The City of Rome Zoning Board of Appeals on Nov. 5 approved two separate area variances allowing a proposed Chobani facility to reduce interior side-yard setbacks from 15 feet to 0 feet across two adjacent parcels on Perimeter Road. The variances permit a continuous enclosed corridor that would connect manufacturing and warehouse buildings sited on what the county and applicant described as the Triangle parcel and part of the former golf course.

Kevin McAuliffe, an attorney with Barclay Damon representing the project, said the project was redesigned to shift the warehouse and a smaller processing building to the golf course parcel so the connected corridor could be enclosed. McAuliffe explained that the parcels cannot be merged now because the Triangle parcel was conveyed by the Air Force and remains subject to FAA regulations; resubdividing or obtaining a full release from FAA restrictions could take years. "We can't resubdivide these and turn them into one," McAuliffe said, adding that the county has been working for years on approvals to redevelop the Triangle parcel.

Amanda Cortes Colas, who identified herself as representing Oneida County (owner of both parcels), said there is not a long-term plan to merge the parcels because of FAA deed restrictions and pending land‑use processes. She described a pending land-use change request with the FAA that would keep the parcel subject to airport-related regulations until any permanent release is secured.

Several neighbors spoke during the public comment period. Resident Christopher Cardello told the board he and adjacent residents are concerned about daily truck traffic and the industrial facility's effects on their neighborhood, saying there was "talk about putting a berm up there that's gonna soften the noise, but they're talking 240 cars in a day and 240 cars out a day right by our neighborhood" and that residents worried about diesel odors blowing toward their homes. The board repeatedly noted that the zoning board's scope at this hearing was limited to setback variances; site-plan details, traffic mitigation, berms, noise and odor controls fall to the Planning Board and other permitting processes.

The Oneida County Department of Planning provided correspondence (10/09/2025) indicating no recommendation to final action on both variance applications. After questions about whether the approval would allow structures to abut the parcel line (board confirmed the variances permit construction up to the shared lot line), the board approved item 25-021 and item 25-022 separately; both votes were recorded as 5–0 in favor.

The approvals grant only zoning relief for interior side-yard setbacks; project review of site design, environmental controls, traffic mitigation and any FAA-related land-use changes remain subject to other processes and agencies. Board members directed residents concerned about noise, traffic and odor to the Planning Board and county representatives and noted that the planning and permitting process will be the forum to address those issues.