Apartment Approved In Hoosick Falls Commercial Zone

by Bea Peterson
A special joint meeting of the Hoosick Falls Planning Board and the Hoosick Falls ZBA was held on Thursday, September 27. At the meeting both Boards agreed to allow a variance to Richard Ferrannini for his property at 204 Main Street from commercial to commercial/residential.
[private]Ferrannini purchased the former 6,000 square foot brick Harrison Vending building in 2011. A portion of the building is rented by Prestige Services, Inc. of Clifton Park, the firm that bought out Harrison Vending. Another portion of the building is home to Ferrannini’s seasonal Weeb’s Fish Fry and Jeannie Hathaway-Waytkus’ Sweet Dreams Bakery.
About one quarter of the building was formerly used as office space. For a year Ferrannini has been trying to rent that space, but he has not been successful. He requested the Boards approve his turning two thirds of the office space, about 1,000 square feet, into an apartment. It would be a one bedroom, handicapped accessible apartment. “If I could have rented it as office space,” he told the Boards, “I would have.” He added that he needed the building to pay for itself.
The Boards reviewed the exits, heating capability, windows and other requirements necessary for the conversion. Ferrannini will add two additional parking spaces in the grass in front of the apartment entrance.
Ferrannini expects that he and his son will do the work and have the apartment finished by the end of November.
Members of both Boards made it clear that should Ferrannini sell the property it would return to commercial use only. The new owner would have to apply to the Boards for a continuation of the variance, or for any other changes they wanted to make to the building.[/private]