Change To Dougherty Corner Building Plans Approved

by Bea Peterson
On Wednesday evening, July 20, the Hoosick Falls Zoning Board reconvened its meeting begun the previous Tuesday evening, July 12.  At that meeting Dougherty corner owner Alex Koks, architect Jim Clark from the Laberge Group and attorney Rolf Sternberg addressed the Board regarding Koks’ change in plans for the Bed and Breakfast/Hotel and Restaurant designed for the corner of Main and John Streets. The new plan reduces the size of the restaurant from 50 seats to 24 seats and adds a handicapped accessible guest room and a room for a live-in manager on the first floor. The B&B/Hotel would then have eight rooms instead of six. Three each on the second and third floors and two on the first floor. Clark said the change is a result of the current economy; Koks doesn’t believe the area can support a 50 seat restaurant. Having the handicapped room on the first floor also eliminates the need for a stair lift. Koks added that should the restaurant be successful, he would eliminate the two rooms and increase the size of the dining area. But he believes the bulk of the income will come from renting the rooms as there currently is no place in the Village for overnight guests. He even had a tentative menu for the restaurant that would be open seven days a week from 4 pm and serve only beer and wine. Guests at the B&B/Hotel would have their breakfast next door at Bagels and Brew. On the days the small shop is closed, breakfast would be served at the restaurant, which will not be open for lunch.
After an hour and a half of comments from the many people attending the meeting, the Board, at the request of Village Mayor Matt Monahan, asked Koks to provide a document outlining the hardship that would be caused by not granting this variance. Sternberg did prepare such a document and it was submitted to the Board on July 13 or 14. The Board reviewed the document and made a decision to approve the variance at the very brief Wednesday evening meeting.
Ric DiDonato and Jim Martinez were at the Wednesday meeting and afterwards expressed their dismay at the acceptance of the variance.
The previous week there had been a packed house for the meeting. During the one and a half hour session, several people aired their objections to the plan. Jim Martinez said he did not want to see apartments on the first floor. He said it would erode the business district, noting once the first floor is gone, it’s gone. Bob Becker went on at some length suggesting the hardship change was a self imposed one and suggested they have someone from the State review the plan. He believed eight units was too many for a B&B in NY state. Ric DiDonato was disappointed the restaurant would be so small. He was hoping, with Koks’ outstanding reputation as a chef, that the restaurant would draw people from many other places.
At the first meeting Sternberg responded to those comments saying, “We all want the same thing; we want a viable building.” He suggested that since Koks is putting up the money, he should decide what is viable. He begged the crowd to give Koks the opportunity to make a success of this venture and not to throw more roadblocks in the way. “Who else wants to invest $700,000 in a three story building in Hoosick Falls,” he asked.
Everyone was in agreement there was a lot of money at stake. It was pointed out that the NYS grant for $750,000 would not be around forever and the Village was fortunate to still have it available at this point. And in the years that have elapsed since the first plan was introduced, building costs have gone up, but the grant amount remains the same. In these economic times, it was pointed out, Koks was fortunate to be able to get a bank loan for the project. That loan would not be offered forever as the bank has merged with a larger bank since the time of the loan. It is quite possible all the money could dry up any day.
At Wednesday’s meeting ZBA member Gale Leva said few people would put up the money for such a project and ZBA Member Harold Nichols told Koks “go for it,” and the Board unanimously approved the variance.
The last deterrent standing in the way of the start of work is approval from the NYS Historic Preservation Office to approve the addition of vents for heating and cooling units under the windows of the rooms. Attorney Sternberg said AOW Associates, Inc., contractors for the project, are calling Koks almost daily to see when they can begin.