The developers for the proposed senior living facility at 12 Irma Ave. in Port Washington presented amended plans to an informal coalition of concerned residents Monday night intended to address their concerns.

The developers’ attorney, Kathleen Deegan Dickson, said they were hoping the amended plans would result in some “buy-in from the community” after their hourlong meeting at the Port Washington Public Library. 

Linda Maryanov, a coalition member and Port Washington resident of 28 years, said in an interview prior to Monday’s meeting that she was against the scope of the original development, not against the development overall.

The residents were not shown the new plans prior to Monday’s meeting.

The proposed plan, which initially included three full stories and a partial fourth floor, was changed to only have two full floors and a partial third floor. The original plan also included 18 units and 18 parking spaces, and now would only propose 10 units and 16 parking spots.

This amended plan, which has been submitted to the zoning board, is the first change presented to the coalition of residents since the initial plan was proposed.

Cheryl Littman, one of the organizers of the coalition and a Port Washington resident, said that the initial plans had her concerned about the traffic that additional residents might bring to an already traffic-dense street when each unit was only offered a single parking space, as well as environmental worries about the four-story building blocking the sun.

Littman said she was hopeful going into the meeting for a proposal that “works well for Port Washington and [their] neighborhood.” She said that she believes the coalition’s concerns are reasonable.

“We want smart development for Port Washington,” Littman said. “We don’t want overdevelopment where, whatever the project, results in a situation that our town can’t support.”

While Littman said she is not trying to “preserve the town in amber,” she said she does not want her quality of life to be negatively affected by the development and the potential safety concerns she has regarding it.

Maryanov said prior to the meeting that she wanted to be optimistic, yet was suspicious that the new plan would not be up to their standards.

The meeting, which consisted of civil communication between the two parties, ended without comment from the coalition about their thoughts.

While the developers presented plans that addressed the residents’ concerns, Littman declined to comment to the developers or to Blank Slate Media on their initial reaction to the changes proposed.

She said she wanted to discuss her thoughts with the whole coalition, since only a partial representation was present at the meeting, before making a statement about whether or not the new plan was adequate.

Deegan Dickson said the zoning board is interested in ensuring that the plans do not “alter the character of the neighborhood,” and the developers are responsive to neighborhood concerns. She said she is hoping to gain support from the residents or at least a withdrawal of their opposition.

The plan has to face the zoning board because it includes multiple variances, or aspects of the development that are contrary to local zoning regulations, for the structure’s height, parking and density.

With the changes, the development now only has four variances to present to the board: becoming compliant with the density regulations, the approved number of parking spaces and the height, and now seeking variances for the lot size, parking and building setbacks.

Deegan Dickson said that she is hopeful the plans will come before the zoning board at a March 22 hearing, but it may be pushed to April depending on the caseload of the board.