Developer makes pitch to Huntington officials for homes on 55-acre Elwood site

A developer wants to build dozens of single-family homes on a 55-acre Elwood property where multiple other proposals have fallen through since 2002, according to an application submitted to Huntington Town's planning board.

The site is near the northeast corner of Jericho Turnpike and Manor Road, just west of the Mediavilla Orchards property.

Developers want to parse the property into 46 lots for a neighborhood called Estates at Elwood. Single-family homes would take up 44 lots in the eastern half, while two 57,000-square-foot lots in the site’s southwest corner would be set aside for nonresidential development.

The remaining 21 acres in the northwest corner would remain undeveloped woods, according to Christopher Robinson, of R&M Engineering, who presented the plan to Huntington Town’s planning board last Wednesday. Each home is expected to sell for about $1.5 million.

“We believe that the permanent preservation of that ... 21 acres of land really speaks [to] and helps with the impact there may be on any wildlife in the area and any character [change] of the area,” Robinson said.

A one-story building at the corner of the intersection is not included in the project site.

The plan received mixed reactions from residents. Some lauded the open space and backed the idea, while others expressed concerns ranging from how it will impact the local school district to the displacement of wildlife.

The planning board didn't make a decision; the meeting was intended to present the project to the public and get feedback from residents. The board left the comment period open for another 30 days for written input.

Much has to happen before the project can break ground, according to town spokesperson Chris Geed. It needs environmental and preliminary plan approval from the planning board, for instance, as well as approvals from Huntington’s town board.

If the project gets all necessary approvals, the houses will be built over roughly two years, Robinson said. 

Different from earlier proposals

Huntington’s zoning rules for the long-undeveloped property allow for single-family homes. Previous pitches for the site would have required significant changes to the zoning codes.

In 2015, for example, a proposal for “486,000 square feet of retail, office, supermarket, restaurant and fitness center uses” was withdrawn by developers because of “strong opposition from local residents,” according to a project document submitted to the planning board earlier this year.

And in 2022 and 2023, town officials declined to consider proposals that each included more than 300 housing units. 

Estates at Elwood is the first iteration of the project that wouldn’t require Huntington to overhaul those zoning rules, Robinson told planning board members.

“We’re not asking for any rezoning. We’re not asking for any density increases, and we’re not asking for any legislative changes,” Robinson said.

The single-family lots would range from about 21,000 to 41,400 square feet. The usual minimum lot size in the zoning is 40,000 square feet, but planning board members acknowledged that deviation wouldn’t require a zoning change.

Robinson said smaller lots were needed to preserve woods on the site. 

Mixed reaction

About a dozen residents spoke about the project last Wednesday.

Jill Finkelstein, a Huntington resident of 67 years, told board members, “I am supportive. I am glad that they are finally preserving half of the property." 

Others remained skeptical. James Tomeo, the Elwood school district board president, voiced concern about how the estimated 43 schoolchildren who would move into the homes might impact district finances. The cost per student, he said, is roughly $30,000.

Developers said the project would generate an additional $1.4 million in tax revenue, which equates to about $33,000 for each new student. The board also pointed out that the district has lost about 80 students in recent years.

Dale Sabatini expressed concern about wildlife displacement once the developers raze some of the existing woods. “Suffolk County has the highest tick disease level in the state,” she said. “Where are all of these animals going to go? On all of our front lawns?”

Others said they were worried about increased traffic and vehicles making unsafe turns out of the complex.

Robinson, in his response, said he expects that the preserved woodlands would absorb any displaced animals and that the developer is working with the state to build improvements on Jericho Turnpike to ease traffic concerns.

By Sam Kmack

sam.kmack@newsday.com

Sam Kmack covers the Town of Islip for Newsday. He is a graduate of the University of Southern California and previously worked as a city watchdog reporter in the Phoenix metro area, as well as an investigative journalist at the Arizona Center for Investigative Reporting.