Regarding your article “New Oasis public hearing delayed” in your issue of Nov. 28-Dec. 4:
Most residents of the Port Washington peninsula are likely unaware of a proposal before the Village of Port Washington North to bring 44 new homes, an untold number of cars, and who knows how many new schoolchildren, into our community.
Make no mistake: The proposed “New Oasis” development is not intended for retirees. The homes are not one- or two-bedroom senior citizen condos. Each one is approximately 2½ to 3½ times the size of a Mill Pond Acres condo.
They range in size from at least 3,200 square feet to more than 4,000 square feet. And unlike the adjacent Mill Pond Acres, five of the homes have no minimum age requirement.
To the extent there’s any age requirement for the rest of the homes, unlike Mill Pond Acres, it’s not set forth in the Zoning Code, and it’s not 62. Instead, the age requirement will be only in the Developer’s offering plan, and even then, it will require nothing more than that just one occupant be 55.
Many people aged 55 and older still have school-aged children. This proposed development lies within the boundaries of Guggenheim Elementary. More than 20 years ago, the president of the Board of Education spoke out against this project because of the potential impact on our schools. The school population only has grown since then.
Moreover, the plan calls for only one point of entry, and it is on Valley Road between Glamford Avenue and Pulaski Place, the extreme southern edge of the main Guggenheim attendance zone.
That area is a blind curve, making the entry point dangerous for all who pass by – not least for children exiting a school bus.
Port North has scheduled a public hearing on the New Oasis application for 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 11, at the Village Hall, 3 Pleasant Ave. Those of us who live on Valley Road, Radcliff Avenue and Glamford Avenue urge readers to attend, to express their views on the development’s impact on the larger community, and to follow this situation as it evolves.
