the wetlands delineation the fact that either we all understand exactly what you’re
proposing but the fact that we don’t have anything specific in our file yet suggests that we
should wait until we do and then we can
PAT MOORE : No problem. We appreciate the fact that this was put on the calendar just to be
able to move this along so yea that’s not a problem.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Alright well we’ll adjourn is that alright with everybody? Is there
anyone in the audience who wishes to address the application? Hearing no further questions or
comments I’m going to make a motion to adjourn this hearing to the Special Meeting two
weeks from today what’s that date.
MEMBER GOEHRINGER : Second.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : the 15 th December 15 th and then hopefully
PAT MOORE : It’s not for testimony it’s for decision and just give us the right to submit
something in writing if we need to clarify something.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Yea, yea written documentation from the applicant and Trustees per
wetland delineation.
PAT MOORE : Okay that’s fine.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : If we have it fine if not we’ll just adjourn it again until we do. I see no
reason for anymore testimony. Gerry seconded it, all in favor?
MEMBER HORNING : Aye.
MEMBER SCHNEIDER : Aye.
MEMBER GOEHRINGER : Aye.
MEMBER DANTES : Aye.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Aye.
(See Minutes for Resolution)
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December 1, 2016 Regular Meeting
HEARING # 7004 – DONNA and FRED FRAGOLA
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : The next application before the Board is for Donna and Fred Fragola
#7004 also known as AKA ADF Ventures. This is a request for Variances from Article XXIII
Section 280-124 and the Building Inspector’s August 23, 2016 Notice of Disapproval based on
an application for a building permit to construct a new single family dwelling at 1) less than the
code required minimum front yard setback of 35 feet, 2) less than the code required minimum
rear yard setback of 35 feet located at 620 Corwin Street in Greenport. Is someone here to
represent this application?
BILL KELLY : Bill Kelly authorized agent for the owner.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Nice to see again Bill. This is for a front yard setback for a new single
family dwelling at 11.2 feet the code requiring 35 foot minimum and a rear yard setback at 10
feet, the code requiring 35 foot minimum. So what would you like to tell us about this
application?
BILL KELLY : As far as that particular piece of property goes it’s a pre-existing non-conforming
lot and you know if you do the math on the setbacks 35 and 35 is 70 and you know they
actually bypass each other if you go front to back and back to front so we need relief from that
because of that situation and it’s a pre-existing non-conforming lot. However, it’s conforming in
its non-conformity to the area so that’s the reason for our request.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Can you tell us a little bit about other typical front yard setbacks or
rear yard setbacks in the neighborhood?
BILL KELLY : I have a five hundred foot radius map that actually shows it’s not dimensioned is to
scale but it’s not dimension. We just didn’t have time to get one and I have more than one copy
so I’d like to present that to the Board at this time. If you look at that map and you look at
Corwin you know the proposed property and you look at all the houses in that area in close
proximity to it you can see that some of them are right on the front yard line, some of them
extend from the front yard line all the way to the rear yard line, several are on the side yard line
so it’s a case where if you’re going down 7 th Street most of the houses are less than ten feet off
of the front yard.
MEMBER HORNING : Sir who is Mr. Fragola?
BILL KELLY : This is Fred Fragola.
MEMBER HORNING : So you’re going to purchase the property from?
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December 1, 2016 Regular Meeting
BILL KELLY : He already owns the property.
MEMBER HORNING : He owns the property?
BILL KELLY : Yea.
MEMBER HORNING : What is ADF roll in this?
BILL KELLY : I don’t believe ADF’s role is no longer part of this. It’s under Donna and Fred
Fragola.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Hold it you have to just state your name for the record.
FRED FRAGOLA : Fred Fragola, ADF Ventures is just an LLC with my daughter, my wife and my
name that’s it nothing else. We are the sole owner of the property (inaudible) ADF.
MEMBER HORNING : The property didn’t change hands?
FRED FRAGOLA : No sir.
MEMBER HORNING : Right cause on the tax records there was no indication of any property
changing hands from ADF to
FRED FRAGOLA : It was just titled you know with the LLC to ADF but the principal of the
property ADF Ventures is I my wife and my daughter.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : I should also state for the record that the subject property was
originally zoned light industrial and that the Town Board did change that zoning to residential
which is the basis for this new application.
BILL KELLY : That’s correct yes as per the request of the neighborhood.
MEMBER HORNING : When was the zone change put into place?
BILL KELLY : It was just recently I think it was the public meeting was July 12 th of this year 2016.
MEMBER HORNING : Shortly after that?
BILL KELLY : Yea they approved it at that meeting.
MEMBER HORNING : Oh they approved it at that meeting?
BILL KELLY : I’ll say yes to that.
MEMBER HORNING : July 12 th?
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December 1, 2016 Regular Meeting
BILL KELLY : Yea July 12 th. So by the time they did the resolution
T.A. DUFFY : It’s usually not approved the same day. It’s usually two weeks later. I can get you
the date it was adopted.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Anything from the Board? We are familiar with the neighborhood, of
course.
MEMBER DANTES : How does the size of this building compare to other sizes of non-conforming
structures in the neighborhood?
BILL KELLY : I would say it’s relatively the same it’s under 20% of the lot coverage so from that
standpoint it’s code compliant. There are houses and there are large houses if you look at the
radius map you can see that there’s some houses on the properties that actually spent front to
back side to side so they’re well over 20% lot coverage. So we’re compliant in our lot coverage
percentage.
MEMBER GOEHRINGER : Bill this is the only lot that was the zoning was change on just this
BILL KELLY : That’s correct yes. It was an L.I. zone and we had it changed to residential R40 and
going back through the records we can find that in the fifties in one point and time it was a
residential zone and that’s kind of what lead the way
MEMBER GOEHRINGER : Then it became an L.I.
BILL KELLY : It became an L.I. and you know so that kind of made it an easy determination to put
it back to a residential lot.
MEMBER HORNING : Is it correct to say you said I think that you cannot meet the setback
requirements front and rear because
BILL KELLY : The depth of the property because of the depth of the property you know it’s a bit
of a triangular shaped parcel and I think at the widest point it’s like well let me just rather than
think let me at the widest point it’s 66.24 feet so like I said if you do the math you add 35 and
35 that’s 70 feet so those setback lines actually bypass each other so it would be physically
impossible to do it. We’d have to do a negative structure.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Bill I have a question. On the floor plan first floor plan you know that
we have for the house under on the right hand side it says data first floor garage 1908 square
feet, second floor apartment 1908 square feet.
BILL KELLY : That’s correct.
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December 1, 2016 Regular Meeting
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : We cannot approve an apartment in a garage that is a brand new
building.
BILL KELLY : That has to be restated that’s a residence. So it’s all in one.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Wait a minute you’re saying
BILL KELLY : It shouldn’t be
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : It’s not an accessory?
BILL KELLY : No it’s a single family dwelling with first floor garage and second floor living space.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Is it a second dwelling unit or is it a house?
BILL KELLY : No it’s the house.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : You better have that corrected on this plan because I don’t want to
be stamping a plan that suggests that there is a
BILL KELLY : It’s connected by a stairwell meaning that there’s no separation where you can’t
access one from the other and the intent is for it to be a single family dwelling.
MEMBER DANTES : All she’s saying is take off first floor garage and second floor apartment and
just write first floor square footage second floor square footage.
BILL KELLY : Okay.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Because it is a single family dwelling with an attached garage.
BILL KELLY : That’s correct.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : And habitable space above the garage.
BILL KELLY : That is correct yes.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Okay so that’s fine I just don’t want to be approving inadvertently a
second dwelling on the property.
T.A. DUFFY : You know it’s not lost the first application was for a commercial use to store
vehicles for a business and now the way it’s worded make it seem like there’s going to be an
intent to use the garage for a business and rent out the upstairs and have two uses.
BILL KELLY : I understand that. That’s not the case. It’s a single family dwelling.
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December 1, 2016 Regular Meeting
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : So it’s a two story single family dwelling.
BILL KELLY : That’s correct.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : With attached garage.
MEMBER HORNING : The square footage the same.
BILL KELLY : The square footage is the same and then code at this point and time as a residential
zone code prohibited the use as a commercial.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : So essentially the dwelling is above the garage it looks like.
BILL KELLY : That is correct.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : It’s like the whole floor area in other words the whole bottom how
many it’s a two car garage right? It looks like there’s space it’s quite deep.
BILL KELLY : Yes.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Is there going to be some workshop or additional storage.
BILL KELLY : The intent is to house a motor home and I believe a boat.
FRED FRAGOLA : So the intent is not to use it commercially. It is exclusively for residential. The
motor coach is not only 45 feet long it goes in one bay and the other bay my other personal we
have a zodiac and we have jet skis and another car so believe it or not 53 feet is very, very tight
with everything in it.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : How big is your coach?
FRED FRAGOLA : Forty five is the one I’m looking at. Whether I can afford it or not after this will
be determined. The present coach I have now is 25 to 26 feet long. The height of these motor
coaches are normally 11 to 12 feet we learned out the hard way we pulled it into a garage and
took the air conditioning off. So that’s why you have the 14 foot ceilings.
MEMBER GOEHRINGER : But the house will not exceed the required 35 whatever it is?
FRED FRAGOLA : The garage is integrated with the second floor. It’s all one rectangular
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Well now I understand why you want such a big garage. I mean it’s
not the width that’s so huge but it’s the depth that’s more than most depth sometimes people
do that because they need storage if they don’t have a basement.
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December 1, 2016 Regular Meeting
FRED FRAGOLA : Well you know the condition there we can’t dig in a basement and the height
of the vehicle and for what it’s worth my commercial building is now in Southampton so we’re
not even in this area.
MEMBER DANTES : What’s the elevation like the height of the first floor?
BILL KELLY : The height of the first floor is 15 feet to the underside of the ceiling then you have
essentially a foot of thickness for the floor system and then you have 8 feet so 15 and 9 is 24
and then the pitch of the roof etc. etc. it’s actually is under 30 feet in height and peak height is
actually on a residential they don’t go by peak height they go by the midpoint of the gable
which is 32 or 35? So we’re well below that we’re well below that yea midpoint to our gable is
probably 24 feet.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : So I guess Eric (inaudible) your question was how does the square
footage of this house compare to the average square footage in the neighborhood.
BILL KELLY : It’s not the smallest house in the neighborhood and it would probably be in the
realm of you know along the line of the larger houses in the neighborhood. I can take it to 500
you know the radius map and square foot everything out and you know my point is this is that
compared to the other properties in the neighborhood it meets the lot coverage requirement.
It’s less than 19.99% and 20% is allowed so if you look at the other lots that are in the
neighborhood that are similar size you can see some of them are well beyond what the lot
coverage percentage would be allowed under current conditions because they go front to back
side to side and you’re assuming that most of the lots in the neighborhood are nine to ten
thousand square feet so that means it’s not the largest house in the neighborhood. That’s
without putting dimensions actual dimensions to it. Nor would it be the tallest house in the
neighborhood.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Anything from anybody else?
MEMBER HORNING : Do you feel you can have a narrower house and increase the setbacks?
BILL KELLY : No and the reason is this because of the width of the motor coach which if you
measure motor coaches mirror to mirror it’s roughly twelve feet wide and in this case with the
overhead doors that we’re using you’d actually have to pull those mirrors in and to get access
into the property off the street to back it into place you need a little bit of space on either side
of the door you know so you could the motor coach mirror to mirror measures probably about
11 feet. If you pull the mirrors in you’re down to about 10 feet and so you need a little bit of
room for maneuvering so we have two like kind doors on either side so twelve I’m sorry
fourteen and fourteen is twenty eight so that’s just to the overhead doors it doesn’t count the
space in between the doors or the space on either side of the doors so that’s the reason we
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December 1, 2016 Regular Meeting
selected the size. That’s the smallest width we could go and meet the requirements of the
motor coach and the other stuff that’s going and be able to back it in.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Anything else from anybody, anyone in the audience wishing to
address the application? Hearing no further questions or comments I’m going to close the
hearing subject to receipt on an amended or corrected floor plan eliminating that label data
reference to an apartment. Is there a second?
MEMBER GOEHRINGER : Second.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : All in favor?
MEMBER HORNING : Aye.
MEMBER GOEHRINGER : Aye.
MEMBER SCHNEIDER : Aye.
MEMBER DANTES : Aye.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Aye.
(See Minutes for Resolution)
HEARING # 7008 – FRANK ZAGARINO
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : The next application before the Board is for Frank Zagarino #7008.
This is a request for variances from Article III Section 280-15 and Article XXIII Section 280-124
and the Building Inspector’s September 2, 2016 Notice of Disapproval based on an application
to demolish an existing single family dwelling and rebuild a new single family dwelling at 1)
proposed single family dwelling is less than the code required rear yard minimum setback of 35
feet, 2) proposed single family dwelling is less than the code required combined minimum side
yard setback of 25 feet, 3) proposed construction places existing 100 sq. ft. accessory shed in
other than the code required rear yard, 4) proposed construction places existing 164 sq. ft.
accessory shed in other than the code required rear yard located at 200 South Oakwood Drive
in Laurel.
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December 1, 2016 Regular Meeting
JODI GIGLIO : Good morning madam chair and members of the Board. My name is Jodi Giglio of
Bennet Enterprises with offices at 1101 Scott Ave. Calverton New York on behalf of the
applicant, Frank Zagarino. The subject premises is located on the west side of Oakwood Drive
212 feet south of Peconic Bay Blvd. The application as you stated is for a rear yard variance 10
feet where 35 feet is required and total side yard variances of 20 feet where 25 feet is required.
Also the sheds in the front yard oversized sheds in the front yard. There is an existing home on
the property that according to the property card was built in 1960. Several additions over the
years have taken place to both the family and the home and current rear yard setback at its
closest point is 4 feet to the western property line and the existing stairway is 3 feet from the
northern property line. The applicant did appear before the Zoning Board of Appeals back on
May 19, 2009 as file #6257 where the applicant did request a 10 foot rear yard setback for a
proposed new home and that application was approved. They also had requested a lot
coverage variance of 23% where 20% is permitted and that was also approved. So I’d like to
recall the minutes of that May 19 th hearing and make them a part of this record; if that’s
acceptable to you.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Sure.
JODI GIGLIO : Okay great and I just wanted to say that the character of the neighborhood most
of the homes on the block on Oakwood at least on the west side of Oakwood are very close to
the rear yards. The setbacks are actually most of them are in line with what we’re proposing
today and some of them are actually closer to the rear yard. By moving this house up the to
another fifteen or twenty five feet as required by the code it would look out of character with
the neighborhood because all of the houses are setback with these great front yards. Also the
hardship being self-created the house was situated in this location in 1960 when it was built.
