Apartments for hospital staff get green light

The Islip Town Board has conditionally approved a zone change for the property at 1991 North Montgomery Avenue in Bay Shore, allowing for the construction of 10 one-bedroom apartments and one 900-square-foot office unit at the property.

At the change of zone meeting held virtually on Thursday, March 18, applicant Mark Sagliocca presented the site plan to town board members.

“With the arrival of Northwell [Health] and the consolidation of physicians, the market for medical at this site has become somewhat obsolete,” Sagliocca said at the meeting. “We began to notice, from other rental sites, that a new niche market was emerging: mostly single tenants searching for more upscale, manageable, one-bedroom units, which encouraged us to have the design and layout of this building so that the building fit the tenant.”

The apartment tenants will likely be South Shore University Hospital employees, and the office space may be occupied by a real estate company, Sagliocca said at a planning board meeting in January.

The building was constructed in the early 1970s. Now vacant, it previously housed short-term tenants composed of single-family physicians, dentists, and an attorney who used to own the building. The property sits directly across from the hospital’s 1,000-car parking garage, which opened in September 2020.

Councilwoman Trish Bergin asked what products were being used to construct a portion of the building exterior.

Sagliocca, who manages the Chelsea Place apartments on Railroad Plaza and other apartment complexes in the hamlet, said the building’s siding will likely be a composite aluminum finish. He’s willing to partner with town officials to ensure the building has an “appealing” look.

Senior planner Sean Colgan said that the plans that were submitted to the town didn’t specify the materials that would be used, but a sample will be requested from the applicant before the elevations are approved.

Additionally, during an architectural review, Colgan said the board’s concerns will be brought before the applicant and be addressed.

The building’s exterior, Sagliocca said, was inspired by the Capital One bank on Sunrise Highway in Bay Shore. It uses commercial panels on the side that look like redwood. Stainless-steel panels would be implemented in the center of the structure.

Councilman John Cochran said he was concerned that a shadow study wasn’t conducted on the property, noting that one was completed prior to the construction of the nearby parking garage.

Mary Kate Mullen said parking is an issue that has been brought up by councilmembers and Bay Shore residents in the past.

A parking relaxation was part of the application. The property is proposed to have 21 parking spots, though approximately 23 are required considering maximum occupation, Colgan said.

Bay Shore resident Cheryl Nicholson, who expressed concern with the zone change at a Planning Board meeting in January, said there’s just not enough parking in the area.

“A bigger building will not be efficient,” she said. “We have lived here for 18 years and parking has always been a problem.”

A man who resides on N. Montgomery Avenue, the street parallel to the parcel, said he’s firmly against the entire project. He told the town board that he was shown a different plan than what is being proposed.

“You’re putting apartments near Union [Boulevard], down near the Bay Shore marina, they’re going up everywhere,” he said. “Why do you need more apartments right here, on the end of our short, dead-end block?”

In response, Sagliocca said that the plans that were shown to local residents are identical to the proposal. “It’s not going to be nearly as high as the parking garage, but it will be another 9 feet higher in the rear,” he said. “It won’t obstruct his view.”

Town board members are expected to closely monitor the application as it receives elevation approval and the applicant receives building permits.