Farmingdale to discuss rezoning plan

With an overhaul of its downtown zoning, Farmingdale is ready to make itself a regional model for higher-density transit-oriented developments.

Village officials this week released a draft of a zoning code amendment for 60 acres around Main and Conklin streets, near the Long Island Rail Road station.

The proposed changes will be discussed at the trustees meeting Monday. They include allowing apartments above shops, adding as many as 375 new downtown residences; expanding open space by 40 percent; and encouraging pedestrian-friendly uses at street level.

The new mixed-use zone would be split in three, with the area closest to the train station allowing the most density: up to 40 units per acre.

"With the thought of change comes fear in some people," Mayor Butch Starkie wrote in a recent newsletter to residents. "This condition is human nature and the board is aware of these concerns."

His acknowledgment came after a July public hearing where many residents balked at the inclusion of apartments in the re-envisioning of downtown.

Their concerns -- about traffic, parking and impact on schools -- are typically heard when rental residences are pitched as a way to revitalize an area.

In recent months, the same objections have been raised about mixed-use projects or concepts in Glen Cove and Hicksville.

Farmingdale's proposed code changes would limit above-retail housing to no more than two full floors, with total building heights restricted to 31/2 floors.

Monday's meeting will begin at 8 p.m. at Village Hall.