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Breaking news: Wading River turns out in force for Rt. 25A corridor planning session

Last Updated on Saturday, February 04 2012 11:18 Saturday, February 04 2012 10:42
Written by Denise Civiletti
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2012_0203_wading_river_workshop

Residents have filled the auditorium at St. John the Baptist Church in Wading River to overflowing for a pubilc planning workshop on a proposed update to the 2003 comprehensive plan as it affects the Route 25A commercial corridor.

The session is scheduled to continue until noon today, though planners say they will stay "as long as needed" to answer questions and hear comments.

Planning consultants hired by the town are presenting their initial recommendations to the community to gather input. The recommendations were presented to the Town Board at its Jan. 12  work session. See Jan 13 story, "Planners: Eliminate retail zoning along eastern Rt. 25A."

Frank Fish of the consulting firm BFJ Planning expressed surprise at the huge turnout.

"Obviously this is a community that's very concerned about its quality of life," he said to the applause of the crowd.

The planners' goal in the corridor study was to "make a more compact Wading River that serves the needs of Wading River residents but is no bigger than  that," Fish said, and the crowd erupted in applause.

2012_0203_WR_session_2Excessive commercial develoment — retail in particular — has been a complaint of and criticism levied by residents.

Civic leader Dominique Mendez, a Wading River resident, cofounder and president of the Riverhead Neighborhood Preservation Coalition has consistently criticized the town's commercial zoning aong the corridor as excessive compared to the community's needs. In particular, she and other civic activists, have slammed the proposed Knightland commercial development planned for the intersection of Route 25A and Sound Avenue, as "destination retail." The day after the town Planning Board approved the Knightland site plan application in December, the RNPC filed a lawsuit seeking to invalidate the approval.

Photo Captions:
Top: Riverhead Town planning consultant Frank Fish of BFJ Planning begins a presentation Saturday morning for a standing-room-only crowd in the auditorium at St. John the Baptist Church in Wading River.
Bottom: RNPC president Dominique Mendez, left, and Richard Amper, who has worked with RNPC on the "Save Wading River" campaign.
RiverheadLOCAL photos by Denise Civiletti

Planning confab on Rt. 25A land use convenes Saturday morning in Wading River

Last Updated on Friday, February 03 2012 23:05 Friday, February 03 2012 20:31
Written by Denise Civiletti
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Wading River gets its chance Saturday morning.

Riverhead town's planning consultants, BFJ Planning, will host a public workshop session Saturday from 10 a.m. until 12 noon on the topic of commercial zoning along the Route 25A corridor. The workshop will take place at St. John the Baptist Church on North Country Road.

BFJ is conducting a study for the Town of Riverhead on zoning in the corridor, with an eye toward updating the town's comprehensive land use plan.

In a presentation of the planners' preliminary findings to the Town Board last month, BFJ principal Frank Fish said the consultants were looking at eliminating about 24 acres of existing retail zoning along Route 25Ato preserve the character of that hamlet.

Property along Route 25A, east of the CVS pharmacy on the south side and east of the former ice cream store on the north, should be rezoned to eliminate new retail development, Fish said.

The retail zoning would be replaced with the multifamily residential professional office zoning.

Residents are invited to weigh in with their thoughts on future land use in the corridor.

“An essential part of corridor studies is public input,” Dominique Mendez, president of the Riverhead Neighborhood Preservation Coalition, said in a press release issued Thursday.

Mendez had been at odds with Riverhead Town Supervisor Sean Walter over whether a public session called for by the consultants' contract was still due and owing or whether an October meeting with civic groups fulfilled the consultants' obligations.

The RNPC has been calling for a moratorium on new commercial development in the corridor pending the completion of a comprehensive plan update. The Town Board has rejected the demand. A recent Planning Board approval of a commercial site plan for a retail complex on the corner of Sound Avenue and Route 25A drew an immediate lawsuit from RNPC.

“We’re just looking for zoning that makes sense for our rural hamlet,” said Sid Bail, president of the Wading River Civic Association, a member organization of the RNPC.

John J. Schmidt, 83

Friday, February 03 2012 20:21
Written by RiverheadLOCAL
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John J. Schmidt of Mattituck died on  January 29, 2012.  He was 83 years old.

“Jack” was born in Brooklyn, NY on August 9, 1928 to John and Helen (nee O’Neill) Schmidt and later served in the United States Army during the Korean Conflict.

A long-time resident of Mattituck, he had been a commercial fisherman and a member of the Mattituck Lions Club and participated in the Strawberry Festival. 

Jack was well-known in Greenport at Mitchell Docks and in the local fishing community.

He is survived by his wife, Rita; a son and daughter-in-law, William and Diane Schmidt of Mattituck and three grandchildren: Amanda, Pamela and Paul.

The family will receive friends Thursday, Feb. 2 from 4-8 P.M. at the DeFriest-Grattan Funeral Home in Mattituck.  The Liturgy of Christian Burial will be celebrated on Friday at 10:00 a.m. at Sacred Heart RC. Church in Cutchogue by Monsignor John Nosser with the assistance of the Ministry of Consolation..  Interment, with US Army military honors, will follow at the Calverton National Cemetery.

Memorials to the Mattituck Fire Department Rescue Squad or the Mattituck Lions Club would be appreciated.

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