GRAND ISLAND, N.Y. — A day after receiving a surprising phone call regarding “Project Olive,” a massive warehouse and distribution center proposed for Grand Island, Town Supervisor John Whitney is still stumped as to exactly why developers have put the project “on pause" for now.
At a town board meeting Monday night, representatives of a firm that had sought approval for the project, and which is believed to be working on behalf of Amazon, were expected to talk more about it. But Whitney says just hours before, he got a phone call saying the project was being put on pause.
“That’s exactly what they told me,” said Whitney. “I don't have any official communication from them yet."
Until he does, he can only speculate on the future of the project, which promised to bring 1,000 jobs to his town.
“Pause doesn’t mean they’re gone… the may come back, they may withdraw… we don’t know," he said.
A lawyer representing Texas-based Trammell Crow Co. — which is proposing to build the 3.8 million square foot facility, with a foot print covering 17 football fields at a site off Long Road — did not return a phone message left by WGRZ-TV seeking answers as to why the decision was made or what it may mean for the future of the project.
Trammell Crow is currently building a similar sized facility on behalf of Amazon just outside of Syracuse.
The decision came one week after the town's planning board voted against recommending approval of the project to the town board. Specifically, it turned down the developer’s request to rezone the property to a “planned development district."
Such a designation would make it easier for the project to move forward because without it, any parts of the project that don’t conform to existing town codes would then be subject to further review by the town’s zoning board of appeals.
Already, the company is proposing variances for both the height of the structure and the number of parking spaces.
As the planning board serves in an advisory capacity, elected officials on the town board could still give the green light to the project once they get all the information they need.
However, according to Whitney, “Anytime a town board would go against an advisory board's recommendation there would have to be some answers as to why.”
The project encountered staunch opposition from a group of residents who raised concerns about additional traffic and the loss of green space associated with the plan. According to Buffalo Business First, that opposition may have been enough to convince Amazon to look elsewhere.
Those involved in opposing the project are also highly organized, according to the Town Supervisor.
“They retained an attorney and they are very smart people,” said Whitney. "I know some of them personally and they are indeed very well organized."
The president of the Grand Island Chamber of Commerce, which has supported the project, described the opposition as a “vocal minority” of town residents.
“The Chamber views this project as highly important to Grand Island and the community,” said Eric Fiebelkorn. “There are pros and cons to everything, but in this case the pros far outweigh the cons with the greatest good for the greatest many on Grand Island. We hope they have not decided to move and we’re really hoping they will be at the table to continue to negotiate for the development.”
