Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Mckesson Rezoning topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Committee recommends SEQRA negative declaration, forwards McKesson Parkway rezoning to town board
Summary
The Environmental Advisory Committee recommended a negative declaration under the New York State Environmental Quality Review Act and will forward a proposal to rezone parcels on McKesson Parkway from commercial to residential to the town board after discussion of traffic, school-district boundaries and code timing constraints.
The Environmental Advisory Committee voted to recommend a negative declaration under the New York State Environmental Quality Review Act and to forward a rezoning proposal for parcels on McKesson Parkway to the Cheektowaga town board.
The proposal would rezone 0 and 100 McKesson Parkway from commercial to residential for a multiunit development. The planning board had previously recommended approval and the public hearing closed on the 13th, with two public comments: one resident said the project “doesn’t fit the plan,” and another asked which school districts would serve the parcels. Committee members clarified that 0 McKesson Parkway is in the Cheektowaga Central School District and 100 McKesson Parkway is in the Maryvale Union Free School District.
Committee discussion focused on traffic and infrastructure. One participant noted an earlier traffic study had been done for a 340-unit proposal; the current plan reduces density to roughly 160 units, a change several committee members said should lessen traffic impacts. As one speaker put it, “those conclusions were only enhanced by the reduction in density,” and another said reduced density could “more than offset” potential impact from adjacent development.
The committee heard from an applicant representative who emphasized that mall ownership and anchor-tenant lease restrictions limit the town’s ability to secure a formal parking agreement with the adjacent mall. The representative said the developer’s approach anticipates informal use of underused mall parking and multiple access routes around the site.
The applicant also raised a timing concern tied to local code: “if you get a rezone, you have to file a building permit within 12 months of the rezone,” a committee member said, noting permit timelines (including state DEC approvals) can slow projects. Town staff and the town attorney advised that, in some circumstances, the applicant may seek relief or present a request to the town board rather than pursuing zoning-board relief.
On that basis the committee recommended a SEQRA negative declaration and forwarded the rezoning to the town board for public hearing and final action. The board will first call a public hearing and then consider approval at a subsequent meeting.
