POTSDAM — Concerns mounted as to Canton-Potsdam hospital’s expansion plans Monday at a hearing for public input into a plan to potentially relinquish a section of Cottage Street.
St. Lawrence Health System Chief Operating Officer Eric Burch called the move “a stepping stone” in the plan to expand and renovate the facilities in and around the hospital, and residents who spoke at the meeting appeared skeptical of what that may mean for them.
“We are homeowners. I want to be able to continue walking safely, visiting neighbors,” Tammy McGregor-Twiss, an 18-year resident of Cottage Street said. “I don’t know if you’ve seen that movie ‘Up.’ I feel like we’re getting squeezed out where we are. There are a lot of empty houses around. I know some are rentals. It’s just not what we had a while ago.”
The plan, as it was presented Monday, would be to sell off the portion of Cottage Street between Waverly and Leroy streets to the hospital, which would then use the land to expand facilities or extend existing parking.
In the longer term, green space would be added on the Leroy Street end of the current street to permanently close it off. Details of a traffic study, environmental review and appraisal are still unknown.
What is known is that the hospital is looking to expand. Mr. Burke noted at the meeting that St. Lawrence Health System currently owns 26 parcels in Potsdam and pays about $128,000 from payment in lieu of taxes agreements. This includes all of the properties on either side of the area of Cottage Street in question as well all the properties on Waverly Street adjacent to the hospital complex.
A few members of the public, including Ms. McGregor-Twiss, and several board members, expressed interest in seeing what the long-term plan looks like at this point.
“The problem with the master plan is every year it changes,” the hospital’s architect Brooks Washburn said at the hearing. “The current one is to grow here with the lands that the hospital owns south of Cottage Street and of course the lands that it has owned and has acquired north of Cottage Street. There is a kind of manifest destiny here that is actually coming to the point tonight to acquire that strip of asphalt called Cottage Street here so that the hospital can logically grow.”
Trustee Maggie McKenna suggested formally recommending that the village planning board review the hospital’s proposal further.
A decision to do so wasn’t made Monday, but may be formalized in the coming weeks.
The board did not take any action on the plan as expected, but will have to approve an environmental (SEQR) assessment of the proposal and likely subsequent measures before the street is relinquished.
"street" - Google News
October 07, 2020 at 09:05AM
https://ift.tt/36Fy7Y0
Potsdam residents, trustees express concerns over potential Cottage Street sale to hospital - NNY360
"street" - Google News
https://ift.tt/2Ql4mmJ
Shoes Man Tutorial
Pos News Update
Meme Update
Korean Entertainment News
Japan News Update
No comments:
Post a Comment