The sheds that we’re discussing are a hardship to the applicant because he has had several back
surgeries and it’s very difficult for him to store any equipment in the basement of the home
which is why he has the two sheds proposed and is seeking variances for them but he’s here to
speak on those sheds if the Board has any questions on the sheds. As far as the environmental
impacts there will be a new sanitary system that’s being proposed with the home so that would
actually improve the sanitary conditions and water quality in the area because the sanitary
system the newly installed sanitary system would be up to date. We don’t believe that the
demolition and construction of the new dwelling would be a detriment to surrounding
properties or the values thereof because we’re going to be putting in a new home that is more
in character with the homes that are currently in the area. If the Board has any questions I’d be
more than happy to answer them or have Mr. Zagarino come up and answer any questions that
you may have with regards to the shed.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : George you want to start.
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December 1, 2016 Regular Meeting
MEMBER HORNING : Yes. The sheds in the front yard don’t seem to be characteristic of the
neighborhood.
JODI GIGLIO : You’re right.
MEMBER HORNING : So what do you think what do you propose with that?
JODI GIGLIO : Well seeing as the rear yard is minimal as I had stated in all of these scenarios up
and down the street it would be very difficult to put a shed in the rear yard. I know that the one
shed was on the application and in looking back through the prior Zoning Board case I don’t
know why we were never denied for that or why it wasn’t a matter of the May 19, 2009 hearing
but the one smaller shed did exist and has existed on the property for approximately fifteen
years. The larger shed I think is the one that Mr. Zagarino is going to be asking you to allow him
to keep. The smaller shed is currently used for yard equipment and the larger shed is used for
his equipment that he can store for his business which is movies in the moonlight and I you
know it’s very difficult as I said for Mr. Zagarino to get up and down the basement with the
heavy equipment that he needs so if you’d like Mr. Zagarino to come up and address any
questions that you have with regards to the shed and
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Yea let’s do that first and then we can look at
JODI GIGLIO : Great thank you.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Please state your name for the record.
FRANK ZAGARINO : Frank Zagarino.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMA : Thank you and tell us about the two sheds that are on this site plan
that we have in front of us. It says two sheds, existing shed B to remain and existing shed C to
remain. You’re proposing to keep both of those?
FRANK ZAGARINO : I would like to keep both of them if possible. If not the bigger shed to the
front is the most important one to me because I keep all my equipment in that shed and I had
two back surgeries that sort of went wrong, I had staph infection. For six months I was in bed, I
lost fifty pounds so to lift stuff level on the property line is one thing but to try and come up and
I did try putting this equipment we have a small basement but I organized and try doing it but
going up the stairs of a basement with this equipment it was you know pain killers and Advil the
next day because it’s just I’m sure you guys know carrying something very heavy up the stairs so
that’s where the front shed that is my most important one that houses my equipment and I did
before I placed the shed cause I’ve lived we’ve had this house actually the original house was
built in the ‘40’s and the only the record we have here is in the ‘60’s but it was built in like ’43
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December 1, 2016 Regular Meeting
and it’s been added on to several times when you look at the drawing it looks like a different
house but before I had put that shed to the front the neighbors have lived there everybody
around me has lived there a minimum of twenty, twenty five years. My neighbors and I went to
all them and showed them where I was going to put it. We’re they happy with it, the look of it,
the way I painted it with everything and I literally had them come over and I said I want to make
sure that you’re all you know that what I’m doing and this is not an eyesore that you’re happy
with it so that’s where I had placed the front shed. I had a very small side yard and obviously
harder to get stuff to a car to the driveway having it pushed back and literally the new house
trying to just couldn’t afford to have a full garage on this house on this property. There was a
financial situation cause I’ve could of obviously put a full garage up towards the position where
this shed is at near the driveway but it was just a financial situation I couldn’t afford to do the
house with the garage.
MEMBER DANTES : What’s your equipment?
FRANK ZAGARINO : I have a company Movies in the Moonlight that I do outdoor movies. I do
the ones from Southold, Riverhead and all over so I don’t that’s where I store my amps and
speakers and this like that.
MEMBER HORNING : Is that drive-ins or where to do
FRANK ZAGARINO : Drive-ins and I did the ones at the Riverhead Raceway drive-ins and I know
Southold does one and I do the ones in Riverhead.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : You’re proposing to of course remove the existing hot tub and so on.
FRANK ZAGARINO : Yes.
CHAIPERSON WEISMAN : The existing side yard is much larger than what you are now
proposing.
FRANK ZAGARINO : Because the house when the architect had drawn it up the part to the north
is much closer so he had centered it moved it over so the side yard is much larger but he had
moved the house to center so there’d be 10 feet on either side.
JODI GIGLIO : Right so the northern property line will increase from 5 ½ feet to 10 feet and the
southern property line is the property line that’s closer cause the side yard is much greater on
the south side of the property but if you look at the overall size of the house and for a family of
three children and two adults it’s the size of the house is actually not that much bigger than
what it is now but it’s reconfigured differently to where all the additions and taken away the
house right now is not functional with all the additions that have been put on to it so the house
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December 1, 2016 Regular Meeting
is narrower and longer as far as width is concerned so and it’s a prefabricated home so they
come in certain lengths which is why he needed to maximized the square footage and why
we’re here before you today asking for relief.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : So you’re saying that because it’s a pre-fab you don’t have any
flexibility on the length of the house? You couldn’t make the side yards any larger?
FRANK ZAGARINO : Yea I mean the configuration to fit the bedrooms for the children are
actually how we got to the length of this house how we got to fifty feet and I think the house I
have now is within two feet of this house if you measure end to end. It’s literally just shifting it
on the property to the south to make the side yards both be equally ten feet on both sides.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : If the if shed B which is the one closest to the house in the front yard
were to be removed could you not bring the house more forward and have a slightly larger rear
yard?
FRANK ZAGARINO : I mean it would
JODI GIGLIO : The variance that was approved in May 2009 was for a ten foot rear yard which is
what we proposed because by bringing the house up further the neighbor to the north would
be looking I think that he had concerns that it would obstruct his view so he wanted the house
to be setback as far and in conformance with the other houses up and down the block.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Well I have to say that in driving up and down that street you have
the largest front yard of anybody.
FRANK ZAGARINO : The two well I know which way when you entered the houses from my
house south are all back as far if not further than my house but the houses that you drive into
from the front those three houses the first house does have a smaller setback cause they have
a porch that you can’t see from the front that goes way to the back so they have a small front
yard but it goes way to the back and coverts the lot. The next house is in the middle but all the
houses from my end down the next three houses are pushed all the way back because literally
when we were children and coming out here you know in the early ‘60’s everybody would walk
behind that there would be a ten foot path behind everybody’s house and you’d walk behind
the houses to go to the beach and everybody kept them open. Now they’ve all been fenced off
and changed.
JODI GIGLIO : I thought you had indicated that the neighbor to the north was
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December 1, 2016 Regular Meeting
FRANK ZAGARINO : Yea the neighbor to the north has a view past my house and if I move up
like where he has his porch built and if I move up the L of the house will block the front of him
the L where the house comes up and turns.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Jodi do you think you could look at Google Earth or something and
scale out what the other front yard setbacks cause perfectly honest I didn’t drive past your
house.
FRANK ZAGARINO : No I know you drove to it.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : I entered and then I turned around and left. So I didn’t probably give
a fair assessment to the whole length of the street in terms of other front yard setbacks and
what is characteristic of the neighborhood. You can average within 200 feet or so 300 feet
actually the front yard setbacks of the properties on either side and that would be very
beneficial to this application because it appears you know that you could be a lot more flexible
about a front yard variance I mean you don’t need about a rear yard variance. It was granted
previously but I can’t remember can you refresh my memory was that a demolition also?
JODI GIGLIO : Yes.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : And new construction?
JODI GIGLIO : Yes.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : So I’m going to have to read that decision again. We have it in our
file.
FRANK ZAGARINO : And not only just blocking his view but financially moving the house up and
moving the septic would be moving the driveway and it would be a huge increase financially to
move the house up cause where the circular driveway is already done which I plan on leaving.
Obviously I’m doing this on a budget so I’m planning on leaving as much as I can but the new
septic is inside the driveway and the driveway that circles all of it would have to be moved if I
move the house up. The whole driveway the septic all would have to move.
MEMBER HORNING : It’s already existing?
FRANK ZAGARINO : Yes.
MEMBER HORNING : The septic?
FRANK ZAGARINO : No the septic’s not but the septic’s on the new drawings are in the new
septic is inside the driveway but the driveway the circle driveway is existing so the yard would
become so small if we move forward you’d step out of the house onto the driveway.
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December 1, 2016 Regular Meeting
MEMBER HORNING : But the new septic does not exist.
FRANK ZAGARINO : No it does not exist yet no.
MEMBER DANTES : So you have to dig the driveway up to put the septic in?
FRANK ZAGARINO : The way it’s proposed now I don’t have to dig the driveway up if we move
forward I would and reconfigure the driveway cause the circular driveway would be right into
you know you’d step right out of the house and be two steps onto the driveway if you moved it
forward.
MEMBER HORNING : Do you find it curious that the property card notes 1960 with a C.O. and
you in fact you told me in person yesterday that the house was built in the ‘40’s?
JODI GIGLIO : In 1960 is when the property split. I’m not sure where it split whether it was the
property to the west but the property card shows that it was a split so there was probably
already an existing house and it was subdivided so that a second house could be built probably
to the west is what I’m assuming and so that’s why the rear yard setback was created at the
time that split occurred in 1960.
MEMBER HORNING : I mean sometimes it is important if you have a pre-existing dwelling with
the setbacks you know that you could maintain them if it’s built prior to 1957. If it’s after 1957
it’s a different category of considerations.
FRANK ZAGARINO : I was born in ’59 and my grandfather and my dad when he was in college
and in high school had bought this house so the house it continue and that’s why it’s sort of
unlivable with my kids right now because no matter how much we try with the heat there’s
rooms that are freezing. The basement is a ten foot by ten foot basement and it’s having issues.
I have flat roof issues so I’m trying to do this the most cost effective way but I can promise you
when I came even with Kevin and looked at the drawing of the house my dad was coming out
here when he was in college and the house was you know towards the late ‘40’s when they
started and then everything else after that had been approved and add-ons and I think the
town and the add-ons and the approval were in 1960 and that’s when Kevin even showed me
the first time that he had the drawings were in the 60’s and I’m going wow we were there you
know twenty years before that on this exact property line because the first base was there. The
other things like adding a room on the top where there was a crawl you know what I’m saying
where there’s a little attic adding a room on that, adding a porch it was all little add-ons but the
basic square house was exactly where the property line is in the back now and that’s where the
kitchen is (inaudible) right now too.
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December 1, 2016 Regular Meeting
JODI GIGLIO : So we can look into that also to see that the rear yard setback was existing prior
to 1957 and I will also look at the Google maps and do an average on the front yard setbacks
and the rear yard setbacks.
MEMBER HORNING : Without looking at the interior layout did you consider shifting the L shape
so that the narrower portion of the L faced the front yard and then you had long and narrow
FRANK ZAGARINO : I understand what you’re saying. I was trying to stay within the house
configuration that we’ve been at I know what you’re talking about.
MEMBER HORNING : If you shifted it just turned it ninety degrees around you would have this
portion in the front yard and the rest of it going towards the back then you would dramatically
increase your side yard setbacks I would think.
FRANK ZAGARINO : I had looked at that when I first started this and talked to my surrounding
neighbors and everything and everybody was very happy for me to stay where I’m at on the
property with the space they have and the view they have and obviously turning the house
would be that much more of an expense because if you’re going to the driveway and it would
just you know cost wise to have this house demolished and dig where I’m at now was obviously
the most cost effective and to stay with the property line that I had been on for as long as I’ve
been alive anyhow.
JODI GIGLIO : And he did discuss it with the neighbors and did show the layout to the neighbor
which is why none of the neighbors are here today because they’re very happy with the
setbacks as they are being proposed and any shift of that they probably would want to come
out and have something to say about it.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Well you know I think that if we have information on character of
the neighborhood and with regard to front and rear yards similar setbacks and also the fact that
there was a prior variance relief granted for that setback which included a demo we’ll take a
look at that prior but it speaks to the strength of the application. Ken questions?
MEMBER SCHNEIDER : No I’d like to see you know the other surrounding setbacks.
MEMBER DANTES : Was the prior for ten feet as well?
FRANK ZAGARINO : Yes.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Well I have it in here. We all have it in our applications. Well you
know it runs with the land if it’s implemented but it wasn’t implemented.
MEMBER DANTES : Oh right.
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JODI GIGLIO : And now there’s a change.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : So there are other changes so they’re just putting them all together.
Here it is May 19, 2009 ten foot rear yard and 23.3 lot coverage.
JODI GIGLIO : And his lot coverage now I believe is at 15.5 %.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Well but the variance as applied for was denied and the alternative
relief was granted for a rear yard setback of not less than 17 feet and lot coverage at a
maximum of 22% without the need to reapply and without an increase in the height and with a
reduction in the footprint for new dwelling to conform to this determination. That was so let’s
see what was applied for I think you may have applied for 10 feet. You requested a 10 foot rear
yard setback and 23.3% lot coverage and the prior granted you a through alternative relief a 17
foot rear yard and lot coverage maximum of 22%.
JODI GIGLIO : Yea I apologize and we will look at the 1957 setback of 10 feet and we will also
talk to the neighbors and do the calculations as you requested and come back.
MEMBER HORNING : There is a bit of a concern with having two accessory structures in the
front yard.
FRANK ZAGARINO : I understand.
MEMBER HORNING : Because it is not characteristic of the neighborhood. I drove the whole
length of it I didn’t see any.
JODI GIGLIO : Agreed. I believe that he would eliminate the one shed the smaller shed and keep
the larger shed if that was pleasing to the Board and
MEMBER HORNING : Well you would almost have to if it was a 17 foot setback.
JODI GIGLIO : So based on the testimony today and the reason for wanting to maintain the 10
foot setback not moving the house up further to have to disturb the ground and rip up the
driveway and install a new driveway and I don’t know whether or not there would have to be
any adjustment to the sanitary system which that application is already did he get it it’s into the
Suffolk County Health Services so we’ll look into the things madam chair that you have
requested and appear back before you I guess two weeks from now.
MEMBER GOEHRINGER : No that’s the Special Meeting Jodi. That’s the meeting we make
decisions at so it’ll be the monthly meeting.
MEMBER DANTES : Do we need another hearing or do we just need
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CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : I don’t think we need another hearing I think what we need is just
the information and what we’ll do is it is what it is you’ll get it to us. I think we should just close
it subject to receipt of that information and then we can
JODI GIGLIO : I apologize. We were both of the impression that we had gotten the ten foot
variance.
MEMBER SCHNEIDER : If you have a 17 foot rear yard setback on this appeal right would we
have to go with that?
