Controversial mixed-use project in Farmingdale needs more tweaks

Plans for a $25 million mixed-use project in Farmingdale that would add 54 apartments along Main Street is not quite ready for primetime.

A Monday public hearing to discuss Staller Associates’ proposed development at 333 Main Street has been pushed to February or March, according to Newsday.

The project was introduced in 2018, and included a plans for a theater. That was met with enough community opposition that the entire project was shelved and revised. Staller may revise further, but the latest version of the project does not include a theater;  the building will still be just over three stories tall. Called The Loft, it will include 5,300 square feet of commercial space, but the developer said it would not include a restaurant or bar, Newsday reported.

The revised project will also not require any variances; the original plans sought about a dozen variances from the village. Some residents have sought to rein in the village’s recent growth, fearing the suburban feel would be lost.

But economic growth remains a priority for many areas in Long Island. In October, the Long Island Regional Planning Council commissioned two studies to set its priorities for the area’s economic development, hoping to keep business it grabbed from New York City during the pandemic. [Newsday] — Alexi Friedman