Tonight (2017-02-27) was a meeting of the Honeoye Falls Zoning Board.
I was mistakenly under the assumption they were not meeting tonight. But as I happened to be walking by the office anyways, I was only a few minutes late.
Tonight there was no formal agenda, as the group met to discuss a potential business and the code changes it would need. The business owner was the same couple that had shown up at last weeks Village Board meeting. Just like then, I missed their names.
To summarize their plan: They want to turn the existing two family residence into a restaurant downstairs, and their residence upstairs.
While no formal vote was taken, as no action was being taken, the board generally seemed in favor of the idea. Although a number of issues would need to be addressed to make it happen.
Those issues, and how to address them, were the second most talked about topic tonight. Things like how would it be rezoned (Traditional Village or Village Business), what impact this would have on the neighbors, do any of those properties get rezoned as well, what other variances would need to be addressed, etc…
The most talked about topic tonight was general history of the village. Those on this board have a long history with the village, and have a tenancy to talk about their pasts here. Can’t say I blame them, and it often adds useful insights on the plans being discussed. If there had been a more formal motion before them tonight, then the tangents around all sorts of historical side notes might have been distracting. Instead, it fit the general question of ‘what do we want to see in the future?’ Which led to exploring the past.
Lots of anecdotes, but I guess the only real take away is that the odds are good that in a year or so there will be a new restaurant at 12 Monroe Street. That and that certain members of the board feel too many people drive when they should have walked.
And those are my Observations From Audience Land for the February 27th, 2017 meeting of the Honeoye Falls Zoning Board.