Residents to Oppose Balsam Lane Variance Requests at BZA Hearing

A request for several variances on a Balsam Lane property in Levittown will go before the Town of Hempstead Board of Appeals Wednesday, with a number of residents planning to attend the hearing to speak out in opposition. 

The property is located at 123 Balsam Lane. The front of the property is the former Sam Jon's hair studio and faces Hempstead Turnpike, while the rear is located on the Balsam Lane residential street.

The variance requests include to "maintain the retail store and one apartment not permitted in LPRD district, waiving off-street parking with insufficient access, egress and back up space, special exceptions to park in front yard setbacks on Balsam Lane and Hempstead Turnpike and permission to park in the LPRD District, and a variance to install a dumpster with 6' high enclosure, not permitted in LPRD district," according to the hearing agenda.

Resident Gerard Ritter, who lives next door, said the owner has dropped a variance application for a multi-family. Ritter and the neighbors on Balsam Lane want the property restored to a one-family house with a fenced in backyard, a removal of the parking lot that they paved on Hempstead Turnpike side and a restoration of the house up to LPRD code.

"We’re just going to go down and try to fight it," Ritter said. "This place has been illegal since I’ve been there, for 32 years. There’s so many empty stores in that area, what does he need it for?"

Levittown Property Owners Association President Jim Morrow spoke out against the property at Tuesday night's meeting, warning that any approval of variances could set a precedent for other Levittown properties. 

"Balsam Lane is every other lane in Levittown," he said. "What happens to Balsam could happen to any other place.”

Cases will be called starting at 9:30 a.m. Wednesday in the Old Town Hall, located at 350 Front Street, Room 230, Second Floor in Hempstead. View the agenda online here.

Related Stories

Balsam Lane Building Plans Opposed by Property Owners 

Property Owners Seeks Variances at Former Hair Studio