Air Conditioning Units on Roof of Pepe Motors’ New Rochelle Mercedes Dealership Raises Concerns

Written By: Talk of the Sound News

3inarow

In 2012, a community activist in the Sun Haven neighborhood discovered problems with the site plan for Pepe Motors Mercedes dealership on Route 1 near Sun Haven Circle.

Air conditioning units placed on the roof of the since completed building were located at the back of the building, towards homes in Sun Haven.

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Pepe’s site plan was approved in Sept. 2010 with 17 conditions.

2010 Pepe Plan Approval (.pdf)

Condition #5 specified that the air conditioning units would be placed on the roof towards the front of the building along Boston Post Road) to “reduce the level of noise along the property line with the neighbors.”

Pepe received its temporary C of O just before January 1, 2012.

4 of the 8 industrial air conditioning units were placed at the back of the roof, in n violation of the site plan conditions.

Heyman e-mailed Lynn Brooks-Avni, Senior Planner in the Development Department on January 12, 2012 to alert the Planning Board to the issues with Condition #5.

From: Amy Heyman
To: lbrooks@newrochelleny.com
Date: 1/12/2012 12: 12 PM
Subject: summary
Attachments: rearwallsouth.jpg; rearwall2.jpg; 3inarow.jpg; rearwall.jpg; rearwall3.jpg; lookingtorear.jpg

Hi Lynn –

Today I advised you on the telephone of the existing situation at the new Mercedes-Benz building in New Rochelle. I’d like to summarize as follows:

I discovered on January 1, 2012 that, of the seven massive air-conditioning units installed on the roof of M-B, four are placed at the back of the building, closest to the neighbors. Please note that two of those four are each only about 20 inches away from the rear parapet wall.

The remaining three of seven units are at the front of the building, as specified in condition #5 of the conditions of site approval. Clearly, the aforementioned four units at the back of the building are in flagrant violation of conditions 4 and 5 of Resolution 75-2010.

Two of the units were turned on Friday, January 6 and remain on. Mind you, the compressors are not on, just the fans. The ioud, never-ending hum of those fans can be heard on Harding Drive, Stonelea Place, Boston Post Road, as well as in our homes with windows closed. The noise is unacceptable. We can only imagine what the seven units on at one time sounds like (not even considering the compressors).

On behalf of the neighborhood, I would very much appreciate your bringing this flagrant violation and excessive noise problem to the Planning Board’s attention.

Thank you for your assistance, and I look forward to hearing from you.

Amy

P.S. I am attaching photos of the units in this and another e-mail…

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At the June 26, 2012 Planning board Meeting, Pepe Motors went before the Board to seek an unrelated waiver regarding parking.

2012 Amendment to Pepe Plan (.pdf)

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A deal was negotiated where the parking waiver was granted on the condition that the four air conditioning units at the rear of the building be modified to lower the sound and/or fence them in with acoustical fencing.

The fencing has since been added.

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During the meeting Planning Board Chairman Doug Hocking asked Paul Vacca what happened when the plans were submitted. Vacca said the plans were reviewed by a city employee and the building permit issued, adding that the person is no longer a city employee.

Vacca was referring to Peter Warchya, a long-time official in the Building Department of the City of New Rochelle.

Warycha worked for New Rochelle for many years. He was hired by the City of New Rochelle in 1977 and was paid $115,057 in 2011, according to FindTheData.org. His title was Deputy Building Official, according to his LinkedIn profile.