STOP Benchmark from Re-Zoning our Neighborhood

Benchmark Senior Living LLC is proposing to build a 67,000 square foot building on the Appleridge property, a lot that will require a zoning change from its current R-10 residential and C-3 special zoning to RH-S residential health service zoning. The lot in question backs onto a residential neighborhood and is located on Route 25A in Huntington and is opposite the intersection of Washington Drive and Route 25A (East Main Street).

Most of the land is zoned R-10 residential housing and this should be maintained. Any commercial building should be confined to the existing C-3 zoning that is on Route 25A and should be sized in accordance with the space that is available. Changing the existing zoning to accommodate Benchmark's request should not be supported by the Huntington Town Board as it will fundamentally change the character of the neighborhood.

Having an enormous, multi-story building at the entry into Huntington from Centerport will have a major negative impact on the area and potentially damage the environment and the ground water in a location without a sewer system to accommodate the waste from 103 patients and 70 employees. Benchmark plans to build a Sewage Treatment Plant to contain the output of the building's residents and employees. This is a major project and is not in keeping with the neighborhood's current infrastructure.

Benchmark Senior Living LLC should look at alternate sites that have the infrastructure and topography required to handle the large-scale facility they want to build. It should not be shoehorned into a residential neighborhood.

Signing this petition will allow us to gather signatures of citizens who are opposed to the proposed Benchmark development. The entire list will then be presented to the Huntington Town Board: Supervisor Frank Petrone, Councilman Eugene Cook, Councilwoman Susan Berland, Councilwoman Tracey Edwards, and Councilman Mark Cuthbertson.

Thank you for your support.