On March 30, a continuation of a public hearing was held by the planning board of the Village of Baxter Estates. The board heard the case regarding the application for subdivision of the property at 15 Shore Rd., also known as the Baxter House. The homeowner submitted revised plans to subdivide the property into two residential building lots—one large lot and one smaller lot.
A controversy transpired when the board and the community were told that the owner of the Baxter House property was not planning on building a new house on the second property if subdivided, but planning to sell the smaller lot to generate funds to invest in the Baxter House.
According to the lawyer for the homeowner, Sabrina Wu, “We are looking to preserve the house and property and make the community happy.” The new owner of the smaller parcel would have to apply for the appropriate variances and applications. This led to some confusion, and credibility questions arose regarding the petition.
Ross Lumpkin, a trustee of the Cow Neck Historical Society,
attended the meeting and said,
“The board was appropriately stunned by this as was I…and still am.”
All parties were given the opportunity to speak and concerns were raised about the new information presented to try to sell the subdivided property, the high density and safety issues within the village due to the close proximity of the two dwellings and the need for more discussion about the preservation of the Baxter House. Some felt a clear need for the subdivision was not met. It became difficult for the board to move forward with a plan and they came to the conclusion that they could not make a decision based on what they heard. There was a motion to adjourn without a decision. Stay tuned.
