Smithtown planning hearings postponed

Smithtown planning officials have postponed a pair of public hearings that had been scheduled for Wednesday, on plans to rezone industrial properties in Kings Park.

Town planning board chairman John Gee said the postponement will give Baldassano Architecture of Ronkonkoma, a consultant the town hired last month to recommend potential uses for properties in the vicinity of Lawrence Road and Old Northport Road, more time to study development issues in the hamlet.

Vincent Trimarco, a Smithtown attorney representing property owners whose land was the subject of the hearings, said he requested the postponement to let the consultants complete their work. "Maybe we'll get some good input from the consultant, something we can agree to," Trimarco said.

Property owners have asked the town to rezone dozens of parcels on Old Northport Road to permit heavy industrial uses; the land is zoned for a mix of residences, wholesale and service businesses, and light and heavy industry.

The public hearings were rescheduled for Dec. 5. The planning board Wednesday instead heard proposals to build a restaurant at the Smith Haven Mall and to allow outdoor storage of building and construction debris on a Kings Park property owned by developer Anthony Leteri.