NEW HARTFORD, NY — It has been on the minds of many residents in the Village of New Hartford.
Will a new hotel be constructed right in its heart?
The Village board moved one step closer to that becoming a reality at a special meeting Monday night, despite opposition from many community members.
“This is a village. This is a community, with a hotel, it’s no longer just a village or a community. It needs to stay the way we like it. There’s got to be other uses for that land, and I’m sorry he purchased that with the idea of having a hotel,” one resident said.
One homeowner, whose property will border the hotel, has concerns about the building’s height.
“That hotel, I’m going to be looking into the fourth floor. They’re going to be looking at me. Everyone has talked about cedars and putting things up to block it, so now, I am going to be looking at cedars and a hotel. Their roofline will match mine, and I’m concerned about that. The view I’ve had isn’t the greatest, but it’s not the back of a hotel,” the homeowner said.
But as another resident said, over time, everything must change.
“Anything put there would be an improvement. I know it’s going to be tall, there’s going to be other buildings in the future that will be tall in the village. The village is going to change as the world does, and there’s nothing we can do about it,” the resident said.
The planning board and Village board only approved in concept the plans to move forward with the hotel.
The board stressed there is a long way before the project is fully approved, with many unknowns, including whether the project can be brought to a referendum vote.
It has been on the minds of many residents in the Village of New Hartford.