Medina approves zoning change for ‘planned residential community’ on 46 acres

Owner of property says he wants townhouses at site on West Oak Orchard Street

Photos by Tom Rivers: James Nashwenter, left, and Dan Dunn, right, share their concerns about a housing development on West Oak Orchard Street that would be close to their homes at Lakewood Village Mobile Home Park. Nashwenter said he doesn’t want to see low-income housing at West Oak Orchard.

MEDINA – The Medina Village Board has approved a zoning change for 46 acres of property at 450 West Oak Orchard St., which will allow a mix of housing types through a “planned residential community.”

Several residents spoke out about the zoning change, saying they were concerned the zoning change could usher in low-income housing that could potentially reduce the values of other nearby properties.

The speakers want to know specifically what types of housing will be on the property. Ed Michel of Sieck Wholesale owns the site. He said his plan is for townhouses.

But he has held off on incurring the expense for precise plans until the property was rezoned from light industrial, which doesn’t allow housing, to planned residential community.

Michel was advocated for R-3 zoning to allow more than single-family housing, but the Village Planning Board pushed for the “planned residential community” zoning which gives Medina more control on how the property is developed.

Local resident Scott Carlton said there has been too many unknowns with the potential development. He said the minutes from a County Planning Board meeting state the site could potentially have up to 400 units.

But Dan Gardner, the village code enforcement officer, said there haven’t been any numbers proposed for units at this time.

“We don’t know how many units of anything,” he said. “We’re not at the site plan stage.”

Jim Nashwenter, a resident of the nearby Lakewood Village Mobile Home Park, said there is too much “mystery” about what could be coming to the 46 acres. Nashwenter said the Lakewood Village community “vehemently opposes” lower-income housing. Lakewood Village ois for residents 55 and older.

“We worked our asses all our life to enjoy a quiet peaceful retirement,” Nashwenter told the board at Monday evening’s meeting. “This is a non-starter. It will destroy the park.”

Ed Michel of Sieck Wholesale wants to use 46 acres for housing. He said the main goal is for townhouses on the property. Now that the property is rezoned, he will work with engineers are more precise details for the property.

J. Lincoln Swedrock, an engineer and vice president with BME Associates in Fairport, responded to concerns that the property may be contaminated. He said the DEC (Department of Environmental Conservation) shows there is no contamination on the vacant land. There was a spill from Fisher Price but a monitoring well hasn’t detected any contaminants in about 40 years, Swedrock said.

At a Village Board meeting last month, J. Lincoln Swedrock, an engineer and vice president with BME Associates in Fairport, said there needs to be a mix of housing with some townhouses to allow more units so a project would be economically feasible.

Swedrock works for Michel, the owner of the property. Michel wants a mixed-use option with single-family houses as well as multi-family town houses.

The Village Board approved the zoning change, and Mayor Marguerite Sherman said there would be public hearings in the future as plans are developed.

Village attorney Matt Brooks said the village can’t make decisions about housing and zoning based on the income, gender and ethnicity of residents.

“We can’t discriminate against this group,” said village trustee Scott Bieliski. “We can’t just shoot it down.”

The zoning change “just opens up the possibility” for the land to be developed for housing, he said.

“At the end of the day this is his property and it will give him some options,” Bieliski said.

Nashwenter asked the Village Board to keep the public apprised of any developments with the property.

“I’m not a meeting person but this thing has lit a fire under my butt,” he told the board in a packed meeting room.

Two representatives from the United Way, executive director Nyla Gaylord and board member Dean Bellack, attended last month’s board meeting and urged the board to make the zoning change. They said the area has a significant housing shortage that is a factor in the county’s decreasing population.

The housing shortage is threatening the community’s ability to grow. For businesses to come to Medina, there needs to be more housing for their workers, she said.

Orleans County overall needs more housing options from single family construction, to affordable rentals for young adults and senior citizens, Gaylord said.

“We have some scary data for our community if we don’t allow more property to be developed for housing,” she said.