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Board grills Medford mini‑storage plan on high FAR request and fencing along Station Road
Summary
A developer seeking to build a 120,000 sq ft self‑storage building in the Bellport subdivision asked the Town of Brookhaven BZA for a large floor‑area‑ratio variance and several design waivers; staff and board members pressed the applicant on why such a large FAR is needed and on fencing and buffer details.
Developers proposing a 120,000‑square‑foot self‑storage facility on a nearly 5‑acre parcel at Sills Road and Station Road in Bellport faced detailed questioning from the Town of Brookhaven Board of Zoning Appeals on April 30, chiefly over a requested increase in the floor‑area‑ratio (FAR) to about 55.1% and on fencing and landscaping proposals along Station Road.
Town planner Michael Reed told the board the project would need special permit and multiple variances for FAR, materials, and decorative fencing. The site is part of a larger multi‑lot subdivision previously rezoned and subject to covenants, including a required natural buffer of roughly 60–65 feet along Station Road.
Applicant representatives said the parcel is the northernmost portion of a master plan the town previously approved and that a 120,000 sq ft, two‑story self‑storage building had been included in earlier conceptual approvals dating back to 2015–2018. Attorney and applicant representatives argued that when calculating FAR across the whole subdivision the average would fall under the 25% requirement for certain zones, and they provided precedent applications where the board allowed FAR relief for self‑storage projects, including an adaptive‑reuse site that reached 54% FAR.
Board members pushed the applicant to justify why 55.1% FAR was necessary rather than a smaller building: the planner said the request increases FAR by roughly 43,823 square feet over the code limit and that the board should hear detailed reasons why that amount is the minimum necessary. Applicants responded they acquired the parcel counting on the economics of a 120,000 sq ft building and that industry operators typically prefer that size for three‑floor configurations and efficient leasable area.
Members also questioned fencing plans along the north and station road frontages. The applicant described chain‑link fencing on the property’s north side where it abuts heavy industrial outdoor storage, with decorative fencing at the building’s rear and a 60‑foot natural buffer along Station Road, but the board asked whether a protective decorative fence would hold up adjacent to heavy industrial operations and whether a decorative front fence would conflict with shared cross‑access drives.
Planner Reed recommended that, if the board were favorably disposed, grant conditions should include a 60‑foot buffer along Station Road and decorative fencing/back‑of‑building screening details to be finalized at the town‑board site‑plan review. The applicants closed their presentation and the board moved to close the public hearing and place the matter on the decision calendar; no final variance vote was recorded on April 30.
