The Village of Great Neck Board of Zoning Appeals adjourned discussion on a proposed 7-Eleven at 788 Middle Neck Road last week after a proposal by the village for the store to close between 11 p.m. and 6 a.m. was rejected by a representative of the Exxon Mobil Corp., the project’s developers.
“It is not possible for us (7-Eleven) to operate this location at less than 24 hours a day, 7 days a week,” said Ken Barnes, 7-Eleven’s regional development director for the Northeast United States. “By not being open 24-7, I will see a 25 percent drop in sales at this location.”
Barnes’ rejection of the board’s proposal followed more than an hour of discussion with the zoning board that focused on concerns expressed by residents in previous hearings. The hearing, which lasted to nearly midnight, will continue on Oct. 4.
A large majority of residents attending recent hearings on the proposal have expressed opposition to the project, citing safety concerns, amd potential increases in noise, traffic, crime and garbage associated with adding a 7-Eleven to their village. A number of residents attended the meeting to oppose the 24/7 operation, but few were able to speak due to time constraints.
Following a recent more than three-hour hearing, the village’s board of zoning appeals unanimously approved a “negative declaration” on the environmental implications of the Exxon Mobil Corporation’s plan to rehabilitate the site of an abandoned gas station and build a 7-Eleven.
The application includes plans to operate the 24-hour convenience store on a 0.39-acre property on the corner of Middle Neck and Steamboat roads.
The gas station, which closed nearly three years ago, had been in operation since 1937 with the existing 1,965-square foot building receiving a renovation in 1970.
Zoning board member Norman Namdar said the biggest objection of residents was the store’s plan to operate 24-hours a day, seven days a week, and asked if 7-Eleven would be willing to change its hours of operation.
“If this means that we either approve or disapprove your application, is it at all possible that 7-Eleven would agree to close from 11 p.m. to 6 a.m. in this location,” Namdar said.
Board member Victor Habib said he was willing to give 7-Eleven more parking spaces than they applied for on the lot if they agreed to operating less than 24 hours a day.
“If you make your hours less than 24/7, you got my vote,” Habib said.
But Barnes spoke of the ‘sacredness’ of 7-Eleven’s 24/7 history in rejecting the proposed change in hours.
“We have 47,000 stores worldwide, which 95 percent of them are operated 24 hours,” he said. “It’s part of our image, because people never have to wonder whether its worth it to get in their car and come shop with us, we’re always there.”
Board member Tedi Kashi responded to Barnes’ comment by speaking of the sacredness of the village, which he said is not operated in a 24/7 environment.
“If you want to become a part of this village, you should be open to accommodating our needs,” Kashi said.
Barnes said the store would be willing to limit the sale of alcohol by cutting off their sales Monday-Sunday from 11 p.m. to 6 a.m., which he said had never been done before.
He said 7-Eleven already had a program to address security and loitering – concerns also expressed by board members.
Barnes explained that 7-Eleven invented a safety and loss prevention program in 1976, which is now nationally recognized and saw robberies of 7-Eleven’s drop 70 percent since its inception.
“Statistically, my stores would be robbed once every 7.1 years,” he said.
He said the 7-Eleven safety program also included a height sticker at the entrance which helps identify individuals invovled in an incident and an Interactive security system, which allowd the store staff to push a button to alert a security company if necessary.
To prevent loitering, Barnes said that two or three cameras would be setup outside.
Another technique cited to prevent loitering would be ‘balanced lighting’ in the store, which would prevent a mirror effect at night from internal and external lighting (inside the store and parking lot lights).
“We create that balance, so you can see out and in very clearly,” Barnes said. If loitering is spotted, one of the store clerks would press the button provided and the integrated security company would come over the loud speaker to address the individual(s) who are loitering.
In the brief public comment period, Rebecca Rosenblatt Gilliar, a resident of Great Neck for more than 40 years, took issues with the rate of robberies stated by Barnes for his 7-Eleven stores.
“The burglary rate on my home is one every 44 years, and counting, maybe to 50 or 75. I like my rate better,” Gilliar said.
Gilliar also questioned two of the variances 7-Eleven is seeking, which are to permit a container of garbage to be maintained in a front yard, and parking in a front yard.
“I am not allowed to maintain garbage on my front lawn or park on the front lawn of my home, so why would the board allow the 7-Eleven company/Exxon Mobile Oil to do what the code does not permit residents to do,” Gilliar said.
Kings Point resident Richard Solomon spoke in favor of the 7-Eleven, and announced that he has completed a petition with more than 50 signatures signing their favor of the 24/7 location.
“I have a family here, we’ve been here for six years…we love it, and we’re not afraid of it being open 24 hours,” said Solomon.
While Solomon is not a resident of the Village of Great Neck, he said that he will submit the petition to the board.
The request for a 24-hour-seven-day-a-week operation is one of six requested variances filed by Exxon Mobil.
The others are:to permit a container with garbage to be maintained in a front yard, to permit a business use in a Residence B district, to permit non-residential parking within 10 feet of a residence district boundary, to permit parking in a front yard, and to permit a non-residential use abutting a residential use without the required fencing buffer and landscaping.
Prior to Barnes’ presentation to the board, attorney Paul Bloom, of the Melville-based firm if Harras, Bloom and Archer LLP, said parking on the site would be restricted in both the north portion and south portion of the property from 11 p.m. to 6 a.m.
He said there would also be no cooking on the premise to avoid odors, only re-heating of previously cooked food. And there would also be an area within 7-Eleven where police officers would be able to sit at a desk and table to utilize the facility.
“This would be so they have a place to go at any hour…they can get a coffee to help stay awake for their overnight shift,” Bloom explained.
