Michelle
10-25-2006, 11:39 PM
CB 3 unanimously OKs home for developmentally disabled (http://www.silive.com/news/advance/index.ssf?/base/news/1161779583224790.xml&coll=1)
Proposed residence for 6 would be located on Tysens Lane in New Dorp Beach
Wednesday, October 25, 2006
By KIAWANA RICH
ADVANCE STAFF WRITER
A proposed community residence for six developmentally disabled people, to be opened in New Dorp Beach, received unanimous approval from members of Community Board 3 last night.
All 29 board members voted in favor of the proposed residence, located at 732 Tysens Lane, which is to house developmentally disabled adults ranging in age from 36 to 50. The site will be operated by the Association for Retarded Children, AHRC New York City, and funded by the state Office of Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities.
The proposal had met with several objections from angry and worried South Shore residents at a previous Land Use meeting. The chief concerns about the home were safety issues, the home's location near a nursery school and decreased property values.
Just before the vote, Land Use Chairman William D'Ambrosino addressed the board, requesting a unanimous vote.
"By doing this, we will be sending a message to those developmentally disabled people in our community that they are welcome here, that they have a legal right to live here and that this Community Board recognizes, supports and respects that right," he said.
HAVE RIGHT TO OPINIONS
After voting in favor of the proposal, First Vice Chairman Frank Morano noted that while people have a right to live anywhere they choose, private citizens retain the right to their opinions.
"People, where these things are going, have a right to come down and yell and complain. They fear for their families, whether it should be or it should not be, they fear for their families and they fear for their homes or property, which is many times the biggest asset they have. So we have to understand that they have that right," he said.
The unanimous vote goes back to the OMRDD and clears the way for the AHRC to go into contract to purchase the site.
In other business, the board voted 28-1 to approve a request by Borough President James Molinaro to the Department of Buildings and the City Planning Commission to develop regulations regarding gas stations that are retrofitted to include groceries, minimarts and coffee shops. While such additions are lucrative for gas station owners, they frequently snarl traffic as drivers jockey for scant spaces.
The board also unanimously approved its 45-item Capital Budget, 27-item Expense Budget and five-item Continued Support Fiscal Budget request "wish list" for 2008.
The board voted in favor of approving three speed bumps, one at Androvette Avenue between Amboy Road and Billiou Street, one at West Terrace between Ellsworth Avenue and Drumgoole Road East and one at Sandalwood Drive between Ironwood Street and Cherrywood Court.
Kiawana Rich is a news reporter for the Advance. She may be reached at rich@siadvance.com.
Proposed residence for 6 would be located on Tysens Lane in New Dorp Beach
Wednesday, October 25, 2006
By KIAWANA RICH
ADVANCE STAFF WRITER
A proposed community residence for six developmentally disabled people, to be opened in New Dorp Beach, received unanimous approval from members of Community Board 3 last night.
All 29 board members voted in favor of the proposed residence, located at 732 Tysens Lane, which is to house developmentally disabled adults ranging in age from 36 to 50. The site will be operated by the Association for Retarded Children, AHRC New York City, and funded by the state Office of Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities.
The proposal had met with several objections from angry and worried South Shore residents at a previous Land Use meeting. The chief concerns about the home were safety issues, the home's location near a nursery school and decreased property values.
Just before the vote, Land Use Chairman William D'Ambrosino addressed the board, requesting a unanimous vote.
"By doing this, we will be sending a message to those developmentally disabled people in our community that they are welcome here, that they have a legal right to live here and that this Community Board recognizes, supports and respects that right," he said.
HAVE RIGHT TO OPINIONS
After voting in favor of the proposal, First Vice Chairman Frank Morano noted that while people have a right to live anywhere they choose, private citizens retain the right to their opinions.
"People, where these things are going, have a right to come down and yell and complain. They fear for their families, whether it should be or it should not be, they fear for their families and they fear for their homes or property, which is many times the biggest asset they have. So we have to understand that they have that right," he said.
The unanimous vote goes back to the OMRDD and clears the way for the AHRC to go into contract to purchase the site.
In other business, the board voted 28-1 to approve a request by Borough President James Molinaro to the Department of Buildings and the City Planning Commission to develop regulations regarding gas stations that are retrofitted to include groceries, minimarts and coffee shops. While such additions are lucrative for gas station owners, they frequently snarl traffic as drivers jockey for scant spaces.
The board also unanimously approved its 45-item Capital Budget, 27-item Expense Budget and five-item Continued Support Fiscal Budget request "wish list" for 2008.
The board voted in favor of approving three speed bumps, one at Androvette Avenue between Amboy Road and Billiou Street, one at West Terrace between Ellsworth Avenue and Drumgoole Road East and one at Sandalwood Drive between Ironwood Street and Cherrywood Court.
Kiawana Rich is a news reporter for the Advance. She may be reached at rich@siadvance.com.