Residents: Stewart’s expansion plan too much
BRUNSWICK, N.Y. » The meeting room in Brunswick Town Hall was filled with more than two dozen residents who came to Thursday’s meeting of the town Planning Board to share their concerns about a new Stewart’s Shop proposed on Route 7.
The convenience store chain has been working with town officials for several months to get all the necessary approvals to build a larger shop just up Hoosick Road from a smaller location, however, but some residents, as well as members of the Center Brunswick United Methodist Church, aren’t happy with the proposal. Town and Stewart’s officials have participated in several public meetings on the project, with Thursday night’s gathering the continuation of a public hearing hosted at the beginning of the month.
Chad Fowler a spokesman for Stewart’s, said during the public hearing that the company is proposing a 3,900 square-foot building with four gas pumps because company officials feel that to operate efficiently, they need more space than the current store, which opened in 1979.
“Back in 1979, we primarily sold dairy products because that’s what the store did then … so we’ve really outgrown where we are,” said Fowler.
Fowler said if the proposal is approved, the company will sell or lease the smaller shop at 985 Hoosick Road, which is directly across from the church.
The main concern voiced during the hearing was with the planned widening of Route 7 so Stewart’s can add a turn lane into its parking lot. Church members said that work would require them to give up some church property and get additional traffic issues in return.
“I don’t see any benefit for people that live in this area,” said Jim Burden, chairman of the church’s Board of Trustees. “People who have lived here for generations are having trouble getting in and out of their driveways now. The impact on the church is my main concern, but I’m also concerned about the neighbors.”
Stewart’s officials say they have been aware of the church’s concerns and recently redesigned the proposed turn lane to lessen any negative impact.
“The whole reason we took another look at the design for the widening is because we heard a few weeks ago about the church,” said Fowler. “That’s why we chose to stay on one side, instead of two, I still don’t need property from the church. I won’t need property from the church for either design, whether we widen it on both sides or one side. The only thing I needed permission from the church for was to regrade their driveway.”
Residents and nearby business owners like Jim Magee, who owns the Brunswick Greens Golf Course and Banquet House, believe the new location will make traffic more unbearable for drivers.
“I’m going to have twice the amount of traffic potentially,” said Magee. “Right now, I see it as a negative impact on my business, and I think it’s going to cost me money for my business.”
Officials from Creighton Manning Engineering of Albany, which compiled traffic studies for the project, were also on hand for the hearing and dismissed Magee’s concern.
“We’re not going to be adding a lot of new traffic to the area,,” said Mark Nadolny, project manager for Creighton Manning. “It’s mostly changing the locations of the turns.”
Also brought up during Thursday’s hearing was the potential impact of the project on the Hannaman House, an historic building at 1001 Hoosick Road,.
“You should rethink the expansion of the roadway here and the tearing down of any of these historic structures that can be reused to meet today’s needs, yet keep the façade and character of the town of Brunswick intact,” said Rensselaer County Historian Kathy Sheehan.
“Kathy and I have had many discussions, and I’ve received a few calls about … the destruction of a historic home,” added Brunswick Town Historian Sharon Zankel. “I agree with Kathy; it’s a real tearing apart of the last of this historic landscape.”
Fowler said Stewart’s already went through the whole process with the state Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation, and changed the design of the new store to incorporate some of the architecture of that house. Fowler said Stewart’s Shops looked at other possible locations along Route 7 but felt the location they chose was the best on.
“This property became available when it was changed to commercial last year, so we saw this as an opportunity and thought maybe this would work for us,” said Fowler.
“The existing house is a nice old house built in the late 1880s, and it’s in good shape. It’s not on the historic registry, but it’s eligible to be … so, in the end, we argued, what if we turn the new Stewart’s to look like the old building. We would have to salvage what we could off the old building and put a lot of the features of the existing house into our store building designs.”
Another public hearing on the special use permits required for the project was scheduled for 7 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 7, at Town Hall.