Town grants variances for Woodmere Rehab

After visiting the proposed construction site a few weeks ago, the Town of Hempstead Board of Appeals granted approval on the height and parking variances for the anticipated new five-story Woodmere Rehabilitation Center & Health Center on Franklin Place in Woodmere.

Wayne Edwards, the attorney for the center, said his clients are very excited about the approval but that there is a long road ahead since the construction process is just beginning. “We have to start drafting formal plans and work on financing arrangements,” Edwards said. “Then our plans have to be submitted to the New York State Department of Health and the Town of Hempstead for approval.”

Mitch Teller, the care center’s administrator, said he is looking forward to the new building and what it will bring to the community. “We’re delighted the Town of Hempstead approved the project and we appreciate the support of the Woodmere community,” he said. “We’re looking forward to the construction of the facility which will serve the surrounding communities for years to come.”

The new facility will have 280 beds, which is less than the 336 beds the center has currently. Parking for the center will increase, however, from its 110 current spaces to 134.

Teller said he his confident that the new facility will meet the needs of the staff and visitors. Dr. John Santopolo, the president of the Woodmere Merchants Association, said while a majority of the association’s members are looking forward to welcoming a new nursing home in the area, he is concerned about the lack of parking once the center is built. A planned six-story garage was scrapped.

“I was personally against the new nursing home because I’m their next-door neighbor and there will be no parking for my patients,” Santopolo said. “But the merchants association is happy to welcome them to Woodmere.”

Although there is no actual start date for construction, Teller said he hopes construction will begin within a year or so and should take about two years for the building to be completed. What will become of the old facility is unknown since the center does not own the current building on Irving Place. “We will give the buildings back at the expiration of the leases,” Teller said. “Although we don’t know what will happen to the old buildings, we know that they can’t be a nursing home.”