Huntington sets hearing date to consider zoning change for proposed Greenlawn housing

The Huntington Town Board has set a public hearing to consider a zoning change in Greenlawn that would allow the construction of 260 for-sale residential units on a property that is currently zoned for approximately 19 single-family homes. 

Jericho-based developer Engel Burman at Greenlawn, LLC, is making the request for a 24-acre property on the north side of Pulaski Road, east of Greenbrush Court. The site currently is home to the Greenlawn Equestrian Center, which the company is under contract to purchase, company officials said in an email to Newsday.

The zoning would go from single-family residential to Garden Apartment Special District. The units would not be age-restricted, the email said. The proposed development is in the Harborfields school district.

At the Aug. 16 town board meeting, board member Sal Ferro sponsored the resolution to hold a public hearing Oct. 12. The measure was approved 3-2, with Town Supervisor Ed Smyth and board member Gene Cook voting against it. 

“Every project deserves its due process, and the due process is to put the project in front of the community and give them an opportunity to give their point of view,” Ferro told Newsday. “From there we act accordingly.”

Engel Burman also developed the Seasons at Elwood, which was met with scorn and opposition by nearby residents when it was proposed in 2012. It was approved in 2014.

The company currently has a project underway on a 14.32-acre former manufacturing site, less than two miles from the Seasons at Elwood. The project is a 190-unit town house community for ages 55 and older. 

A statement released by Engel Burman said the company is seeking to move forward with the proposal, noting that enrollment in the Harborfields district is declining. The statement also cited studies by Long Island Regional Planning Council and the Business School at Stony Brook University that said "multi-family residences either have a negligible impact on enrollment or produce more tax revenue for school districts than the cost" of educating new students. 

School district officials did not immediately respond to requests for comment.