Dana Lyon developers appeals for rezoning
Save the Lyon reps dispute Krog recap
By ROB PRICE THE COURIER-ADVOCATE

PHOTO BY ROB PRICE Dana Lyon developers Peter Krog and LaVerne Billings confer prior to Monday's meeting of the Bath village board.

BATH - Buffalo-based developer Peter Krog, who bought the former Dana Lyon elementary school building in 2002 with Bath businessman LaVerne Billings, appealed to the Bath village board last week to rezone the Liberty- Washington Street property for retail use.

Recapping the history of their ownership of the property, Krog warned his proposed demolition of the 1923 portion of the building is economically unfeasible without the rezoning in place. And claiming "a good part of the building" already has been vandalized, Krog warned further it will become a "white elephant" in the largely residential neighborhood if left undemolished.

He also invited members of the village board to tour the 1923 building with him at a unspecified future date.

Bath Mayor David Wallace, however, noted the village has been waiting for months for a revised environmental impact study from Liberty-East Washington LLC. The statemandated study is an assessment of the potential environmental impact of rezoning the Lyon property and demolishing the 1923 building. Without that document, Wallace indicated, the village board can take no action regarding the rezoning application.

Members of The Save the Lyon Commission also rebutted elements of Krog's presentation, although the developer and Billings had already left the room and could not respond to their assertions.

Commission member Walt Longwell claimed Billings recently told him the development company may revisit the idea of using the 1923 building for senior housing. "What we heard tonight doesn't sit well," Longwell told the board. "It's not the truth."

Lyon spokesperson Rosalie Niemczyk further claimed Billings had proposed deeding the 1923 property over to the Lyon Commission. The Commission was amenable to the idea, Niemczyk said, but then the matter died. "They did not get back to us," she insisted.

Krog in his own remarks suggested the Lyon Commission is not capable of developing the property. "We're not in a position to deed the building to the Lyon," he said. "To date I haven't seen anything that represents a use of the property."

Niemczyk disputed that, as well, claiming the Lyon Commission has raised grant funds of more than $175,000 and can mortgage an older portion of the overall building, which it already owns, for additional cash. The organization has proposed developing the original area for a variety of community uses.

"We're in very good shape financially and, yes, we're ready to move," she said.

As Krog left the meeting, he told The Courier-Advocate he had extended the tour invitation to village board members because the makeup of the board has changed radically since the Dana Lyon property became a controversial issue in 2003. Three new board members - Tom Sears, Mike Skelly and Jeanne Glass -- have joined the board since then.