The 180-acre property is home to UR’s laser lab, but is mostly undeveloped. UR officials are asking the Town of Brighton to rezone a chunk of that land so it can be developed.
DEVELOPMENT | BY JEREMY MOULE
UR making moves in Brighton A University of Rochester plan to build out its South Campus in Brighton is inching forward after several years on hold. Most of the 180-acre property, which is home to UR’s laser lab, is situated between East River and Crittenden roads. Besides the lab, it is generally undeveloped. UR officials are asking the Town of Brighton to rezone a chunk of that land so it can be developed according to the university’s long-range plan. The UR also wants the town to approve a new three-story Medical Center building on the South Campus, which would be used for outpatient imaging services and to provide some services for children with autism. University officials expect the building to be completed in 2015. The university is pursuing institutional planned development district zoning for the site, says Brighton Supervisor Bill Moehle, which would allow it to build residential, office, research, and clinical space. Last month, UR gave the town a draft environmental statement for the rezoning proposal. The Brighton Town Board will most likely refer the statement to a consultant this week for review. UR officials first proposed rezoning the property in 2005, and they included
that objective in the school’s 2008 campus master plan, says university spokesperson Sara Miller in an e-mail. But the proposal was put on hold when the economic crisis hit, she says. Moehle says that building out the site The University of Rochester plans to develop its South Campus will undoubtedly between East River and Crittenden roads (pictured). IMAGE COURTESY DIGITALGLOBE/GOOGLE impact the surrounding area. Adjacent neighborhoods have flooding University officials have also agreed and drainage problems, he says, so those to donate approximately 40 acres of land issues will need to be considered. on Crittenden to the town, Moehle says, Because of the potential impacts, the which will be used for a park. The land is town is treating the UR’s application adjacent to the Lehigh Valley Trail. as an incentive zoning proposal, which The university property is tax exempt, means that the town will want something but once it’s developed it will draw in exchange for the rezoning. The UR significantly on town services, Moehle and the town have already come to terms says. Town and UR officials are discussing on some details, Moehle says. some sort of financial support from the Traffic will be an issue, he says, and UR university to offset those costs, he says. has said it won’t put entrances to the site on Crittenden Road. The road isn’t designed to handle the traffic that would accompany the fully built-out campus, he says.
NYS drones
The Federal Aviation Administration says it wants to see drones sharing domestic airspace with commercial flights by 2015. And the FAA has designated six research sites around the country to help reach that goal, including one in New York. The sites will reportedly work on different aspects of drone use. Griffiss International Airport near Utica will be charged with determining how drones and passenger aircraft can avoid collisions, especially in the Northeast’s congested airspace. The FAA received 25 applications for the work, which is supposed to create 100,000 jobs and infuse the economy with $82 billion. —BY TIM LOUIS MACALUSO
Lej vacancies
The Monroe County Legislature has four vacant seats because the people elected to them have resigned for new local offices. Democratic Legislator Michael Patterson resigned to take a seat on Rochester City Council. And three Republican legislators vacated their seats: Mike Barker is now Perinton supervisor, Ciaran Hanna is on the Perinton Town Board, and Rick Antelli is Greece receiver of taxes. County Legislature Jeff Adair will have to appoint someone to each of these seats, and the appointee must be from the same party as the person who resigned. Typically, the party’s leadership recommends an appointee. Anyone appointed to the seats will have to run for election in November. —BY JEREMY MOULE
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