Objection
Residents opposed to restaurant plan

GUILDERLAND — More than a dozen residents — some of them angry — of what they describe as a quiet neighborhood off of Route 20, objected to plans for a restaurant in their midst.

The zoning board heard their concerns last Wednesday about plans to convert 2026 Western Ave., site of the old Phoebe’s Florist, to an Italian restaurant.
"I’m totally against this"Would you want an extra 100 people running around outside your house"" asked one resident from Sumter Avenue during the public meeting.

Connie Ware, a Guilderland resident, is asking the zoning board for a regulation variance and a special-use permit, in order to build a 500-square-foot addition, so she can convert the flower shop into an Italian restaurant.
"I grew up in Guilderland, and then came back four years ago," said Ware. She told the board that she has worked at many restaurants around the country, including places like Las Vegas and Atlanta. Ware said she came back to her hometown because Guilderland is one of the best places in the country to do business, and that the area was in need of a high-class, fine-dining Italian restaurant.

The restaurant, she said, would offer an intimate setting, seat 60 to 70 people, and have complimentary valet parking. The proposed restaurant is to be open five to six hours a day, six days a week, and would employ around 15 workers.

Those operating hours upset several neighboring residents.
"There’s a lot of accidents at five o’clock. When is the restaurant going to open" At five o’clock," said a neighbor about the already-congested traffic flow on Western Avenue.

Residents say the florist was open during normal business hours and did not affect their quite neighborhood during the nights and evenings.

Other residents say they do not want to be stuck in rush-hour traffic on Route 20, trying to turn onto their streets as restaurant patrons wait for valet parking or look for parking themselves.

The proposed restaurant, residents told the board, will have a negative impact on their neighborhood. The lights of cars and the business, increased traffic, restaurant odors, excess noise, and the parking of patrons will all cause problems, they said.

Ware gave the board a detailed construction plan and outlined her plans to mitigate any negative problems the restaurant may create.

According to Ware, the Western Avenue access to the property is going to be closed off and a side-road entrance will be created to stop backups on the busy avenue during rush hour. An extensive landscaping plan was also proposed in order to help block headlights and the neighbors’ view of the restaurant and parking lot, and to enhance the look of the property.

To aid the parking situation, Ware has also made a deal with another local business to use its parking lot for additional parking after 5 p.m.
Ware added that she will not be serving "bar food," and that the restaurant will not have a bar atmosphere, so the lack of fried foods will cut down on possible odors. People, she said, will only be drinking alcoholic beverages with their meals.

According to Ware’s proposal, the small bar, a part of the restaurant, will only seat six or seven people and will primarily be used for those waiting to be seated or waiting for the arrival of other guests.

Telling neighbors that she understood their concerns, Ware said she would like to work with residents on her plans to make the business transition as smooth as possible. She reassured them that the restaurant will be patronized by responsible people who only want to enjoy a fine dining experience during reasonable hours of the evening.

Neighboring residents’ concerns were not abated by Ware’s presentation to the board.
"I don’t want people parking in front of my house"It changes the face of the neighborhood," said one woman who lives on Cornell Avenue.
"It’s not that we’re against business," said another resident, who continued, saying that the neighborhood is very isolated and quiet even though it is right off of Western Avenue; she pointed out that even a slight increase in traffic would be very noticeable.

Throughout the meeting, zoning board Chairman Peter Barber had to remind residents that he understood their concerns but that the location was zoned for a restaurant.
"I will repeat. A restaurant is a permitted use," Barber said about the mixed residential and commercially zoned areas along Western Avenue.

The board decided to reconvene the permit hearing in another two weeks and asked Ware to come back with more details on her plans for landscaping, lighting, driveway use and parking, and creating an odor-free environment.
"I want to have an open discussion on the intensity of the use," said board member Charles Klaer, about the restaurant’s impact on the neighborhood.

Other business

In other business, the Guilderland zoning board:

— Unanimously approved a special-use permit for Douglas Turner to convert the Center for Teens building at 2323 Western Ave. into a religious facility. The Open Door Church will be 6,800 square feet, employ two full-time workers, have approximately 54 members attend services on Sunday, and hold a Bible study group on Wednesdays; and

— Unanimously approved a two-week temporary banner for the UPS store at 1971 Western Avenue.