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Well we don’t have to. This is a new hearing and a new day and you
know I think we can hear the application on its merits although I’m starting I was distracted for
a second cause I was reading this prior decision. The prior decision is a little awkward
JODI GIGLIO : I’m sorry the engineer we had all looked at the prior grant and we were all
including the engineer who made the proposal of the assumption that we had gotten the ten
foot variance I guess we just didn’t read further in to see that.
FRANK ZAGARINO : And I want to personally apologize I would never absolutely wouldn’t do
something that was misleading and this house and whether this is important or not as I have
been on this project now for myself for about a year begging, borrowing and stealing from
different people to help me out and get these plans done and get in to the Health Department
because you know when you order the house it’s four months and when you get the house
done you know it’s I mean I’m sure you get this all the time the processes of trying to get it
done before summer because the prices are much better with them. I want everybody else to
do in February and March then it is and if I can’t do it and stay where I’m at I’ll be off for at least
another year because my business starts in the summer. I don’t have time to do it and all the
people who have given me these prices to help me out have made it very clear that I can do this
for you during the wintertime don’t ask me to do it in you know June, July and August.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : This is a very interesting way this one was written because when you
read it carefully the character of the neighborhood indicates that the under Town Law 1
proposed ten foot rear yard setback for the replacement dwelling though still non-conforming
will be greater than exists prior to demolition. I guess that’s that bump out in the back.
FRANK ZAGARINO : There are two bump outs, yes.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : And then the proposed increase in lot coverage given the location of
neighborhood houses would not have any significant effect on this neighborhood of small lots.
But then it goes on to look at the substantiality of those two variances and that’s where the
Board suggests alternative relief.
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December 1, 2016 Regular Meeting
JODI GIGLIO : Would it be helpful to get letters from the neighbors on the west side of
Oakwood saying that they are happy with the ten foot setback and that they wouldn’t want to
see a 17 foot setback because it would be out of character?
MEMBER HORNING : Any letters from your neighbors of support are useful.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : They can be quite useful it just (inaudible) the you know the verbal
testimony that you just gave us that they prefer that but I think that most importantly is a
reflection of what exists in non-conformity in the area. That would probably way in (inaudible)
of a similar non-conformance but again the Board grants the smallest non-conformity that it
feasibly can grant when it’s feasible to grant a variance. We’re kind of obligated by law to do
that.
JODI GIGLIO : So what because the houses that are the one house directly to the north maybe
set up a little further into the front yard but the houses to the south are all at the ten foot
setback so what houses would you like me to analyze and include in my report to you as far as
average setback? Would that be all the way up to Peconic Bay Blvd. down south to the bay or
would it be just from the one house north of Mr. Zagarino’s property down south to the bay?
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Well probably the whole it’s not that many houses.
FRANK ZAGARINO : Two houses from Peconic Bay are set the first one is set in the middle and it
goes way towards the back they have you know a medium front yard, the next one is in the
middle which is my neighbor to the north. Then we’re set back at 10 feet, the next house is set
back at 10 feet, the next house is set back at 10 feet which are the two south of me obviously
I’ve been there my whole life and the house on the water is in the middle because he’s got a
double lot. He has a lot you know I think he had a big double lot that’s in the middle of his
property so just I mean I could obviously print it up on Google Earth but he’s in the middle of
the bay the next two people are exactly my dimension from the back of the house 10 feet and
as we go up there’s one in the middle and one
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Well I think what you really want to do is take a look at the street
and give us information that speaks to what it looks like with regard to the typical front yard
and typical rear yard setback.
MEMBER HORNING : How about side yards also?
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Yes if you can scale out the side yards that’s also helpful because it
would appear that some of them are also non-conforming side yards.
FRANK ZAGARINO : Many of them.
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December 1, 2016 Regular Meeting
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : So you know and plus you have a fairly small lot even though you
know it’s (inaudible) and you’re not here for lot coverage anyway you’re just here for the front
and sides. I don’t see any lot coverage mentioned here.
JODI GIGLIO : On the survey I believe it shows that the existing lot coverage is 14.66% and the
proposed is 15.77%.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : So they’re fine with that, alright anything else from the Board,
anyone else in the audience wishing to address this application? Hearing no further questions
or comments I’m going to make a motion actually based upon all we’ve discussed I was going to
just close subject to receipt but I think it would probably be best to adjourn to the Special
Meeting so that you could have an opportunity to think this all through. Look at what the prior
said, look at what the neighborhood looks like and then in the event you wish to amend your
application slightly you’ll let us know but if you don’t you don’t you’ll just provide the
information but it gives you the option of thinking this through and gives us time to make sure
that we have enough information. We can if we have everything we need we’ll just close it in
two weeks and we may or may not deliberate it depends on how fast you get information to us
but if we don’t deliberate in two weeks we will a month from now. We only meet twice a
month so it’s either going to be the next two weeks or the following two weeks.
FRANK ZAGARINO : Alright we’ll get that to you right away.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Okay, does that make sense to the Board? That way if you decide to
do anything your hands are not barred. We’re not if I close it subject to receipt then that’s all
we can do is take that so we’ll just adjourn to the Special Meeting is there a second?
MEMBER GOEHRINGER : Second.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : All in favor?
MEMBER HORNING : Aye.
MEMBER GEOHRINGER : Aye.
MEMBER SCHNEIDER : Aye.
MEMBER DANTES : Aye.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Aye.
(See Minutes for Resolution)
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December 1, 2016 Regular Meeting
HEARING # 7001 – PHILIP WASILAUSKY
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : The next application before the Board is for Philip Wasilausky #7001.
This is a request for variances from Article XXIII Section 280-124 and the Building Inspector’s
July 18, 2016 Amended August 18, 2016 Notice of Disapproval based on an application for a
building permit to construct additions and alterations to an existing single family dwelling at 1)
proposed additions and alterations less than the code required front yard minimum setback of
35 feet, 2) proposed additions more than the code permitted maximum lot coverage of 20%
located at 105 Private Rd. (AKA 575 Goose Creek Lane) in Southold. Would you state your name
for the record please?
PAT MOORE : Yes Patricia Moore on behalf of the applicant Mr. Wasilausky and Mrs.
Wasilausky both are here. You have the application before you. The history of this property is
quite interesting because it’s a very small lot with the access road that you went in to Goose
Creek subdivision but then there is a twenty foot right of way behind that runs along the
backside of the properties that front the Goose Creek Drive and are a right of way for
properties to the north or let’s see wait east, east. So you have a twenty foot right of way
behind the house which is a paper road it’s never been opened and in fact it’s blocked off as
you go further towards North Bayview Rd. and we also have a right of way which is essentially a
shared driveway on the south side of the road that’s the thirty foot right of way so very
interesting way that these properties got developed many years ago has resulted in absolutely
everything ever been constructed on this property to need a variance. There is a long history of
variances here right from the beginning when the house was being proposed. Gertrude
McClain needed a variance to build the house. It got a variance it also got 280-A. Windsway
built the house and then unfortunately when they put the foundation there was an oops and
they had to come back to the Zoning Board to modify the variance to allow for the setbacks
that had previously been granted were now reduced so the house was ultimately built there.
The Sirrico’s owned the property before the Wasilausky’s and they got a variance for an
addition to the back of the house where the where some decking used to be and got a lot
coverage variance which was increased to 22% and now my client who bought the property has
retired and is this is their primary residence. They have re-shingled the house, they’ve done
improvements but they are finding that the garage is just inadequate for their use as their full
time residence so the proposal was to add bays to the garage. At that point because of the lot
coverage issue and that was something that was not discovered right away they actually started
the re-shingling and everything and left the portion of the side of the garage unfinished as you
could see because of the proposed addition and that’s where it stands today. So I think the
application pretty much speaks for itself. It’s a technical variance because of the fact that we’ve
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December 1, 2016 Regular Meeting
got a relatively small piece of property the lot coverage and we’re exceeding the lot coverage
not by too much but enough to require a variance.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : So we are looking at front yard setback of 30 feet off of one right of
way and which is the paper road
PAT MOORE : Yes the paper road in the back.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Yea we you know as you know we were all there we all visited the
property
PAT MOORE : Pardon me?
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : I just wanted to make sure your client understood that all the Board
members individually go and do a site inspection so we’ve seen the fact that it’s really a
driveway into your garage area but your burdened legally with I guess three front yards as a
result of this configuration so it’s a 30 foot where the code requires 35, a 25 foot where the
code requires 35 and you want to increase the lot coverage which is currently at 22.4 by virtue
of a prior ZBA grant to 24.2%.
PAT MOORE : Right.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Ken you want to start.
MEMBER SCHNEIDER : Yes, there was something in the application about you were looking into
possibly absorbing the right of ways into your lots or trying to make an agreement with the
neighbors about doing something with the right of ways.
PAT MOORE : Oh yea. Actually I had. The prior owner was Mr. Feinberg and I actually
represented Feinberg when we were looking at the possibility of extinguishing the right of way
in the very back the 20 foot right of way. That one would not be the one well it would I guess
affect us on the 30 foot setback. We started that process. What we found it was a somewhat of
a large undertaking because to extinguish it we have to get consent from everybody that had a
right of way access over it even though they don’t use it and it had never been used in order to
have it be properly extinguished and not create a title issue. It was just it was really a very large
undertaking and the Feinberg’s then decided to sell and it never went any further. I think that
the Sirico’s own a house in the back on the opposite side. They were interested in it but again it
would have taken more than just those two individuals so there was some discussion. It was
started but to even get started required a title search of reviewing everybody’s title that had
any access over that right of way and then getting going from there so ultimately that’s costly
for everybody to do.
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MEMBER SCHNEIDER : What about the neighbor to the north?
PAT MOORE : That is actually a shared driveway with well go ahead put it on the record.
PHILIP WASILAUSKY : Philip Wasilausky, the applicants, thank you. I’ve spoken to the neighbors
directly to the north and the next house beyond them and they I mentioned that I had spoken
to Ms. Moore about extinguishing the right of way and they agreed that they would join in that
if that’s something that can be done that’s feasible it would
PAT MOORE : Yea to do it is possible but it would take a long time so it’s certainly beyond a
time frame that a normal homeowner wants to do improvements to their property. That is
something that is potentially in the future. It’s feasible but impractical at this point.
MEMBER SCHNEIDER : Are there any other parcels that have excessive lot coverage?
PAT MOORE : I did incorporate into the application itself variances that were previously
granted. I have Daniel West he got a variance for an addition to an existing dwelling and the
other there’s a house
MEMBER SCHNEIDER : Yes I see those.
PAT MOORE : and the other house away tax lot 21 those were setbacks issues mostly.
MEMBER SCHNEIDER : Yes setback more focused on the lot coverage.
PAT MOORE : Lot coverage I don’t know that I saw that because we have an existing pool. I
don’t know that other homes here have pools on this block I don’t think they did. It was the
swimming pool I believe that ended up creating the lot coverage issue many years ago.
MEMBER SCHNEIDER : Well actually I don’t think that’s correct. The swimming pool got a C.O.
back in 1990.
PAT MOORE : Yea but Sirico got a lot coverage a variance for the swimming pool.
MEMBER SCHNEIDER : Back in that was after that.
PAT MOORE : That was incorporated it was an addition to the house and pool back in ’97 that
was decision 4477.
MEMBER SCHNEIDER : I don’t believe that needed a variance. That was a C.O. for a pool and
addition and then later on came an addition that needed a variance. When his house was first
proposed it needed a variance cause the foundation
PAT MOORE : Yes it definitely needed that.
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December 1, 2016 Regular Meeting
MEMBER SCHNEIDER : Then they came along and built a pool
PAT MOORE : So you know what they did; they built the pool and then when they wanted the
addition. The pool was incorporated because it pushed the addition requiring a lot coverage. I
know because I read I mean in the back of my mind I actually looked at it today and said did
Sirico get a variance for the pool or not and it was somehow another incorporated because it
caused the addition to go above.
MEMBER SCHNEIDER : Well everything you know everything causes lot coverage not everything
but we know what does and doesn’t. The concern I have is you’re looking for 24.2% you already
have 22.4% which is a little over 10% of what is required or the maximum allowed. If you can
show some evidence that other parcels in this neighborhood have 24% lot coverage I think that
would be in favor of your appeal.
PAT MOORE : Ok I will look again.
MEMBER SCHNEIDER : I mean the setbacks I understand the setbacks however the lot coverage
is of main concern for me personally.
PAT MOORE : I mean I will look and see what other homes have lot coverage variances I don’t
let me look at the; I’ll go back and double check. It’s been a while since I submitted this so it’s
I’ll go back and look. Many of the lots in this area are larger so I don’t think that they’ve
required; I think this is relatively smaller I’ll have to look at the tax map; I don’t have a copy of
the tax map here in my file, so I’ll double check. We’re slightly smaller than the lots in this
neighborhood so as far as the house size goes it’s really comparable to the neighborhood. It’s
not out of character.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Well I’m just looking at the actual proposed garage is pretty small
and there isn’t anything else it’s not like a shed you could remove or anything else that you can
take off. There’s a little small deck everything else like it’s at grade so it’s not covered I mean
that’s not included unless it’s elevated.
PAT MOORE : The patio no.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : So trying to see if there’s something they can do to reduce it.
PAT MOORE : Yea I was looking too.
MEMBER SCHNEIDER : Well sometimes you just can’t have everything.
PAT MOORE : Well but a garage is I mean this is a garage that’s in the rear of the house so it’s
not impacting any of the neighbors as far as it’s purely a technical lot coverage issue as far as
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December 1, 2016 Regular Meeting
whether the lot coverage is reasonable or not anything under 25% on such a small lot is
relatively reasonable.
MEMBER SCHNEIDER : Pat that is your opinion.
PAT MOORE : Well, no historically the Board I think I’ve heard the Board members say well my
rule of thumb; I think Gerry in the past in applications there’s been (inaudible) if you start
getting into the 25% I don’t like you know that he thinks of this Board member has expressed
that in the past on lot coverage variances that I’ve made over the past twenty something thirty
years. So, given the circumstances of this property we’re not talking about habitable space
we’re just talking about garage space so the alternative for us would be building or asking for
sheds but that is more intrusive on a property particularly when you have such a small rear yard
we need a variance for the placement of the shed which would be the alternative to enlarging
the garage. If you and the rest of the Board want us to consider shrinking the garage a little bit
that may be a possibility but the existing garage is an undersized one car garage the existing
one so it’s barely usable as it is. This is a year round house so it’s tough to live without to live a
garage and to live without storage so that’s the application before you.
MEMBER SCHNEIDER : You are already at 22.4% which is 2.4% over and you want more so
that’s if you could find evidence of other lots in the neighborhood that have excessive lot
coverage that’ll help your case.
