Application at Bedell Dairy Farm withdrawn

A proposal to divide the Bedell Dairy Farm property into three separate plots in North Merrick has stirred quite the debate in the community for a number of reasons; the first, being that a living complex with three homes may pose dangers to the people living there, and two, because the property is 116 years old, and is part of Merrick’s history.

The Bedell family has a rich history in the Town of Hempstead. Henry Bedell, who established the farm in North Merrick was the son of Charles Bedell, who owned and operated a well-known dairy business, Atlantic Dairy, in neighboring Freeport.

The farmhouse at 1685 Meadowbrook Road, right next to the North Merrick Public Library, was built in 1907. The property also has a milk house, which is one of the last of its kind in Nassau County.

In December of last year, the Historical Society of the Merricks submitted an application to the Town of Hempstead’s Landmark Preservation Commission, with the hopes that the home and its history could officially be protected. In its current state, the home is without running water and electricity, but the historical society believes it can be restored.

But a proposal to re-imagine the space by a developer, Golden Kastle Homes, has caused some delays in the historical society’s campaign.

The developer’s application with the Nassau County Planning Commission to the divide the property in three lots isn’t without its faults. As previously reported by the Herald, the North Merrick Fire Department has said it may be unable to access the home planed to be set furthest back on the property. 

A letter to an attorney representing the developer from the fire department reads: “The North Merrick Fire Department cannot guarantee that they would be able to access the property you plan to construct and develop ... the materials you provided indicate proposed plans and measurements which the Fire District apparatus may not be able to navigate during an emergency situation.”

At a Nassau County Planning Commission meeting on June 15, the concerns regarding the fire department, as well as the pending landmark status decision, were addressed.

Howard Avrutine, a lawyer representing the applicant, said he does not represent the developer in regards to the landmark application process. However, Avrutine added that he was aware the Landmark Commission meeting that took place on June 20 could determine the fate of the property.

“The applicant is not inclined to spend funds or redesign or change anything with respect to the existing proposal,” he said. “If landmark status is granted, then that will alter the entire landscape as far as a subdivision is concerned, so to ask him to redesign is seems premature at this point.”

Avrutine asked that the application be withdrawn from the agenda of the planning commission, while the developer awaits news of the landmark status. By withdrawing the application from the calendar, the file itself remains active and can be re-calendared at some point in the future, at the request of the applicant.

During a public commentary period, attendees were concerned that if landmark status is ultimately denied, the developer may still try to build three homes on the property.

“This is not a good plan — it has no street access,” Richard Smith, president of the North Merrick library board said. “There is a landmark decision, and I don’t know how that’s going to come out. But you’ve got to the stop this three-house version that he has put in the plan.”

John Pinto, president of the Historical Society of the Merricks, spoke on the history of the property.

“It is a beautiful piece of property, and for the wrecking ball to knock it down would be just a heartbreaker for the community,” he said. “Being that I got in this game a little late, it’s my understanding that this petition should have never gotten to this level. There were certain things that should have been checked off, and more mainly the fire department access.”

This was the fourth planning commission meeting since November of last year in which the plans for the Bedell property had been on the agenda. Commissioners on the planning board did question Avrutine as to why the plan was not reworked to be safer and approved by the fire department.

Avrutine said it was simply because of the pending landmark status application.

“Depending on what happens in that proceeding, it will likely dictate what is done,” he said. “I’ll present a hypothetical supposing the landmark status is denied. Then my direction to my client, the applicant, will be we’ve heard all these concerns — let’s address them in a way that allows you to develop your property in a reasonable fashion that also addresses all of the concerns that have been raised, but it’s premature for that.

“I don’t want the commission to think that we’re simply going to come back here again, with the identical plan,” Avrutine went on. “That would not be the case, assuming that we’re able to proceed at all depending on upon the Landmark Commission’s decision.”

The historical society has received support from state and Nassau officials. County Legislator Michael Giangregorio wrote a letter to the Landmark Commission, citing the Bedell’s history in the development of Merrick, and what the property could become if preserved.

“The restoration and preservation of this historical landmark would allow the Merrick Public Library, which is located directly next door to the Bedell Farm,” he wrote, “to work in conjunction with the Bedell Farm to educate the public on important aspects of the history of Long Island.”

If landmark status is granted to the Bedell property — or even to just the home, and not the milk house — it’s likely that plans regarding the destruction of the farmhouse would need to change. And if landmark status is ultimately not granted, the developer’s application with the planning commission can be re-calendared for review.

The Herald went to press during the Landmark Commission meeting on June 20 at Hempstead Town Hall — for the most recent information regarding the status of the home, visit LIHerald.com/Merrick.