The Town of North Hempstead Town Hall (Photo by Alex Nuñez)
A new Starbucks will be coming to Roslyn Heights, which was narrowly approved by the North Hempstead Town Board after the area’s representative council member, Ed Scott, voted against it over concerns about the impact on residents.
“Well, my concerns are with the delivery trucks at 4:30 [a.m.] and the quality of life of the residents around here,” Scott said.
The Starbucks application was approved 4-3, with Scott, Council Member Christine Liu and Council Member Mariann Dalimonte voting against it. Liu and Dalimonte said they voted based on Scott’s opposition since it involved his district.
The Starbucks will be coming to 9 Powerhouse Road and will include a drive-thru.
Attorney Bruce Migatz said the proposal was adjusted in response to resident concerts, which included changes to the establishment’s surrounding fence.
The proposal now includes an extension to the existing five-foot brick wall, which would make it a total of seven feet. The fence material is also designed to absorb sound.
The landscape plan was also revised to include an Eastern red cedar that has foliage year-round. It would grow to about 25 feet tall.
Noise was also a concern previously expressed by some residents. Migatz said the study concluded noise decibels at the property line are projected to be less than the volume of a normal speaking voice.
Migatz said the traffic study found that traffic back-ups on Powerhouse Road would be “minimal” due to the brief period it take to order coffee. He said this would also have a “minimal” impact on the potential for car accidents.
No traffic mitigation measures were recommended.
Deliveries from trucks that cannot pull into the parking lot, such as a tractor-trailer, would be unloaded on the nearby service road. Migatz said this was OK’d by Nassau County.
Council Member Dennis Walsh said he was concerned about the safety for drivers when a tractor-trailer is parked on the service road.
“Let’s say a large box truck puts the tires on the right side of the vehicle on the sidewalk. The remainder of the box truck is in the first lane, the slow lane, of the service road to the Long Island Expressway so cars… heading south on Jericho Turnpike will have to get into the left lane immediately, into the fast lane, and it’s just, to me, looks unsafe,” Walsh said.
Migatz said the county, which has jurisdiction over the road,, did not agree with Walsh that it is unsafe.
Cory Bertram, a representative for Starbucks, said the store hours have not been set yet but would be the longest possible when first opened and adjusted to meet their customer needs.
The longest hours of operation for a Starbucks is 4:30 a.m. to midnight. Bertram said no Long Island stores are operated for 24 hours.
Scott asked that the hours of operation be limited. Migatz said they would not agree and that the town board could not enforce it legally.