About This Website

We are residents of the westside of Binghamton, New York. We began this website because in the Summer of 2007 the City of Binghamton granted Bates Troy Healthcare Linens, an industrial dry-cleaning plant, permission to expand into our high-density residential area.

As could be reasonably expected, the dry-cleaning plant began producing noises and odors that annoyed nearby residents. We fought back by launching a successful community campaign to decrease the noise. In the course of our campaign we discovered an alarming truth: the City of Binghamton gave permission to Bates Troy's expansion based on a negligent Zoning Board of Appeals review. In fact, we have identified a procedural error that may allow us to overturn the expansion permit granted to Bates Troy Healthcare Linens.

Our goal is to:

• Restore the quiet to our community by revoking Bates Troy's expansion permit. We believe this will also increase property values in our neighborhood.

Restoring the Quiet

Bates Troy should not have been given permission to expand their industrial dry-cleaning plant into a high-density residential area. We have determined that the City of Binghamton failed to comply with Article 12-B, Section 239-l of the New York State Laws.

Before the City can grant a "use variance", they must request a "Section 239 Review" from the Broome County Department of Planning and Economic Development. Now the city did request this review, but they requested it in February, 2007 -- before the entire plan for Bates Troy's expansion was available. Therefore, Broome County conducted their review without a "full statement of the proposed action". This is a crucial mistake upon which the permits can be revoked. The statute of limitations on this error (failure to refer a use variance to the county) is 6 years.

All this may sound complicated but it is actually very simple. The Bates Troy expansion involved three residential properties: 24, 28 and 30 Mendelssohn St. The 239 Review conducted by Broome County was only done on 24 Mendelssohn. No review was ever conducted on the expansion into 28 and 30 Mendelssohn St.

Evidence

The facts of the case are not in dispute. Broome County's Section 239 review was conducted in February, 2007. But Bates Troy's final plans weren't completed until May, 2007. Therefore, Broome County was not provided with sufficient information to make a full review of Bates Troy's expansion. We now have the Zoning Board of Appeals files to prove these facts:

• First, here is the proof that the Section 239 review was conducted in February 2007 and that it was only conducted on 24 Mendelssohn St. (Additional confirmation that the 239 Review was conducted only on 24 Mendelssohn St can be found in the Broome County Planning Department Annual Report 2007, page 10)
• Second, here is the proof that the Bates Troy expansion plan was substantially different on May 30, 2007 because it involved two new residential properties: 28 and 30 Mendelssohn st.
• Third, here is the proof that the Statute of Limitations is six years.
• And finally, the full Zoning Board of Appeals file is available as well.

Next Steps

We will take this case to court.

How To Help

If you would like to help, please email us at info@restorethewestside.org.

There are 0 days left to revoke Bates Troy's expansion permit.