One more month

By Linda Smith Hancharick
WARWICK — Neighbors around the 16 Elm St. property must wait another month for answers to questions raised at the October public hearing and any final decision regarding Yesterdays’ move to the site.
John C. Cappello, attorney for Yesterdays’ owner John Christison, requested that the Village of Warwick Planning Board adjourn the site plan approval that was first up on last Thursday’s agenda.
In his letter, Cappello said more time is needed to adequately answer all concerns by residents
“I am writing to advise you that we are working to gather the information and reports to appropriately respond to the comments made at the October public hearing,” said Cappello in the letter.
He said some of the items have taken some time to complete and analyze the results, including digging of new trenches and soil testing at the site.
Cappello also said there have been comments made by neighbors about the item being on the agenda in the middle of the holidays.
“Also, we have become aware that there were comments and emails submitted to the village board by some of the concerned neighbors making claims that we were attempting to manipulate the schedule to appear during the holiday season in order to frustrate attendance,” he noted.
“Therefore, in order to address all of those concerns and make sure we submit a full response, we are requesting that this matter be adjourned for one more month until the January planning board meeting.”
The planning board unanimously approved adjourning the matter to the Jan. 18 meeting. It took the same action in November, adjourning the matter to December at the applicant’s request.
Public hearing full houseIn October, the public hearing on the matter was moved from the village hall to the Warwick Town Hall on Kings Highway to accommodate the anticipated crowd. It was a good move since the much larger town hall was filled to capacity for that hearing.
At that October meeting, nearby residents of the site, which abuts residents on Elm Street, West Street and Van Buren Street, pleaded with the planning board members to not allow the project to proceed, saying it would have a devastating effect on their neighborhood, adding traffic, noise and light pollution as well as odors from the restaurant and Dumpsters. Their neighborhood, they fear, will be destroyed.
Supporters of Christison’s establishment have said the owner would not allow that to happen. They said he is a responsible business owner and good neighbor who would make sure noise levels are within legal limits. Christison has owned the current Yesterdays restaurant and bar on Main Street since 1984.
The new YesterdaysThe application is for a 3,600 square foot restaurant and bar with 2,000 extra square feet of outdoor deck seating on just over three acres of property at 16 Elm Street, across the railroad tracks from the Warwick Car Wash. It is currently owned by Frank Petrucci, Lynn Crane and Glenn Petrucci. The sale of the property is contingent upon Christison getting his planning board approval.
The next planning board meeting is set for Thursday, Jan. 18, beginning at 7:30 p.m., at Village Hall, 77 Main St., in Warwick.
What are your thoughts? Go to warwickadvertiser.com to share your thoughts about Yesterdays moving to Elm Street.