Patchogue zoning board closes hearing on contested mixed-use property at 78 Academy Street

PATCHOGUE, N.Y. — The Patchogue Zoning Board of Appeals closed the public hearing May 6 on an application to legalize an upstairs apartment and obtain variances for a multi‑use building at 76–86 (78) Academy Street, where a mix of businesses and storage units have been operating.

The applicant asked the board to allow an owner‑occupied second‑floor residence above a storefront that houses Big Cat Bikes, a recording studio and multiple storage units, and to grant relief from parking and setback requirements. The board closed public comment and moved the application to its decision calendar.

Why it matters: Neighbors and business operators told the board the site combines several uses — an electric‑bike showroom, an active motorcycle repair shop, storage units and a recording studio — and that legalizing the apartment could affect parking, noise and fire‑safety concerns tied to battery storage and proximity to repair operations.

The applicant’s attorney, Richard Cohen, told the board the applicant was seeking permission only for the upstairs apartment at this hearing and that other permitted uses (the electric‑bike showroom, two approved storage units and the recording studio) were already the subject of prior approvals. Cohen said the motorcycle repair tenant on the property is being evicted and that the applicant added two parking spaces to the east end of the lot for the apartment.

Applicant and representatives: The application lists 76–86 (78) Academy Street as a single building with multiple units. Architect Ron Belan described the interior layout to the board and explained the apartment’s location on the second floor. The applicant identified himself as Vincent (listed in the application materials as related to 76–86 Holding LLC).

Public comment included neighbors and business operators. James Barry, owner of Second 1 Cycles and a tenant associated with the motorcycle operations, said he has worked at the location for decades and asked for accommodation while seeking a new location. “Can you start them at 11:00? No problem. That’s what I’ll do,” Barry said of agreeing with limits on noisy work times. A longtime resident who spoke identified himself as having grown up in Patchogue and told the board that much of the loud motorcycle traffic on the block is from through‑traffic rather than the repair shop itself.

Board discussion focused on the property’s long and mixed history of uses. A board member noted that a special permit previously granted in February 2015 allowed certain shipping and receiving uses and that planning approvals for some tenant uses date to February 2022; the board also referenced an earlier joint board of appeals approval from 1998 that set a maximum number of units. The board asked staff to confirm the history of permits and prior special permits and left the pending motorcycle repair tenancy in the application record because an eviction is in process.

The zoning relief the applicant seeks, as described on the record, includes relief under section 435‑21 of the zoning code for front‑yard and rear‑yard setbacks and for parking. On the record the board discussed the following dimensional figures (as stated by participants): a front‑yard requirement of 10 feet with the building providing roughly 0.9 feet, and a rear‑yard requirement of 15 feet with roughly 0.3 feet provided. The transcript also references a parking requirement figure of 28 spaces; the applicant said he had added two spaces specifically for the apartment. (Specific measurements and the final parking calculation will be reflected in the board’s written decision and staff report.)

The board took no final vote on the apartment or variances at the May 6 meeting. Board members voted to close public comment and move the item to the decision calendar; the motion to close was made on the record and carried, with the hearing closed to further testimony.

What happens next: The board will deliberate and issue a written decision at a later meeting; staff will prepare findings that include permit history and the precise parking and setback calculations. The record on the case will include the eviction filing against the motorcycle repair tenant and the public testimony received.

Community context: Neighbors said the site sits along a block used by through motor vehicle and motorcycle traffic and near railroad tracks; speakers noted recent building improvements by the current owner and concerns about noise, parking and safety tied to lithium battery storage for electric bikes. The applicant and tenants said they are seeking to regularize the apartment as owner‑occupied and to continue approved commercial uses where permitted.

(Reporting for this article is based on the Patchogue Zoning Board of Appeals public hearing held May 6, 2025, and on comments and testimony in the public record.)