Comments sought on apartments at vacant plaza
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New York state is currently accepting comments on a proposed housing complex in the city of Dunkirk that if approved, would mean the demolition of a dilapidated plaza which sits next to another shopping plaza.
The state Department of Environmental Conservation has received a Brownfield Cleanup Program application from Regan Development Corp. for a site known as 166 E. Fourth St., site ID #C907051. This site is in the city of Dunkirk.
According to county Industrial Development Agency Director Mark Geise, the application received with regard to the 4th Street proposed development location, pertains to 160-164 E. 4th Street, Parcel ID 79.57-2-15.1. That is the site of the former Family Dollar and the former Veterans Affairs clinic.
Within the last two years, Family Dollar moved from the end plaza to next door to Save A-Lot.
According to Geise, it is his understanding that the new Family Dollar and Save-A-Lot would not be affected with the project. Other plaza businesses include Dollar General, a Chinese restaurant, Rent-A-Center and a cell phone company. None of them would be affected either.
The two plazas touch each other, but have different owners.
The application and other relevant documents online through the DEC info locator are at: https://www.dec.ny.gov/data/DecDocs/C907051/. The documents also are available at the document repository located at Dunkirk Public Library, 536 Central Ave.
Comments can be submitted to the site Project Manager Michael Keller at NYSDEC, 700 Delaware Avenue, Buffalo, NY 14209; via email at Michael.keller@dec.ny.gov or by calling 716-851-7218. All comments must be submitted by March 1.
At the January county IDA meeting, Regan Development Corp. proposed two apartment complexes in the city for "workforce renters" - this one on East 4th Street and a second one on Washington Avenue.
The East Fourth Street development would have 48 units in it, most of which would be one or two bedrooms. There would also be a daycare center in it, which would be about 6,500 square feet.
Regan Development is also seeking a Payment In Lieu Of Taxes agreement. The county IDA has started investigating the proposal but has not made a decision.
For the East 4th Street development, the Phase I Environmental Site Assessment is 229 pages long, the Phase II Environmental Site Assessment is 360 pages long and the Brownfield Cleanup Program Application Form is 63 pages. The documents are technical in nature, describing the boundaries of the properties, soil testings, nearby businesses and residents, and give the description of the proposed project.
These apartments are being proposed through the $10 million Downtown Revitalization Initiative, which was awarded to Dunkirk by the state. Regan Development is also expected to seek housing tax credits from the state.