Lloyd ZBA approves Stewart Shops

By Mark Reynolds
Posted 8/18/21

For the past several months the Lloyd Zoning Board of Appeals has been considering two variances for a Stewart’s Shop, that is proposed for the corner of Route 9W and South Chapel Hill Road.

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Lloyd ZBA approves Stewart Shops

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For the past several months the Lloyd Zoning Board of Appeals has been considering two variances for a Stewart’s Shop, that is proposed for the corner of Route 9W and South Chapel Hill Road.

The first variance is for an additional 32 inches in the height of their sign, bringing it to 7ft 10 inches and relief of 19 percent on lot coverage. The town code stipulates a maximum lot coverage of 40 percent and Stewart’s is seeking 59%.

Attorney James Horan, who is representing the Sunoco station just opposite the proposed project, submitted a letter to the ZBA in opposition to the proposal.

“The sum and substance of the submission is that the board is looking at a fairly substantial variance with respect to the impervious surface on the property. We had discussed that and with respect to the traffic study what I pointed out is basically the amount of traffic generated by the site is a combination of the square footage of the building as well as the number of fuel dispenses that are proposed.”

Horan said the Planning Board has some issues with left turns into the site from northbound lanes of Route 9W and the ZBA raised some issues with traffic.

“I am not asking this board to look at where the entrances and exits are but I think it would be incumbent upon the applicant to provide some additional information to the board so that it could judge how much impact this proposed expansion variance [to 59 percent] would have on traffic to the site, just from a trip generation point of view.” He noted that the ZBA has the obligation to grant the least amount of variance possible.

“I think that the variance here could conceivably be generating additional adverse impact from a traffic point of view,” he said.
ZBA Chairman John Litts said as traffic relates to the lot coverage issue, “I believe the traffic study that they did is what this board reviewed; I think we’re Ok with it. As far as the impervious surfaces, the applicant has worked with us to reduce to the best of their ability their coverage; at least I feel they have [and] the rest of the board, I believe, is on board with that.”

Litts said they did seek comments from the Planning and Town Boards [and], “neither board responded. We’ve had no input from either board.”

No one from the public addressed the board and the ZBA closed the public hearing. The board then went through the short environmental assessment form on potential impacts that the project may have upon the environment that is required by the State Environmental Quality Review Act [SEQRA]. The board determined that this project will pose little or no significant impacts upon water, soil, air, land or historic, archaeological, architectural or aesthetic resources.

The board then approved a negative declaration with respect to SEQRA, for this project.

The board approved the sign height and lot coverage variances for the project by a unanimous vote, granting Stewart’s their full request. The project now goes to the Planning board for their site plan review.

Attorney Horan said he will confer with his client to see if he will challenge the ZBA’s approval.