MEMBER GOEHRINGER : Let me just make a statement. The one advantage is that you’re on a
private road and you’re contiguous to a huge subdivision next to it. There’s no reason why
areas like that couldn’t be used also. I mean that subdivision it all private roads also directly the
one in back I mean the contiguous nature of it is that right of way that exists.
PAT MOORE : The only problem is that yes I think theoretically we have extra acreage exactly
what you’re pointing out that in the rear the 20 feet is open space. That is occupied by is still
wooded and natural and it’s occupied by both sides of the property but technically to meet the
lot coverage I have to exclude right of ways so
MEMBER GOEHRINGER : I’m not telling you to take the right of way I’m saying it’s contiguous to
a major subdivision in the back which is also private roads okay meaning and the only thing that
bridges those two is that subdivision is that right of way so there’s no reason why you couldn’t
take lot coverage from that subdivision also.
PAT MOORE : Oh, oh comparing lot coverage of the other properties.
MEMBER GOEHRINGER : I mean that’s my opinion. I don’t know what
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December 1, 2016 Regular Meeting
PAT MOORE : I’ll look at my general research is usually with laser fiche I’ll take a look at that
whole area tax lot.
MEMBER GOEHRINGER : Cause the first road I went down was Hickory before I went down to
the other okay so and I said it’s got to be around here somewhere okay
PAT MOORE : Yea I did that at least once or twice that’s why I sent the little map because it
really is hard to find this road. I’ll take a look.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Anyone else in the audience wishing to address this application?
Hearing no further questions or comments I’m going to make a motion to close the hearing
subject to receipt of information on lot coverage in the area.
MEMBER GOEHRINGER : Second.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : All in favor?
MEMBER HORNING : Aye.
MEMBER GOEHRINGER : Aye.
MEMBER SCHNEIDER : Aye.
MEMBER DANTES : Aye.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Aye.
(See Minutes for Resolution)
HEARING # 7002 – ADAM SUPRENANT
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : The next application before the Board is for Adam Suprenant #7002.
This is a request for variances from Article XXII Section 280-105C (3) and the Building
Inspector’s June 30, 2016 Notice of Disapproval based on an application for a building permit to
legalize an “as built” deer fence, at 1) proposed deer fence located in other than the code
permitted side or rear yards located at 425 South Harbor Rd in Southold. Would you state your
name please?
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December 1, 2016 Regular Meeting
ADAM SUPRENANT : Good morning I’m Adam Suprenant. I’m the property owner at 425 South
Harbor and I brought my lovely wife Laura who’s company Blossom Meadow Farm sponsored
the building of the fence and I’m going to turn it over to her to give the background and then I’ll
be available for questions since I filled out the application.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Okay well just for the record welcome both of you this deer fence is
permitted in side and rear yards but it is not permitted on a residential lot in a front yard. Now
you have a unique situation in that you not only have a front yard along South Harbor but you
do have a right of way which is considered a second front yard. That’s the entry going from the
road.
ADAM SUPRENANT : We were told by the Building Department that there was no second front
yard there. It was stated by Mr. Rallis cause when we had our
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Let me look at that again because quite typically a right of way is
considered a front yard and this is not just your own driveway on your own lot this provides
access to a couple of other houses right?
ADAM SUPRENANT: But we were given approval for an accessory building which couldn’t be
built in a front yard as well so
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Well I’m just telling you what the code says.
ADAM SUPRENANT: I know but so I mean the town has to make up its mind what a front yard
is.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : We have frequently seen fencing along rights of way that have deer
fencing in particular that has been considered a front yard. Now technically a front a right of
way if you do not have legal access to use it but it would appear you probably do
LAURA KLAHRE : We do.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Because you use it to get into behind your house.
LAURA KLAHRE : Right
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : To put your cars in so
ADAM SUPRENANT : Actually part of that is an easement if you notice and that’s on our
property okay so there’s an easement and the right of way is on the opposite side of the
easement up until about a third of the way up the property.
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December 1, 2016 Regular Meeting
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Yea I see right where it is on your survey. Okay well I just wanted to
clarify that. It’s pretty clear that the front yard along South Harbor is a front yard and you
fenced in front of your dwelling.
LAURA KLAHRE : Right so that’s what we thought we were coming to ZBA for was the deer
fence in front along South Harbor Rd. I’ve been a bee keeper since 1997 and I incorporated my
business in 2009 and my farm is pretty much been decentralized all these years until last in
2015 when we finally bought a place and so then in 2016 this year I received a grant from
Peconic Land Trust through New York State to help offset the cost of our barn as well as buying
a tractor and not only do I work with honey bees but I also work with mason bees, bumble bees
and mining bees. In fact with my mason bees I have a pollination contract with both Surrey
Lane or Turden farm and Breeze Hill apple farm to pollinate their apples and so it’s likely it is
the first pollination contracts of its kind in the nation because nobody has really used them for
apples or they’re just used on the west coast. So we’re adjacent to Catapano Farm as you see
and other neighbors have living fences of eight foot or greater using lilac and privet. I actually
co-chair the town deer committee because the deer everybody knows heavily browse
everything and reduce the flowers that are available for my bees. In fact in some residential
areas I found that some of my honey bee hives have actually become malnourished because
there are not enough flowers for them to feed from and I haven’t been able to over winter
them because they succumb to deformed wing virus and a lot of other things. So at our place
this past year we planted sunflowers up front. Quite a few native plants and beach plums as
well as also black raspberry and then in the back we put cover crops of more sunflowers,
buckwheat, canola and my bees did very well which I was happy about. But what we found is
that the deer eat everything. They come in there are some beach plums that are just not going
to make it and our goal is to eventually get you know these bees to have healthier lives but also
get the crops to market at our small store in Cutchogue so there’s no way for us to be viable if
we don’t have this deer fence and it’s so that’s why we’re coming to you.
ADAM SUPRENANT : And I’d just like to point out that my wife if a bona fide agricultural
producer in the Town of Southold and she’s registered her corporation is registered at our
address and so when we initially went to construct the deer fence I looked at the code and I
noticed there was an exemption from permitting for bona fide ag for the construction of a
fence and so that’s why we went ahead and erected the fence.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Well let’s see what the Board has in the way of questions. Who
wants to start?
MEMBER GOEHRINGER : I’ll start.
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December 1, 2016 Regular Meeting
MEMBER DANTES : My question is why not just I mean you’re only asking of a variance for a
very small section of this fence so why not just make it code conforming. It looks like 90% of
this fencing is permitted.
LAURA KLAHRE : Because every inch matters. We have 1.84 acres and that front area we can
grow sunflowers, beach plums and black raspberry. We’re in R80 zoning, ag is permitted. It just
doesn’t make sense that we can’t.
ADAM SUPRENANT : Yea and I think one of the issues is you know there’s a very I guess there’s
not much definition in the code between when a parcel becomes a residence and you know
when an empty parcel becomes a residence and whether you lose your right to farm on the
acreage so I think the answer you know and I think that actually I know Bill is working on that
with the AG committee you know expanding those definitions but we just assumed that that
was within our right to farm our land.
LAURA KLAHRE : And it’s good soil.
ADAM SUPRENANT : And that in our right to farm involves allows us to construct fences on our
land so that’s basically and I can tell you if you look on the north side of the house okay that’s
almost probably about a quarter of an acre and so we can generate quite a bit of income we
feel off that quarter acre leading up to you know up to the west side of the property.
MEMBER HORNING : How does it come that you were cited with the deer fence?
ADAM SUPRENANT : Yes there was a complaint by our neighbor to code enforcement one of
our neighbors I believe although we don’t even know if it was one of our neighbors.
MEMBER HORNING : Do you feel that they researched the ordinance zoning code properly
then?
ADAM SUPRENANT : In our opinion we feel that we’re justified because we’re bona fide ag for
building a fence so we mentioned that to code enforcement and then we were told by code
enforcement that we have to go that we were a residence and that we would have to go for a
variance.
T.A. DUFFY : Can I ask who you spoke with in code enforcement?
ADAM SUPRENANT : Peter.
MEMBER HORNING : And yet you have a bona fide agricultural operation on this property?
ADAM SUPRENANT : Yea my wife does yes.
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December 1, 2016 Regular Meeting
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Is that recorded with the assessor’s office?
ADAM SUPRENANT : As far as it’s not we we’re just registered with the state division of
corporations as a you know my wife’s company and we’re registered at that address but we’re
I’m not aware of having to register with an assessor. We’re not really interested in taking you
know in paying less property tax we’re not looking for the Ag rate on property taxes you know
we just want to farm and so we didn’t even consider that.
MEMBER DANTES : It does say on the property card Leslie in 2003 there was an Ag penalty I’m
not really sure what an Ag penalty is.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : I don’t know either.
LAURA KLAHRE : It used to be the entire parcel used to be Catapano Farm and then it was
subdivided.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Ah so it was removed from the Ag exemption.
LAURA KLAHRE : The soils are really good there. I mean it’s just doesn’t make sense to just have
grass. My bees need flowers there’s just not enough anymore out here. I used to when I first
started bee keeping you know and even before I did it and I was apprenticing with older bee
keepers they would tell me that the problem wasn’t how to keep these alive it was what you do
with all the honey right. We all know that’s not the case anymore. I have bees that are in more
residential settings by Orient Point lighthouse. Off my bees I got first year hives off three of the
hives I got 120 lbs. of honey off of the same number of hives same age and everything by the
Orient Point lighthouse 20 lbs. of honey and I was only able to over winter one of those three
and the reason is they are malnourished. There aren’t enough flowers. So yea we could have
just said alright let’s just put the fence to the front of the house but it just doesn’t make sense. I
mean these deer there are too many we all know it and the only way that we can protect our
land now and flowers and hopefully let these bees and our crops thrive is by having this fence.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Do you have any other agricultural property that you own or is this
total.
LAURA KLAHRE : No.
ADAM SUPRENANT : She leases other parcels to put her bees on.
LAURA KLAHRE : I have my bees as Sylvester Manor Farm on Shelter Island and places out east
but this is finally the first place that we own.
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December 1, 2016 Regular Meeting
ADAM SUPRENANT : And I’d like to also point out we have a planting plan proposed to submit
for our grant and we’re going to plant apples, beach plums, blueberry in addition to veg crops
strawberry so our intent is to farm this land. We’re not you know I’ve been in the Ag industry
out here I’m a wine maker and I’ve managed 72 acres of grape land. I also have a degree from
Cornell in fruit production and so Ag is what I do and that’s what we want to do with our
property so we’re not just asking for a fence to keep the deer off our privet okay we’re really
contending to farm this land and put it actually back in to agricultural production because that
was its original use.
MEMBER HORNING : Are you going to have a farm stand?
ADAM SUPRENANT : We haven’t decided because we I opened up a I have my own wine brand
it’s called Coffee Pot Cellars and Laura and I opened up our store in Cutchogue in a commercial
zoned site. We’re right next to Antiques and Old Lace near the King Kellen and so we have retail
area there so I doubt we would do anything more at our property than perhaps put up a 14 foot
table and you know have some produce for sale but we’re actually with the apples I’m
intending to make an alcoholic beverage out of that hard cider.
LAURA KLAHRE : Which we did this past year with Breeze Hill apple farms apples because my
mason bees pollinated them and we really (inaudible) national pollinator week and sold it at
our store and our store it’s just me that works there that’s it. We don’t look to get big that’s just
not us and so it’s fun just knowing the community and having a nice little life.
ADAM SUPRENANT : And Ken we might make a couple jars of jam I hope that doesn’t affect the
outcome.
MEMBER DANTES : Do you think we can get a copy of the planting plan?
ADAM SUPRENANT : Yes I can provide it for you.
LAURA KLAHRE : We submitted it with our Peconic Land Trust grant.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : I’d like to see that grant and the planting plan and your license you
know from the state whatever documentation of your Ag operation you can provide would be
helpful.
LAURA KLAHRE : So I have is my website enough it’s blossommeadow.com I mean.
ADAM SUPRENANT : Do you want a financial statement or what would you like?
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : I don’t think we need to go that far.
LAURA KLAHRE : Schedule F for years so
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December 1, 2016 Regular Meeting
MEMBER DANTES : Basically we just need something in writing that just says this is a farm
legitimate agricultural operation that’s what we’re asking so like planting plan things like that I
don’t want to get into your taxes.
ADAM SUPRENANT : Okay sure yea we can provide that.
LAURA KLAHRE : So just a letter.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : What can be helpful also is you said that you feel that the part in the
front along South Harbor and that would be not only paralleling but perpendicular encloses
about a quarter of an acre is that correct?
ADAM SUPRENANT : I will have to get the exact measurements on it but it’s yea I would say it’s
somewhere in the neighborhood of two tenths to a quarter of an acre.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : It might be helpful to approximate what kind of economic loss the
loss of that amount of property could represent in terms of hardship.
ADAM SUPRENANT : Okay I’ll have to take a look I mean the part directly in front of the house
I’m actually referring to kind of along the side of the house as well but I will have to take a look
at what we can get off that but yea that’s fine. I mean keep in mind if you plant sunflower there
and you get you know three dollars a stalk retail I can plant a thousand sunflowers in a very
small area so it’s not you know so that would be the one foot spacing was one by two so it
doesn’t take much land to generate what for us would be a significant amount of money.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Okay well where I’m going with this is if in fact it is determined by
this Board that you are a legitimate agricultural operation. Then in fact you don’t need a
variance for deer fencing. That’s what we’re probing at this point. Residential properties and
agricultural is permitted in an R80 zone so it can be both a residence and an agricultural
property. We have plenty of wineries, for example in town that are exactly like that you know
they grow grapes and they have a house there many, many farm stands (inaudible) throughout
the town. So the question is if this is considered residential property and not an agricultural
operation then you need a variance. If it’s an agricultural operation and has a residence on the
property then you don’t need a variance we would have to do an interpretation. You see what
I’m saying?
ADAM SUPRENANT : Okay I think that’s doable I mean my wife’s been in business since 2009 so
I don’t see that as being an issue.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Let’s explore something else there’s a difference in terms of the
visual impact of deer fencing especially yours is up on a rise (inaudible) it’s pretty apparent
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December 1, 2016 Regular Meeting
along South Harbor we’re used to sort of seeing them even though they’re unsightly and we
wish we didn’t have to have them but we all know economically we do in order to farm out
here it’s no longer a luxury it’s a necessity do have deer fencing. There’s a difference between a
side street or a right of way whether that’s considered a front yard or not that just a couple of
houses might have access to including your own and a public street in terms of a visual
appearance and you look like it looks like a residential neighborhood. So my question is
ADAM SUPRENANT : I would add there is deer fencing on South Harbor.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : I know Croteaux.
ADAM SUPRENANT : Croteaux yes so there’s so we’re not the only property on South Harbor.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Right I understand and just so your aware in case you don’t already
know this every Board member has visited your property. We’ve all been out there to see it.
