Planning board accepts 885 Fifth Avenue redevelopment application, issues negative SEQR declaration and schedules June 16 public hearing

The Troy Planning Board declared the application for 885 Fifth Avenue complete, issued a negative SEQR declaration and scheduled a public hearing for June 16 after a substantive staff and public discussion about circulation, lighting and neighborhood impacts.

Roger Keading, a civil site engineer with Lebella Associates representing the applicant, described a plan for a redeveloped gas station and convenience store with a food service operation and a mobile‑order pickup window. He said the team refined access and parking, extended sidewalks, relocated curb cuts off 125th Street, and revised lighting to reduce glare. "We are proposing two access points... and we've reconfigured the access in and out of the project," Keading said.

Board members focused on pickup‑window operations and vehicle stacking; staff noted the city's stacking standard (about 20 feet per car) and that the applicant may need zoning relief if stacking is insufficient. The applicant described a mobile‑order model in which customers receive a notification when food is ready and then drive to a designated pickup window; the applicant also clarified that food would be prepared on site with full kitchen equipment.

Public comment was mixed. Brandy, a Lansingburg resident, supported the proposal and praised the operator’s food. Martin Oke, who lives directly behind the site, raised concerns about traffic, lighting and cooking odors and said he feared loss of neighborhood quality of life. Steven Maples urged continuous sidewalks and safer pedestrian circulation. Several residents worried about signage and whether adjacent streets are currently signed one‑way or two‑way; staff and the applicant said signage and curb‑cut geometry will be refined during engineering review.

The board voted a negative SEQR declaration, declared the application complete and scheduled the public hearing for June 16. Staff and the applicant will continue refining curb‑cut geometry, pedestrian facilities and operational details prior to the hearing; the project still may require ZBA relief for stacking or other dimensional items.