The Town of Babylon Zoning Board of Appeals on Wednesday heard a proposal from Eagle Elite Auto Repair to convert a West Babylon automotive site into a gasoline station with a convenience store and to approve related signage and site changes, but the board reserved decision and kept the record open.
The board heard detailed testimony from Gerard Glass, counsel for the applicant, and Chris Tartaglia, project engineer with High Point Engineering, who said the existing building would be converted to a 2,794-square-foot station with a 2,400-square-foot canopy over four pump islands, two small building additions, a convenience store with a grab-and-go food counter and no seating, and planned landscaping and site reconstruction.
Board members and nearby residents focused on hours of operation, truck deliveries and neighborhood impacts. Chris Tartaglia said the business intends to operate 24 hours a day, seven days a week but acknowledged the board could limit hours if problems arise. Resident Travis Stewart, president of the Belmont Lake Civic Association, said nearby homes and a shopping plaza make round-the-clock operations a concern for neighbors and asked that deliveries avoid residential streets.
The board walked through recommended conditions drafted by staff. Those include limits on truck deliveries (no truck deliveries or truck entries between 11 p.m. and 8 a.m. Monday–Friday and between 10 p.m. and 8 a.m. Saturday and Sunday), a requirement that delivery vehicles not idle, and that deliveries be contained on-site so they do not impede public pedestrian or vehicular traffic. Mr. Tartaglia and counsel said the applicant will instruct suppliers and “insist on compliance,” and agreed to no outdoor storage and to screen a dumpster with landscaping.
The applicant said the site has historically supported automotive uses and that the proposed plan will renovate an otherwise deteriorating parcel, replace sidewalks, curbs and pavement, and add underground tanks installed under a concrete mat; the engineer said tanks would be placed so tanker trucks could offload safely without blocking traffic. The board discussed sign orientation and sight lines with the engineer and was shown a site plan explaining setbacks, curb cuts and parking; Mr. Tartaglia said the plan provides the 14 parking spaces required, including one ADA stall.
Discussion: the board and residents emphasized potential late-night noise, truck routing and deliveries on Mount Avenue versus Wyandanch Avenue. The applicant offered to instruct suppliers to route deliveries away from residential streets and to accept enforcement conditions.
Decision: the board closed the public hearing and reserved decision, keeping the record open for final plan revisions and for the board to consider the recommended operating conditions. No formal vote to approve or deny was taken at the meeting.
Ending: The board will review final plan revisions and proposed conditions before issuing a decision. Neighbors will be notified through the board’s normal written decision process.