Rome Health wins planning approval for 70‑space parking expansion at North James Street

The Rome Planning Board approved a site plan to expand parking at Rome Health, adding roughly 70 spaces adjacent to Black River Boulevard at 1500 North James Street, after staff recommended the project met zoning requirements and did not require an environmental determination under local SEQR guidance.

Alan Heard, director of facilities for Rome Health, told the board the hospital is expanding its intensive‑care and operating‑room capacity and needs more parking to serve patients and staff. “We’re building our new ICU and ORs,” Heard said, describing increased demand and daytime parking shortages.

Nathan Lapp of Keplinger Freeman Associates presented the site design, which reconfigures existing parking and removes several trees along Black River Boulevard to create new bays. He said stormwater from the new pavement will be routed to dry wells for infiltration and then piped to the municipal system as overflow; “we’re directing it to dry wells,” Lapp said. The design includes new sidewalks and marked pedestrian crossings to channel foot traffic from the lot to the hospital entrance.

Planning staff reviewed the application and told the board the project constitutes a Type II action under the city’s SEQR practice because it does not expand floor area beyond thresholds, does not change zoning and is not a telecommunications facility; staff recommended approval. The board approved the site plan by voice vote; members asked the applicant to coordinate final stormwater details and signage with city engineering and public works.

The applicant indicated additional landscape islands and plantings will be installed to meet the zoning code’s landscaping rules, and staff recommended an alternate landscape plan under the code given demonstrated on‑site parking needs. The project will proceed to permit review with final engineering and coordination on signage for pedestrian crossings.