Port Chester Planning: Tarry Market Parking Lot, Capitol Theater Update

The Port Chester Planning Commission met Monday evening at the Village Court with a full agenda.

One of the standout items of the evening was a Site Plan Application submitted by Michiel Boender and E J Port Reality. They proposed to demolish the existing building at 20-30 Abendroth Avenue to create a new parking lot with 44 spaces.

The parking lot is currently planned to be a private one for the use of Tarry Market patrons only. The lot would not be exclusively for ; the proposed plan would be for customers of Tarry Market to enter through a gate, park, and retrieve a code or ticket from the market. One could then continue shopping or dining in the nearby area but must retrieve the code from the market to exit the parking area. The proposed plan would not require customers to make a purchase at Tarry Market.

“This lot would alleviate a portion of the parking problem in that general area,” said Anthony Carbone, Tarry Market’s attorney. “We want to beautify the Village’s existing parking lot by replacing four trees in the empty spots where the trees have long since gone. The Village’s success is our success and our success is the Village’s success.”

The entryway and exit of the parking area would eliminate a total of three metered parking spots. Previous proposals suggested that the village might only lose one or two parking spots. It is estimated that each parking meter generates around $1,000 annually.  

“We have been a good neighbor, we are trying to make the downtown in that section vibrant. These are tough economic times,” said Carbone. “People have to work together, the planning board has to work with us to encourage business to develop in this area.”

Despite the fact that the lot would be private, some local business owners are on board with the proposal.

“It’s a good idea for the area,” said Dennis Shack of Sam’s Bar & Grill. “Parking is one of the biggest issues we have. It’s important to add as many spaces as we can downtown right now. I am very, very happy that they are willing to spend some money to do it.”

The was an add-on to the evening’s agenda. The Port Chester landmark is set to reopen September 4. Their presence at Monday’s meeting was to try to get a public hearing to reorganize their lobby. A bar of approximately 25 feet sat in the lobby of the old Capitol Theater. The proposal is to bring a larger, approx. 39 feet bar into the adjacent property at 145 Westchester Ave., which was acquired by the theater.

“The bar area is being moved for many reasons, one of which is egress, flow and congestion,” said Anthony Tirone, representative of Capitol Theater. “The other use of the 145 space, which is about 2,500 sq. ft., is to add ADA bathrooms. The Capitol Theater as of right now has no ADA bathrooms so we installed four in this space.”

Check back with Patch next week for a full feature on the Capitol Theater’s renovations and plans moving forward.  

The following items were recommended positively by the Planning Commission.

1. Recommendation to the Board of Trustees of the May 21, 2012 draft of the Comprehensive Plan for the Village of Port Chester
2. Recommendation to the Board of Trustees of the May 21, 2012 draft Zoning Code amendments.
3. Recommendation to the Board of Trustees of a Local law requiring site plan approval for the Village’s R2F zones, a Comprehensive Plan recommendation supported by BFJ Planning.

Peter Gaito  & Associates/Peter Gaito,  and Father Richard Alejunas SDB submitted their final site plan for the to the Port Chester Planning Board Monday night. They plan to erect a two-story addition to the center at 22 Don Bosco Place. The Planning Commission plans to entertain a resolution on the site plan at their next meeting.