We do that for every application it’s just part of our job. You can’t really tell on paper what
something looks like you got to drive around in the neighborhood and really have a look at it.
Let’s see if anybody else has some comments.
MEMBER GOEHRINGER : Can I just say something?
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Yea oh wait I’m sorry I didn’t finish my point which was can you
envision the possibility of reducing the visual impact of this deer fencing along South Harbor by
perhaps planting something between the edge of your property and where the deer fencing is
located that would obscure from view that deer fencing along that public road?
ADAM SUPRENANT : Well we did I actually moved some shrubs along the I guess it would be
the northwest portion they’re small right now but we have boxwood there we have spirea
planted there I mean are you you’re talking about a twenty foot high privet hedge or lilac or
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Well not right this second but I’m not suggesting bringing in
bulldozers and bringing in eight foot high evergreens.
ADAM SUPRENANT : And we actually wouldn’t mind our neighbor who lives across the street
she’s here to testify that she actually enjoys our and has no issue with our fence.
LAURA KLAHRE : It was actually interesting when we first moved in of course you meet all your
neighbors and everything and they ask you what you plan to do. Once we planted the
sunflowers it was really kind of cool to see how many people were so happy to see flowers you
know so when you when there’s privet and lilac it almost becomes a raceway and so bicyclists
have stopped to look at the flowers and you know the butterflies have been flying around I
mean it was really kind of cool.
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December 1, 2016 Regular Meeting
ADAM SUPRENANT : I’d also like to add if you look at one of the photos we supplied it’s the
view from house east okay and you’ll see some beehives there okay right in front so to the right
of the beehives that is a row of black raspberry which will be growing to about a height of four
or five feet so we’ve covered that side and then if you look at also the view from house from
southeast I put in landscaping in the front yard so it’s not just grass and those will be growing
up those are I have spice bush, spice pepper bush and some other plants and then we also have
on that front parcel there if you look at it a view from the southeast we have a beehive kind of
in the center of the photo and to the right are our sunflowers which did obscure quite a bit of
you know there was sunflowers so we felt that added to the view shed if it were of the
neighborhood and so and we also have beach plums there which will be flowering in the spring
so we’ve made improvements to an area that was just in our opinion useless green lawn which
does not provide any nutrition to our bees and we improved it by putting in native plants you
know to kind of I guess ameliorate somewhat those people that have a concern that deer fence
is ugly in our opinion a twenty foot privet fence is ugly okay and actually I like my deer fence. I
think it looks nice.
MEMBER HORNING : Could you plant sunflowers on inside of that fence?
ADAM SUPRENANT : Exactly so you barely see the fence because we have and we plan to make
further improvements in the landscaping in the front and so you know we want to have a
natural setting not like a walled off even though the fence is a wall but we want to have the
landscaping be more natural than just a row of privet or whatever
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : I had to ask the question we need to have it in the public record. Let
me see if there’s anything else from the Board.
MEMBER HORNING : I’d like to go over the history a little bit. Back in 2002 Catapano built a
residence there is that about right?
ADAM SUPRENANT : It’s our understanding that the property was if you can see on the I don’t
know if you can see on the tax map there’s four lots actually five lots that were the original
Catapano farm okay and that was subdivided among the children after Sal Catapano Sr. passed
okay and then I know that Sal Catapano after he built, Jr. who owned our property before we
bought it he was growing
LAURA KLAHRE : Field mums.
ADAM SUPRENANT : Field mums there behind his house.
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December 1, 2016 Regular Meeting
MEMBER HORNING : I’m just trying to get a historical perspective. The dwelling was built in
2002 by Catapano. You bought the property in 2015 not too far back. When did you build the
deer fence?
ADAM SUPRENANT : We built it in March of this year.
MEMBER HORNING : Okay, and so you had it up and running for this season that’s why you
could grow
ADAM SUPRENANT : No we did not complete it because we were building what in our mind is a
barn but the what the town approved as an accessory garage so we didn’t want to enclose it so
that the construction could proceed.
MEMBER HORNING : How did you keep the deer from
LAURA KLAHRE : We didn’t and so it really underscored even more why we need to come here.
ADAM SUPRENANT : I have photos of lay down areas where the deer come in and lay down on
our crops okay and on a grassland. We just planted a cover crop a winter cover crop in
September and are eating that already.
MEMBER HORNING : When you purchased the property in 2015 is it fair to say that you more or
less immediately started to do some agricultural operations on the property?
(RECORDING MACHINE STARTS WITH A VERY LOUD BUZZING SOUND AND MAKES IT VERY
HARD TO HEAR THE PEOPLE TALKING INCLUDING THE BOARD, VERY DIFFICULT TO TRANSCRIBE
FROM THIS POINT ON)
LAURA KLAHRE : Yes I brought my bees there from other locations and yes started thinking
about our farm plan and what we were going to do.
ADAM SUPRENANT : Plus we also there was a kind of a rigged deer fence around where they
planted the field mums and so we pulled out that fence because it was substandard in our
opinion and then we tilled up the property and started renewing the soil by planting legumes
which (inaudible) nitrogen from the air and we planted canola, (inaudible) we have turnip in
there so
MEMBER HORNING : Don’t deer eat those things too?
ADAM SUPRENANT : Oh they certainly do and so we but it’s not economic because you know
enough of the plants survive where as if we planted apple trees they can I mean they eat the
shoots and basically strip the trees of leaves small trees.
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December 1, 2016 Regular Meeting
LAURA KLAHRE : For cover crop you don’t it’s not as detrimental but we’re also keeping what a
tenth of an acre it looks like kind of like a grassland fragment and 70% of native bees live in the
ground and so we have a really good population of mining bees live in this one area so we are
not touching that because they need a place to live and it’s kind of cool because mining bees
and mason bees are really good at pollinating apples and so the current science is really looking
at how to get those mining bees into orchards and that’s one of things I am focusing on in the
near future so I’m pretty psyched and bumble bees are also very good pollinators of blueberries
which honey bees (inaudible) blueberries so we’re working on how to bolster those populations
as well.
ADAM SUPRENANT : And we did harvest a honey crop last year.
MEMBER HORNING : Incidental question, carpenter bees do they play any productive role?
LAURA KLAHRE : Yes actually well carpenter bees are good pollinators anything that’s fuzzy that
goes from flower to flower is a pollinator even yellow jackets and flies are actually good when
it’s cold out in the early spring.
MEMBER HORNING : Where to carpenter bees live?
LAURA KLAHRE : They actually live in soft pieces of wood so you know the ones that come at
your face you know like trying to scare you those are actually male carpenter bees and they
can’t sting. They’re just all bark and no bite so because they’re trying to scare you away in case
a female comes by.
ADAM SUPRENANT : You can actually throw a little rock and the bee will chase the rock. But
they can’t live off wood so they need flowers just like any other bee to live.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Okay well I think we get the point and I think you do too. It’s clear
that you’re farmers and I don’t (cannot hear too much buzzing) but we need to have on the
record that you are farming this property as your business this is just not your house with a nice
garden and that therefore we look at the code very differently. You can imagine if that deer
fencing was permitted on all the public roads that had houses up and down because everybody
hates to see their shrubs eaten up or the deer ticks upsetting their kids I mean we have to be
very cautious about how we approach deer fencing in this town. Agriculture is one category
residential is another so we need some information from you to bolster the agricultural aspect
and see whether or not if that had been the case with the Building Department they should
probably not have required a variance to begin with you know if that could be verified.
ADAM SUPRENANT : I can tell you I was very outspoken on this.
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December 1, 2016 Regular Meeting
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : They decided to let us decide.
MEMBER SCHNEIDER : I have a question, Laura you said you’re on the deer management
committee?
LAURA KLAHRE : Correct.
MEMBER SCHNEIDER : What has the committee come up with for keeping deer off the
properties or culling the herds or anything like that? What’s the bottom line? What does the
committee or management program is the best action to take?
LAURA KLAHRE : We need to shoot more deer and also it’s not just culling the herd but it’s also
creating more of a demand for venison. I was so happy that Arbees in I think in Pennsylvania or
Ohio they now have venison burgers so it’s creating more of a demand. We need to legalize the
sale of deer meat in New York State and across the United States so then creates more of a
demand so then you’ll have more hunters and it’ll make the population go down.
MEMBER SCHNEIDER : Well the whole hunting would be with I guess bow and arrow because of
the close proximity of residents so it really isn’t there’s a lot great ideas but nothing moving
forward that’s going to be productive because I see deer in my neighborhood. I see does having
maybe one, two, three
LAURA KLAHRE : Oh yea triplets it’s unbelievable.
MEMBER SCHNEIDER : fawns and they’re all over the place and devastate everything and I
would love to put a deer fence throughout legally I can put a deer fence in my rear yard and
side yard
LAURA KLAHRE : This is why I wanted to serve on the deer committee because I saw that it was
decreasing my yields in honey and also
MEMBER SCHNEIDER : I understand you two are very passionate about what you’re doing on
your parcel I appreciate that wholeheartedly but everybody has a passion for their own
properties and what they want to do on it. I would love to grown plants, flowers everything. I
have a passion for that believe it or not and I can’t because the deer come in (inaudible) so
what the chairperson had mentioned about proving your agricultural use of this parcel I think
it’s the way that I can look at this positively then.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : I mean what you know there’s a couple of things that could to be
done here the most simple thing is if the Board has enough evidence and we agree and that
remains to be seen but we can overturn the Building Department’s Notice of Disapproval. We
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December 1, 2016 Regular Meeting
don’t have to grant a variance we just write up a determination (inaudible) jurisdiction to do
that.
ADAM SUPRENANT : WE can do that under this application because I know that there was a
separate application for dispute with the code.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : There was a what?
ADAM SUPRENANT : It seemed that there was a separate box to check if you had a (inaudible)
with the code.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Oh I see no, no when we get a request for a variance if we disagree
with what’s in the Notice of Disapproval we have a legal authority to overturn that Notice of
Disapproval or to change.
ADAM SUPRENANT : I hope you do because this I think Ag is you know part of the fabric of
Southold and you know it would I think would discourage a lot of startup farmers who can’t buy
the one hundred acres to get started.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Your point is well taken.
ADAM SUPRENANT : (inaudible)
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Let’s see if there’s someone in the audience who wants to address
the application sitting there very patiently, why don’t you come forward and state your name
please in the mic.
PAULINE FARR : Hello I’m Pauline Farr. I live directly across the street at 360 South Harbor. I
have absolutely no objection to this deer fence on this what I consider always has been I’ve
lived at my house for about forty years. A piece of agricultural property and I’ve seen it many
states of disrepair, I’ve seen it one year it wasn’t planted and the wind came in March and
covered my house with dirt that I had to have power washed off. I’ve never seen this house
look as good as it does now nor this property is so well tended so passionately tended and I
don’t even understand what an objection could be to the deer fence. And that’s what I wanted
to say and I have lots of flowers because I also am a gardener and I love having the bees come
over from across the road and you know I see the deer eat I see them kind of angle around the
fence when that fence wasn’t there and it was open there were a lot more deer in my front
yard then there are at the moment because of the side and back fencing so anyway I don’t
know who objected and I think sometimes we get a little crazy about a visual field you know I
don’t like the way this looks you know tough. People are trying to make a living here in Ag land
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doing Ag and you know as we said Crotueaux has a fence that’s way longer than this tiny little
fence and he needs it because his grapes would also be eaten up so that’s what I want to say.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Thank you very much for your comments. Is there anything else
from the Board?
ADAM SUPRENANT : I just have one question on submitting our proof of Ag operation how do
we go about doing that?
CHAIRPESON WEISMAN : All you need to do is gather whatever material you could think of to
put together we’ve had some discussion here so I’m sure you have some idea what we’re
looking for and just take them into the office give it to Kim and she will make copies for the rest
of the Board members and we’ll all get them that way. You don’t have to make a zillion copies
we’ll do that because we requested it it’s on our nickel or dime or whatever the cost these
days. Is there anything else from the Board? I think what we should do I don’t believe we’re
going to need any more testimony but just in case what I’m going to do is adjourn this to the
Special Meeting in two weeks. That gives you plenty of time to gather whatever you need. If we
have everything we need which it’s likely to be the case we’ll just close it at that point. We
meet twice a month so in two weeks we’ll meet than we’ll decide how to handle this and we’ll
write up a determination and that will be written between well I guess it depends on part on
how soon we get this whether we can also have a draft available in two weeks but at the latest
it would be two weeks later. So, it would be a month from today.
LAURA KLAHRE : So then do we come to your next meeting and have a
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : No you don’t have to. The Special Meetings are not public hearings.
There’s no testimony gathered. What we do and we don’t record it what we do is it’s open to
the public if you want to sit in you certainly can but there’s no conversation going on you’re just
observing and listening to the Board discuss various applications. The Board prepares drafts of
each application, draft decisions about which way to go and then they get emailed out to
everybody. We don’t talk about them together because we can only do that before the public in
an open noticed meeting so we all see them in advance and then we think about them scribble
them up if we have changes, we get together, we talk about them, we review them and we may
or may not make changes and then we vote. So the public is welcomed to listen but you’re not
required to be there it’s entirely up to you and you’re welcomed to. I’m not sure whether as I
said it depends I don’t know whether we’ll have a draft ready to deliberate but we would
certainly have one a month from today depending how fast we get what we need. Thank you all
for your time and thank you for your good work. Motion is to adjourn to the Special Meeting.
MEMBER GOEHRINGER : Second.
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December 1, 2016 Regular Meeting
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : All in favor?
MEMBER HORNING : Aye.
MEMBER GOEHRINGER : Aye.
MEMBER SCHNEIDER : Aye.
MEMBER DANTES : Aye.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Aye.
(See Minutes for Resolution)
HEARING # 7003 – JEFF and JAIME ABARMS
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : The next application before the Board is for Jeff and Jaime Abrams
#7003. This is a request for variances from Article XXII, Section 280-116A(1) and the Building
Inspector’s September 1, 2016 Notice of Disapproval based on an application for a building
permit to demolish an existing house and construct a new single family dwelling and a new
detached accessory deck at 1) proposed dwelling is located less than the code required 100 feet
from the top of the bank, 2) proposed accessory deck located less than the code required 100
feet from the top of the bank located at 7325 Nassau Point Rd. (adj. to Little Peconic Bay) in
Cutchogue. I should just say that we did receive the survey that’s now showing adjacent
properties. We received your memorandum also and you just brought up something else. These
are what, priors setbacks and so on?
