The Village of Mineola’s building department has received an application from Mill Creek Residential Trust to develop vacant school property currently owned by Corpus Christi Church into an 140-unit apartment complex on Searing Avenue.
“In order to begin the environmental process, I would ask for a resolution from the board declaring its intent to act as lead agency in a coordinated review of the proposed project,” village attorney John Gibbons said.
Gibbons’ office would distribute the resolution to other agencies interested in conducting an environmental review. Those groups, including Mill Creek, would have 30 days to contest Mineola’s assertion. Mineola has been lead agent on every proposed apartment complex, including the rising and opened buildings on Old Country Road.
“We just got those plans [Wednesday],” Mayor Scott Strauss said. “We have some homework to do. We are not at the stage for hearings or anything like that. It’s in preliminary stages.”
The Corpus Christi property was named in a report by New Jersey-based Phillips Preiss Grygiel LLC, commissioned by the village, earlier this year as a potential landing spot for dwellings. The report said 1,460 apartments could hit Mineola within the next few years.
Village officials said in February that Mill Creek was seeking to build the apartment complex on the eastern part of the school property. Corpus Christi would retain the western piece of the building, which includes a gym and classrooms. The two are separated by an above-ground unispan.
Mill Creek is possibly seeking two, single-family homes on Harrison Avenue, adjacent to the Oyster Bay line of the Long Island Rail Road for a 21-unit building, according to officials. Mill Creek did not return calls for comment.
“We are under contract with a reputable developer,” said Bill Garry of Corpus Christi’s legal counsel, Harris Beach PLLC in February. “We cannot disclose the potential developer at this time.”
Mill Creek began leasing 140 of its 275-unit, $93 million Mineola Modera complex on Old Country Road across from the Nassau County Court House last month. Mill Creek Vice President of Development for New York and Connecticut Jamie Stover said in August that Modera is 45 percent leased. Its 36-unit senior-housing component, Hudson House, opened last summer.
-This is a developing news story. Be sure to check back here for updates.
