Concerns About Park Avenue Subdivision

Several potential neighbors of a proposed subdivision expressed concerns over environmental damage and increased traffic at  the 's Planning Board final public hearing Wednesday.

If approved, the proposed four-property subdivision called Kiruv Estates would be located on a 2.5-acre parcel at the southeast corner of Park Avenue and Woodhull Road in Huntington.

The applicant's proposal to control the water table there by using a dewatering pump seemed to cause the most concern.

Park Avenue resident Frederick Soviero said that in the 28 years he has lived there, he has seen a nearby freshwater pond silt over and a creek clogged up and he is worried about further environmental damage.

"Sewage back up is certainly a concern," he said.

Another Park Avenue resident, Mary Kennedy, said the cesspools are going to contaminate the nearby wetlands and freshwater ponds.

"I don't see how these cess pools are going to be effective when they fill up and start leaching down in to those ponds, so be very careful," she said. "Further down by the deli, they built three homes on wetlands and I heard those homes have water in the basements."

Environmental activist and Huntington resident Daniel Karpen asked what happens when the electricity fails and the sewage can't be pumped.

"This is one of the worst projects in recent years to come before planning board," Karpen said. "It is environmentally destructive unnecessary. There's not a strong housing demand."

The speakers all expressed concern about additional traffic on an already busy Park Avenue.

Tom Dixon of Melville-based engineering firm Nelson and Pope spoke for property owner Jay Viders and Kiruv Property Management.

"With respect to the traffic issue, the sole point of ingress and egress will be along Woodhull Road, not Park Avenue," Dixon said. "Two, in the event of an electrical outage, the [Suffolk County Department of Health] requires backup power in the form of a generator."

Board member Avrum Rosen also expressed concern if future property owners are unable to maintain the electrical pump.

Viders' attorney Ron Goldstein told Rosen that is not the town's responsibility but Rosen disagreed. "If it fails and it's affecting other property owners, then it becomes the town's concern and responsibility."

The board will vote on the subdivision's site plan approval at its next meeting Jan. 5.