County planners recommend parking variance for proposed Dollar General in Albion

Business wants to have 35 parking spaces instead of required 53 under village code

Photo by Tom Rivers: The Broadway Group wants to demolish this building at 327 East Ave. in Albion and build a new 10,640-square-foot Dollar General with 35 parking spaces. This site is across the street from Charles D’ Amico High School.

 ALBION – The Orleans County Planning Board this evening voted to recommend the Village of Albion approve a variance for a new Dollar General store at 327 East Ave.

The Broadway Group, which is seeking to build the new store, is requesting the site have 35 parking spaces instead of the 53 required under the village code.

The store is proposed at 10,640 square feet. The village code requires a parking space for every 200 square feet of gross floor area.

The Broadway Group from Huntsville, Ala. has built many of the Dollar General stores around the country. Broadway said similar-size Dollar General stores need 32 parking spaces.

Allowing the variance for the 35 parking spaces would allow the site to keep more green space which would help with stormwater runoff and with a buffer to residential areas abutting the property.

“The proposed retail store is not necessarily a destination location for most people,” Brian Gross, staff engineer at Fagan Engineers & Land Surveyors, said in the application to the County Planning Board. “Therefore, customers will only be at the location for 20 minutes or less, meaning there will be a higher turnover rate in parking.”

The Village of Albion Planning Board will have a public hearing about the variance at 4 p.m. on Sept. 9 at the Village Office.

If the variance is approved, Broadway will then work on a site plan to be submitted the village and county.

County Planning Board members said they have some concerns about the tight parking lot and how will accommodate larger delivery trucks. Planners want adequate turnaround on the site so the truck doesn’t back out onto Route 31.

One possibility could be getting an easement from Cone Zone next door where trucks could enter Dollar General and exit from Cone Zone. Both properties are owned by Chris Kinter, the village’s code officer. He is recusing himself from the Dollar General project. Dan Strong, the code officer for the Town of Albion, and handling the code enforcement duties with the Dollar General variance and if there is a site plan and building permit.