PAT MOORE : Yes priors similar variances I didn’t include sheds and things like that you know or
I would have had it bulked to this paperwork. The only case that is applicable as far as the
current code because the current code of 100 feet from the top of the bank just got adopted so
the only one that has more recently been reviewed under that provision is tax lot number 111-
15-11 that’s the bottom of the packet that I gave you. That’s the old Blangiardo property which
is Stromski and Perez purchased from him and these were decks and accessory structures that
were along the bank. They’re not really it’s not comparable as far as the application we have
before you but it’s the first time it actually got reviewed so I included it but we have very little
to go with since you know
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CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : A work in progress.
PAT MOORE : A work in progress you got it.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Let me just enter into the record here that this is a demolition of an
existing single family dwelling and a new single family dwelling proposed at 34 feet from the
top of the bluff bank where the code is suggesting 100 feet is required and an accessory deck at
the top of the bank. Now before I go into anything further I want to make sure you got a copy
of the LWRP and Soil and Water.
PAT MOORE : The LWRP I did not get. Soil and Water I did get.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : We just got them so I want to make sure.
PAT MOORE : Yea Soil and Water I don’t need it because that was sent to us yesterday thank
you but LWRP I did not get.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : We just got it. It’s consistent.
PAT MOORE : Oh well that’s good. I can never predict what is going to come up. I’ll take it and
I’ll run with it.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Well I think Soil and Water had some interesting comments.
PAT MOORE : We will address those, Patricia Moore on behalf of the Abrams application. We
have Mr. Abrams here today. I also have Tom Samuels the Architect and Joe Fischetti
professional engineer whose assistance we’re going to get from both of them regarding the
standards that we have to meet. As you know the 100 foot setback from the top of the bank is
something that is brand new. For the last at least twenty five years we’ve been locating houses
in this are in particular at 75 feet from a bulkhead. Many applications in Nassau Point because
it’s a very early subdivision of the ‘30’s many of the old homes when they were either existing
homes with additions or demolitions and reconstructions they were being placed on their
properties at 75 feet or generally 75 feet or closer to the bulkhead. That has been the
established character of the neighborhood. What we did is if you turn to page sheet number
two from Tom Samuels of Samuels and Steelman the original packet to you has two houses to
the north and to the south I asked Tom if he could just add one more since generally our code
deals with average setbacks being around the 300 feet up and down so we just added the third
house not really knowing what the end result would be those two houses are actually even
closer. Our average that I gave you in my written presentation was at 21 feet as an average
setback if you just use the two houses to the north and to the south when you use the three
houses it doesn’t change that number. It’s still the 21 feet being the average setback. Again the
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character of the neighborhood probably the most recent application that I recall is the Drews
house it’s right next door. That one was an application that I actually did and that was a
demolition and new dwelling unlike the other variances that I provided they were additions to
existing homes, significant additions many cases they were almost completely new built houses
but technically they were considered additions and renovations. The Drews house next door
was an application for a demolition and new dwelling. In that instance the house was pushed
back slightly which was from the original house about the same amount we’re proposing with
the current house which was owned by Catapano. I had done some work for Catapano before.
The Drews house was granted at 71.3 feet from the bulkhead which led to a 44 foot setback to
the top of the bank. The topography of that property and I’ll have Tom talk about it more
specifically but if you can see and again the overall sheet number two gives you a good overall
picture of the way the topography in this area has was graded originally and you can see that
the bulkheads in many instances depending on where the bulkhead is situated the top of the
bank is either more or less protected based on the placement of the bulkhead so the Drews
example the bulkhead pops out towards the water slightly and therefore the top of the bank is
slightly protruding out towards the water and that’s why you end up with a 44 foot setback to
the new residence the new house that was built by the Drews family in 2006. Similarly if you
look up and down to the north and to the south you’ll see significant setbacks what would be a
huge variance today with setbacks that are 14 feet from the top of the bank, 27 feet and so on
and again an average being 21 and we’re proposing to push the house back to 35, 34.6. So let
me deal with one issue at a time if that’s alright with the Board. So with respect with the
character of the neighborhood Tom would you come up and just speak generally about how the
house was designed and the character of the neighborhood and I’ll let you address.
TOM SAMUELS : Tom Samuels of Samuels and Steelman Architects how are you all today?
Staying with Pat’s sheet number two I would just draw your attention to the contour lines and
what you see from the top of the sheet down towards the middle which is where our project
site is that there are a lot of contour lines which are gradually diminishing as you move south so
basically this represents a bank of land a contour of land which is getting lower as we come
towards the south. We are towards the end of that bank before the property is pretty much
level out at the top of the bank as they do further south of us but what you also notice is that
it’s not just that the overall property is diminishing to the south but it’s a ridge of land which is
between the waterfront and the road so there’s a kind of a high section between the road and
the waterfront which means that the houses were located I mean for strategic reasons
obviously on top of that so that they would have a view of the water. If they were behind that
ridge of land (inaudible) five foot contours they would be looking at the back of this ridge of
land as opposed to the water and that is the exact same situation that we face in that the
original house which we’re proposing to replace was built into this ridge of land so that the
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residents would walk out at grade on both sides of the house but they would be on different
stories so on the water side you’re a floor up looking out at the bay, on the roadside you’re a
floor down and you have access directly under the house for a garage and for other recreational
spaces which my clients the Abrams were determined to have this kind of a situation where
they could put a swimming pool at grade behind the house and this property which they just
recently purchased made perfect sense for that so I’m basically saying that it’s not easy to slide
this house back because we would be again looking at the back of the bluff or bank or a hill
coming up in front of you and blocking your view and it would also prevent you from having a
usable basement which is accessed at grade. So that’s the principal point I would make at the
moment and I have additional ones but if you want to continue. That point is further illustrated
on sheet number three where you see a site section with a dotted line a heavy dotted line, in
this section the water Little Peconic Bay is to the right. You see a bulkhead line a relatively flat
area, the bank in question goes up to a high point and then gradually goes down towards the
road and you can see a section of our house the proposed house and how that first floor
arrangement accessing at grade on both sides but different floors works and why this particular
location which is the location of the existing house only we’re slightly back from it was so
critical to this design so I’m drawing attention to that and to the fact that everyone else
especially to the north of us has located their house for the exact same reason that they were
75 feet from the bulkhead put them at the top so they could look out at the water instead of
looking at the back of a bluff and this is based entirely upon the existing contours of the site
and our desire naturally not to propose to excavate out you know massive amount of fill which
we would probably be prevented from doing anyway from the Trustees and others in order to
have those views that we want and then finally on sheet number four you see elevations of the
house. You can see what it looks like and how these arrangements were. The grade out areas
this was calculated specifically to illustrate that we are not building a three story house. In
order to be a two story house by code zoning code and also state building code a certain
percentage of the basement must be below grade and they have a new calculation in the new
code. I won’t get into the fine points of it but I will say that we passed that but if this house was
pushed back and the ground by natural contour started to decrease in height the house would
be more and more out of the ground and this whole approach of having a walk out basement
which was important to my clients would be impossible. So that is in a nutshell I guess the
reasoning behind our citing of this house and why we’re here today.
MEMBER GOEHRINGER : So the question I have Tom is how do you protect the foundation?
TOM SAMUELS : The foundation is protected primarily by the bulkhead and by the ground
that’s there. Joe will speak more specifically to the issues of (inaudible) etc. We are in a very we
think in a very good position relative to the bank that’s there. We have by engineering
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standards and New York State code a lot of excess property on the waterside of our house
which is protected in this foundation.
MEMBER GOEHRINGER : Yeah but is it stable enough to protect the foundation?
PAT MOORE : You know what since you’re asking that specific question Joe would you come up
and why don’t we just jump right to that issue.
JOE FISCHETTI : Good morning Joe Fischetti, engineer. I’m in Southold and Board certified in
structural engineering.
MEMBER GOEHRINGER : Can I just ask you one question before you start? In reference to
protecting the foundation you’ve put spread footings in here?
JOE FISCHETTI : No there’s no need to. The spread footings is only when the soil conditions as
poor.
MEMBER GOEHRINGER : OK, I’m just saying we’re looking at this situation from Soil and Water
and I realized that I guess some of this demolition of this bank so to speak was put by storm
Sandy okay because the bulkhead has been replaced right?
JOE FISCHETTI : Yes.
MEMBER GOEHRINGER : I mean there’s new bulkhead or relatively a new bulkhead. So I mean
that’s just a reason why I’m asking that.
JOE FISCHETTI : Let me continue and talk. I’ll start off to say I’ve reviewed Tom Samuel’s designs
and site plans and it is my opinion that the construction of the proposed house will not affect
the bank. On page three you’ll see we took out section I looked at New York State building code
section 403 (inaudible) that section allows helps architects and engineers in placing houses next
to descending slopes. Now a bluff is a descending slope and basically they give a formula and
what that does is basically condense a lot of geotechnical information that I probably won’t go
into except if you look at this plan you’ll see there’s a forty five degree angled line coming down
from the footing and that’s the soil failure line. Every soil different soil conditions have different
angles of soil failure. Now when you have something like hurricane Sandy where it erodes the
bottom of the bank the bluff the upper bluff that’s not being supported by the bottom of the
bank will fail at the angle at the soil failure angle so what I found over the years that that angle
is probably something like thirty seven degrees. That same failure angle is used as the point of
where a footing the impact of that footing would be on that failure angle. So as long as the
intersection of the bluff and that soil failure angle don’t intersect you have no effect. So that
formula that I’ve given you and that section by the building code try to condenses all that
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information and makes it real easy so there really is not a problem till those two angles
intersect. The building code does say further down in that code that there are additional
considerations that a town or a municipality can put on and they require that an engineer be
used to analyze additional considerations that would affect a bluff or stability of a bluff. One
would be the height of the slope, the slope gradient which is the angle of repose. Now as I said
to you when you have a failure, that bluff is at its angle of repose. So that bluff that’s there now
is actually thirty five degrees so within the context of what we see on the North fork of thirty
five to thirty seven degrees so it is at a stable angle and the third is erosion characteristics
because you don’t want to put a house on a bluff or a slope if it has the ability to erode. I’ve
told in this particular case I’ve told the client that he needs to protect the existing bluff face
with vegetation using good practices. If you look at this section on page three what’s very
interesting is the erosion of the bank back from the bulkhead actually has there’s a level spot
there and I called that a splash back and I used that to dissipate wave action whenever waves
overtop a bulkhead which happened in Sandy because the waves are much higher and what
that does is the waves come over the top of the bulkhead and you need to dissipate that energy
so I’ve recommended to my client that flat area be placed with six to eight inch stones twenty
four inches deep which actually dissipate wave energy and helps protect that bluff that it
doesn’t move. Again anything can happen but we try to do that. So having a setback of 34 foot
6 inches should have no effect on that bluff (inaudible).
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Joe let me ask you about specific recommendations that Soil and
Water Authority mentioned that the bluff needs to be stabilized, to be vegetated and there’s
some landscaping debris that needs to be cleaned out of there and they’re talking about here it
would appear that the deck along the top of the bank or bluff is going to be reduced in size
more to like a landing area it says the deck at top of the stairwell is going to be downsized. It
does show on the plan I believe a reduction in size but what they’re saying is its not
recommending that the original pilings be removed as this can create more issues for the bluff
and also its not recommended that new pilings be put in until the bluff has been stabilized.
JOE FISCHETTI : All good practices.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : You’re okay with all that?
TOM SAMUELS : I agree with all that.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Last but not least just talking about staging construction equipment
running machines within twenty five feet of the top of the bluff is not recommended. No heavy
equipment you know should be stored there for long periods of time (inaudible) feet of bluff
(inaudible).
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December 1, 2016 Regular Meeting
JOE FISCHETTI : In these particular case in residential homes like this all the heavy equipment
that you have is during is excavation and most of that excavation would happen further
landward. The other heavy equipment that you need to be careful of is concrete trucks but
again concrete trucks are not going to be on the water side just impossible to get trucks over
there but I want you to understand that those are really very, very conservative. Having a truck
about forty feet is just we used to over the years when contractors were building revetments
especially John Costello he used to do this all the time he would bring fully loaded trucks with
large boulders up to the edge of the slope and dump them down. They did it all the time. Those
bluffs didn’t collapse from those trucks so you really need to do you really need to do major
construction to do that so twenty five forty feet I would think is really if you’re going to be
putting recommendations I agree with twenty five, forty is way out the park here it’s just really
out of the way but again none of the construction all the construction is going to be happening
on the land side the heavy equipment is the excavation, the concrete trucks and installation of
the sanitary and actually I don’t even know whether they’re they’ll probably be doing a new
sanitary so that’s also on the landside so any problems with that won’t happen.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : (inaudible) Trustees approval also I presume.
PAT MOORE : (inaudible) talked about was that our Trustee approval based on the
recommendations that Joe has made were actually going to add to the supplication we brought
(inaudible) and then the vegetation of the bank. It doesn’t really involve this Board because we
consistent with the Trustees review so all in the way to get the maximum protection (inaudible)
the construction as Joe testified these things are not necessary (CANNOT HEAR PAT MOORE
SPEAKING BEING DROWNED OUT BY THE BUZZING) our distance is sufficient but it is a good
preventative prophylactic measure to protect any possible future erosion of storm damage
another hurricane so it’s something that Mr. Abrams is certainly willing to do. It’s a very costly
addition but it’s a long term investment (inaudible) as Joe mentioned good practices so we’re
using this opportunity since we have to go to the Trustees anyway to incorporate that.
MEMBER GOEHRINGER : Joe are you putting fiber underneath that stone or your just
JOE FISCHETTI : Yeah usually. I didn’t design it I made a comment but usually you (inaudible)
under the stone.
MEMBER GOEHRINGER : Last question, I walked around the house to see if I can find any cracks
in the house after storm Sandy, I didn’t see anything but of course that could have been done
by water you know
JOE FISCHETTI : You’re just not you’re too far back.
MEMBER GOEHRINGER : You’re too far back.
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CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Let’s see if the Board has questions.
MEMBER DANTES : I know on the sound (inaudible) bluff setback (CANNOT DECIPHER DUE TO
BUZZING NOISE)
PAT MOORE : No you never had top of bluff that was a jurisdiction
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : That was on Long Island Sound. We didn’t have jurisdiction over
bluffs on bays until the 275, 280 (inaudible)
JOE FISCHETTI : If we were on Long Island Sound and you had a hundred foot bluff which this is
not this is a sixteen foot so you want to protect yourself because I always tell clients when
we’re looking at stuff I said you’re not giving this to your grandchildren.
PAT MOORE : On the sound.
JOE FISCHETTI : On the sound side. I’m sorry we’re talking sound side with high bluff that’s what
the code allows.
MEMBER DANTES : Can you just tell us the difference between bluff and bay bluff?
JOE FISCHETTI : I’m sorry say again.
MEMBER DANTES : The sound bluff is the precedent we have to work with can you just tell us
the difference between a sound bluff and bay bluff?
