Developers to present plan for complex in Lindenhurst

A developer seeking rezoning will publicly present its vision for a large-scale apartment complex in Lindenhurst Village next week.

Tritec Real Estate of East Setauket on Tuesday will ask for the village to rezone from Industrial and Residential to Downtown Redevelopment District (DRD) more than 7 acres of land on East Hoffman Avenue, between South Smith Street and South Pennsylvania Avenue.

The company, which is the developer behind Patchogue’s downtown revitalization and the planned Ronkonkoma Hub, wants to build a 260-unit multifamily rental complex across from the Lindenhurst Long Island Rail Road station. The Lindenhurst Residences proposal calls for 11 studios, 142 one-bedrooms, 15 one-bedrooms with dens, five one-bedrooms with lofts, 75 two-bedrooms and 12 three-bedrooms. The units would be within a 317,478-gross-square-foot building reaching a maximum 53 feet high and would include a lower level parking garage and upper roof deck level. There would be 379 parking spaces on site.

According to its application, the company also is proposing a restoration of Neguntatogue Creek, which runs under the property, including the removal of nonnative vegetation, culverts and concrete banks and the installation of native vegetation and bank stabilization measures. The company states the efforts are expected to yield a net increase of 3,670 square feet of stream area.

Tritec co-owner Bob Coughlan said all apartments will be rented at market rates and that he expects the average household income for the units to be $90,000 to $100,000. He said the company has tried to address resident concerns about the project, including lowering the portion of the complex on Hoffman Avenue from four to three stories.

“We’re significantly upgrading the community from what’s currently there,” he said, noting the “older, dilapidated buildings” in the industrial area. He said the project also would be a “catalyst for economic development” in the village.

The company filed an application for rezoning in October, more than two years since first publicly unveiling its initial plans for the complex during a village economic development committee meeting. They were only able to file the application after the village created the DRD zoning in June. The “floating zone” can be applied geographically and sets parameters for proposed development that cannot be altered by a village zoning or planning board.

Lindenhurst Residences would be roughly twice the size of any existing housing complex in the village, officials said. Tritec estimates the units would generate approximately 508 residents, with eight being school-age children.

The company has met with the police and fire departments, and there would be no adverse effects on emergency services, according to the application. The water, electricity, gas and sewer system are expected to have sufficient capacity to serve the apartments, the application states. Coughlan said the company has not had any opposition from village organizations, such as the chamber of commerce.

According to a traffic study procured by Tritec, the complex, as a transit-oriented development, would generate lower levels of traffic and “would not have any significant impact on the traffic operations in the area.”

The public hearing on the rezoning will take place at 7 p.m. Tuesday at the Lindenhurst Middle School, 350 S. Wellwood Ave.

By Denise M. Bonilla

denise.bonilla@newsday.comdenisebonilla

Denise Bonilla has worked at Newsday since 2003 and covers the Town of Babylon, including the villages of Lindenhurst and Amityville.