Village of the Branch opposes new traffic signal arm in historic district

Village of the Branch officials are opposing a state plan to install a metallic mast arm traffic signal in a historic district, calling it out of character with the community's aesthetic.

In May, the state Department of Transportation wrote to inform Mark Delaney, the village's mayor, of plans to install the signal arm at the corner of Hemlock Lane and Route 25. 

At the intersection, wires are currently holding up the traffic signal. The DOT has proposed replacing the wire system with a cantilevered mast arm traffic signal. The mast arm apparatus connects a vertical pole with a horizontal arm.

The change is part of a larger state effort to improve or replace signals across Nassau and Suffolk counties. The agency selected areas to “address safety concerns and to improve the reliability and operation of the traffic signals and lighting systems,” DOT real estate specialist William O'Hara wrote in a letter. 

But the proposal is too large and jarring for the community, Delaney and local historians say. The traffic signal on Hemlock Lane is in the village’s historic district. The district was added to both the New York State and National Register of Historic Places in 1986, according to both registers.

Delaney said the proposed traffic signal is “a monstrosity” that would be out of character with the area’s historic nature.

“I know that’s what they’re putting up everywhere, but they’re putting it up smack dab in our historic district,” Delaney said in an interview.

Delaney said he has been reaching out to local historians and lawmakers urging them to oppose the signal plan.

Priya Kapoor, executive director of the Smithtown Historical Society, asked state officials to reconsider their plan in a September letter. She asked the DOT to weigh "alternative solutions" to address safety needs, writing that the proposal "may not align with the aesthetic and heritage that are central to our historic district's identity."

Kapoor said in an interview that she understands safety concerns, but she hopes the department can consider alternatives. A metal arm in the historic district would "not be pleasant to the eye," she said.

"It's a historic district," Kapoor said. "We want to keep the history alive, and it should look like the way it was."

Stephen Canzoneri, a spokesman for the state Transportation Department, said the upgrades are needed “to enhance safety for pedestrians and motorists.”

“The project, which may require the acquisition of a minimal amount of property along our existing right of way, is currently in the design phase and NYSDOT fully intends to work with village officials to address any concerns about the historic nature of the area,” Canzoneri said in a statement.

Asked for details about the traffic signal arm, including its size, Canzoneri said in a short statement that the project "is still being designed."

Richard Smith, Smithtown’s historian, said the village was founded in 1928 because its residents wanted to preserve its history. But the residents were open to development, said Smith, who is also the mayor of Nissequogue.

The historic district is home to the First Presbyterian Church of Smithtown, the Hallock Inn, the Caleb Smith House, the Epenetus Smith Tavern and the Tailor White House, all of which are similar in age and scale and built with materials akin to other homes in the district, according to documents stored by the National Register of Historic Places.

Some of those buildings contain "a lot of local history," Smith added. The Epenetus Smith Tavern, Smith pointed out, once housed British Army officers during the British occupation of Long Island in the late 1700s. 

Many of the homes in the village’s historic corridor date to the 18th century, Smith said. Adding a traffic signal arm there would be “totally out of character” with the area and “would be very ugly,” he said.

“It belongs on a more industrial setting,” Smith said. He said he hopes the village and state can agree on a smaller traffic signal for the area.