JOE FISCHETTI : I don’t think there would be a difference. It’s just the heights on the sound that
some of them are over a hundred feet high and that’s what I was trying to say and whether
there’s a bulkhead or not. Now some of the problems we have on the sound are that the D.E.C.
are not allowing us to do bulkheads anymore. They want revetments which I think are horrible.
The last job I had that I designed a revetment for bulkheads he wanted a revetment and when I
gave him a revetment he didn’t want it that high and I said why am I doing this at all? So I
actually wrote on the design plan that this is designed by D.E.C. and not designed by me
because they so there are problems on the sound side with D.E.C. really gets involved and they
don’t want a lot of bulkheads they don’t want certain things happening. Bayside is different.
After hurricane Sandy I did a number of bulkheads and retaining walls and depending on which
way the wind is blowing there’s no difference. Depends on which way the wind is blowing and
how the tides look at what happened with Sandy. Sandy came from the east and that tide came
up high and over top many of the ones many of the bulkheads on Nassau Point.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : One of the reasons that the ZBA is not doing bulkheads setbacks is
because bulkhead is a protection from a naturally regulated feature and the assumption would
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be if the bulkhead is in place it doesn’t require duplicate reviews between Trustees and the
Zoning Board whereas a bluff that’s unprotected requires (inaudible) that looks at the range of
different standards that a Zoning Board looks at in comparison to the standards that Trustees
look at. (inaudible) environmental (inaudible). We look at character of the neighborhood and a
lot of other things that would in fact permit a variance from the code based upon non-
conformity in the area (inaudible) in this application with regard to setback so that’s part
(inaudible) Eric. This is a bulk headed property and we’re still working now on developing
distinction between what is a bluff and what is a bank. That is a work in progress that we’re all
looking forward to improving. In fact there’s a code committee meeting Tuesday.
MEMBER HORNING : Could I ask Mr. Fischetti a direct question? The Notice of Disapproval
refers to a bluff and the final sentence refers to the top of the bank.
JOE FISCHETTI : It’s all the same it doesn’t matter a bluff and a bank.
PAT MOORE : Well the way we define in our code
JOE FISCHETTI : As an engineer I’m looking at it as the same it doesn’t matter to me. It’s a
descending slope so whether it’s a slope or a bluff, a bluff though in the town code is specific. It
has definitions of what a bluff is and how the top of the bluff is calculated so a bank could not
have water next to it. We have it could be just a high slope so even the building code doesn’t
define that there’s water anywhere but it just talks about and we’re only talking about the
effects of the impact of a structure on a soil that has a slope to it. So whether it’s a bluff or a
bank that’s what you and I are I’m talking about here. I’m not talking about anything that has to
do with erosion which goes back to other sections that would be taken up by the Trustees or
anyone else.
MEMBER HORNING : In this Notice of Disapproval is there any difference in your mind between
the bluff and a bank? Why did it refer to the bluff in one sentence and a bank in the next
sentence?
TOM SAMUELS : I can add to that a little bit in that the survey that we were working from which
was prepared obviously by a licensed surveyor he uses both of those terms and it just sort of
crept in there. They mention the bottom of the bluff the top of the bank and those two lines
are on our survey and so we and the Building Department presumably saw that and adopted
that language but I would say in this instance the difference between a bluff and a bank is that
a bluff is an eroding face of earth which has been denuded of vegetation such as on Robins
Island. A bank is a slope which might be quite low and might be retained. It might have
vegetation on it so that’s my just off the top of my head but I also wanted to just address the
issue of the difference between the sound and the bay. On the sound there’s also something
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called a coastal erosion hazard line which was established by the federal government as far as I
know to indicate that there was a serious risk of collapse of that bluff. We don’t have that on
the bay. There is a coastal erosion hazard line and I think that indicates a very different
approach to the way the town initially regulated those two conditions. Now we’ve sucked
everything into that same definition but I think that was inappropriate and (inaudible) frankly
because not only did it make everything non-conforming on Nassau Point but it suggested that
there was a similar risk on the sound as it was on the bay and I don’t believe that’s the case
because we have a continuous bulkhead line over a mile long on Nassau Point which is going to
be scrupulously maintained by the property owners whose value of property depends on the
integrity of those bulkheads and they are not going to skimp on that. That is those structures
are fundamental to life on Long Island as we know (inaudible) so I just wanted to make those
comments.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Anyone else in the audience wishing to address the application?
Hearing no further questions or comments I’ll make a motion to close the hearing reserve
decision to a later date.
MEMBER SCHNEIDER : Second.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : All in favor?
MEMBER HORNING : Aye.
MEMBER GOEHRINGER : Aye.
MEMBER SCHNEIDER : Aye.
MEMBER DANTES : Aye.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Aye.
(See Minutes for Resolution)
HEARING # 7005 –JOHN and CATHERINE BOYLE
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : The next application before the Board is for John and Catherine
Boyle #7005. This is a request for variances from Article IV Section 280-15 and the Building
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Inspector’s August 8, 2016 Notice of Disapproval based on an application for a building permit
to legalize an “as built” farm accessory barn at 1) at more than the maximum height of 22 feet
located at 24435 Route 25 (Main Rd.) in Orient. Would you please state your name for the
record?
AGENA RIGDON : Good afternoon Agena, DKR Shores here to represent John and Catherine
Boyle.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Okay so we have an “as built” accessory barn with a 27 foot high
peak to the ridge and the code permits a maximum of 22 feet.
AGENA RIGDON : Twenty two correct. As you can see it was built without a permit. It’s a shirk
pole barn. It’s a metal barn that is similar to the other barns on the site. It’s roughly a twenty
two acre parcel on Sound Ave. 48 and we went through full site plan review by the way and
then at the end it was determined that because the property isn’t being actively farmed even
though it’s used for farming and there are horses on site and it’s zoned a horse farm because
it’s not actively being farmed right now they had me come before you for Zoning Board because
it’s technically residential if it’s not being actively farmed so I’m caught in a bit of a loop hole.
The barn actually is being used to store farming equipment. Mr. Boyle has farms down the road
and it’s a storage facility for the overflow farming equipment.
MEMBER HORNING : Is it zoned R80?
AGENA RIGDON : I have to look at that. I believe so. I have to look at the tax rolls. I believe it is
yes. There’s a residence on the farm as well so it’s obviously being residentially used but there’s
only a couple of horses there and we’re not farming it so I’m before the Board. It’s similar to all
the other barns in the area. I have no neighborhood objection. It’s consistent with the
neighborhood. It’s consistent with the character of the property. The property was historically
farmed it’s just not being farmed at this moment.
MEMBER SCHNEIDER : Was is being farmed when the barn was built, the subject barn?
AGENA RIGDON : It’s there’s horses so it’s not farmed. We’re not producing.
MEMBER SCHNEIDER : You’re not producing crop but you’re a horse farm.
AGENA RIGDON : There’s a horse farm.
MEMBER SCHNEIDER : It was originally a horse farm?
AGENA RIGDON : It’s zoned right now as a horse farm. I would have to research back to see
exactly when it was converted from production of agricultural products to a horse farm but it’s
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actively a horse farm right now and that’s what it’s being taxed and zoned on as per the
assessor’s office.
MEMBER SCHNEIDER : Okay so a horse farm would be treated is being treated different than
farm with respect to accessory structures?
AGENA RIGDON : Correct.
MEMBER SCHNEIDER : If this was a farm this accessory structure would be permitted at this
height?
T. A. DUFFY : I don’t see a difference between a horse farm and a production farm. I don’t really
understand what the difference is.
MEMBER SCHNEIDER : I don’t either.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : It’s part of agriculture.
AGENA RIGDON : As per site plan they hemmed and hawed on this for about a year and they
determined as per town code because we’re not producing something and it’s not being
actively farmed and only used for an overflow of farming equipment that it still needed a
variance from the Board because it exceeds the height for an accessory quote unquote.
MEMBER HORNING : The buildings that are there there’s several of them.
AGENA RIGDON : They all have C.O.’s and they’re all higher than twenty two feet.
MEMBER HORNING : It was I drove back there it was hard to tell the Irish guy was there the
caretaker and he directed me exactly to what to look at but the building on the left of that I
mean
AGENA RIGDON : It’s similar.
MEMBER HORNING : Yea very similar and you say it’s higher than
AGENA RIGDON : It’s higher than twenty two feet yeah.
MEMBER HORNING : And when was that one built?
AGEN RIGDON : I would have to check with the owner. It’s been there for quite a few years. I
believe it was C.O.’d when he actually bought it.
MEMBER SCHNEIDER : I did a little research on that other barn. Three of them that are
clustered in the center there the subject one of course doesn’t have a C.O. and then the smaller
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one has a C.O. and then the larger one I did some GIS research and it didn’t show up in 2001
aerial but it showed up in 2004 aerial. Somewhere between 2001 and 2004 that was built. I
didn’t see a C.O. for that in the file. Chairperson did you say that the code changed back then
for accessory structures?
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Yeah but they were on mostly on residential properties. We didn’t
change the code necessarily I don’t think for agricultural accessories. Right do you agree with
that? We changed the height and the setbacks on accessory structures on residential
properties so that they would
MEMBER SCHNEIDER : And that’s what this is falling under right now.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Yeah and right now they’re looking at this apparently as a residential
property and not an agricultural property because it’s not actively
MEMBER SCHNEIDER : Being farmed but it’s a horse farm.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : So I think they just sent (inaudible) variance over to use because
that’s what they do.
MEMBER SCHNEIDER : From a visual inspection of the other barn the older one that was built
sometime between 2001 and 2004 it appears to be the same height. It is the same width so
assuming it might have been the same construction company or you know it has trusses and
(inaudible) so I’m assuming it’s the same heights. Nevertheless it’s very similar to what already
the barn in question the subject barn is very similar to what is already there.
AGENA RIGDON : Correct. I did checking with the Building Inspector and he said that the other
barns did have C.O.’s and then searched the property record card and I have there should be
copies of the C.O.’s in the application packet they should be there.
MEMBER SCHNEIDER : I did go through those C.O.’s and I saw one C.O. 36646 for 2013 that was
for the long skinny metal barn that’s within that three barn cluster and the other C.O.’s I
thought were referencing the residential dwelling and the accessory structures in that area.
AGENA RIGDON : I have the property card reference he’s being taxed for a barn on the last
remark was April of ’11 and that barn is 25 by 95 so that one did
MEMBER SCHNEIDER : That’s the long skinny one in that three barn cluster in the center
because that’s 95 by 25.
AGENA RIGDON : Right the Building Inspector didn’t flag anything else so I’m not really sure and
the property record shows all the barns that are on site.
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MEMBER HORNING : Did you ever see any cows there?
AGENA RIGDON : I didn’t; I just saw a pony and a mini and I have cute pictures of them.
MEMBER SCHNEIDER : So I guess the point I’m trying to get at is that if the other one already
the other large one that was built somewhere between 2001 and 2004 had a permit and C.O.
and everything for that that was what this application (inaudible)
AGENA RIGDON : Thank you.
MEMBER SCHNEIDER : (inaudible)
AGENA RIGDON : He’s being taxed on all of them so there’s pictures in the property record so
somehow it got legal.
MEMBER SCHNEIDER : Somehow it got legal.
AGENA RIGDON : It should have been in the application but I can copy.
MEMBER DANTES : Leslie just because it’s being taxed doesn’t make it a legal structure.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : George had a question about livestock on the
MEMBER HORNING : Not while I was there yesterday there wasn’t any (inaudible) but the
question is if this gentleman can answer it are there other livestock besides horses that inhabit
the place on occasion.
UNNAMED SPEAKER : Not today I live in the house in front of this barn and the Main Rd. and
I’ve lived there since 1969 so I can tell you that that (inaudible) has always been farmed but it
hasn’t been actively farmed where they actually dig up the dirt in probably twenty years but
they used to grow cabbage and cauliflower and stuff back there. The Tabors used to farm there.
John has had Black Angus cattle there on a regular basis for years. He would raise them and
then when winter came he didn’t want to feed them so he sent them to Yaphank the
(inaudible) so
MEMBER HORNING : I mean is that ag production is the question is that part of agricultural
production?
MEMBER SCHNEIDER : I would say yes.
MEMBER GOEHRINGER : Sure it is definitely.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : What are the barns being used for now? Clearly they’re not horse
stables. There’s lots of heavy equipment in there and
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AGENA RIGDON : Mr. Boyle owns farms down the road and it’s an overflow of farming
equipment so as you can see in the photographs that I submitted it’s all farming equipment.
There’s tractors there’s
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : And is that equipment used in connection with property owned by
the applicant or is it a business in which farm equipment is being leased to other people?
AGENA RIGDON : Both I think. I know John has a couple of farms down the road that are being
actively farmed and that’s his overflow for his farming and I think he lets other people use it as
well. I’m not sure of the barter system going on.
MEMBER SCHNEIDER : That’s not very uncommon in the farming industry. In specialized
equipment you tend to share or
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : So we need to see if we can find a C.O. on the other barn that’s very
similar in height to this one and it’s not even that big of a variance.
MEMBER SCHNEIDER : No it’s not I’m just confused with the respect that it’s not considered a
farm I don’t know raising horses
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : In other words the building is not being treated as an agricultural
structure it’s being treated as an accessory to a residence.
AGENA RIGDON : Correct.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Which is why the height restriction but I think the argument can be
made that it is historically been farmed and that it is although not actively involved in farming it
is still a household that is a residence that is there in connection with a farming activity.
AGENA RIGDON : Yes.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Whether it’s on that property or on adjacent properties farming is
taking place with the equipment stored in those buildings.
MEMBER SCHNEIDER : And there’s no living quarters in these barns?
AGENA RIGDON : No you can walk right inside of them I did it.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : We’ve been out there we’ve seen it.
AGENA RIGDON : It’s a beautiful site isn’t it? It’s a gorgeous piece of property.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Okay anything from anybody else?
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December 1, 2016 Regular Meeting
MEMBER SCHNEIDER : I just want to make one more comment that this cluster of barns with
the subject barn is about thousand feet from the Main Rd.
MEMBER HORNING : That’s a very good point.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Very good point, anyone in the audience who wishes to address this
application? Hearing no further questions or comments I make a motion to close the hearing
reserve decision to later date.
MEMBER GOEHRINGER : Second.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : All in favor?
MEMBER HORNING : Aye.
MEMBER GOEHRINGER : Aye.
MEMBER SCHNEIDER : Aye.
MEMBER DANTES : Aye.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Aye.
(See Minutes for Resolution)
HEARING # 7006 – REVCO LIGHTING & ELECTRICAL SUPPLY/STODIEN DEVELOPMENT
CHAIRPERSON WIESMAN : The next application before the Board is for Revco Lighting &
Electrical Supply #7006. This is a request for variances from Article XIX Section 280-85 D and the
Building Inspector’s September 13, 2016 Notice of Disapproval based on an application for a
sign permit to erect a second freestanding sign at 1) more than the code required maximum
number of freestanding signs allowed for each frontage I think it’s more than the code
permitted rather than required but anyway this is on a public street or way located at 55765
Route 25 (Main Rd.) in Southold. Please state your name for the record.
