More hustle and bustle in Clarence
Development activity may be slowing down in some circles, but not in Clarence, where a pair of projects would bring 134 apartments, restaurants and shops to the Harris Hill area, along with the first development to a languishing business park off County Road.
Gateway 8080
Angelo Natale's Natale Development wants to create a mixed-use project at 8080-8112 Wehrle Drive, on a 14.5-acre vacant and wooded parcel of land east of Transit Road and west of The Dome. Dubbed Gateway 8080, the project would include apartments and 58,759 square feet of commercial space in six proposed three-story buildings.
Plans by GPI and Silvestri Architects show two private driveways leading into the site from Wehrle in a U-shape, leading up to a central green quad with five rectangular buildings arrayed around it, and connecting paths criss-crossing the quad with an unspecified round visual feature in the center. Each of those buildings has 31,410 square feet of space, with 8,046 square feet of ground-floor commercial or retail space and 20 apartments upstairs - 10 per floor, with 70% of the units as two-bedroom apartments.
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A sixth building, shaped like an L, would sit in the southwestern corner along Wehrle, with 60,840 square feet of space. It would include 18,529 square feet of first-floor commercial space along with a lobby at the inner corner entrance, with 34 apartments upstairs - 14 one-bedroom and 20 two-bedroom units, split evenly between the second and third floors.
The one-bedroom apartments range in size from 776 to 900 square feet, while the two-bedroom units have 937 to 1,200 square feet. Designs show the apartments would also have exterior balconies and views of the internal park, with metal railings and sliding glass doors. All units will have high-end finishes.
The L-shaped building features a facade of gray brick, white siding and brown wood. The commercial space in that building includes a 5,932-square-foot restaurant and three other spaces of 4,109 square feet, 4,146 square feet and 4,342 square feet, respectively. The commercial spaces are targeted at smaller to mid-sized tenants "that have similar business practices and that have synergy amongst each other," Natale said in an email.
Tennis courts and an outdoor pool sit just to the north of the L-shaped building. And more than 526 parking spaces would be arrayed around the site.
In all, the buildings with a total of 217,890 square feet of space, and the driveways, parking and other development would take up 13 acres of the site, which is already zoned as commercial. The developer acknowledged potential impact on wetlands because of new fill material, but "any wetland impacts would be mitigated."
Natale needs site plan approval, a special-exception use permit, and various other permits and approvals from the town, Erie County and the state. If approved, the project would be constructed in two phases, based on market demand, beginning in March 2025, with completion by August 2027. The first phase would consist of 74 units.
"We believe our mixed-use concept was well received, and the decision was to move forward," Natale said in an email, referring to an initial review by the Clarence Planning Board. "There were some concerns from the planning board which we are taking into consideration and modifying the plan accordingly."
A Clarence retail plaza
Developer Joseph Mattina of Clarence Center is proposing to construct a retail plaza on a 2.1-acre site at the southeast corner of County Road and James Ryan Parkway.
That's a piece of the larger Cimato Family Business Park, formerly Lakeside Industrial Park, a previously approved commercial project with power lines and a short dedicated roadway - James Ryan Parkway - but nothing more than meadows and tall grasses beyond that.
Mattina is buying five of the 11 lots from Cimato & Sons that comprise the planned 5.1-acre park on both sides of James Ryan, along with a stormwater detention basin lot with a pond, and then wants to combine them into three parcels.
One of them, including the detention basin, would be used for Mattina Development's new project, a 12,288-square-foot "pole barn"-style retail plaza, with two driveway entrances off James Ryan.
The long, one-story, multi-tenant building would include both retail and restaurant spaces. Its facade would feature brick veneer, pre-cast stone and lap siding, along with storefront doors and windows, while its peaked roof of wood-shake replica shingles would feature three cupolas with weathervanes and two dormers.
It would be situated perpendicular to County Road, with 80 parking spaces and the driveways facing James Ryan and County, and the L-shaped detention pond in the rear. The site is zoned as industrial business park, but commercial and retail operations are allowed.
"The creation of retail services in an industrial area may offer services and convenience to surrounding industrial uses, and may attract additional industrial users to the area," a town document said.
The site is adjacent to regulated wetlands, but the project would not alter them, according to documents from the town, which already determined it would not have a significant adverse impact and is consistent with the town's comprehensive plan.
A study determined that the project would not harm the habitat of a particular endangered species, because the project site doesn't include a suitable habitat for that species, which was not identified.
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Mattina is seeking subdivision and concept plan approval from the town Planning Board.
And next week, the Planning Board will review a proposal by SGC Development for a proposed 62-lot subdivision at the southeast corner of Stickler and Greiner roads.
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