Controversial Valley Avenue Apartment Proposal Withdrawn
DOT Says Yes To Another Traffic Light On Hoosick Road
By Doug La Rocque
When developer David Leon first proposed building a 202-unit apartment complex on land he owns behind Planet Fitness, and located off Hillcrest Avenue in Brunswick, it ignited a firestorm with residents in that area, and many others who were concerned about its impact on Hoosick Road (NYS Route 7) traffic, already described by many, including town officials, as a mess. The initial public hearing before the Brunswick Planning Board lasted nearly three hours, with no one speaking in favor of the proposal. After several months of discussion between Mr. Leon’s project manager, M.J. Engineering and Land Surveying and the planners, the Board declared there was a positive environmental impact. This launched a scoping project to answer the Board’s concerns which took nearly six months to complete, at least in the developer’s eyes. The planning board did not see it that way, deemed the report to be incomplete and returned it to the developer for more work.
Through conversations with Brunswick Town Supervisor Phil Herrington, The Eastwick Press has learned that proposal has now been withdrawn. Supervisor Herrington said that Mr. Leon instead wishes to concentrate on his commercial developments, such as the new Aldi’s proposal along with a Kentucky Fried Chicken and Wendy’s to be built on land on either side of the current Planet Fitness.
The first Aldi’s site plan was approved two years ago by the planning board but was contingent, on Aldi’s part, on the installation of a traffic light at the intersection of Hoosick Road and Hillcrest Avenue near the Cumberland Farms. That proposed light was also a key component of the Valley Avenue apartment application. Both those site plans referenced a 2001 NYS Department of Transportation (DOT) traffic study, calling for a traffic light at Hillcrest. 19 years later, DOT cited the increased development along Hoosick Road, and said no to the light.
Mr. Leon’s new commercial site now calls for a traffic light at the intersection of Hoosick Road and Lord Avenue, as described in the last edition of The Eastwick Press. According to supervisor Herrington and M.J. Engineering’s Jamie Easton, DOT has accepted the idea of a new traffic light, because the developer is proposing an interconnectivity in front of Planet Fitness and Aldi’s, which would also be tied to Hillcrest Avenue, that would allow vehicles to cross the complex to the Lord Avenue light, where they could safely turn left.
This new proposal was presented to the planning board at its February 6 meeting in the form of a so called “sketch plan,” something some developers do prior to formally submitting an application, to gauge the Board’s feelings and comments. In this case, there was not universal acceptance, as Board member Don Henderson strongly expressed his concerns about another traffic light on that stretch of Hoosick Road, interconnectivity or not.