TONI REIDEL : Hello my name is Toni Ann Reidel and I’m the marketing and PR manager for
Revco Lighting and Electrical Supply.
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December 1, 2016 Regular Meeting
CHAIREPRSON WEISMAN : Well it looks like because there’s already one set there’s two
buildings on one parcel three actually
TONI REIDEL :There’s two we’re on this corner, there’s a parking lot and there’s two buildings
here and the sign that you’re talking about is over there in the top of that one so far away.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Yes we’re familiar. We’ve all been to the site; we all live here so we
all drive by it all the time anyway but we’ve all. We all do site inspections individually so we’re
familiar with the sign that’s there and it would probably make very little sense for you to add
your sign to that sign when it’s way over on the other side of the parking lot. Are you proposing
I believe on the plan to remove the sign that is on the building up on the roof?
TONI REIDEL : Absolutely we don’t want two signs. That’s not permitted. We’re allowed one
sign and from all the work in the wintertime you can see that sign on the building but in the
summer with the trees you can’t see anything drive by and so many people don’t know that
we’re there so we’ve designed the sign to be aesthetically pleasing to the building, to the
community within the zoning guidelines of where it would fifteen feet from the sidewalk, the
street and then each angle of where the sign would be placed we made sure that it doesn’t
interfere with the viewing of any other business so we kind of were very careful to make sure
from all angles some of the staff and I were outside making sure that you could see so it doesn’t
disrupt and take away from anybody else. It would be a 4 by 6 within the guidelines of where it
would be placed in the earth. I’ve sent out all the letters. I’ve met with the coffee roaster owner
and she’s very supportive of very nice woman, Tom McCarthy called me and he’s very
supportive of it. We have had no (inaudible) from anybody saying because it won’t interrupt
them and that’s one of the things we want to add to the community economic development
and we don’t want to infringe on anybody else’s privacy or their business. Just be more visible
so we can do more business.
CHAIRPERSON WIESMAN : One of our members is recusing himself from this deliberation
because he does business with them.
TONI REIDEL : That would be a conflict of interest.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : So just letting that be known on the record. His family he has a
family of builders so they
TONI REIDEL : I appreciate that; we appreciate that.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Okay so let’s see if there’s anything
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MEMBER SCHNEIDER : I have a question the other sign or the first sign not the one on your
building the other one it says the Luncheonette and North Fork Roasting Company Revco’s
name is not on that sign
TONI REIDEL : It was never (inaudible, buzzing louder than voice) originally I guess seven years
ago the building was taken over Revco moved to Southold it was permitted sign on the building
I wasn’t there so I can’t explain about the other sign.
MEMBER SCHNEIDER : The other two businesses are in separate buildings across the parking lot
so Revco stands alone
TONI REIDEL : CANNOT HEAR HER SPEAKING DUE TO BUZZING NOISE
MEMBER SCHNEIDER : Far away from this existing sign. It looks like the site plan we have here
this is the one that we’re going to work with right? It indicates that the proposed sign is 24
square feet, fifteen plus feet from the road meaning the Main Rd. I’m assuming.
TONI REIDEL : Does everybody have a copy of this?
MEMBER SCHNEIDER : And 6 plus feet or so from the sidewalk.
TONI REIDEL : Right. I looked at the guidelines and one of the staff members and I went outside
and did physical measurements and I took another foot or so above that to make sure we were
well within the guidelines so we took physical measurements.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Is the sign proposed to be lit at night or not?
TONI REIDEL : We have assigned a light, very thin light, down light that’s going to be on, it’s
going to be turned off at a certain point but it’s (inaudible)
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : It’s going to have to be dark skies compliant per code.
TONI REIDEL : It is absolutely. We were very careful with the light that we chose the lumens to
make sure that we meet the dark sky and all the guidelines according to the town.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Well even though the subject parcel is one parcel it appears because
of the parking lot as though there are two parcels. We know they are one property. I don’t
think the sign in front of the coffee roasters would do Revco very much
MEMBER SCHNEIDER : What’s the point of a sign but to advertise you know and it would be
ineffective if it was (inaudible)
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December 1, 2016 Regular Meeting
TONI REIDEL : It wouldn’t help us over there when they’re over there you’re right a hundred
percent right.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Gerry anything, George?
MEMBER HORNING : No questions.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Anyone else in the audience wishing to address this application?
Hearing no further questions or comments I make a motion to close the hearing reserve
decision to later date.
MEMBER GOEHRINGER : Second.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : All in favor?
MEMBER HORNING : Aye.
MEMBER GOEHRINGER : Aye.
MEMBER SCHNEIDER : Aye.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Aye.
(See Minutes for Resolution)
HEARING # 7007 – FRANK and DENISE DELLAQUILLA
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Just make a note that Member Schneider is recusing himself from
the next application and is leaving the room. The next application before the Board is for Frank
and Denise Dellaquilla # 7007. This is a request for variances from Article XIX Section 280-
13(A)6(P) and the Building Inspector’s September 14, 2016 Notice of Disapproval based on an
application to legalize an “as built” accessory apartment in the basement of a single family
dwelling for a proposed bed and breakfast at 1) bed and breakfast facilities shall not be
permitted by Town Code in or on premises for which an accessory apartment is authorized or
exists, located at 4725 New Suffolk Avenue in Mattituck.
PAT MOORE : Right from the beginning we disagreed with the Building Inspector’s
interpretation here. Some of you have been to the property and you can inside the room that is
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December 1, 2016 Regular Meeting
proposed for the B&B use is finished space. It’s in the lower part it’s a walk out and the
proposal is not to have an accessory apartment. It doesn’t have a kitchen it has a refrigerator
but no kitchen excuse me no stove pardon me misspoke it does have a very nice cabinetry and
counter. At the time when it was added in it was for their parents that they were elderly and
they lived in that space. When Mr. Dellaquilla parents died, that space remained and is
incorporated as part of the house. When the short term rental was available it was a very useful
short term rental situation because it was private and it could people could come and go with
of little without interfering with their privacy or the family’s privacy. With a short term rental
legislation even though this is owner occupied situation the simpler application is as a B&B so
the B&B we meet all of the criteria for a B&B use which is one room. There is no ,it’s up to three
rooms and in this case we have one room. It provides the bed and as far as the breakfast it is
continental service so it’s not no restaurant, no full meals being provided for in this space so it
met all of the criteria for a B&B room. It’s just the configuration is a little, every B&B you’re
going to find is a little unique and a little different particularly if it’s owner occupied (inaudible)
because it’s not commercially used. In this case it’s just one room so it’s not a full time business.
Some of the B&B’s applications that you’ve approved for a three or four rooms the family has
chosen to make it part of their livelihood. In this case it’s supplementing the income to help pay
taxes and carrying costs on the house. I’ll answer any questions you have but we are not
proposing an apartment so I didn’t understand the Building Inspector rational.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Well I think having spoken to him the situation was an apartment
exists. The removal of the stove technically I guess is okay there’s no kitchen. It’s a slide in slide
out stove. It’s a full refrigerator, it’s a beautiful apartment it was used that way and it doesn’t
have a C.O. It was not done with a permit.
PAT MOORE : Correct it was not it was an owner occupied mother daughter so it was converted
that way. The slide in slide out it actually is been permanently sealed. There is cabinetry in front
of it and there is no electrical for an electric stove so the stove has been permanently removed
and they don’t have a need for an apartment so as a just a short term rental B&B that’s the
proposal before you.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Well let me just ask a question because you’re right; every
application is different with a B&B, but typically B&B’s are such that bedrooms are accessible to
the owner space. There’s some privacy sometimes separate from hallway or whatever but in
this situation I’m not suggesting this disqualifies it I’m just simply saying the only access is
through an unfinished basement with a workshop from the inside the rest is from the outside.
PAT MOORE : Yeah I think it’s just an issue of design because if you look around I have
personally so I can testify swear to personally that in Vermont we’ve stayed in B&B’s with my
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December 1, 2016 Regular Meeting
kids where it was a there really was no connection to the families living space. It was a
segregated portion of the building.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Vermont notwithstanding. I’m not saying it’s a disqualified thing I’m
saying it does differ but the bottom line is why not if you want to supplement your income why
not simply go to the Building Department and as of right obtain a C.O. for an accessory
apartment in a principal dwelling which you can do without variance relief or anything else. It’s
now permitted through the Building Department because that’s certainly not greater than 40%
of the total square footage.
PAT MOORE : No, no no it could meet the
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : And you could rent it out to whoever you want.
PAT MOORE : But I think and well it used to be for yourself; do you want an apartment?
FRANK DELLAQUILLA : Frank Dellaquilla. You know my wife and I have been in the personal
service business; my wife has been in business for thirty three years. We own a hair salon. So
this also it kind of interacts with what we do. She loves to host people. We have a lot of
holidays at our home. This was a great way to meet new people. We do interact with them
when they come and when they leave as far as that goes it’s very private for them and they will
enjoy that privacy. I’ve been to some B&B’s on my own as well. We were in a few that were
separate and it was great that you didn’t have to not that we don’t want to meet new people
but you know getting out of bed sometimes you’re sharing a bathroom this is totally private
and I think the response we’re going to get is going to be fantastic. You’s guys saw it. It’s a
beautiful apartment has a nice little patio for them. They come and go as they please. We
supply bicycles if they need them. We’ve given people rides form the train station and back
there which is necessary as well but you know supplementing our income is very helpful to be
out here and to enjoy the community. That’s why you know we kept it separate and it was for
my parents and they unfortunately passed. They were there less than two years combined.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Okay let’s clear this one up then. There is also no building permit
that was obtained for a second floor additions and alterations. Can you address that?
PAT MOORE : That was the house it was built actually there was a building permit applied for
now
FRANK DELLAQUILLA : We were totally blindsided by that. I don’t know why it wasn’t caught
when we purchased the house in 2001. When we walked into the house it was for sale by
owner you know there were five bedrooms in the house and you see I made there were two
bedrooms on the main floor has now been converted to a den and an office so there’s no
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December 1, 2016 Regular Meeting
bedroom downstairs there’s three bedrooms upstairs. I had no clue that there wasn’t a C.O. for
it. The bank came in they did their appraisal. I assume that the bank checks all these things but
obviously they don’t. Gary also was our attorney never mentioned a word about it. We closed
on the house we’ve been living there since 2001.
PAT MOORE : It appears that when the house was originally built it was a two story cape so
what they did is they had not finished the second floor. They had all the rough work all the
plumbing everything was done they just didn’t finish the (inaudible) the finishes for the
bedrooms. What they did is they relocated the bedrooms from the first floor to the second
floor so from the outside everything stayed exactly the same. It was just a relocation of the
bedrooms so that was done by a prior owner and as you said it was a surprise because people
get C.O.’s for the house when you bought the property often times you don’t (inaudible) get
construction drawings. When you have a C.O. for a house that’s built relatively in a recent
(inaudible) so that when we were told that that was a problem I had to get them to have
architectural drawings done and submit plans and that was a pain in the neck and delayed the
whole process but it’s being corrected and
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Okay I just wanted to get that into the record.
PAT MOORE : Yeah it was a surprise.
FRANK DELLAQUILLA : Yeah the house the bedrooms upstairs were finished when we bought
the house we didn’t finish them.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Alright so it’s a C.O. for a two story single family. This is an
application for a one bedroom which is what’s there. There’s a large living room and eating
area. You are aware of the fact that with a one bedroom B&B only two people may occupy that
space at any given time. You can’t have kids sleeping on a pull out sofa okay.
FRANK DELLAQUILLA : Believe me we I have two children we have a pool, we have no interest in
any young children running around and having a possibility that someone’s not watching them
and they get into my yard or they damage anything interior.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : I just want you to know absolutely no cooking will be permitted.
FRANK DELLAQUILLA : Absolutely not there’s no stove to do that.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : No more than two occupants at any given time. You do have you still
have this is not like a little accessory kitchenette thing with a small countertop microwave and a
little under the counter refrigerator. This was used as a proper apartment so you have a big
refrigerator, a big microwave. The only thing that is now removed is the stove so again not
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December 1, 2016 Regular Meeting
necessarily disqualifying I’m not saying that but it certainly looks like it can be easily rented out
as an apartment.
PAT MOORE : Well the intent put it this way you can’t if just hypothetically because it’s not
what they want let’s say that tomorrow they decide you know this B&B (inaudible) or one of
the kids wants to come back and live in you know get a job out here and wants to live in the
apartment. The B&B is closed up in the sense that it’s no longer rented and it could be
converted back to an accessory apartment as you said that we have to do some modifications
for the stove. Remember the house is a single family house it’s owner occupied so for the
family the extra refrigerator particularly at holiday time and for entertaining the extra
refrigerator is something that in many cases you have a refrigerator in your basement as an
extra refrigerator. This just happens to be there because it is was used by his parents so again
there’s no other B&B interior layout it really depends on what works for the families that and
ultimately the (inaudible) prevails so if somebody comes in and says oh I don’t like this I rather
be in an old Inn that has the bedrooms and the bathrooms and everybody sharing bedrooms
and bathrooms so be it but we have a very it’s a single family dwelling so that’s the primary use
so we’re keeping with that concept with that design.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Okay let’s see who has questions, George?
MEMBER HORNING : I don’t have questions.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Gerry.
MEMBER GOEHRINGER : No I went to the place the other night. It was very, very beautiful.
Sorry I tracked some dirt in there at least wet whatever it was that was out there a bush.
PAT MOORE : It was a lousy day.
MEMBER GOEHRINGER : Yes.
CONVERSATION GOING ON BETWEEN T.A. DUFFY AND CHAIRPERSON CANNOT HEAR DUE TO
BUZZING AND LOW VOLUME
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Eric.
MEMBER DANTES : No I guess if they decide to (inaudible)
FRANK DELLAQUILLA : Honestly we have no interest in being landlords for a full year I’ve seen
people running into problems with people not paying their rent and then you’ve got to get you
know the courts involved and the sheriff’s department. These people particularly B&B’s they
pay on credit cards. Everything is done that way it’s all electronic transactions. I’m not worried
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about someone coming (inaudible) we have no interest in being full time landlords in an
apartment.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Anything from anybody else? There is no one else in the audience so
hearing no further questions or comments I’m going to make a motion to close the hearing
reserve decision to a later date.
MEMBER GOEHRINGER : All in favor?
MEMBER HORNING : Aye.
MEMBER GOEHRINGER : Aye.
MEMBER DANTES : Aye.
CHAIRPERSON WEISMAN : Aye.
(See Minutes for Resolution)
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