Southtowns Record

Zoning Board of Appeals minutes — July 21, 2026

Government
Town of Orchard Park
Board
Zoning Board of Appeals
Meeting
Jul 21, 2026
Posted by publisher
Aug 24, 2026
Kind
Minutes
Topics
Zoning and land use, Water, sewer and drainage

Original document

Text · page 7 of 9

ZBA Mtg. #06  Regular Mtg. #06  July 21, 2026  Page 7

  2. There will not be an undesirable change in the character of the neighborhood, or a detriment to nearby
  properties created.
  3. The benefit sought cannot be achieved in another way, other than the granting of the Variance.
  4. The request is not substantial.
  5. There will not be an adverse effect or impact on the physical or environmental conditions of the neigh-
  borhood or district.
  6. The difficulty is self-created, however that does not preclude the granting of the Variance.
  7. There will be a properly installed engineered underground drainage system throughout both parking lots
  to effectively manage the stormwater runoff.
  8. The Applicant will clearly identify and provide an appropriate snow storage plan that ensures snow will
  not be piled against neighboring residential properties.
  9. The Applicant will install a six (6) foot high wooden property fence along the property line to help protect
  privacy, reduce the light intrusion, and to provide a buffer between the commercial parking and the resi-
  dential homes there.
  THE VOTE ON THE MOTION BEING:
  METZ  AYE
  BOWERS  AYE
  MATEER  AYE
  SZALKOWSKI  AYE
  The MOTION was UNANIMOUSLY APPROVED.

8. ZBA File # 24-26, 9274 Group Inc, 0 South Benzing Road, Zoned DR-2, (Part of Farm Lot 29, Township 10,
  Range 7, SBL #161.06-1-2). Requests a Use Variance to construct a flex use industrial building in a DR-2
  Zone. Permitted uses in this DR-2 Zone do not include Flex use industrial buildings. §144-9A, Schedule of Use
  Controls. Attachment 14-A.
  APPEARANCE:  Sean Hopkins, Attorney
  Luis Rodriguez, Applicant
  The Chair confirmed that the Applicants wished to have their case heard tonight.
  The Applicants presented a PowerPoint presentation. The site is 9.75 +/- acres. The only vehicular access
  to it is via South Benzing Road. NYS DOT will not allow access onto Milestrip Road; it is a controlled access
  highway. The site was previously zoned I-1 and changed to DR-2 by the Town in January 2025. The project
  will also require Site Plan approval by the Planning Board. The proposed project is multi-phase. Phase 1
  would be Mr. Rodriguez’s business, composed of an 1800 square foot office building and a 6600 square foot
  single story commercial garage/flex building with an outside storage area of approximately 61,000 square
  feet.
  The Chair inquired as to what would be stored in that area.
  Mr. Rodriguez and Mr. Hopkins explained that there would be vehicles and dumpsters entirely screened in
  the back of the building, with an office building in front of it. Mr. Rodriguez’s construction business would
  be located in the office building. It would be an owner-occupied site. There will be future phases, generally
  flex commercial spaces. The other buildings are entirely conceptual at this point. Every effort will be taken
  to be good neighbors. Mr. Rodriguez explained his construction business. He founded it in 2012. Today he
  has 105 employees and approximately $45 million/year in revenue.
  Mr. Hopkins discussed the criteria necessary for the granting of a Use Variance. He stated that no other uses
  are economically viable on this site. In his opinion, the zoning of DR-2 does not work on this site; it was
  previously zoned correctly. The site owner, Ellicott Development (owner of 1093 and 9274 Groups) did not
  consent to this rezoning. It is not possible to connect directly to Milestrip Road. He emphasized that the
  Town has many protections in place- landscaping, lighting, sanitary sewer, stormwater management stand-
  ards- will all go through the Planning Board.