A plan for the adaptive reuse of property at 1064 Wolcott Ave. in Beacon that has been one of two sites used by the Rose Hill Manor Day School is under review by the city’s Planning Board. The applicant is property owner JMARKMNG LLC.
The Day School shows that in addition to being at 1064 Wolcott Ave., it has an operation at 15 Havilland Road in Highland, New York. The school cares for children from six weeks to 12 years of age, and is open all year. It provides half-day, full-day and after-school care and is licensed by New York State Office of Children and Family Services, as well as the Dutchess County Department of Health.
The plan calls for repurposing two existing buildings and constructing an addition to the school’s existing two-story South Building to create a three-story hotel with 48 guest rooms to be known as The Inn on Spy Hill. There would be guest amenity spaces, a spa facility, and a 49-seat restaurant. The proposed project is located on a 1.77-acre lot.
According to Natalie Quinn of the Poughkeepsie-based firm KARC Planning Consultants who reviewed the plans for Beacon’s Planning Board, a total of 39 parking spaces are proposed onsite, with an anticipated peak demand of 62 spaces.
The developer proposed using valet parking to ensure efficient use of the available spaces and also arranging for additional off-site parking spaces.
Quinn told the Planning Board that the applicant should finalize the landscaping plan and lighting details and review materials and finishes to be used to help support the historic classification of one of the existing buildings.
“It remains unclear what specific exterior alterations are proposed to the existing historic structure as part of this application,” Quinn said. “The plans do not clearly distinguish what materials exist versus proposed, including whether new siding, trim, windows, roof elements, or other architectural features are being replaced or modified.”
Quinn cited code requirements for outdoor parking areas and recreational facilities for hotels to be screened with fencing, landscaping and/or buildings on all sides toward adjoining residential lots.
“Where hotel buildings are set back less than 100 feet from one-family residential lots, such buildings shall be suitably screened with planting,” Quinn said. “The proposed parking expansion and refuse area on the eastern portion of the site remain within approximately 20 feet of the property line abutting residential properties on Harbor Hill Court. The adjacent residential parcels appear to be topographically elevated above the project site and will look directly down into the proposed parking area, which heightens the need for effective visual buffering.”
Attorney Taylor Palmer of the White Plains-based law firm Cuddy & Feder told the Planning Board that the applicant responded to the comments with updated plans showing additional landscaping and lighting designs that will enrich the experience for hotel guests and people who go to the restaurant as well as providing screening for adjacent properties.
“Areas of butterfly and bird habitats have been incorporated into the landscaping plan, along with a labyrinth, water feature, and other decorative elements, with pathways and several outdoor seating areas located throughout the premises,” Palmer said. “After implementation of the landscaping plan, there will be approximately five times as many trees on the premises as currently exist.”
