A heated debate ensued at the Village of Great Neck Board of Trustees meeting Tuesday night as residents expressed concern over a proposed condo complex on Middle Neck Road that was later approved by the board.
“Where does this over-development stop?” said Thomas Hirsch, who lives two houses down from the site. “To put up this huge building is horrible and an encroachment on our block.”
A public hearing was held at the Tuesday, Aug. 19 meeting for the proposed complex at 846 Middle Neck Road. The building, which would bring 22 condominiums to the area, is slated to take over a plot currently composed of an empty lot and an older house.
Potential traffic issues were residents’ biggest concern.
“This is a project that is going to cause more people coming and going, and it’s going to be a disaster,” said Marsel Goltche, who has lived in Great Neck since 1989.
Joey Cohen, who lives in a cul-de-sac near the site, said he was concerned that extra traffic could make the area unsafe for his children. Specifically, he said that he was worried about the property’s garage door being on Brown Road, a residential street.
“Tell me someone’s not gonna make a sharp left turn into Brown,” said Cohen.
Another resident said that 50 to 60 children live within a block of the development.
Sam Cruz, who lives in the same cul-de-sac, said he often has trouble getting to his house because of the traffic already on Middle Neck Road.
He, among others, also shared concerns about a waiver that would allow them to have 34 parking spots instead of the minimum 46 required for a complex of that size. The board later approved this variance.
“Where are they going to park? Are they going to park on these residential streets?” said Karen Bardash, a Great Neck resident.
The developer, Roka Capital LLC, had experts at the meeting responding to these concerns.
Rebecca Goldberg, a traffic engineer with consulting firm IMEG, said that the condo complex would have a negligible effect on congestion in the area.
“Coming into the site, it’s up to four to five [cars] an hour,” she said, citing projection models based on data from similar sites. “So roughly one car every 15 to 20 minutes during peak hours.”
Paul Bloom, a Melville-based lawyer representing Roka in the matter, added that the property renderings include sidewalks and an area for cars to queue before going into the garage, potentially addressing some of the villagers’ concerns.
In the end, the trustees approved the site plan proposal, giving Roka the green light to build the development as proposed.
Mayor Pedram Bral urged residents to see the bright side of the situation.
“It’s going to be a beautiful project,” he said. “You can have the outdated places, or you can have a building that is going to enhance your street.”
