GN planners have Clover bias: lawyer

Anthony Oreilly

Attorney Paul Bloom accused the Village of Great Neck Planning Board of being biased towards a proposed 11-home residential development on Clover Drive, resulting in a near two hour argument at the board’s meeting last week.

Bloom, representing developer Frank Lalezarian, said members of the board had shown a “pre-judgment,” to the application by listening to outside influences, an assertion many of the board members took issue with.

Lalezarian is seeking to build 11 homes on a 3.1 acre plot of land on Clover Drive. He has already received a site-plan approval from the Village of Great Neck Zoning Board of Appeals.

If approved by the planning board, Lalezarian would still need approval from the Village of Great Neck Estates Planning Board, as the proposed site falls within part of that Village.  

Before the hearing took place, Village of Great Neck Planning Board Chairman Charles Segal recused himself for the hearing and his seat was taken by board member Raymond Iryami.

The reason for Segal’s recusal, he said in an e-mail, was that he is a “practicing attorney and a member of Jaspan Schlesinger LLP, which provides certain legal representation to Frank Lalozarian (sic), who has an interest in the application. I do not do any legal work for him personally but other Members of my Firm do.”

Bloom opened his hearing by requesting the board incorporate the transcript of the previous hearing, a sub-division application on Forest Drive, into the transcript of his hearing.

The reason for this, Bloom said, was to allow the planning board to “see what they said,” in the previous hearing so they may compare their approach to the similar applications. 

“There is a clear differential,” Bloom said. 

Another reason for wanting the previous transcript incorporated, he said, was because “there will be litigation.”

“If the planning board grants sub-division, there will be litigation…If in fact the planning board doesn’t grant sub-division, there will be litigation,” he said.

Iryami told Bloom they would take his request into consideration, pending counsel from planning board attorney Chris Prior. 

Bloom, who is a former chairman of the Great Neck planning board and former member of the board of trustees, continued in his criticism of the board, saying “I am saying that you are biased…Look into whether or not you are looking into the facts.”

Members of the board fired back. 

“I do take issue with this board not being fair. We take our disposition to the community quite seriously,” Iryami said. 

Bloom then went on to discuss the zoning board’s approval of the Clover Drive application, saying it was challenged in court and upheld by a judge. 

“That judge made a determination that the decision by the zoning board was valid,” Bloom said, stating the planning board could not reject anything the zoning board had already approved.

During the public hearing, resident Susan Applebaum expressed concerns about trees blocking an emergency crash gate planned for the development.

Bloom responded that the gate was not a “legal necessity” and had already been approved by the zoning board and the Nassau County Planning Commission. Bloom said the planning commission “was not concerned with that aspect.” 

Board member Allegra Goldberg emphatically stated she wanted Bloom to “show us that [the gate] will work.” 

Other members of the public brought up concerns over the proposed roadway leading to the homes. 

The proposed roadway is 25 feet wide, which, according to fire code, is not wide enough for a fire truck to turn around if necessary. 

Resident Bruce Decter called the proposed construction a “danger to the community,” citing the narrow roadway. 

Decter also said that a petition with more than 1,000 signatures from the Village of Great Neck has been signed to stop the proposed construction. 

Resident Dodi Spielman said she, and other neighbors, have legal “covenants,” on their property that would prohibit any construction from taking place. 

“Attempts to overturn the covenant were denied in court,” Spielman said. 

Prior said the planning board did not have the power to “adjudicate,” over covenant rights and could actually be sued if they stopped a site-plan application over covenant rights. 

Spielman said she would “like the board members to see the property” in person.

After the public hearing, Bloom extended an “olive branch,” to the board and offered to widen the proposed roadway from 25 feet to 26 feet wide, allowing for a fire truck to make a complete turnaround. 

The revised plan would also include a patch of faux-grass, which could be driven on. 

“That would have been nice two hours ago,” Iryami said. 

A new sketch of the plan was presented to the board and public. Board members asked if it changed the site plan application and if it needed to be heard again. 

A conclusion on that was not reached, as the meeting was adjourned to a later date by Iryami.

In addition to serving as chairman of the planning board and as a member of the Village of Great Neck Board of Trustees, Bloom is also a former chairman of the Village of Great Neck Architectural Review Committee and a former Village Justice, according to his website. 

Share this Article