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Planning board grants buffer-and-parking relief for property bordering Long Island Railroad
Summary
The Islip Planning Board granted Michael Murtha a modification to eliminate planting north of an existing fence and waive parking stall striping after staff flagged a National Grid easement and active groundwater‑remediation infrastructure that limit access and risk damage to utilities.
The Town of Islip Planning Board on Tuesday approved a site‑plan modification for a property on Community Road, granting relief from a 15‑foot landscaping buffer adjacent to the Long Island Railroad and a waiver of parking stall striping.
The application, listed on the agenda as belonging to Michael Murtha (SP2026‑031), was prompted by a recorded National Grid easement and an active groundwater remediation system on the property, planning staff told the board. Fran, the staff reporter, said National Grid requested no plantings between the fence and the railroad right‑of‑way because tree root systems could damage underground oxygen injection lines and monitoring equipment. “National Grid has requested that no landscaping be installed to the north of the fence,” Fran said during the staff presentation.
The applicant told the board he purchased the property three years ago and that a fence and subsurface remediation infrastructure leave the area inaccessible for routine planting or maintenance. The applicant said utility crews visit the site roughly once a month in small vehicles and that plantings in the narrow space could interfere with necessary work.
Based on the easement and site constraints, staff recommended approval with conditions: eliminate required plantings north of the existing fence, waive parking stall striping, and keep all other improvements in substantial conformance with the previously approved plot plan subject to engineering inspection and approval. Board member Miss Cruz moved to close the public hearing and grant the application subject to those conditions; the motion passed on a voice vote.
The board’s approval requires the applicant to comply with the staff‑drafted conditions and any inspections or engineering approvals specified in the resolution. The planning board did not record a roll‑call vote in the transcript; the chair announced the application was granted.
