North Hempstead Accepts Environmental Impact Statement for Waterfront Apartments in Glenwood Landing

On Tuesday, May 23, the North Hempstead Town Council accepted an Environment Impact Statement (EIS) submitted by Glen Harbor Partners in connection with a waterfront apartment building proposed for town- and privately- held property in Glenwood Landing on Shore Road immediately south of the Glenwood Landing Power Station.

The property is commonly referred to as the Hinfin/Harbor Fuel site. The EIS can be viewed online and at the Town of North Hempstead (TNH) Planning Department and also may be available at Bryant Public Library. The Glenwood / Glen Head Civic Association has requested that TNH explore the possibility of making the document available at the Gold Coast Library.

TNH will accept written comments on the proposal through Friday, June 8. Although the Glenwood / Glen Head Civic Association had understood that a hearing would be held at the time the EIS was submitted, this impression was incorrect: the State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQRA) does not require a public hearing at this stage. However, TNH has elected to accept written comments because of the public interest the project has generated.

TNH has held two previous hearings on the EIS: a "scoping session" designed to determine what the EIS should include and a hearing on the draft EIS. These hearings were widely publicized by the civic association and TNH. The next opportunity for a public hearing on the proposal is likely to occur if an application is made to rezone the property from industrial use to multifamily residential use.

The project would involve some 60 apartment units, a pool, and several stories. A varience would be required to accommnodate the height of the building; the number of units is contingent upon constructing a sewer line on Shore Road through the Glenwood Landing Waterfront to Sea Cliff, terminating at the sewage treatment plant in Glen Cove. The project includes a public esplanade with public access from the north and south and would involve an environmental clean up funded by the developer.

Glen Partners and the Village of Sea Cliff have been discussing the possibility of constructing the sewer line in a manner that would accommodate some Sea Cliff properties. Those reviewing the project have routinely discounted the suggestion made by the civic association that the possibility of accommodating some Glenwood Landing properties also should be seriously explored, particularly in view of the high water table and cesspool problems familiar to many people in or near the Glenwood Landing waterfront and the impact of these issues on Hempstead Harbor.

Although a great deal of the sewer line would be constructed through the Town of Oyster Bay portion of Glenwood Landing, Nassau County appears to be the only permitting authority with regard to this aspect of the project because Shore Road is a county thoroughfare. According to the county, issuing a road opening permit for a sewer line is routine and there is no opportunity for public input or notification. Last month, the civic association met with the Nassau County Department of Public works to emphasize traffic, pedestrian, and construction concerns should the project move forward.

For more information, contact the Town of North Hempstead Planning Department (869-7679).